Is coaches' perceived team performance associated with their intentions to persist in coaching? The mediating role of coaches' psychological needs and motivation.

This study examined the association between team performance perceived by coaches, coaches' basic psychological needs, motivation, and their intentions to persist in coaching. Participants were 719 coaches (80 females, M = 33.49 years, SD = 10.27, range = 18-67) of different team sports (soccer = 514; basketball = 165; volleyball = 23; handball = 14; and hockey = 3) who completed questionnaire measures at the end of the season. Structural equation modelling adjusted for sex, coaches' experience, age categories, and type of sport revealed that coaches' perceptions of team performance were positively related to their need satisfaction and negatively to their need frustration. In turn, coaches' need satisfaction was positively associated with their autonomous motivation, whereas their need frustration was positively related to controlled motivation and amotivation. Finally, coaches' autonomous motivation was a positive predictor of their intentions to persist, and conversely, coaches' amotivation was a negative predictor of their intentions to persist. We found a significant positive and indirect effect between team performance perceived by coaches and their intention to persist through their need satisfaction and autonomous motivation. These findings represent the first quantitative insight into how coach-perceived team performance could function as a new antecedent relevant to coaches' motivational processes and persistence.

Can participative coach behaviour be perceived as controlling? The role of athletes' expectations.

ABSTRACTCoach-rated participative behaviour has already been related to beneficial outcomes in athletes. Yet, research also indicates that allowing participation is not straightforward as it can sometimes be perceived as controlling or can even result in maladaptive outcomes. Building on implicit leadership theory, this study investigated the role of the alignment between coach-rated participation and athletes' expectations for participation in developing perceptions of domineering coach behaviour in athletes, a specific type of controlling coach behaviour. A secondary goal was to explore this relation in higher and lower level teams separately. Athletes' expectations for participative coach behaviour, coach-rated participative behaviour and athletes' perceptions of domineering coach behaviour were measured in 61 team sport coaches and 654 athletes competing in football, volleyball, basketball, and handball competitions. Using polynomial regression with response surface analysis and controlling for athletes' sport experience, overall, results showed that a discrepancy between coach-rated participation and athletes' expectations for participation was related with increased perceptions of domineering coach behaviour in athletes with more than 5 years of experience. However, in lower level teams, high amounts of participation seem optimal as only less coach-rated participation than expected predicted increased perceptions of domineering coach behaviour in athletes with more than 15 years of experience. This in contrast with higher level teams where, independent of athletes' experience, both more and less coach-rated participation than expected were related with increased perceptions of domineering coach behaviour in athletes. Current findings stress the need for a situation specific approach when offering participation to optimize its effectiveness.

A discrepancy between coach-rated participation and athletes' expectations for participation was related with increased perceptions of domineering coach behaviour in team sport athletes with more than 5 years of experience,In lower level teams, only less participation than expected leads to increased perceptions of domineering coach behaviour in athletes with more than 15 years of experience,In higher level teams, both more and less participation than expected were related with increased perceptions of domineering coach behaviour in athletes,Coaches should try to get informed about the expectations of their athletes and inform their athletes about the reasons of their behaviour to manage athletes' expectations.

The Power of Peer Leaders: Exploring the Link between Peer Leadership Behaviors and Sustainable Work Outcomes.

Most leadership studies primarily focus on formal leaders, often overlooking the influence of leaders within the team. While prior research has shown that peer leaders can have a beneficial impact on various team outcomes, it is yet unclear which peer leadership behaviors precisely foster a supportive and sustainable work environment. Building upon the recent identification of 10 peer leadership roles and 37 underlying functions, the current study aims to investigate the relationships between these peer leadership roles and functions and key outcomes (i.e., job satisfaction, team cohesion, team effectiveness, and OCB). A total of 31 organizational teams, comprising 182 employees from diverse sectors, participated in a quantitative survey. Employing multilevel modeling analysis, the findings demonstrated that each leadership role and nearly every function predicted at least one outcome, highlighting their significance within organizational teams. Additionally, Necessary Condition Analysis revealed that specific roles and functions were necessary for generating one or more outcomes. Finally, we found that most of the significant relationships remained consistent across teams, regardless of their size, tenure, or level of team identification. These findings refine our understanding of shared leadership and how peer leaders can create a sustainable workplace by fostering employee well-being and productivity in organizational teams.

Does Fair Coach Behavior Predict the Quality of Athlete Leadership Among Belgian Volleyball and Basketball Players: The Vital Role of Team Identification and Task Cohesion.

