Influence of Performance Enhancement and Administrative Tasks on Coaches’ Stress and Intentions to Continue

in International Sport Coaching Journal

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Wendy M. Rodgers University of Alberta

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Camilla J. Knight Swansea University

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Anne-Marie Selzler University of Alberta

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Ian L. Reade University of Alberta

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Gregory F. Ryan University of Alberta

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The purposes of this study were to, (a) assess motivational experiences of performance enhancement tasks (PET) and administrative tasks (AT), and; (b) examine the relationships of emergent motivational experiences of each task type to coaches’ perceived stress and intentions to continue coaching. In total, 572 coaches completed an online survey, which assessed autonomy, competence, relatedness, and other characteristics of PET and AT, intentions to continue coaching, and perceived stress. Two separate exploratory factor analyses (EFA) were conducted, one for AT and one for PET. This was followed up with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and SEM to examine relationships between emerging factors and stress and intentions. The factors generated for PET reflected ideas of autonomy, time conflict, and satisfaction, and for AT also included competence, effort, and job requirements. The resulting experiences of AT and PET appear to have different influences on stress and intentions, suggesting their distinction will be important in future work examining coach retention.

Wendy Rodgers is a full professor in the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation. She studies social cognitive theories as they relate to behaviour change in varying context with a particular focus on exercise rehabilitation settings. She has an extensive publication and funding record, and a long history of administrative and governance roles within the university. She is currently deputy provost at the University of Alberta.

Camilla Knight is a senior lecturer in sport psychology at Swansea University. Her research interests are concerned with understanding and enhancing the psychosocial experiences of children in sport, with a particular focus upon the influence of parents. She is co-author of Parenting in youth sport: From Research to Practice (Routledge, 2014) and has published widely on topics such as youth sport participation, parent-coach relations, parenting, and coach-athlete relations.

Ian Reade is the director of athletics at the University of Alberta and manages 15 full-time coaches that compete in Canadian Interuniversity Sport. He teaches a graduate course on Coaching Issues in the Work Environment for the Masters in Coaching program and conducts research on this same topic.

Anne-Marie Selzler is a PhD student at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. She has a master’s degree in physical education and recreation and specializes in exercise psychology. She currently holds institutional and national awards, including a Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR) award—the Fredrick Banting and Charles Best Graduate Student Scholarship.

Greg Ryan is an award winning collegiate volleyball coach who also coached with Canada’s Mens’ National Team at the FISU Games. He is now the athletics director at the University of Alberta-Augustana in Canada. He holds a master’s degree in Kinesiology (art and science of coaching) and is a chartered professional coach. His teams have won numerous conference and national championships.

Address author correspondence to Camilla Knight at c.j.knight@swansea.ac.uk.
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