ort context. Major theoretical approaches to moral behaviour seen in the literature have been discussed in this review namely, Social Learning Theory (SLT),
Goal achievement theory and Social Identity Theory (SIT).
Social interactions
Coach-athlete
In previous studies, supportive coach– athlete relationships have shown to be associated with more prosocial behaviour and less antisocial behaviours in adolescent athletes (Rutten et al., 2007, 2008). Further, Nucci and Kim (2005) identified that sports coach are considered as an important person within the sports context, who are in a position to influence antisocial behaviour in athletes. The coach acts as a natural mentor and is considered an important role model(Beam, Chen, & Greenberger, 2002).
Rutten et al. (2008), in his study investigated the influence of social moral atmosphere, social moral reasoning, fair play attitude and relational support on the prosocial and antisocial behaviours of soccer players from social learning theory perspective. Social learning theory emphasizes that human behaviours are learnt through modelling, that is, from observing the emotional reactions, behaviours and attitudes of other people (Bandura, 1977). According to this theory, supportive coaches are expected to act as a positive role model for their interaction with peers, and are more likely to teach their athletes social skills that may generalize to other relationships. Many studies have also employed the theoretical framework of Goal achievement theory to understand moral behaviours in sports ( Kavussanu, 2006; Boardley & Kavussanu, 2009). According to this theory, athletes in achievement contexts are motivated to demonstrate competence (Ames, 1992; Nicholls, 1989). Goal orientations and perceived performance climate are the two major constructs and individuals enter an achievement setting with a tendency to either be task (skill improvement) or ego-oriented (winning at any cost). The adopted goal of action is influenced by the two types of motivational climate namely mastery climate where the emphasis is on participation and learning and task climate where the focus is on outperforming others (Ames, 1984; Ames & Archer, 1988). The motivational climate is created by significant others such as teachers, parents and coaches (Ames, 1992). Another qualitative study among young competitive swimmers and soccer players (Biesta et al., 2001) investigated the influence of the coach on the athletes fair play attitude.
In these studies, participants were asked to indicate the quality of their
