Coach Roles

The roles and responsibilities of a coach are much more complex than the average person might think. Aside from being a supervisor and teacher, coaches serve as role models, mentors and friends to their athletes. The coach/athlete relationship is unique and multidimensional, with the potential to positively or negatively affect an athletes performance. Interactions of coach/athlete relationships are mainly based on the coach and players performance, age and gender. Throughout every level of athletics in society today, the gender of a head coach plays a significant role in the development and mindset of his or her players and their skills overall.

Frankl, Daniel, and Donald G Babbitt. “Gender Bias: A Study of High School Track & Field Athletes'

Perceptions of Hypothetical Male and Female Head Coaches.” Vol 21(4), 0 Dec. 1998.
This study was attempting to investigate the effects of athletes and their coaches gender on gender bias.

The study population included 112 males and 104 female high school track participants aged 15 to 18 years old. The purpose was to test the effects of the athletes gender, and their actual coaches gender on their judgement of a new, equally qualified, hypothetical male or female coach. Respondents were first split into two groups based on the gender of the athlete. The athletes were instructed to react to the ten questions based on how they felt about a hypothetical coach. Both the hypothetical male and female coach are described as very successful, recent college track competitors with Masters degrees specializing in coaching. In a hypothetical analysis, athletes of male coaches responded more positively to a new coach as compared to athletes who were coached by females. The gender of the athlete and the gender of their real life coach showed that there was a notable effect with their interactions. The first interaction effect revealed that male athletes coached by males were more receptive of being told that they had done something wrong than females coached by either a male or a female. A second interaction effect revealed that male athletes coached by females were less receptive of being told they had done something wrong. Only one question in the questionnaire, referring to a hypothetical coach, demonstrated significant differences for male and female athletes. The

question was, "Angry if yelled at…” and females displayed more negative feelings toward female coaches than males did.

Navarre, Michael Jette (01/01/2012). "Male college soccer coaches perceptions of gender similarities and differences in coach-athlete and teammate relationships: Introducing the construct of relationship-performance orientation." in Male college soccer coaches perceptions of gender similarities and differences in coach-athlete and teammate relationships: Introducing the construct of relationship-performance orientation. (1-124-67124-2, 978-1-124-67124-6), (page 4613).
This study involved 15 NCAA DIII male soccer coaches who serve as a head men’s and women’s soccer coach. To evaluate the similarities and differences of gender in coach/athlete relationships, interviews were given to the male coaches in regards to the coach/athlete relationships on athletic performances. Coaches identified the same attributes for successful coach/athlete relationships with both male and females. The 15 coaches reported to have coached their male and female athletes similarly, despite noting differences in communication and leadership. Results revealed that coaches perceived their male athletes to be more performance oriented and their female athletes to be more relationship oriented. Coaches also perceived females to be more coachable and less competitive. Women also showed more interest in distributed leadership environments compared to men who were perceived to favor hierarchical leadership structures.

Jr., Mccormick, Harvey Charles (08/01/2002). "Strength coach-athlete relationships and self-efficacy.". Dissertation abstracts international. B. The sciences and engineering (0419-4217), 63 (2-b), page 1089.
This research examined 19 different colleges, 497 participants at the Division I level, on relational closeness between strength coaches and athletes.

Closeness was defined by Kelley's definition of relational interdependence and this states that closeness between two people may be assessed by the frequency, diversity, strength, and duration of their interactions. Participants were asked to evaluate a member of the strength and conditioning staff at their college. Coach and athlete gender, ethnicity, and age, and athlete self-efficacy were all examined and taken into account in the strength and conditioning domain. Athletes also took the Strength and Conditioning Self-Efficacy Scale, which determined the level of efficacy in the strength and conditioning department. While male and female athletes equally described strength and conditioning coaches as either supervisors or friends, male athletes scored significantly higher than female athletes on all modified RCI sub-scales, expressing greater behavioral closeness to strength and conditioning coaches. In addition, athlete age and length of the relationship all correlated positively with the self-efficacy measure. Results suggest that male athletes are more likely to engage in close associations with strength and conditioning coaches than females and that these close relationships both contribute to enhanced athlete self-efficacy. Coach ethnicity, age, and athlete ethnicity were not significant factors, though coach gender

did significantly influence athlete self-efficacy.

Manley, Andrew (01/01/2010). "Athletes' use of reputation and gender information when forming initial expectancies of coaches.". International journal of sports science & coaching (1747-9541), 5 (4), page 517.
This study aimed to investigate the impact of coach reputation and gender on athletes’ expectancies of coaching capability. Participants viewed and rated a total of two coach profiles. One coach profile was controlled and one of four test coach profiles were given. Male and female athletes viewed a coach profile, photograph and brief description of the target coach, before being asked to rate their expectation of the coach’s competency. Gender and reputation of the target coach were manipulated. An analysis of variance revealed that successful coaches were rated as much more competent than unsuccessful coaches. The female target coach was rated as much less adequate than the male target coach. Competitors detailed that notoriety impacted their anticipations more than sex. This demonstrates athletes anticipations of training competency are based more off of the mentor's notoriety and less on their mentors sex.

Officer, Sara A (12/01/1985). "Self-disclosure to male and female coaches by female high school athletes.". Journal of sport psychology (0163-433X), 7 (4), page 360.
This investigation examined the effects of sport team membership and coach's gender on the self-disclosing behavior of high school female varsity athletes. The outcomes show that the athletes disclosed the same amount to their male and female coaches and that this was less than they disclosed to either parent or to friends of either sex. Also, athletes on cross-country teams disclosed more than those on gymnastic, volleyball, and basketball teams. However, patterns of disclosure to male and female coaches were found to differ. First, subjects of disclosure to female coaches were concerned primarily with self-concept development and role clarification, whereas topics of disclosure to male coaches were concerned primarily with school matters and interaction with males. Although the amount of disclosure to the female coach was positively correlated with the athlete's disclosure to strangers, disclosure to the male coach was positively correlated with her disclosure to friends.

Sports become stereotyped as gender-neutral, feminine, or masculine based on ideas regarding gender, gender differences, and beliefs about appropriate participation due to gender. Sports labeled as feminine seem to be those that allow women to participate in accordance with the stereotyped expectations of femininity, such as being graceful and non-aggressive. Coaches touched on the point that the women's game is undergoing an evolution through which female athletes are becoming more competitive and starting to adopt orientations to sport that resemble male athletes. Overall, I have concluded that the gender of a coach does not play a significant role in the success of an athletes performance. Moreover, it depends on the coach’s competency and credentials, their ability to communicate with their players, and their abilities to adjust to different situations.