The mediating role of emphaty in the relationship between sport character and moral decision-making among youth football players

This study was conducted using the relational survey model to examine the relationship between character, empathy, and moral decision-making attitudes in the sports environment. The sample of the study consisted of 1,025 male athletes aged 12–18 who play amateur football on the European side of Istanbul. Participants were selected using criterion sampling based on gender, age range, and being a licensed athlete. In addition to descriptive statistics, an independent samples t-test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were conducted to examine differences between groups. Furthermore, the study investigated the impact of sports character traits on moral decision-making attitudes among youth-level football players and the mediating role of empathy in this relationship. Findings revealed that positive character traits (honesty, compassion, sportsmanship, fairness) enhanced empathy levels and positively influenced individuals' moral decision-making attitudes. On the other hand, the variable of antisocial tendency was found to negatively affect these attitudes by reducing empathy and through direct pathways, with empathy playing a significant partial mediating role in these effects. Regarding demographic variables, it was determined that athletes whose parents had a history of licensed sports participation had significantly higher fairness scores. Additionally, a significant difference was observed only in compassion scores based on whether or not the athlete received parental support in sports, with athletes lacking support demonstrating higher levels of compassion. No significant differences were found in character, empathy, and moral decision-making attitude scores in terms of other demographic variables (receiving disciplinary punishment, parental support, enjoying sports, pursuing sports as a profession). The findings highlight that character development and empathic skills in sports play a significant role in young athletes' moral decision-making processes. In this context, the results support the development of recommendations to strengthen the ethical dimension of sports education.