Coach Education Research Articles

QOL-13. FROM SURVIVING TO THRIVING WITH A BRAIN TUMOR: THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO NEUROONCOLOGY MODEL FOR AN EMPOWERED AND ENGAGED PEER VOLUNTEER SUPPORT COMMUNITY

Abstract BACKGROUND Brain tumor patients often experience feelings of isolation, identity loss, and existential distress, and peer support can have a positive impact in these areas. Providing peer support, however, can be emotionally demanding and presents unique challenges for neuro-oncology patient volunteers, with little guidance available to address these issues. We describe an innovative program that supports volunteers and provides a roadmap for implementing peer volunteer programs in clinical neuro-oncology practices. METHODS In 2020, the UCSF Sheri Sobrato Brain Cancer Survivorship Program established an initiative to match brain tumor patients seeking support with trained patient volunteers. To address potential challenges, an optional, ongoing support community for volunteers was created by a health coach educator, with co-facilitation from a rehabilitation neuropsychologist and a social worker. The weekly meetings included supplemental training, personal check-ins, and group discussions. Volunteer feedback was collected through direct volunteer communication with the facilitator and an annual online survey. RESULTS From August 2020 through October 2023, 46 peer volunteers were trained in six cohorts. There were 116 patients requesting peer support. In total 132 volunteer-patient matches were made for an average of 2.87 matches per volunteer. Seventy percent of volunteers attended 11 or more meetings/year. Average attendance was 12 volunteers per meeting. All respondents to the annual online survey (n=31) reported a high level of satisfaction with the program. Volunteers highlighted benefits such as mutual support, impactful contributions, and personal growth and empowerment. Volunteers who reported higher levels of preparedness attended >11 meetings per year. DISCUSSION In our experience, patient peer volunteer programs show promise in reducing isolation and restoring purpose. This unique 3-year pilot suggests that ongoing group support and training is a plausible and effective way to enhance a peer volunteer program. Future efforts will focus on developing a structured curriculum for neuro-oncology patient peer volunteers.

Determining the Empathy Level of Coaching Education Students in the Sports Environment

The high level of empathy in the sports environment makes it clear that each individual in the sports factor displays a positive attitude in society and is positively influenced in terms of sporting success. This research was conducted to determine the level of empathic tendency of students in the Department of Coaching Education and to examine the effects of demographic differences on empathic tendency scores. The research group consisted of a total of 226 volunteers, 98 females and 128 males, studying in the Department of Coach Education, with a mean age of 21.66±2.26 years. The Empathy Scale in the Sports Environment was used in the study. Independent T-test, ANOVA and Pearson correlation test were used for the data collected in the study. According to the results of the study, there was a significant difference in the sub-dimension of emotional empathy in sports in relation to gender (p0.05). The significant difference was in favor of men. Although there was a significant difference between the groups when the total score of the scale was compared in the students' grade levels, no significant difference was found in multiple comparisons. A positive and significant relationship was found between sports age and emotional empathy in sports. These values show that emotional empathy in sport tends to increase with increasing sporting age. The findings demonstrate that the empathic tendencies of people who participate in sports are at a similar level regardless of gender, age and class variables, but as sports experience increases, so does the emotional empathy level. Applied training programs should be developed to improve empathy skills in sport science faculty and studies should be conducted to strengthen students' emotional and social skills in the sport environment.

Engaging Youth with the Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility Framework: Sport Psychology Graduate Students’ Experience in a Service-Learning Course

Purpose: Grounded in the framework of Hellison’s (2011) Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility model, this study sought to understand how graduate students learned to facilitate a youth physical activity program while participating in a service-learning course designed to promote sport for development. Methods: This study utilized a thematic narrative analysis approach. Researchers interviewed one cohort of Master’s students (n=5) studying counseling and sport psychology who participated in the service-learning course. Results: Identified themes included: (1) supervision and consultation, (2) observation, and (3) self-reflection, along with emergent sub-themes when relevant. Conclusions: This research provides insight into how future service-learning courses in the field of counseling and sport psychology can be developed to facilitate graduate student learning through a culturally conscious lens. Applications in Sport: This information can be valuable for sport psychologists, sport social workers, mental performance consultants, physical education teachers, and coach educators when considering how to promote the development of future practitioners.

