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| Dr.
James J. Zhang attended Tianjin Institute of Physical Education,
China, for his undergraduate study in physical education. Upon graduation
in 1984, he was employed by the same institute as a lecturer in
sport administration. In 1987, Dr. Zhang received a studying-aboard
scholarship granted by the Chinese government and came to the U.S.
He completed his master's and doctoral degrees in sport administration
and measurement/evaluation at Springfield College, MA, a well-known
institution with a rich history in sport and physical education.
In 1993, Dr. Zhang went to the University of Houston, TX, where
he was enrolled in a post-doctoral study program for one year and
worked as faculty member for seven years. He came to the University
of Florida in 2001 and was promoted to the academic rank of professor
in 2006.
Dr.
Zhang conducts applied measurement and applied studies in two
areas: sport consumer behaviors and sport leadership. He adopts
an integrated approach to predicting sport consumption behaviors
and formulating effective marketing strategies through studying
market demand and competition, socio-motivation, service quality,
consumer lifestyle, and sociodemographic segmentation. He has
studied sport leadership with a focus on formal and informal leadership
associated with sport and recreation programs. Classical and contemporary
leadership theories, such as trait, behavioral, contingency, and/or
transformation, are usually used as research frameworks. He also
contributes to faculty and student research using his expertise
in research design, measurement, statistics, and management and
marketing theories. Following the leadership theories, Dr. Zhang
has been conducting the 21st CCLC Leadership Project to provide
effective leadership to after school programs through integrated
scientific (program evaluation), managerial (policy and compliance),
and practical (technical training and assistance) procedures.
The path-goal leadership theory is the primary framework that
guides the project's design and conduct. He has authored or co-authored
over 70 refereed research manuscripts and has made over 200 presentations
in these areas. He has served on the editorial board or as a reviewer
for such scholarly journals as Measurement in Physical Education
and Exercise Science, Journal of Sport Management, Sport Management
Review, International Journal of Sport Management, and Research
Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, among many others. To date,
he has obtained external funding of exceeding $6 million.
Among
many recognitions, Dr. Zhang is the recipient of 2005 Scholar
Award of the Southern District AAHPERD, 2006 Measurement and Evaluation
Council Honor Award of AAHPERD, and the University of Florida
Research Foundation Endowed Professorship from 2007-2009, one
of the highest recognitions of outstanding scholarship at the
University of Florida. He is most proud of being a committed Gator
fan, cheering for the reigning NCAA Division I football and men's
basketball champions of Florida Gators. He is a season ticket
holder of both teams.
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Research
Overview
For sport organizations,
the key to achieving organizational objectives consists of being more
effective than competitors in integrating marketing activities toward
determining and satisfying the needs and wants of consumers in the target
markets. Sport organizations are generally market-driven. Understanding
the cause and channel of sport consumer behaviors is the fundamental
process for designing and implementing activities that are purported
for the production, pricing, promotion, and distribution of sport products
and services to satisfy the needs and desires of consumers and to achieve
the organizational objectives. In the meanwhile, the management process
within a sport organization is also essential for the effective planning,
organizing, leading, and controlling of financial and human resources
in order to achieve the organization's internal (growth and job satisfaction)
and external (quality product and service) objectives. Quality leadership
coordinates the organization and its members, and ensures the organization
to move more rapidly and successfully toward its objectives.
1. Zhang, J.
J., Lam, E. T. C., Smith, D. W., Fleming, D. S., & Connaughton,
D. P. (2006). Development of the Scale for Program Facilitators to assess
the effectiveness of after-school achievement programs. Measurement
in Physical Education and Exercise Science, 10(3), 151-167.
Establishing procedures
to monitor the progress of an after school program is critical to achieving
these program objectives. As a quality control procedure, evaluation
is an essential part of the management process. After school programs
should have a continuous evaluation component built into the design
to improve program effectiveness and accountability, ensure student
and parent satisfaction, and identify necessary changes. Program evaluations
provide information for curriculum and activity adjustment, reallocation
of funding, improvement of facilities, staff development, decision-making,
and accountability. Properly conceived evaluation systems can not only
provide information on student achievement, but also improve the environment
in which students are engaged. The purpose of this study was to develop
the Scale for Program Facilitators (SPF) to assess the effectiveness
of after school achievement programs through four steps: (a) identification
of a theoretical framework, (b) formulation of the initial scale, (c)
test of content validity, and (d) conducting confirmatory factor analyses
(CFA). A comprehensive review of literature revealed that after school
programs commonly have four key objectives: (a) Scholastic Development,
(b) Social Behavior, (c) Caring Environment, and (d) Personal Inspiration.
