The relationship between role conflict and role ambiguity and resistance to change in sports businesses

The primary objective of this study is to assess the extent and nature of the association between role conflict, role ambiguity, and resistance to change among employees in the sports service industry. An additional objective of this study is to assess the extent of role conflict, role ambiguity, and resistance to change based on the demographic characteristics of the employees. The study was conducted using quantitative research methods, with a preference for the relational screening and causal comparison model. The study's sample comprises individuals employed in both public and private sports enterprises located in Istanbul. The sample comprises 230 participants who were selected using the convenience sampling method. The data collection for this study was facilitated through the utilisation of the Google Forms platform, which served as an online survey application. The participant was administered the Personal Information Form, Role Conflict and Role Ambiguity Scale, and Resistance to Change Scales. The acquired data were utilised in the SPSS software package, and the analyses were conducted using this programme. The application of independent sample t-test and one-way ANOVA analysis was employed in testing hypotheses, drawing upon distribution analysis, descriptive analysis, and parametric hypothesis tests. The Pearson correlation analysis was employed to ascertain the levels of correlation. In statistical analysis, a significance level of p<0.05 was conventionally regarded as statistically significant. Consequently, the analysis revealed that there was no statistically significant variation in the sub-dimensions of role conflict, role ambiguity, and resistance to change based on the gender variable. Based on the analysis of the marital status variable, it was found that there was no statistically significant variation in the levels of role conflict and resistance to change sub-dimensions. However, a statistically significant difference was observed in the dimension of role ambiguity. The analysis revealed that there was no statistically significant variation in the level of role conflict, role ambiguity, and resistance to change sub-dimensions based on the age of the participants. Moreover, the perception of role conflict, role ambiguity, and resistance to change exhibited a consistent pattern across all age groups. A statistically significant disparity in the degree of role conflict among sports business employees has been established based on their educational attainment. This phenomenon can be attributed to the disparity between secondary and postgraduate levels of education. The analysis revealed that there was no statistically significant disparity observed in the sub-dimensions of role ambiguity and resistance to change. A notable disparity in the degree of role conflict and role ambiguity was observed based on the professional experience of the participants. The observed variation can be attributed to the disparity between individuals with 1-5 years of experience and those with 6-10 years of experience, as well as between individuals with 1-5 years of experience and those with 16 years or more of experience, in terms of role conflict. Additionally, differences were noted between individuals with 11-15 years of experience and those with 1-5 years of experience, as well as between individuals with 11-15 years of experience and those with 16 years or more of experience, in relation to role ambiguity. The analysis revealed that there was no statistically significant variation in the sub-dimensions of resistance to change based on the variable of professional experience. The study has found that there exists a statistically significant disparity in the sub-dimensions of role ambiguity, resistance to change, cognitive response, and emotional response based on the responsibilities held by individuals working in the sports business industry. The observed discrepancy was attributed to the disparity in characteristics between the manager and the trainer, as well as between the trainer and the officer. The analysis revealed that there was no statistically significant disparity observed in the behavioural response sub-dimension concerning role conflict and resistance to change. The study found no significant correlation between role conflict and resistance to change subdimensions among employees in the sports business industry. However, a weak positive correlation was observed between role ambiguity and cognitive response, which is one of the sub-dimensions of resistance to change (r = .143, p = .030). Keywords: Role, change, sports business