Strategic Excellence in Padel: Design and Validation of Key Tactical Principles

The purpose of this study was to design and validate a guide to strategic principles in padel (SPP), offering practical recommendations for both players and coaches. Once the first version of the guide was developed by six relevant researchers in padel, 11 padel experts (all with a federation title as coaches and with experience as a coach and player) conducted a qualitative and quantitative assessment of the guide. Aiken’s V coefficient and confidence intervals were used to calculate content validity, and Cronbach’s α coefficient to analyze reliability. The adequacy and wording of the 15 principles initially designed were evaluated. One principle was eliminated for obtaining values < 0.91 in Aiken’s V coefficient regarding adequacy. The wording of the remaining principles was modified according to the qualitative assessments of the experts. The reliability of the instrument was acceptable, (α = 0.90). This guide provides a foundational list of strategic principles for padel, offering practical recommendations for players and coaches. It could also serve as a useful resource for federations to incorporate into coach education programs, supporting the development of tactical knowledge in padel.

Reflections on 20 years of the international tennis federation and olympic solidarity high-performance coach education scholarship programme: Implications for sports coach development

This paper reflects on the impact of the International Tennis Federation and Olympic Solidarity High-Performance Coach Education Scholarship Programme over the last 20 years. Coach education and development has been identified as key to the advancement of sport performance. This programme has been investigated using an online survey and followed up with semi-structured interviews, with participants and coach developers. Results from the survey suggested that the programme was well received by the tennis coaches and integral to their ongoing development plus the growth of tennis performance in their countries. Follow-up interviews revealed the three key themes of supportive environment, lifechanging experience and level of challenge contributed to the effectiveness of this programme and the subsequent development of tennis performance. This concludes with some recommendations for coach development programmes.

Sports-Related Concussion Among Physically Active Adolescents in the Southeastern United States: Effects on Mental Health During the Pandemic.

Sports-related concussions (SRC) pose risks to young people's physical and mental health. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we studied linkages between youths' SRC experiences and internalizing problems (depression, self-harm, and suicidality) among a representative sample in Southeastern state (n = 4,668 total, n = 547 reported SRC experience). Logistic regressions indicated significant associations between youths' SRC experiences and depression (AOR = 1.32, p < .05), suicidality (e.g., attempted suicide AOR = 2.68, p < .001), and self-harm (AOR = 1.97, p < .001) while controlling for being bullied or teased, gender, age, race, and COVID-19's mental health impact. Contrary to prior findings: (1) SRC associations with self-harm and suicide attempts were consistent across genders; and (2) African American students with SRC were significantly more likely to experience depression, self-harm, suicide planning, and attempts than peers without SRC. Results indicated mental health resilience post-concussion for Latinx youth. Implications advocate population-specific health promotion measures that address vulnerabilities and protective factors while emphasizing SRC education for parents, coaches, and young athletes for timely psychological evaluation and support.

Out of the shadows into the limelight: the impact of commercialization on the Swedish men’s elite football coach from the 1960s until today

Until the 1960s, the elite coach was shadowed by elected representatives and amateur players. Since then, the professionalization process has transferred power to the coaches. As this process is intertwined with the commercialization of sport, the aim of this article is to advance the understanding of the impact of commercialization on the elite coach in a Scandinavian context. Through the lens of governmentality, and the Swedish men’s elite football coach as the example, the study shows how commercialization has impacted the coach’s power and responsibilities in the club, the relationships with the athletes, and with external stakeholders. The study draws on the board minutes and annual reports of a football club, education material from the Swedish coach education programme, and interviews with six former coaches. The results show that the governmentality of commercialization has placed the coach in the limelight, that they are responsible for guiding the players’ actions to enhance their economic value, and are the club’s outward face to convince external stakeholders to invest in football.

Enhancing skill acquisition knowledge and practice design in elite level swimming: Effects of a six-week online coach education intervention

In response to calls for examples from sports settings that highlight successful collaborations between skill acquisition specialists and coaches, this study evaluated the effectiveness of a skill acquisition coach education intervention. After an analysis of practice by a skill acquisition specialist, which provided context to impact learning design, two senior coaches from British Para Swimming with no prior knowledge of skill acquisition principles were observed and interviewed. The intervention harnessed coach experiential knowledge by emphasising development in understanding of theory underpinning three key principles of skill acquisition (i) implicit learning, (ii), focus of attention, and (iii) contextual interference, and encouraging informal and experiential learning between sessions. Following the intervention, coaches had adapted their approach to practice design to incorporate theory-informed techniques. Coach observations and interviews highlighted a range of novel findings in skill acquisition. First, outcomes indicated the use of implicit learning techniques in the form of analogy or metaphor cues can facilitate learning for athletes with intellectual disabilities. Second, coaches reported the learning benefits of utilising external and holistic focus cues in the elite athlete setting. Finally, through an increased understanding of the learning-performance distinction, coaches described the benefits of incorporating contextual interference, which emphasised temporal spacing between learning events. The coaches’ interpretation and implementation of skill acquisition theory are discussed with reference to potential avenues of exploration in future research.