A vast stream of empirical work has revealed that coach and athlete leadership are important determinants of sport teams' functioning and performance. Although coaches have a direct impact on individual and team outcomes, they should also strive to stimulate athletes to take up leadership roles in a qualitative manner. Yet, the relation between coach leadership behavior and the extent of high-quality athlete leadership within teams remains underexposed. Based on organizational justice theory and the social identity approach, the present research tested whether perceived justice of the coach positively predicts the quality of athlete leadership. Furthermore, we examined the role of group dynamic processes (i.e., team identification and task cohesion) within this relation. Belgian volleyball (N = 161) and basketball players (N = 78) were asked to rate the justice of their coach, their team identification, the task cohesion, and the athlete leadership quality in the team. Structural equation modeling indicated that coaches' perceived justice positively predicted the quality of athletes' leadership, and that this relation was established through three intermediate steps (i.e., from team identification to task cohesion, to athlete leadership quality). These results suggest that fair coach behavior does not only bridge the gap between leadership and followership, it also has the potential to improve the quality of athletes' leadership within sport teams. More specifically, findings suggest that coaches' perceived justice cultivates a shared social identity characterized by high levels of players' identification with their team, which in turn increased their perceptions of the team's task cohesion. Finally, this increased task cohesion encouraged the athlete leaders to demonstrate high-quality leadership.

How Do Profiles of Need-Supportive and Controlling Coaching Relate to Team Athletes' Motivational Outcomes? A Person-Centered Approach.

Building on recent self-determination theory research differentiating controlling coaching into a demanding and domineering approach, this study examined the role of both approaches in athletes' motivational outcomes when accompanied by autonomy support or structure. Within team-sport athletes (N = 317; mean age = 17.67), four sets of k-means cluster analyses systematically pointed toward a four-cluster solution (e.g., high-high, high-low, low-high, and low-low), regardless of the pair of coaching dimensions used. One of the identified coaching profiles involved coaches who are perceived to combine need-supportive and controlling behaviors (i.e., high-high). Whereas combining need-supportive and domineering behaviors (i.e., high-high) yields lower autonomous motivation and engagement compared with a high need-support profile (i.e., high-low), this is less the case for the combination of need-supportive and demanding behaviors (i.e., high-high). This person-centered approach provides deeper insights into how coaches combine different styles and how some forms of controlling coaching yield a greater cost than others.

Unpicking the Emperor's New Clothes: Perceived Attributes of the Captain in Sports Teams.

Much importance has been assigned to the role of the team captain. In this article, we test whether today's team captains live up to these high expectations. Furthermore, we provide greater insight into the selection procedures leading to a captain's appointment and assess how this process impacts upon the captain's perceived leadership qualities. Adopting a mixed methods design, a total of 398 participants (226 players and 172 coaches) listed the attributes of both their current team captain and their ideal captain. Altogether, participants listed 635 attributes for their current team captain and 919 attributes for their ideal team captain. Both inductive and deductive approaches were used to analyze these qualitative data. Furthermore, quantitative data were obtained on the perceived influencers in the captain's selection process. The results indicated that, although players and coaches expect their team captains to have good motivational and social leadership skills, the selection process is often underpinned by non-leadership factors, such as experience, sport-specific competence, or irrelevant attributes, such as being the daughter of the club president. This discrepancy held for both coaches' and players' perspectives, for male and female teams, across sports, and across competition levels. Although coaches were identified as main influencers in the selection process, giving players the deciding vote did not result in captains with better perceived leadership skills. The significant gap between participants' expectations of the captain and reality highlights the need for implementing a structure of shared leadership. Furthermore, evidence-based leadership development programs are needed to maximize the team's leadership potential.

Can losing teams cope with destructive voice behaviour? The role of game results and athletes' perceived motivational climate.

This study examined the relation between losing a game and players' destructive voice about the coach. As team performances would suffer when such behaviours are not managed properly, we tested the motivational climate as a potential mechanism by which coaches can manage these destructive behaviours. Twelve volleyball and basketball teams (N = 136) were weekly assessed during eight weeks using questionnaires. Players rated the extent to which their teammates expressed destructive voice about their coach. Each player's indegree centrality (i.e. the average score received from all teammates) functioned as measurement of his/her destructive voice about the coach. As hypothesized, losing a game increased players' expression of destructive voice about the coach. At both the within- and between-person level, perceived mastery (performance) climate negatively (positively) predicted players' destructive voice about the coach. When players perceived a more salient performance climate than usual after a loss, their increase in destructive voice about the coach was magnified. These results highlight the dynamics of players' destructive voice about the coach and how a single loss can start the utterance of such voice. A coach would be able to counter this process by increasing the focus on a mastery rather than a performance climate.

