Knowledge And Perception Of Psychological Principles Among Trainee Coaches (Students) Of National Institute Of Sport Lagos, Nigeria.

Abstract

The study investigated the knowledge and perception of psychological principles among trainee coaches, thereby drawing the attention of these future coaches to the usefulness and importance of sports psychology principles in the attainment of optimal performance in sport and also for them to be able to help their to-be-athletes attain their goal of winning in any competition. The sample used for this study was ninety- five ( n-75 males, n- 20 females) students of National Institute of Sports Lagos, the participants were selected using purposive techniques and were drawn from the three main programme of the institute i.e the advance coaching and training course, higher diploma in coaching and training course, and diploma in coaching and training course. The descriptive survey design was adopted using Knowledge and Perception of Sport Psychology Principles' Questionnaire (KPSPQ) to elicit opinions from respondents. The test-retest reliability value obtained for the instrument, using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Co-efficient was 0.86. Data was analysed using frequency counts and percentage for demographic data while Chi-square was employed in determining the level of significance between the hypothesized and observed values at .05 alpha level. The result of the findings revealed that the trainee coaches did not have substantial knowledge of sport psychology principles which may be a major factor that could bring about disputes between the team coach and the psychologist.