Variability in youth coach concussion education requirements across states.

Youth sports coaches play a critical role in proper concussion recognition and management, reinforcing the need for coach concussion education. As of 2021, most states have statutory and policy measures mandating concussion education for coaches. In practice, these mandates have been enacted through state legislatures and their respective youth sport governing bodies. Prior studies have found significant variations in the contents of state-level concussion risk reduction policies and have raised questions about their specificity. To expand on previous analyses to provide an overview of youth sports coach concussion education, highlighting variations in state policies and discrepancies between state mandates and youth sport governing bodies. This report utilized qualitative content analysis to characterize and compare U.S. state and governing body concussion education requirements for youth sport coaches. State concussion statutes were identified via the National Conference of State Legislatures and Open States databases, and governing body handbooks/bylaws were obtained via their websites. Two researchers independently coded the policies, and discrepancies were resolved through consensus meetings with additional youth traumatic brain injury experts. We found significant variability in educational requirements and their implementation. A majority (68%; n = 34) of states require the completion of concussion education training for coaches. Notably, many states designate responsibility for enforcement and implementation of provisions to another party but just four state statutes delineate explicit consequences for noncompliance. Additionally, only 12 state statutes extend mandates to noninterscholastic sports, limiting their reach. In most cases, independent sanctioning authorities implement more stringent policies than the minimum acceptable standard established by state law. Our findings provide a coded data set of youth coach concussion laws and independent sanctioning authority guidelines that can be used in future research efforts. Further research investigating a relationship between the strength of coach concussion education policies and relevant youth and adolescent concussion-related metrics is required.

“Maybe I’ll get some … new activities”: influence of an education programme on one grassroots youth soccer coach

ABSTRACT The purposes of the study were to describe (a) how one grassroots youth soccer coach was influenced by a progressive coach education programme (CEP) and (b) the factors that supported or negated the CEP’s effectiveness. Occupational socialisation theory guided the study. Aaron was observed during the CEP and pre- and post-CEP while coaching practices and games. Data were collected with two systematic observation instruments and four qualitative techniques. Descriptive statistics were computed for each category of the systematic observation instruments. Analytic induction and constant comparison were used to reduce the qualitative data to themes. The CEP had little influence on Aaron’s beliefs and pedagogies. Aaron’s professional socialisation was not powerful enough to overcome his acculturation or his organisational socialisation. The study indicates the need for lengthy CEPs, follow-up support and suggests coach educators should deconstruct their charges’ acculturation and mediate any negative organisational socialisation to which coaches may be subjected.

Coaching Endorsements, Certifications, Policies, and the Need for Reform in Florida School Sports: Why We Need to Lead the Change

The purpose of this article to the editor is to introduce the special issue and highlight some of the challenges that coaches and coach educators face today. Specifically, it provides an example of the current state of the coach certification system within Florida’s public schools. It identifies significant concerns, including outdated certification standards, insufficient training, low coach retention, and poor compensation. Practical suggestions for comprehensive reforms are proposed, including mandatory coach training, updated certification content, professional development, and increased stipends. These solutions aim to break the cycle of inadequacy in Florida’s coach certification system and enhance the quality of interscholastic athletics and the safety and well-being of student-athletes. The article calls for more coaches, athletic directors, and academic educators to take a more active role in policy reform.

Factors affecting coaching in higher education: a meta-synthesis approach

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to identify and investigate which factors affect coaching in higher education.Design/methodology/approachThe study employed a qualitative meta-synthesis method. Based on the seven-step method (Sandelowski and Barroso, 2006), articles related to coaching in higher education were searched in five databases between 2012 and 2022. After step-by-step reviews and implementation of the critical evaluation skills program, 34 articles were selected from 1,711 sources.FindingsFollowing the analysis of 58 obtained codes, seven sub-themes and three themes were extracted. The results showed that the key factors affecting coaching in higher education include individual (personal skills, personal attitudes, personal behaviors), structural (environmental contexts, organizational contexts), and managerial factors (planning actions, supporting actions).Practical implicationsThe present study provides a framework for policy-making, implementation, evaluation and development of coaching programs in universities and provides a great help and support for planners and administrators of higher education institutions who want to design and implement coaching for the first time.Originality/valueThe presented factors provide effective information to higher education institutions so that they can offer coaching intervention more efficiently and help them allocate resources in a more efficient and strategic manner.

