Background

This reading is primarily about identifying the members and levels of the fan subculture that marketing
professionals should target when offering products and services aimed at those segments.

The purpose of this paper is to propose a model for the behaviors of consumers engaged
in fan activity and test to see if that model simulates the movement of consumers among the proposed
levels of fan behaviors

The term fan is used as a general term for a person who is enthusiastically devoted to something or
somebody, such as a band, a sports team, a genre, a book, a movie or an entertainer. Collectively, the fans
of a particular object or person constitute its fan base or fandom. They may show their enthusiasm in a
variety of ways, such as by promoting the object of their interest, being members of a fan club, holding or
participating in fan conventions, or writing fan mail. They may also engage in creative activities ("fan
labor") such as writing fan fiction, making memes or drawing fan art.

Findings The research indicates moderate support for the three-level model first proposed by Hill et al
which divides transition of fan hood from various levels viz. Dilettante, Dedicated, Devoted &
Dysfunctional
Examples of different types of fan behavior
1. Harley Owners Group(Devoted Fan behavior):- It is a sponsored community
marketing club, operated by Harley-Davidson for enthusiasts of that brand's motorcycles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW8LZwsd2PA

2. Hindi movie FAN of Shahrukh khan(Dysfunctional fan behavior):-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkS_Ar0Yad0&spfreload=10

3. Sudhir kumar chaudhary (Dedicated Fan bahaviour):- He is widely recognized for attending
every home match the Indian team has played since 2003.[For some overseas tours, he also
collects funds from the cricket loving public
 Levels of Fanaticism
Dilettante Dedicated
Fan behaviour constrained by time factor and At dedicated level, the fan adjusts their lifestyle
social impetus to watch a program, collects items related to
Dysfunctional area of interest
The individual becomes so obsessed with the Devoted
subject that he gets involved in antisocial Fans make major changes to their lifestyles in
activities order to actively pursue the area of interest

Level Harry Potter Theoretical Models of Movement

Dilettante Read the novels once

Dedicated Discussing with friends

regularly
Devoted Writing fan fiction

Dysfunctional Stalking Emma Watson

 Research Methodology
Objective Sample Compostion
To check whether if the fans intuitively follow Self-identified fans from 4 different fan subcultures:
the various theoretical models of movement Science Fiction (28)
through various levels of fanaticism Star Trek (25)
Role-Playing Games (35)
Sports Fan (3)

Qualitative Quantitative
(10-15 minutes Interviews at fan venues) (Surveys from fans at varying levels of involvement)

Interview Survey
10-15 minutes in duration Covers questions on Areas of interest/Demographic Survey/Soap
Interaction with participants helped Operas
frame quantitative survey Helps identify non fan responses in the sub culture
Multitrait-Multimethod matrix
Multiple traits are used in this model to examine similar
and dissimilar traits.
Multiple methods are used to identify the differential
effects caused due to method variance
 Overview of study employed
Parameters for
psychometric quality of
scale employed
Unidimensionality Reliability
Validity: Construct validity refers to the degree to
which inferences can legitimately be made from
the operationalizations in your study to the
theoretical constructs on which those
operationalizations were based. You might think
of construct validity as a "labelling" issue. When
you implement a program that you call a "Head
Start" program, is your label an accurate one?
When you measure what you term "self esteem"
Validity is that what you were really measuring?

Convergence: measures of constructs that

Test-retest Internal consistency Convergent
Pseudo-F, R square and cubic clustering
criterion (CCC)
values were calculated and used to
compare several cluster solutions.
It works by dividing a large set of points
into groups having approximately the
same number of points closest to them.
Discriminant
k-means clustering is a method of vector
quantization, that aims
to partition n observations into k clusters
in which each observation belongs to
the cluster with the nearest mean,
serving as a prototype of the cluster.
theoretically should be related to each other are, in
fact, observed to be related to each other (that is,
you should be able to show a correspondence
or convergence between similar constructs)
Discriminant: measures of constructs that
theoretically should not be related to each other are,
in fact, observed to not be related to each other (that
is, you should be able to discriminate between
dissimilar constructs)
Table of results
Discussion
The first-cluster analysis indicated some support for the presence of three discrete levels of
fanaticism, as opposed to several other numbers of levels.
The second analysis performed on the data to further explore the hypothesis used a combination
of hierarchical and non-hierarchical cluster analysis.
The importance of this research is that it lends empirical credence to the existence of previously
only hypothesized levels of fanaticism
Fandom permeates consumer culture, and as this research supports, exists at multiple levels of
intensity. The majority of fans exists at the dilettante level of fanaticism and is perfectly satisfied
to remain there. Ex startrek
The devoted fan often serves as an innovator or opinion leader, as the entertainment industry has
learned in recent years. Ex Comiccon, Germanys Eisen game fair
The original Star Trek television series was threatened with cancellation after the second year.
A fan-based campaign and support by fans at the dedicated and devoted levels also led to the
renewal of NBCs television series Chuckfor the fall of 2009.
Conclusion
These examples indicate the importance the development of the dedicated and devoted
levels of the fan base to the marketing practitioner, especially those involved in
developing media-driven properties, as the examples indicated above show that
entertainment properties, whether from sports, television or other media, have a much
better chance of surviving and growing beyond their introductory phase if the devoted
and dedicated segments of the fan population embrace them.
This research is one of the first empirical cross-cultural examinations of the movement of
an individual from non-fan to highly involved member of the sub-culture.
Much of the literature is not scholarly and focuses on fans in terms of one area of
interest. such as the sports fan, the soap opera fan, or the science-fiction fan.
This study has also provided researchers a preliminary model indicating the movement of
the fan. the model has not been completely tested, though the proposed main path has.
A more rigorous methodology and analysis of competing models will be needed to
resolve this issue
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