Title: The extended match-up hypothesis model: the role of self-referencing in athlete endorsement effects

Authors: Seungae Lee; Wonyoung Kim; Euy-jin Kim

Addresses: Stan Richards School of Advertising and Public Relations, The University of Texas at Austin, USA ' Department of Sport Management, Wichita State University, USA ' Graduate School of Sports Industry, Kookmin University, South Korea

Abstract: The current study proposes an extended match-up hypothesis model. Previous literature on the match-up hypothesis model has largely focused on the match between a celebrity endorser and a product and reached a general conclusion that a good match plays a positive role in advertising effectiveness. However, prior research overlooked a crucial association in explaining advertising effectiveness - the association between an endorser and a consumer. Therefore, the current study added the association between a celebrity endorser (i.e., a female athlete endorser) and a consumer in the match-up hypothesis model, using the concept of self-referencing. The results indicate that self-referencing with an athlete endorser serves a significant role in predicting athlete endorsement effects.

Keywords: extended match-up hypothesis model; self-referencing; athlete endorsement effects; advertising effectiveness; celebrity endorsers; endorser-consumer relationship; athlete endorsers.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSMM.2014.073212

International Journal of Sport Management and Marketing, 2014 Vol.15 No.5/6, pp.301 - 321

Received: 19 Dec 2014
Accepted: 27 Aug 2015
Published online: 27 Nov 2015 *

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