Coach Training Participation and Athlete Life Skill Development: Findings from The US National Coach Survey

ABSTRACT Coaches are critical to the promotion of positive sport experiences, yet little research explores the relationships among coaches’ backgrounds and positive youth development (PYD). This study explores the relationships among factors such as coach preparation and coach and athlete outcomes among the 7,354 coaches involved in the US National Coach Survey. Prior participation in training focused on sport skills and tactics and PYD predicted greater perceived impact on athlete life skill development (RMSEA = .019, CFI = .998, SRMR = .005). Prior training in developing sport skills and tactics, life skills development, and mental health predicted higher satisfaction and success as a coach. Years of coaching, having been evaluated, satisfaction as a coach, prior training in life skills, and the value of life skill development were significantly and positively associated with greater perceived impact on athletes’ life skill development. Certification/licensure did not predict perceived impact (R2 = 20.1%). Implications for coaches, administrators, and coach education programs are drawn.

Effect of Coffee on Pulse Rate Rise

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of coffee on pulse rate. In this research method using experimental methods, the sample is Sports Coaching Education Students Class of 2021 totaling 16 (sixteen) people consisting of 5 (five) women and 11 (eleven) men which was held on May 29, 2023 at 15:30 WIB in the Sports Coaching Education Student Association room (HIMA PKO). It is known that the comparison of 60 pulse beats per second in students who drink hot coffee and cold coffee measures it in a standing position. The coffee used is ground village coffee with a dose of 1 teaspoon without sugar, using a dose of 220 ml of water, where there are 8 (eight) students drinking coffee using hot water and 8 (eight) students drinking coffee using cold water / ice water. The results using descriptive analysis and inferential analysis using data from IBM SPSS Statistics 22, the pulse rate of drinking hot coffee scored from the lowest was 60 pulse/second and the highest was 116 pulse/second, while the pulse rate of drinking cold coffee had the lowest pulse rate with a score of 63 pulse/second and the highest score was 100 pulse/second. So it can be concluded that drinking hot coffee makes the pulse rate increase the same as drinking cold coffee.

Decoding futsal offensive game moments: an in-depth qualitative study with expert coaches

ABSTRACT Purpose In futsal, coaches must make decisions in unpredictable contexts by continuously selecting the most relevant information to understand the game dynamics. This study aims to characterise and interpret what elite futsal coaches perceive as critical information. Specifically, per each game moment, it was intended to explore the coaches’ perceptions about what is the critical information presented. Methods Ten expert futsal coaches (48.30 ± 5.85 years; experience 18.10 ± 4.12 years) that currently coach elite futsal teams were selected. A total of 37 video clips were selected and exhibited. Qualitative data was obtained through semi-structured interviews and analysed by content analysis. Results The findings portrayed expert coaches identified and interpreted different informational constraints as critical according to the environment of play. In detail, to explain the attack, coaches perceived the information related with the defensive system. Also, most of the information highlighted was related with individual actions that sustains team’s behaviour in relation to the opponent. Conclusion The informational constraints that support coaches’ perception about each game moment were specific to each play circumstances. Thus, we emphasised the need for coach education courses to master the interplay between knowledge about and knowledge of the environment, in developing novice coaches.

Impact of coach education on coaching effectiveness in youth sport: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Sport plays a crucial role in the health and wellbeing of young people. While positive outcomes from sports participation are often assumed, studies show that these depend significantly on coaches’ attitudes and behaviors, which shape the sporting environment and influence participants’ experiences and outcomes. This study provides a systematic review with meta-analysis of various coach education program interventions (CEPIs), aiming to answer the question: How do CEPIs impact coaching effectiveness compared to standard coaching practices without such programs? Analyzing a total of 45 studies ( N = 180,658), this systematic review is divided into a narrative section followed by a meta-analysis. Positive effects of CEPIs were observed in 78% of the studies, seen in coaches’ knowledge gain, attitude shifts, and behavioral changes, as well as in athletes’ physical and psychological outcomes, both within and outside of sport. Overall, a significant moderate to large effect of CEPIs on coaching effectiveness ( g = 0.47, k = 264, 95% CI [0.36, 0.59]) was noted. Specifically, a large overall effect on coach outcomes ( g = 0.73, k = 71, 95% CI [0.47, 1.00]) and a moderate to large overall effect on athlete outcomes ( g = 0.38, k = 193, 95% CI [0.28, 0.47]) were observed. These findings generally support the positive impact of CEPIs on coaching effectiveness across the reviewed studies. However, the effects varied in magnitude, scalability, and sustainability for coaches and athletes. The discussion focuses on insights derived from CEPIs and future improvement strategies.

