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This research examines the efficacy of criminological theories for explaining variation in doping behavior in professional athletes. Self-report data were collected from a sample of 732 professional athletes from Iran. Regression models were estimated using theoretically informed measures to examine performance-enhancing drug (PED) usage. Results show that variables representing self-control theory, social learning theory, and control balance theory were statistically significant predictors of PED use and account for a sizable amount of variation in PED use. Findings suggest that criminological theory can contribute to our understanding of PED use by professional athletes, which suggests that sports regulators might benefit from examining the criminological and criminal justice literatures as they consider how to combat the sports doping crisis. The results also provide additional support for each of the theoretical traditions considered, demonstrating that these theories can be useful for examining noncriminal behavior (doping) and can be useful in non-Western contexts (Iran).

The use of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) is one of the most important issues in the world of sports. At its very heart, this issue speaks to athletic integrity and competitive fairness. When athletes engage in doping, they are committing acts of deviance. The main purpose of this research, accordingly, is to explain why athletes use illegal PEDs. Specifically, we use Tittle’s control balance theory as a conceptual framework. A sample of 852 professional athletes from Iran was used to test assumptions related to control balance theory, and the findings of the study generally indicated that the components of control balance theory predicted athletes’ doping behavior. In addition, the moderating relationships of the control balance model indicated that the relationship between the control deficit and PED use was moderated by the variance in self-control, opportunity, motivation, constraint, perceived benefits, and provocations. Specific results, policy implications, and study limitations are discussed.

Studies of antisocial behavior in sports are important, although most lack a theoretical framework. The current study examines the endorsement of antisocial behavior in a sample of coaches using social learning theory. This features a survey of 268 Head Coaches and Assistant Coaches in the Tehran Provincial League, Iran. Results indicate that differential association, differential reinforcement, definitions, and imitation have a significant impact on antisocial behavior, with differential association being the most influential construct. Higher education in coaches was associated with lower levels of antisocial behavior. This suggests that antisocial coaching behavior is learned in a similar manner to prosocial behaviors, and that desistance requires assessment of the learning process.

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