Coaches' Perceptions of how Coaching Behavior affects Athletes: An Analysis of their Position on Basic Assumptions in the Coaching Role

Abstract

This study explores coaches‟ beliefs about what they think their athletes expect from them as coaches in sport. A sample of 36 different statements representing different opinions about coach behaviours and how coach behavior affects athletes‟ motivation, performance, focus, and emotions, was presented to 23 Norwegian coaches working in high schools specialized for elite sports. The participants were coaches in various sport disciplines and were asked to consider and rank-order the statements by using a Q sorting procedure. The authors discuss their analysis from a Q methodical factor analysis. In general, the coaches share some common viewpoints that are represented in two different factors (consensus). Each factor represents congruence views about expectations in the role as a coach in sport. The dominant view (factor A) is that coaches believe that their athletes expect involvement leadership, whereas servant leadership was dominant in factor B; a view that only a few of the coaches shared.