Athlete scandals are of broad and current interest in the sport industry and literature. Based on brand relationship theory, the present research, consisting of Studies 1 and 2, concerns the effects of consumers' self-brand connection to an athlete and their self-construal on their psychological and behavioral responses to an athlete scandal. The results of Study 1 (experiment) suggest that people with a strong self-connection to the athlete and interdependent self-construal experience a greater self-identity threat than people lacking these attributes. Study 2 (survey) reveals that people with a strong self-connection and interdependent self-construal are more likely to advocate for an athlete after a scandal. The results imply that some people maintain their support for an athlete involved in a scandal not necessarily because they are not influenced by scandal information but because they want to protect and restore their threatened self-worth.
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