Relationship Between Empathic Skills of Field Hockey Players and their Prosocial Behaviors

It is the aim of this study to examine the relationship between empathic skills of field hockey players and their behaviors towards their opponent and teammates. The participants who voluntarily took part in the study were 150 players (75 females and 75 males) in the Super League of Field Hockey in the 2015-2016 season. The data which were collected via Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) and Prosocial and Antisocial Behavior in Sport Scale (PABSS) were analyzed using the Spearman Rank Correlation and Mann Whitney U test. The findings indicate that female players are more empathic than males, there is no difference in prosocial behaviors in terms of gender and empathic skills promote prosocial behaviors in sport. Thus, it can be concluded that empathic skills such as empathic concern, fantasy and perspective taking enhance and support prosocial behaviors towards their opponent and teammates in sport