Relational Effects of Athlete Transgressions

Many professional sports have been challenged by incidents of inappropriate or illegal behavior perpetrated by athletes. These transgressions, and subsequent media scrutiny, can impact on the relationship between the consumer and the sport organization. This study explores consumer expectations of athletes, response to transgressions and the potential impact on the relationship quality with the sport organization. Our work adds to the relational transgression literature by examining incidents involving employees with whom consumers have an indirect relationship. Our findings indicate that depending on the dispositional and situational attributions made by consumers, these transgressions can create conflict and have negative relational consequences.