Symbolic purchase in sport: the roles of self-image congruence and perceived quality

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to discuss the notion of "symbolic purchase" which has long been documented in the management and marketing literature. In particular, self-congruity theory has been examined in various domains of consumer behavior. However, little attention has been paid to the area of sport. In sport business, licensed-merchandise (i.e. team apparel) has become an increasingly important revenue source and it strengthens fan identity and brand loyalty. Therefore, based on the self-congruity theory, the aim is to investigate the effect of self-image congruence on sport team-licensed merchandise evaluation and purchase.Design methodology approach - A proposed model incorporates self-image congruence (SIC), perceived quality, and purchase intention of team-licensed merchandise. The reliabilities of the scaled measures were established in a pilot study (n=66). Data (n=260) for this study were collected at two professional basketball games using a convenient sampling method.Findings - The results of the structural model indicated that the model fits the data well and constructs of self-image congruence and perceived quality combined explained 43 per cent of the total variance in purchase intention. The findings revealed that both SIC and perceived quality had a direct positive effect on purchase intention while perceived quality also acted as a mediator between SIC and purchase intention.Research limitations implications - The findings imply that SIC can be useful in predicting sport fans' quality perception and purchase decisions on the team-licensed merchandise. Future studies need to replicate this study in different regions and using different sports (i.e. soccer, baseball, etc.).Originality value - The findings extend the literature by incorporating self-image congruence and perceived product quality in the purchase decision-making process. This is the first known effort to apply self-congruity theory in the spectator sport consumption context.