The Stereotypical Perception of a Spokesperson in a Sports Advertisement

This study examines the gender role of a spokesperson and a type of sports in the Match-Up Hypothesis. Two studies were conducted to test the effectiveness of sports advertisements for a gym membership: in a 2x2x2 experiment, the gender of the spokesperson, a type of sports, and the gender of the consumer are manipulated. Results indicated that females have a higher expectation of improvement when the gender of the endorser does not match the sport (Breaking the Glass Ceiling Effect). In contrast, males have a higher expectation of improvement when the gender matches the sport