Eric MacIntosh

Eric MacIntosh researches and teaches organizational behaviour and international sport management topics including organizational culture, leadership, socialization, thriving, development, corporate image and brand.  His research delves into the functioning of the organization and the ways leadership can shape a positive organizational culture that is transmitted internally and into the marketplace.

Organizational culture remains a key area of MacIntosh’s research and teaching. The theory reveals phenomena that help shape the behaviour and attitudes of employees, athletes and volunteers in sport. A positive culture can motivate people, leading to higher productivity, better performance and greater satisfaction. Conversely, a negative culture can lead to low morale, high turnover and poor performance.

Professor MacIntosh has researched the culture within many prominent national and international sport organizations. Helping sport leaders make their organizations better for employees and the organization itself continues to drive his work.

He has been published in leading peer-reviewed journals and is a frequent speaker at management conferences. He is a North American Society for Sport Management Research fellow, as well as co-author of the book Organizational Behavior in Sport Management (2nd edition) and co-editor of International Sport Management (3rd edition).

Professor MacIntosh is accepting new students for thesis supervision.

• LinkedIn

• Sport management
• Organizational culture
• Leadership
• Safe sport
• Thriving

The concept of building a strong, authentic organizational culture that produces results drives Professor MacIntosh's research. This concept involves leadership and the ways core values are transmitted in daily work life, which has implications for staff, volunteers and stakeholders.

Over the past two decades, he has worked with many prominent sport organizations and their leadership to improve their culture. This work has focused on the internal organizational environment and the ways people experience it while striving for personal and organizational outcomes. His research considers the values, beliefs and assumptions that guide behaviour and help explain “why we do what we do” at work. Understanding these aspects of work can help build a thriving organization. This includes, for example, how sport organizations and their leadership create safe, positive environments for their stakeholders while also achieving individual and organizational performance outcomes.

Eric MacIntosh continue to supervise thesis and dissertation students with an interest in improving the experiences of people in sport (including athletes, employees, volunteers and consumers). His research in safe sport cultures is funded by the Social Sciences Humanities and Research Council of Canada.

Books

• MacIntosh, E., Bravo, G., Le Crom, C. (2026). International sport management (3rd Edition). Champaign, IL : Human Kinetics.
• MacIntosh, E., & Burton, L. (2025). Organizational behavior in sport management (2nd Edition). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics

Peer-reviewed articles

• MacIntosh, E., Doherty, A., Kerwin, S., Robar, J., & Kantartzi, I. (2026). Internal change agents’ perspectives on the challenges for safer high performance sport. Sport Management Review. 1-23 
• Mongeon, K., & MacIntosh, E. (2026). Policy reform and organizational change: A multi-level analysis of on-ice maltreatment suspensions in Hockey Canada. Journal of Sport Management. 
• MacIntosh, E., Doherty, A., & Kerwin, S. (2025). Informing a culture shift in high performance sport in Canada: athletes’ unsafe  and safe sport experiences. Sport Management Review, 28(3), 600–623.  
• Yang, Y., Gray, E., Kinoshita, K., & MacIntosh, E. (2024). Reframing the service environment in collegiate sport: A transformative sport service research approach. Journal of Intercollegiate Sport, 17(1), 123-146.
• Kinoshita, K., MacIntosh, E., & Sato, S (2023). Creating sport environments for youth to thrive: Understanding the mechanism to intentions to continue sport and subjective well-being. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology.
• MacIntosh, E., Parent, M., & Culver, D. (2022). Understanding young athletes’ learning at the Youth Olympic Games: A sport development perspective. Journal of Global Sport Management, 7(1), 1-20.
• Kinoshita, K., MacIntosh, E., & Parent, M. (2021). Social outcomes from participating in the Youth Olympic Games: The role of the service environment.  European Sport Management Quarterly. 1-19.
• Kinoshita, K., MacIntosh, E., & Sato, S. (2021). Thriving in youth sport: The antecedents and consequences. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 1-22.
• MacIntosh, E., Kinoshita, K., & Sotiriadou, P. (2020). The effects of the 2018 Commonwealth Games service environment on athlete satisfaction and performance: A transformative service research approach. Journal of Sport Management, 34(4), 316-328.
• MacIntosh, E., & Sotiriadou, P. (2020). The role of the Commonwealth Youth Games in pre-elite athlete development. Journal of Sport Management. 34(3), 260-269.
• MacIntosh, E., & Doherty, A. (2010). The effect of organizational culture on job satisfaction and intention to leave: An examination of the fitness industry. Sport Management Review, 13(2), 106-117.
• Crow, R.B., & MacIntosh, E. (2009). Conceptualizing a meaningful definition of hazing in sport. European Sport Management Quarterly, 9(4), 433-451.

Other articles

• Liberman, E., & MacIntosh, E. (2023). Elevating athlete voices: The path to safe sport in Canada. Sport Information Resource Centre.
• MacIntosh, E., Kerwin, S., Doherty, A. (2023). The challenges of shifting to a safer sport culture: High performance coach and administrator perspectives. Sport Information Resource Centre.
• Doherty, A., MacIntosh, E., & Kerwin, S. (2022). Fostering a fear-based environment: Coach behaviour needs to change in high-performance sport. The Conversation.
• MacIntosh, E., Doherty, A., & Kerwin, S. (2022). I feel (un)safe when…”: What athletes have to say about high performance culture. Sport Information Research Centre.

Research shows Canadian athletes feel (un)safe in sports