Validation of the Sport Fan Model of Goal-Directed Behavior: Comparison to Theory of Reasoned Action, Theory of Planned Behavior, and Model of Goal-Directed Behavior

Abstract The Sport Fan MGB was developed by incorporating sport fan-specific variables to predict millennial sport fan consumption behaviors. However, the efficacy and usefulness of this Sport Fan MGB remain uncertain in comparison to other well-known behavioral models that include the original Model of Goal-Directed Behavior (MGB), Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA), and Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to further validate the Sport Fan MGB by comparing it to MGB, TPB, and TRA. To examine its relative effectiveness and efficiency, a non-nested model comparison was conducted with AIC and R-square values. The results indicate that the Sport Fan MGB significantly increased variance explained in various sport consumption behaviors over the MGB, TRA, and TPB. Specifically, it added more explanatory power to the desire to engage in each behavior for the millennial sample. Therefore, the usefulness of the Sport Fan MGB in examining millennial sport fan consumption behavior has been empirically demonstrated.