Teammate Prosocial and Antisocial Behaviors Predict Task Cohesion and Burnout: The Mediating Role of Affect

Abstract

The manner in which teammates behave toward each other when playing sport could have important achievement-related consequences. However, this issue has received very little research attention. In this study, we investigated whether (a) prosocial and antisocial teammate behaviors predict task cohesion and burnout, and (b) positive and negative affect mediates these relationships. In total, 272 (M = 21.86, SD = 4.36) team-sport players completed a multisection questionnaire assessing the aforementioned variables. Structural equation modeling indicated that prosocial teammate behavior positively predicted task cohesion and negatively predicted burnout, and these relationships were mediated by positive affect. The reverse pattern of relationships was observed for antisocial teammate behavior which negatively predicted task cohesion and positively predicted burnout, and these relationships were mediated by negative affect. Our findings underscore the importance of promoting prosocial and reducing antisocial behaviors in sport and highlight the role of affect in explaining the identified relationships.

Prosocial and antisocial behaviour in sport

“…This behaviour may enhance the recipient's ability to deal with stress and can play a role in both the development and the prevention of burnout. Prosocial teammate behaviour negatively predicted burnout both directly and indirectly via (greater) positive affect, in team sport athletes (Al-Yaaribi & Kavussanu, 2017). Those players who perceived that their teammates displayed prosocial behaviour toward themduring training sessions and in matches throughout the seasonexperienced more positive affect; in turn, this positive affective experience may have decreased their vulnerability to burnout.…”

“…Similarly, the negative experience of antisocial teammate behaviour could diminish athletes' ability to cope with the demands of their sport (Kavussanu, 2012;). Antisocial teammate behaviour negatively predicted task and social cohesion (Pizzi & Stanger, 2019) and positively predicted burnout (Al-Yaaribi & Kavussanu, 2017) in team-sport athletes. The relationships with cohesion and burnout were both direct and indirect via negative affect, underlining the importance of affect as a mechanism through which antisocial teammate behaviour may influence cohesion and burnout.…”

“…Task cohesion refers to the degree to which team members are united in working together toward achieving team goals, whereas social cohesion reflects the degree to which team members like each other, get along, and consider one another to be friends (Eys, Loughead, Bray, & Carron, 2009). In two studies of team sport athletes, prosocial teammate behaviour positively predicted both task and social cohesion (Al-Yaaribi & Kavussanu, 2017;Pizzi & Stanger, 2019); in one of these studies, the relationship with task cohesion was partially mediated by positive affect (Al-Yaaribi & Kavussanu, 2017). In other research, participants reported that their social identity was strengthened when they perceived their teammates engaging in prosocial behaviours , while adolescent hockey players' social identity was stronger on days in which they experienced more prosocial behaviours from their teammates .…”

“…Indeed, antisocial teammate behaviour has been positively related to anger and negative affect and inversely associated with both effort and perceived performance in cross-sectional research (e.g. Al-Yaaribi et al, 2016;Al-Yaaribi & Kavussanu, 2017. The positive link between antisocial teammate behaviour and anger has been particularly strong.…”

Antisocial Behavior in Soccer Players: Using an Integrated Mediation Model of Personal Control and Social Learning Theory

“…Cheating is defined as an intentional rule‐breaking of the game to gain an unfair advantage over others (Kavussanu, 2019). These two behaviors have been investigated in recent years (Al‐Yaaribi and Kavussanu, 2017; Al‐Yaaribi and Kavussanu, 2018; Al‐Yaaribi, Kavussanu, and Ring, 2016; Guivernau and Duda, 2002; Hodge and Gucciardi, 2015; Hodge and Lonsdale, 2011; Kamis et al., 2016; Kavussanu, 2008; Kavussanu and Spray, 2006; Kavussanu, Stanger, and Ring, 2015).…”