Examining the link between coach-athlete relationship and athlete burnout among college soccer players: the mediating role of training satisfaction.

Purpose: Athlete burnout is an adverse factor that usually decreases athletes' sports performance and reduces their passion for athletic career development. The present study examined the association of coach-athlete relationship, training satisfaction, and athlete burnout, and then explored the training satisfaction as a mediating role of the effect of coach-athlete relationship on athlete burnout among college soccer players. Methods: Soccer players from seven Chinese higher education institutions were recruited for the study. The participants were selected using stratified random sampling and included 218 participants. The Coach-Athlete Relationship Scale, Training Satisfaction Scale, and Athlete Burnout Questionnaire were used to collect data from the participants. Pearson's product-moment correlation analysis, linear regression analysis, and bootstrap method were conducted to analyze the collected data set. Results: The results showed that (1) there was a significant correlation between coach-athlete relationship, training satisfaction, and athlete burnout. (2) coach-athlete relationship and training satisfaction significantly negatively predicted athlete burnout (ß = -0.39, p < 0.001; ß = - 0.29, p < 0.001). (3) training satisfaction had a significantly mediating effect on the relationship between coach-athlete relationship and athlete burnout (ß = -0.15, p < 0.001, ES = 0.28). Conclusion: Coach-athlete relationship can not only directly negative impact athlete burnout but can also negatively influence athlete burnout through the mediating effect of training satisfaction. Therefore, we suggest the following to alleviate athlete burnout: on one hand, coaches can provide more communication opportunities for athletes to improve the coach-athlete relationship. On the other hand, teams can enhance training satisfaction by building team culture.

Effects of coaches' autonomy support on athletes' aggressive behavior and athlete burnout: verification of the mediating effects of coach-athlete relationship and team efficacy.

Purpose: This study investigated the relationships between perceived autonomy support, coach-athlete relationship, team efficacy, aggressive behavior, and athlete burnout among team sports athletes. It verified the mediating effects of the coach-athlete relationship and team efficacy on the relationship between autonomy support and athlete burnout. Design methodology and approach: A questionnaire survey on autonomy support, coach-athlete relationships, aggressive behavior, and athlete burnout was administered to 336 team sports athletes (292 male athletes and 44 female athletes). A cross-sectional research design was used to collect the data. To analyze the collected data, frequency, reliability, descriptive statistical, and correlation analyses were performed using SPSS version 26.0. In addition, confirmatory factor analysis, convergent validity tests, and structural model analysis were conducted using AMOS version 24.0. Bootstrapping was used to examine the mediating effects. Results: The fit of the measurement model was assessed by calculating the fit indices as follows: x 2 = 329.689, df = 124, p < 0.001, TLI = 0.945, CFI = 0.956, RMSEA = 0.070 (90% CI = 0.061-0.080), and SRMR = 0.060. Autonomy support positively affected the coach-athlete relationship (ß = 0.841) and team efficacy (ß = 0.338). The coach-athlete relationship positively affected team efficacy (ß = 0.479). Furthermore, autonomy support did not significantly influence aggressive behavior (ß = -0.053), and negatively affected athlete burnout (ß = -0.305). The coach-athlete relationship also did not significantly affect aggressive behavior (ß = 0.054), and negatively affected athlete burnout (ß = -0.303). Team efficacy negatively affected aggressive behavior (ß = -0.516) and athlete burnout (ß = -0.201). Finally, autonomy support was found to affect athlete burnout through the coach-athlete relationship and team efficacy. Conclusion: Considering that autonomy support affects athlete burnout through coach-athlete relationship and team efficacy, coaches need to enhance the quality of the coach-athlete relationship and improve team efficacy to reduce athlete burnout. Above all, the study findings suggest that coaches need to provide autonomy-supportive behaviors.

Compassion Matters in Elite Sports Environments: Insights from High-Performance Coaches.

