COACH ETHICAL LEADERSHIP AND ATHLETES’ INTRINSIC MOTIVATION: EXPLORING THEIR EFFECTS ON ATHLETES’ DUALISTIC PASSION

Coaches’ ethical behavior and motivational practices critically shape athletes’ psychological well-being, intrinsic motivation, and emotional engagement in sport, influencing whether athletes develop harmonious passion (HP)—characterized by adaptive engagement and sustained participation—or obsessive passion (OP), which can result in stress, burnout, and eventual dropout. Although existing research has extensively addressed motivation and leadership in sport, limited empirical attention has focused specifically on how coach ethical leadership and athlete intrinsic motivation influence HP and OP among Greek racket-sport athletes. Addressing this research gap, the current study investigates these relationships through the theoretical lenses of self-determination theory and the dualistic model of passion. Employing a cross-sectional design, the study involved 184 adult athletes (141 males, 37 females) from Greek tennis and table tennis clubs. Data were collected using validated self-report questionnaires and analyzed using SPSS through Pearson’s correlation and multiple regression analyses. Correlation results revealed a moderate positive association between coach ethical leadership and HP, but no significant correlation with OP, indicating ethical coaching primarily promotes adaptive forms of engagement. Intrinsic motivation demonstrated a strong positive correlation with HP and a weaker yet significant positive correlation with OP. Regression analyses confirmed these patterns, indicating both ethical leadership and intrinsic motivation significantly predict HP, with intrinsic motivation as the stronger predictor, whereas only intrinsic motivation significantly predicted OP. These findings emphasize the necessity for structured training programs in ethical coaching and athlete motivation, psychological support interventions, and parent education initiatives to foster balanced, sustained athlete engagement.