What Makes a Fan a Fan?

Abstract

The objective of this chapter is to examine how consumers become fans of Apple products through hero worship of Steve Jobs. To bolster the understanding of this interesting phenomenon regarding how consumers establish psychological connection with Steve Jobs, the psychological continuum model (PCM) and social identity theory are applied as frameworks to assess the evolvement process of Steve Jobs' fans across four progressive stages. To allocate these fans into distinct stages that represent an increased psychological connection, the authors conducted a content analysis of web reviews based on two Steve Jobs online fan communities. The findings indicate that progressive development of fans can be classified into four stages of awareness, attraction, attachment and allegiance with discrete psychological, and behavioral outcomes.