It is an open question to which degree compassion-noticing, engaging with, and acting to alleviate suffering in self and others-is (considered) advantageous in elite sports. Addressing this question, we herein provide insights into high-performance coaches' perceptions on the role of compassion in elite sports environments. Specifically, 12 coaches working at the highest level of their respective sport (in Denmark) partook in semi-structured interviews focusing on the utilization, implications, as well as barriers for implementing compassion in elite sports environments. Following a thematic analysis, three themes comprising various subthemes were identified and discussed. The first theme - Benefits of compassion - focuses on coaches' perception of the use and implications of compassion and comprises four subthemes: Compassion is important when times are tough; Compassion stimulates human connection; Compassion fosters unity in competitive environments; and Compassion promotes performance. The second theme - Increasing compassionate competence - focuses on how a compassionate approach can flourish and comprises three subthemes: Reflection; Awareness and knowledge; and Keeping up with the times. The third theme - Barriers to compassion - focuses on barriers to implementing and enhancing compassion in elite sports environments and comprises four subthemes: Compassion is soft; Power dynamics can stand in the way; Requires prioritization; and Performance outcome orientation. We conclude that while compassion (beyond self-compassion) can be beneficial in elite sports, coaches still perceive barriers for successful implementation, and that research should further investigate the outcomes and consequences of compassion in the elite sport context.

Developing guidelines for selection-deselection in high performance sport for athletes, coaches, and organisations: A delphi study.

The process of athlete selection and deselection in sport involves not only athletes but also coaches, managers, performance directors, talent pathway coordinators and the wider organisation. Athlete selection and deselection can be viewed as the opposite sides of the same coin in that the process may be the same for all athletes but the outcome is very different. The outcome of this process can evoke extremely powerful emotions ranging from elevation to devastation. While selection and deselection are part of competitive sport regardless of type, level, gender or age, research is scarce. Employing the Delphi method, a total of 20 participants comprised the expert panel (coaches, athletes and other key personnel in high performance) from various sports, and ages ranged from 21 to 59 years old. Following three rounds, 60 items reached the pre-determined consensus level of 75%. The 60 items were then further content analysed and grouped with respect to the three key stakeholders: athlete (14), coach (21) and organisation (25). Within each of these categories, subcategories emerged: personal, interpersonal, procedural, educational, supportive, communicative and reviewing behaviours and actions that athletes, coaches and organisations can take to ease the navigation, apply consistency and establish a common ground during this challenging situation.

The Effect of Coach-Athlete Relationships on Motor Behaviour in College Athletes-Mediating Effects of Psychological Needs.

This study explored the effect of the coach-athlete relationship perceived by college athletes on athletic behaviour, examining the mediating effect of psychological needs. This study was conducted with 254 college athletes using questionnaires, and the research instruments included the Coach-Athlete Relationship Scale, the Psychological Needs Scale, and the Athletic Behaviour Scale. The results of the study were as follows: (1) the coach-athlete relationship perceived by student-athletes had a direct positive and significant effect on athletic behaviours (ß = 0.268, p < 0.001, and direct effect = 0.0344); and (2) psychological needs had a significant mediating effect between the coach-athlete relationship and athletic behaviours (indirect effect = 0.2433), and the mediating effect percentage was 41.56%. The overall mediation effect value was 0.5854. The findings of the study emphasized that, by improving the coach-athlete relationship, it could help to improve the psychological needs of college athletes and, thus, promote their positive motor behaviours. In the coach-athlete relationship, the effect of closeness on the promotion of motor behaviour was particularly significant, in which special attention and emphasis should be given to the closeness between coaches and athletes in a practical implementation. Subsequently, coaches should focus their training on enhancing the coach-athlete relationship as a crucial part of training in order to perform well in competitions.

Basic psychological need satisfaction of collegiate athletes: the unique and interactive effects of team identification and LMX quality.

Purpose: The present study sought to understand the relationships between team identification, leader-member exchange (LMX) quality, and the basic psychological need satisfaction of collegiate athletes, as well as the moderating role of coach-athlete LMX quality. Methods: Self-reported data from 319 collegiate athletes were analyzed using SPSS version 29. The relationships between the study variables were tested by moderation analysis using PROCESS macro model 1. Results: Regression analyses showed team identification to be positively related to the satisfaction of the needs for competence and relatedness, while LMX quality was positively related to the satisfaction of the needs for competence and autonomy. Furthermore, moderation analyses showed that LMX quality positively moderated the relationship between team identification and the satisfaction of the needs for competence and relatedness. Conclusion: The results of this study highlight the important role that team identification and LMX quality play in the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs of collegiate athletes. The implications of these results for the optimal functioning of collegiate athletes are discussed.

The influence of athletes' gratitude on burnout: the sequential mediating roles of the coach-athlete relationship and hope.

