Gender effects on spectators’ attitudes toward WNBA basketball

The primary objective for this research was to apply the concepts of multifactorial gender identity theory and test the effects of gender on spectators’ attitudes towards women’s professional basketball. The sample consisted of 466 women and 107 men. Results show that expressive traits and egalitarian gender-role attitudes extend our understanding of the relationship between gender and spectators’ affect for women’s professional basketball. The findings are discussed in terms of their theoretical and practical contributions, and recommendations for future research are proposed.