The preliminary scale with 18 items was formulated by following these
objectives as the theoretical framework, along with conducting a review
of literature, on-site observations, interviews with program facilitators,
and conducting a test of content validity by a panel of experts. Research
participants (N = 2,995) were program facilitators, who were asked to
use the preliminary SPF scale to evaluate the program attendees under
their direct supervision. Adopting the Maximum Likelihood (ML) and the
Weighted Least Squares (WLS) estimation methods in the CFA, the four-factor
model was confirmed providing good fit to the data. Discussions were
made in the context of the scale development and its potential application
in evaluating after school programs.
2. Cianfrone, B. A., & Zhang, J. J. (2006). Differential effects
of television commercials, athlete endorsements, and event sponsorships
during a televised action sports event. Journal of Sport Management,
20, 321-343.
Corporations frequently
question which types of sport sponsorships provide a better return on
investment. Although TV commercials, venue signage, and athlete endorsements
are major promotional forms that are commonly adopted by corporations,
their differential effects have rarely been examined. In the sport management
literature, the effectiveness of these promotional forms is widely assumed.
However, there have been no true experimental studies that have established
the cause-effect relationship, or differentiated among the effects of
the promotional forms. Likewise, these are also pressing issues in action
sports. It would be very beneficial to know whether promotions are effective
in reaching Gen-Y consumers, and if so, to what extent, and which methods
work best. Obtaining this information could assist the organizers of
action sports events in communicating with corporations more effectively,
formulating better promotional and pricing strategies, and improving
their accountability for corporate investments. Additionally, information
on the differential effects could help corporations make informed decisions
when choosing a sponsorship package. This study examined the differential
effectiveness of television commercials, athlete endorsements, venue
signage, and combined promotions, as assessed by Generation Y consumers.
A 2 x 4 independent-group experimental design was conducted, consisting
of two experimental conditions (experimental and control) and four video
footage interventions with different promotional procedures (television
commercial, athlete endorsement, venue signage, and combined promotion).
A total of 253 subjects were randomly assigned into the eight groups.
The subjects responded to a questionnaire that measured brand awareness
in terms of unaided recall, aided recall, and recognition. A factorial
MANCOVA revealed that after controlling for differences in the consumption
backgrounds of action sports among the subjects, all four promotional
procedures effectively increased the brand awareness during a televised
action sports event. Television commercials were the most effective,
followed by combined promotion, athlete endorsement, and venue signage.
3. Zhang, J. J., Connaughton, D. P., & Vaughn, C. (2004). The
Quality of special programs and services for NBA season ticket holders
and their predictability to game consumption. International Journal
of Sport Marketing and Sponsorship, 6(2), 99-116.
The impetuous for
investigating service quality stemmed from trying to understand general
consumer displeasure with services. Another reason for the interest
in service quality was the mounting evidence indicating that providing
superior service produces a competitive advantage. Managers thus became
increasingly interested in improving the quality of services provided
to their customers. Given the importance of attracting and retaining
season ticket holders, little research has examined the quality of special
programs and services designed for season ticket holders. In an effort
to fill this void, a systematic research investigation appears necessary.
A systematic study would provide scientific evidence and practical direction
for professional sport teams to develop and implement special programs
and services. In this study, examining the first research issue (i.e.,
satisfaction of special programs and services) would provide information
on the expectations and perceptions of season ticket holders toward
special programs and services, and point out general areas for improvement.