Background: Athlete burnout is a widespread psychological syndrome in competitive sports, negatively impacts athletes' competitive state and hampers the healthy development of sports organizations. With the rise of positive psychology, exploring the mechanisms of athlete psychological fatigue through the lens of psychological capital has become a focal point of recent research. This study introduces gratitude, a key element of psychological capital in positive psychology, to examine its effect on athlete burnout and its mechanism of action, with a particular focus on the sequential mediating roles of the coach-athlete relationship (CAR) and hope. Method: A cross-sectional study design was utilized, involving 483 active Chinese athletes from national training teams and professional sports teams. The sample comprised both male (n=251) and female (n=232) athletes, with an average age of 19.24 ± 3.99 years. Participants were asked to complete self-administered questionnaires, including the Gratitude Questionnaire, CAR Questionnaire, Hope Questionnaire, and Athlete Burnout Questionnaire. Structural equation modeling in AMOS 24.0 and descriptive statistics and correlation analyses in SPSS 20.0 were employed for data analysis. Results: The study revealed significant associations between athlete gratitude, CAR, hope, and athlete burnout. Notably, gratitude was found to both directly and indirectly (via CAR and hope) influence burnout levels among athletes, suggesting a sequential mediation effect. Conclusion: The findings highlight the importance of positive psychological constructs in buffering against athlete burnout. Specifically, gratitude, alongside a supportive CAR and elevated levels of hope, may play crucial roles in mitigating burnout symptoms. These insights offer promising directions for the development of targeted intervention strategies aimed at fostering athlete well-being and performance, advocating for the integration of positive psychology principles in the management and prevention of athlete burnout.

The Relationship Between Athlete Perceptions of Coaching Leadership Behaviors and Athlete Grit.

Coach leadership style has long been positively correlated with athlete experiences such as motivation, health (i.e., burnout), and performance outcomes (i.e., enhanced execution time to complete tasks) (24). More recently, grit (18) has been positively correlated with athlete experiences such as engagement (39) and decreased burnout (32). Given the impact coaches have on their athletes and the positive psychological benefits of grit, it is reasonable to explore the intersections of coaching behaviors and grit. As such, the purpose of the current study was to examine the relationship between athlete perceptions of coach leadership behaviors and athlete grit. Intercollegiate athletes completed measures of grit and the leadership behaviors of their coach. A significant positive relationship was observed between the grit perseverance subscale and the leadership behavior of training and instruction (r =.30, p < .05). Additional analyses revealed that athletes' perceptions of coach positive feedback significantly predicted their perseverance. Taken together, these findings suggest a link between positive coach feedback and athlete perseverance. Implications of these results for professional practice and future research are discussed.

Adverse competition-related cognitions questionnaire (ACCQ): Development and preliminary validation of a measure identifying different factors of athletes' cognitions related to competitions.

This research project presents the development and preliminary validation of a German version of the Adverse Competition-related Cognitions Questionnaire (ACCQ) and comprises four studies. In Study 1, 101 athletes and 124 coaches from different team and individual sports generated a large pool of cognitions, which was reduced to an initial item pool of 54 cognitions through a multi-step procedure with different experts. In Study 2, the underlying factor structure of the questionnaire was examined by an exploratory factor analysis (N2 = 348), which revealed six factors (athletic comparison, coach devaluation, devaluation of one's own performance, appreciation by coach and family, inner resistance against competitions, and general exhaustion) with 26 items retained. Subsequently, in Study 3, the results were re-examined with a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA, N3 = 419; CFI = 0.91, RMSEA = 0.06, SRMR = 0.06). In addition, preliminary support for the construct validity (i.e., convergent, divergent, and concurrent validity) of the ACCQ was obtained by examining associations among the ACCQ subscales and theoretical correlates such as social comparison, cognitive interference, irrational performance beliefs, and fear of negative evaluation. In Study 4, a second CFA (N4 = 153; CFI = 0.89, RMSEA = 0.06, SRMR = 0.07) was conducted to test the identified 6-factor solution in a sample of high-performance competitive athletes. With its broad range of factors, the ACCQ provides a useful and valid measure for assessing different adverse competition-related cognitions, offering a wide range of potential applications in research and sport psychology practice.

Effects of coach extraversion and educational environment on transformational leadership and athlete outcomes: A moderated mediation model.

