It's Not What They Do, It's How They Do It: Athlete Experiences of Great Coaching

TLDR

The study explores athlete experiences of great coaching. The authors conducted 18 in-depth phenomenological interviews with elite athletes across seven sports, aged 22–42, each lasting 30–90 minutes and transcribed verbatim. Analysis yielded 1,553 meaning units organized into six major dimensions—Coach Attributes, The Environment, Relationships, The System, Coaching Actions, and Influences—that characterize athlete experiences of great coaching.

Abstract

The primary purpose of this study was to explore athlete experiences of great coaching. A total of 18 in-depth phenomenological interviews were conducted with elite level athletes (9 female; 9 male) representing a variety of sports (i.e., baseball, basketball, football, soccer, softball, volleyball, and water polo). Participants ranged in age from 22 to 42 years (M = 29.11, SD = 5.52). Interviews lasted between 30–90 minutes and were transcribed verbatim. Analyses of the transcripts revealed a total of 1,553 meaning units that were further grouped into sub-themes and general themes. This led to the development of a final thematic structure revealing six major dimensions characterizing athlete experiences of great coaching: Coach Attributes, The Environment, Relationships, The System, Coaching Actions, and Influences.