Abstract
Organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) plays a critical role in group functioning and has been positively correlated with athlete experiences and performance in cross-sectional designs. However, researchers have yet to study these important inter-relationships over time. In this study, we examined how athletes’ trajectories of OCB, well-being, and subjective performance developed in relation to one another throughout a season. Questionnaire responses were collected from 516 professional women athletes (Mage = 23.8; SD = 4.5) representing 21 teams from the first and second divisions in France. Confirmatory factor analyses and temporal invariance testing were conducted to assess the validity and appropriateness of growth modelling. Parallel latent growth models were then used to evaluate the relationships among, and development of, OCB, well-being, and subjective performance across the season. The change in subjective well-being over time positively covaried with changes in OCB subdimensions: civic virtue (β = 1.06, p < .001, 95% CI [0.80, 1.32]), helping behaviours (β = 0.85, p < .001, 95% CI [0.38, 1.32]), and sportspersonship (β = 0.75, p < .001, 95% CI [0.22, 1.29]). The change in subjective performance positively covaried with changes in civic virtue (β = 0.06, p < .001, 95% CI [0.03, 0.09]) and helping behaviours (β = 0.06, p < .001, 95% CI [0.03, 0.09]). Thus, the more athletes reported an improvement in well-being and performance, the more they reported increased OCBs. Practically, and given the correlational nature of our analyses, interventions could leverage the reciprocal influence of OCBs to benefit athlete well-being and performance.
