An Empirical Study on Managerial Behaviors in Sport Organizations

The managerial behavior theory was applied to analyze sport organizations in this paper. The purposes of this study were 1) to clarify the factorial structure of managerial behaviors in sport organizations, 2) to examine some situational factors determining managerial behaviors, and 3) to investigate the influence of managerial behaviors on the effectiveness of sport organizations. Data were collected from 176 chairmen of the board of directors in sport organizations by a mail questionnaire. It contained 35 managerial behavior statements in daily job accomplishment and 45 items about organizational climate, organizational learning style, task trait, task environment, and organizational effectiveness. A factor analysis and multiple regression analysis were applied to analyze the data. Major findings were summarized as follows: 1) 8 factors (initiative of strategic innovation, external negotiations, consideration, initiating structure, supervision through information, fostering followers, performance emphasis, and upward influence) were extracted as sub-dimensions of managerial behaviors. 2) Some situational factors affected leadership behaviors (consideration, initiating structure, and performance emphasis) and initiative of strategic innovation. However, on the whole, the degree of the effect of situational factors on managerial behaviors was relatively low. 3) 7 factors (sub-dimensions) of managerial behaviors determined the effectiveness of sport organizations. Particularly, initiative of strategic innovation, fostering followers, external negotiations, and performance emphasis positively determined the organizational effectiveness of sport organizations.