Stress and Coping Experiences of U.K. Professional Football Managers During the COVID-19 Pandemic

in The Sport Psychologist

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Sofie Kent Carnegie School of Sport, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, United Kingdom

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https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9640-3626 *
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Tracey Devonport Faculty of Education and Health and Well-Being, University of Wolverhampton, Walsall, United Kingdom

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https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4808-244X
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Rachel Arnold Department of Health, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom

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https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0979-392X
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Faye Didymus Carnegie School of Sport, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, United Kingdom

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https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3854-1518
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1123/tsp.2022-0100
Keywords:
stressors; appraisal; coping strategies; well-being
First Published Online:
31 Jan 2023
In Print:
Volume 37: Issue 1
Page Range:
26–39
Restricted access

Guided by transactional stress theory, this study aimed to explore elite U.K. soccer coaches’ perceived stressors, the situational properties, appraisals, and coping during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study also aimed to explore any variation in stress experiences across football league standards A total of 13 professional first-team male U.K. association football coaches between 38 and 59 years of age (M = 43.00, SD = 6.94) participated in telephone (n = 5) or online (n = 8) semistructured interviews. Informed by the philosophical position of critical realism, Braun et al.’s six-phase approach to thematic analysis was used to generate competitive, organizational, and personal stressor themes. Deductive thematic analysis generated themes reflective of all situational properties of stressors identified by Lazarus and Folkman and an array of appraisal and coping strategies. Future research and recommendations for supporting coach performance and well-being post-COVID-19 pandemic are offered.

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