Opening doors to coach education in masters sport for lifelong sport participation

ABSTRACT Coach education directors of sport organizations are responsible for developing coaches to support quality sport participation. While adults comprise an increasingly larger cohort in many sport organizations, their programming, including coaching and coach education, is marginalized. The purpose of this collective case study was to outline directors’ perceptions of challenges and interests regarding lifelong sport participation through their perspectives of adult-oriented professional development for coaches in their sport organizations. Five directors of coach education attended webinars on coaching Masters sport and then engaged in follow-up interviews. Data were reflexively thematically analyzed. The results indicated that directors acknowledge differences in coaching adults and youth but a coaching focus on youth and high performance. They discussed the benefits of supporting Masters sport through quality coaching for lifelong sport participation and valued adult-oriented coaching approaches. Lifelong sport pathways could advance with shifts toward supporting Masters sport with quality coach education.

Exploring decision-making practices during coaching sessions in grassroots youth soccer: a mixed-methods study.

Decision-making ability in players during match-play is mostly acquired through practice activities with the same underlying structure as competition. However, researchers have not fully investigated how coaches design practice sessions at the participation level of the sport (i.e. 'grassroots'), or why they use a particular activity at a specific time point. This study explores the practice activities employed by youth soccer coaches at the participation level in England and aims to understand their underlying intentions. Twelve male coaches working with players aged 9-11 years across ten clubs in the London region participated. Thirty-five practice sessions were filmed and analysed to assess the proportion of time spent in activities involving 'non-active decision-making' (e.g., technical practices, fitness training) versus 'active decision-making' (e.g., small-sided and conditioned games, skills practice with realistic opposition). A brief on-field interview with the coaches about the session purpose took place immediately after each systematic observation. Coaches allocated similar amounts of time to activities with active (M = 41%) and non-active (M = 42%) decision making, with the remaining 17% being transitions. There was a common progression from non-active decision-making activities early in the session towards increased active decision-making later in the session. Interviews with coaches revealed a belief in the necessity of frequent non-active decision-making practices for technique development, despite potential disparities with improving match performance. Findings highlight a potential gap between scientific understanding and coaching practices for young soccer players at the participation level, suggesting implications for coach education programmes and the optimisation of player development strategies.

A Project-Led Framework for Coach Development in English Men’s Professional Football: A Premier League Case Study

Coach education and development programmes are central to the professional development experiences of sport coaches. Typically, these programmes are structured and sequenced in a linear pathway, and present an opportunity for certification which can be a prerequisite to practice and/or employment. Increasingly, as learning becomes viewed as part of a coach’s lifeworld, versus simply as a means to an end, education and development provision is beginning to reflect this. This article introduces and explores the Coach Development Institute Programme, part of the Premier League’s Elite Coaching Plan, which seeks to improve the quality of football coaching in English boys’/men’s football by engaging coaches in a 2-year work-based learning opportunity. Built around a core of project-based learning and assessment, coaches are supported as they examine a series of meaningful performance problems in their unique practice environments. Through this work, we demonstrate how theories, concepts, and principles from the adult education and assessment as learning literature might work as they are applied in a coach education and development context. With such sparsity of case-based examples like this within the peer-reviewed literature, we intend that our contribution could inform, promote dialogue, and raise questions about authentically supporting coaches beyond a minimum standard of practice.

University-Based Coach Education: The E-Portfolio as a Formative Assessment Tool of Student-Coaches’ Learning

Current research highlights the need for more studies focused on how high-quality assessment strategies can contribute to coach learning in coach education. The use of e-portfolios, as formative assessment tools, has shown to contribute to student-coaches’ learning in university-based programs, but studies on this topic are still scarce. The aim of this action research project is to investigate the potentialities and challenges of the e-portfolio as a formative learning-oriented assessment tool in an undergraduate sport coach course in Brazil. By sharing this, from the perspective of student-coaches and the assistant-professors of the course, we reflect on the evidence with the intention to both inform colleagues doing similar work and contribute to an emerging body of assessment in coach education literature.