National Identity and Athletes’ Success Pride Internationally- A Review

Grounded in social-identity and self-categorization theories and drawing on data gathered in the US General Social Survey (N = 2528), this research examines how demographic and media use measures associate with national pride, as experienced through the success of US athletes competing internationally. Bivariate tests and analysis of covariance models indicated greater levels of national pride among black males, older respondents, those who classified themselves as republicans and those with lower levels of formal education. Exposure to newspapers and television did not prove statistically significant in multivariate analyses, although bivariate tests revealed that those exposed most frequently to television tended to agree in significantly higher numbers with the statement ‘When my country does well in international sports, it makes me proud to be an American.’ Review and some comparisons to domestic athletes’ pride taking as well as limitations and recommendations for future research are offered.