Do coaching style and game circumstances predict athletes' perceived justice of their coach? A longitudinal study in elite handball and volleyball teams.

OBJECTIVE: The present longitudinal study is the first to examine game to game fluctuations of perceived justice of elite volleyball and handball coaches. More specifically, we studied whether coaching style (i.e., need support versus control), coach behaviors (decision justifications), player's status (i.e., starter or substitute), and game result (win/loss) predicted athletes' perceived justice and its fluctuations. METHODS: A longitudinal questionnaire study was performed during 6 consecutive weeks among Belgian female volleyball (N = 57) and male handball players (N = 39). We administered a general questionnaire (i.e., need support/control) the first week, and game-specific questionnaires (i.e., justice, decision justifications, game circumstances) after six consecutive games. Because game-to-game measures (i.e., within-athlete) were nested into individuals (between-athletes) we conducted Hierarchical Linear Modeling to examine the hypotheses. RESULTS: Multilevel analyses showed that 49% of the variance of perceived justice was situated at the within-athlete level. Furthermore, coaches' need support and the provision of decision justifications were positive predictors of athletes' perceived justice of the coach. More specific, the impact of justifications was less strong in a high need supportive environment and stronger in a high controlling environment. Finally, both the status of the player and the game result were negative predictors of athletes' perceived justice. CONCLUSIONS: We can conclude that athletes' perceived justice of their coach shifts considerably from game-to-game. Furthermore, the coaching style and coaching behaviors can help to overcome the negative effects of specific game circumstances such as being a substitute or losing a game on athletes' perceived justice of the coach.

An experiment on the impact of coaches' and athlete leaders' competence support on athletes' motivation and performance.

PURPOSE: Grounded in the Cognitive Evaluation Theory, the present experiment aimed to compare the relative impact of competence support provided by coaches versus athlete leaders on players' competence satisfaction, intrinsic motivation, and performance. METHODS: We recruited 18 existing competitive male basketball teams (ie, 126 players) to participate in the experiment. Each team was randomly assigned to one of three conditions: (a) the coach provided competence support (ie, by encouraging, providing positive feedback, and expressing team confidence); (b) the athlete leader provided competence support; or (c) neither the coach, nor the athlete leader provided competence support (ie, control condition). RESULTS: Teams in which the athlete leader provided competence support reported higher levels of competence satisfaction and intrinsic motivation than teams in the control condition, a difference that did not emerge when the coach provided competence support. Furthermore, teams in which either the coach or the athlete leader supported team members' competence performed better compared to teams in the control group. CONCLUSION: Our findings highlight the importance of providing competence support to enhance team performance. Given athlete leaders' unique impact on teammates' competence satisfaction and motivation, instructing athlete leaders how to provide competence support constitutes an important motivational pathway for coaches to optimize team functioning.

The competence-supportive and competence-thwarting role of athlete leaders: An experimental test in a soccer context.

The aim of this experiment was to study the growth-promoting and adverse impact of athlete leaders' competence-supportive and-thwarting behavior on the motivation and performance of team members. Male soccer players (N = 144; MAge = 14.2) were allocated to ad-hoc teams of five soccer players. These teams participated in two sessions, being randomly exposed to an athlete leader who acted either competence-supportive, competence-thwarting, or neutral during the second session. When the athlete leader was competence-supportive (versus competence-thwarting), his teammates' intrinsic motivation and performance increased (versus decreased) compared with the control condition. The leader's impact on intrinsic motivation was fully accounted for by team members' competence satisfaction. These findings recommend coaches to invest in the competence-supportive power of their athlete leaders to establish an optimally motivating and performance-enhancing team environment.

The Art of Athlete Leadership: Identifying High-Quality Athlete Leadership at the Individual and Team Level Through Social Network Analysis.

This research aimed to introduce social network analysis as a novel technique in sports teams to identify the attributes of high-quality athlete leadership, both at the individual and at the team level. Study 1 included 25 sports teams (N = 308 athletes) and focused on athletes' general leadership quality. Study 2 comprised 21 sports teams (N = 267 athletes) and focused on athletes' specific leadership quality as a task, motivational, social, and external leader. The extent to which athletes felt connected with their leader proved to be most predictive for athletes' perceptions of that leader's quality on each leadership role. Also at the team level, teams with higher athlete leadership quality were more strongly connected. We conclude that social network analysis constitutes a valuable tool to provide more insight in the attributes of high-quality leadership both at the individual and at the team level.

