Consequences of teammate moral behaviour: Linking team moral norms with cohesion and collective efficacy

Abstract

Although researchers have investigated underlying correlates of moral behaviour in sport, research into the consequences of teammate moral behaviour on team dynamics has been neglected. To address this issue, we examined whether perceived team moral norms (i.e. prosocial behaviour toward teammate norms; prosocial behaviour toward opponent norms; antisocial behaviour toward teammate norms; antisocial behaviour toward opponent norms) were associated with collective efficacy directly and indirectly via cohesion (i.e. task cohesion and social cohesion). We found that prosocial behaviour toward teammate norms was positively associated with cohesion and collective efficacy. Moreover, prosocial behaviour toward teammate norms was indirectly associated with collective efficacy via task cohesion, but not social cohesion. Antisocial behaviour toward teammate norms was negatively associated with cohesion and collective efficacy. Prosocial and antisocial behaviour toward opponent norms did not predict either cohesion or collective efficacy. Taken together, these findings provide novel evidence for the relationships between moral behaviour and team dynamics, which could have implications on team performance.