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Cause-related marketing (CRM) has been a crucial concept of sport marketing literature in the professional sport context. However, there is little evidence available to address the effectiveness of CRM when the levels of sport fans&rsquo, embedded psychological characteristics helping others are considered. The present study aimed to investigate the influence of sport fans&rsquo, perceived CRM motive of a sport team on fan attitude and purchase intention for the team-licensed products, and the moderating effects of sport fans&rsquo, altruism on the relationships among these variables in the context of the Korean professional baseball league. A total of 164 Korean baseball fans participated in the present study. Results revealed that sport fans&rsquo, perceived CRM motive significantly affected fan attitude and purchase intention for the team-licensed products, and fan attitude also had a significant impact on purchase intention. Moreover, sport fans&rsquo, altruism had significant moderating effects on the relationships between perceived CRM motive and purchase intention, as well as team attitude and purchase intention for the team-licensed products. Consequently, the present study might demonstrate that professional sport fans with high altruism are more likely than fans with low altruism to evaluate the motive of a team&rsquo, s CRM campaign as cause-oriented and show their support for the campaign.

The purpose of the present study is to investigate the relationships among brand globalness, perceived values (i.e., functional, emotional, social, and altruistic values), and customer loyalty in the context of Korean professional golf tournaments. Data were collected from spectators (n = 198) of two golf tournaments organized by the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA). The results showed that golf course brand globalness positively influenced perceived value (i.e., functional, emotional, social, and altruistic). Perceived value (i.e., functional, emotional, and social) was found to be related to customer loyalty. We also found a mediating effect of perceived value (i.e., functional, emotional, and social) on the relationship between golf course brand globalness and customer loyalty. Theoretical and managerial implications along with suggestions for future research are discussed.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the differences in purchase behaviors, buying motives of secondhand clothing and the perception toward secondhand clothing products among the groups as determined by their gender and age. Data were collected by a pilot test and the final questionnaire survey administered to 450 subjects in the age range from 20 to 59, living in Seoul; 430 were used for data analyses. The results showed that 3 factors for buying motives (distinction, affordability, and quality & attractiveness) and 2 factors for perception toward secondhand clothes (positive and negative perceptions) were formulated. Women tended to buy more secondhand clothing products for themselves as well as their family, and put more importance on most of selective criteria than men did. The young were more likely to have negative perception and to buy at diverse places. Those having experiences of buying secondhand clothes showed more positive perception on such products. It is expected that this study provides basic information needed for secondhand apparel companies to develop their marketing strategies to increase customer satisfaction.

Poly[N-p-vinylbenzyl-O-beta-mannopyranosyl-(1-4)-D-gluconamide] (PV-Man) is a polystyrene derivative that contains mannose moieties and interacts with the mannose-receptor-carrying macrophage cell line. To clarify the specific interaction between the PV-Man and the macrophage cell line J774A1, PV-Man polymer labeled with fluorescent fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) was used to amonitor the specific interaction, which was visualized by confocal laser microscopy. We found that PV-Man strongly binds to macrophage cells, probably due to a specific interaction mediated by the presence of mannose receptors on the cell membrane. The fluorescence intensity of PV-Man and macrophage cells was up to 7-fold that of any other glycopolymers bound to macrophage cells. Moreover, cellular fluorescence intensity increased significantly with increasing incubation time and polymer concentration. Many macrophage cells strongly express mannose and mannose receptor-related receptors, and receptor-mediated gene transfer via the mannose receptor using a PV-Man glycopolymer is a versatile means of targeted gene delivery into these cells.