Is team confidence the key to success? The reciprocal relation between collective efficacy, team outcome confidence, and perceptions of team performance during soccer games.

The present manuscript extends previous research on the reciprocal relation between team confidence and perceived team performance in two ways. First, we distinguished between two types of team confidence; process-oriented collective efficacy and outcome-oriented team outcome confidence. Second, we assessed both types not only before and after the game, but for the first time also during half-time, thereby providing deeper insight into their dynamic relation with perceived team performance. Two field studies were conducted, each with 10 male soccer teams (N = 134 in Study 1; N = 125 in Study 2). Our findings provide partial support for the reciprocal relation between players' team confidence (both collective efficacy and team outcome confidence) and players' perceptions of the team's performance. Although both types of players' team confidence before the game were not significantly related to perceived team performance in the first half, players' team confidence during half-time was positively related to perceived team performance in the second half. Additionally, our findings consistently demonstrated a relation between perceived team performance and players' subsequent team confidence. Considering that team confidence is a dynamical process, which can be affected by coaches and players, our findings open new avenues to optimise team performance.

Perceived Sources of Team Confidence in Soccer and Basketball.

PURPOSE: Although it is generally accepted that team confidence is beneficial for optimal team functioning and performance, little is known about the predictors of team confidence. The present study was aimed to shed light on the precursors of both high and low team confidence in two different sports. A distinction is made between sources of process-oriented team confidence (i.e., collective efficacy) and sources of outcome-oriented team confidence (i.e., team outcome confidence), which have often been confounded in previous research. METHODS: In a first step, two qualitative studies were conducted to identify all possible sources of team confidence in basketball and in soccer. In a second step, three quantitative studies were conducted to further investigate the sources of team outcome confidence in soccer (N = 1028) and in basketball (N = 867), and the sources of collective efficacy in basketball (N = 825). RESULTS: Players perceived high-quality performance as the most important factor for their team outcome confidence. With regard to collective efficacy, team enthusiasm was perceived as most predictive determinant. Positive coaching emerged as second most decisive factor for both types of team confidence. In contrast, negative communication and expression by the players or the coach was perceived as the most decisive predictor of low levels of team confidence. At item level, all studies pointed to the importance of team confidence expression by the athlete leaders (i.e., leader figures within the team) and the coach. CONCLUSION: The present manuscript sheds light on the precursors of high and low levels of team confidence. Athlete leaders and the coach emerged as key triggers of both upward and downward spirals of team confidence, thereby contaminating all team members.

The myth of the team captain as principal leader: extending the athlete leadership classification within sport teams.

Although coaches and players recognise the importance of leaders within the team, research on athlete leadership is sparse. The present study expands knowledge of athlete leadership by extending the current leadership classification and exploring the importance of the team captain as formal leader of the team. An online survey was completed by 4,451 participants (31% females and 69% males) within nine different team sports in Flanders (Belgium). Players (N = 3,193) and coaches (N = 1,258) participated on all different levels in their sports. Results revealed that the proposed additional role of motivational leader was perceived as clearly distinct from the already established roles (task, social and external leader). Furthermore, almost half of the participants (44%) did not perceive their captain as the principal leader on any of the four roles. These findings underline the fact that the leadership qualities attributed to the captain as the team's formal leader are overrated. It can be concluded that leadership is spread throughout the team; informal leaders rather than the captain take the lead, both on and off the field.

"Yes, we can!": Perceptions of collective efficacy sources in volleyball.

Collective efficacy can be defined as a group's shared confidence that they will successfully achieve their goal. We examined which behaviours and events are perceived as sources of collective efficacy beliefs in a volleyball context. In study 1, volleyball coaches from the highest volleyball leagues (n = 33) in Belgium indicated the most important sources of collective efficacy. This list was then adapted based on the literature and on feedback given by an expert focus group, resulting in a 40-item questionnaire. In Study 2, coaches and players from all levels of volleyball in Belgium (n = 2365) rated each of these sources on their predictive value for collective efficacy. A principal component analysis revealed that the 40 sources could be divided into eight internally consistent factors. Positive supportive communication (e.g., enthusiasm after making a point) was identified as the factor most predictive for positive collective efficacy beliefs. The factor referring to the negative emotional reactions of players (e.g., discouraging body language) was the most predictive for negative collective efficacy beliefs. These findings offer a starting point for the design of continuous measurements of collective efficacy through observation.