The second research issue (i.e., predictability of service quality to
game consumption) would provide information on the importance and relevance
of special programs and services to game attendance, and highlight the
areas for immediate attention by professional sport teams. This study
was designed to examine the role of special programs and services for
sport season ticket holders in predicting their game consumption. The
following two research issues were examined: (a) satisfaction of special
programs and services, and (b) predictability of service quality to
game consumption. Participants (N=350) were season ticket holders of
an NBA team, who responded to a questionnaire that included 6 demographic
variables, 8 consumption variables, and 15 special program and service
variables in two versions: importance and perception. Findings revealed
that the season ticket holders deemed the special programs and services
important and satisfying. Four identical factors were determined for
the importance and the perception versions of the special program and
service variables (Representative, Benefit, Opportunity, and Socialization),
and three factors for the game consumption variables (Event Viewing,
Ticket Type, and Ticket Level). Three importance and perception factors
(Representative, Socialization, and Opportunity) were positively predictive
of the game consumption factors. Congruence between importance and perception
versions of Opportunity was positively related to Event Viewing. The
findings further emphasize the importance of providing quality programs
and services to season ticket holders, and pointed out specific program
and service areas for improvement.
4. Zhang, J. J., Pennington-Gray, L., Connaughton, D. P., *Braunstein,
J. R., *Ellis, M. H., Lam, E. T. C., Williamson, D. (2003). Understanding
women's professional basketball game spectators: Sociodemographics,
game consumption, and entertainment options. Sport Marketing Quarterly,
12(4), 228-243.
A comprehensive
review of literature has helped to reach the following three conjectures:
(a) there is a need to study the sociodemographic characteristics of
spectators at women's professional basketball games, (b) there has been
a general lack of investigation into the relationships between sociodemographic
variables and game consumption, and (c) entertainment and leisure options
as an aspect of lifestyle may directly or indirectly affect attendance.
These speculations require further examination through empirical investigations.
The purpose of this study was to examine the hierarchical relationships
among sociodemographics, lifestyle, and level of game consumption of
women's professional basketball spectators. Spectators (N = 2,048) from
five regular season home games of a major WNBA team responded to a questionnaire
designed to measure sociodemographics (10 items), level of spectator
consumption (6 items), and lifestyle (19 items). Conducting factor analyses
with principal axis extraction and oblimin rotation, one factor emerged
for the level of spectator participation variables (Game Consumption)
and four factors emerged for the lifestyle variables (Professional Sports,
Amusement Activities, Amateur Sports, and Recreational Sports). Regression
analyses and analyses of variance revealed that nearly all sociodemographic
variables and two lifestyle factors (Professional Sports and Amateur
Sports) were related to Game Consumption; however, hierarchical regression
analyses revealed that the lifestyle factors did not mediate the relationships
between sociodemographics and Game Consumption. The findings demonstrate
the importance of promoting women's professional basketball games through
sociodemographics, and during professional and amateur sporting events.
5. Braunstein, J. R., Zhang, J. J., Trail, G. T., Gibson, H. J. (2005).
Dimensions of market demand associated with Major League Baseball Spring
Training: Development of a scale. Sport Management Review, 8(3), 271-296.
The market environment
of Major League Baseball's (MLB) Spring Training (ST) in Florida, USA
has a number of unique characteristics including the laid-back atmosphere
at the games, weather, greater accessibility to athletes, and more affordability
when compared to regular season games. In addition, another important
characteristic is the fact that Florida is one of the top tourism destinations
in the U.S. and many of the spectators at ST games are on vacation,
and as such ST is a form of event sport tourism. To effectively market
ST games, sport marketers should be aware of the potential influence
of these characteristics in addition to the general consumer expectations
towards the core attributes of the game. However, we know little about
ST spectators. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to develop a
scale that measures market demand variables associated with ST games.
Through a review of literature, a test of content validity, and a pilot
study, the preliminary Spectator Decision Making Inventory - Spring
Training (SDMI - ST) was developed that included 42 items measuring
six constructs: Game Attractiveness, Game Promotion, Economic Consideration,
Schedule Convenience, Vacation Activity, and Nostalgic Sentiment. Research
participants (N = 465) were spectators at six ST games during spring
2004. The data set was split into two halves: one for exploration and
the other for confirmation. Through exploratory and confirmatory factor
analyses, and tests of internal consistency and average variance extracted,
eight factors, represented by 29 items, were retained in the final SDMI
- ST (Home Team, Opposing Team, Game Promotion, Economic Consideration,
Schedule Convenience, Vacation Activity, Nostalgic Sentiment, and Love
Baseball). Although the scale needs further development, the findings
provide a framework for ST game consumption. MLB teams, practitioners,
and academicians may adopt the scale to conduct research that assesses
the effect the of market demand factors on ST consumers.
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