Team loyalty and its antecedents in the National Basketball Association: A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Lincoln University

Abstract

Sports organisations in many countries are now experiencing intense competition because of the recent rise of alternative leisure and entertainment activities. Developing effective marketing strategies to gain competitive advantage and maintain long-term sustainability has become a top priority for many sports organisations. Previous research findings suggest that maintaining customer loyalty is a time- and cost-effective strategy for sports organisations to gain a long-term competitive advantage in a highly competitive business environment. Therefore, the present research investigates team loyalty and its antecedents in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The interrelationships among several higher-order constructs are also examined in the present research.