The importance of coach leadership to athlete development and performance has been identified in the literature. We respond to the call to investigate antecedents of coach transformational leadership and their indirect effects on athlete outcomes. We propose that coach extraversion as an antecedent of coach transformational leadership can indirectly impact follower cohesion and satisfaction. Building on this mediation model, we assert that educational environment (i.e., high school and university) may serve as a first-stage moderator between coach extraversion and transformational leadership. We used 48 coaches and their 570 athletes from competitive high school and university basketball teams to test this moderated mediation model. Our results indicate that coach extraversion indirectly impacts athlete cohesion and satisfaction via transformational leadership. Moreover, the indirect effects of coach extraversion on athlete outcomes via coach transformational leadership is conditionally significant only when coaches and athletes are in universities but not in high schools. Our findings highlight the importance of educational environment in determining the association between coach personality and leadership perception. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Creating the conditions for psychological safety and its impact on quality coach-athlete relationships.

In this study, we investigated the notion that giving voice to athletes is an important aspect to creating a psychologically safe environment which can then feed into maintaining good quality coach-athlete relationships where every athlete feels heard, valued, and connected. 379 athletes completed a multi-section questionnaire that assessed their (a) capacity to be open and manage conflict with their coaches, (b) perceptions of psychological safety within their team or group, and (c) perceptions of the coach-athlete relationship quality. Structural equation modelling revealed that openness and conflict management positively predicted psychological safety which, in turn, positively predicted coach-athlete relationship quality. Psychological safety was found to explain the association between athletes' communication (i.e., capacity to be open, honest and transparent as well as manage interpersonal conflict effectively) and coach-athlete relationship quality regardless of athletes' gender. These findings highlighted that if athletes have the capacity to have candid discussions and can navigate conflict with their coaches, then it is possible to feel psychologically safe and thus able to engage in risky interpersonal interactions (e.g., raise concerns, admit mistakes) within their group context without fear of intimidation and humiliation. Furthermore, it was revealed that such a psychologically safe group environment fostered athletes' trust and respect, as well as commitment and cooperation with their coach. The discussion provides links to theory, research and practice.

Place of residence and coach-athlete relationship predict drop-out from competitive cross-country skiing.

The current study investigated whether factors such as living residence, the coach-athlete working alliance, goal orientation, and intrinsic motivation could explain drop-out, and whether these factors differed between athletes included in the elite- vs. general sport programs during high school years. In total 257 cross-country skiers, graduated from three different Norwegian Top Sport schools during the period from 2015 to 2019, were recruited to retrospectively investigate their experiences related to the time period when they participated in programs for cross-country skiing at high school. In total 116 of these athletes completed an online survey including validated and standardized instruments for the assessment of the coach-athlete working alliance (CAWAI), goal orientation (GO), perceived satisfaction with their performances (PAP) and intrinsic motivation (IM). The results showed that 84% of the athletes had dropped out from cross-country skiing, while 16% were still active. The highest ranked fixed statements of causes for drop-out was "a natural choice" (3.79 ± 1.11), "priority of education or work" (3.61 ± 1.30), "lack of motivation" (3.49 ± 1.28), "negative performance development" (3.46 ± 1.18), and "challenges with health" (3.25 ± 1.54). There were significant differences between active and drop-out in scores for reciprocity between the coaches' and the athletes' perceptions of goals (CAWAI-goal; 5.87 ± .98 vs. 5.07 ± 1.15; p = .004), the coach-athlete relationship bond (CAWAI-bond; 6.08 ± .91 vs. 5.07 ± 1.38; p = .001), and tasks chosen to reach the defined goals (CAWAI-task; 5.61 ± .92 vs. 4.90 ± 1.09; p = .006). Furthermore, active athletes had higher mastery orientation (22.11 ± 2.88 vs. 20.00 ± 3.74; p = .010). A hierarchical binary logistic regression analysis showed that place of residence and the coach-athlete working alliance were significant predictors of drop-out while mastery and performance goal orientation or intrinsic motivation were not significant. All five predictors explained 23% of the variability in drop out from cross-country skiing. Overall, 58% and 42% of the athletes participated in the elite and general programs for cross-country skiing during high school, respectively. The athletes that took part in the elite programs reported significantly stronger coach-athlete working alliances (CAWAI-sum; 14.46±3.10 vs. 14.28±3.37; p = .000), higher mastery orientation (21.19±3.50 vs. 19.36±3.66; p = .008), and performance satisfaction (PAP; 19.17±5.98 vs. 15.69±5.19; p = .001) compared to the athletes attending general programs. The results are discussed in terms of existing knowledge on how place of residence, the coach-athlete working alliance, goal orientation, performances, and motivation might impact drop-out in cross-country skiing.

La relación entrenador-deportista: propiedades psicométricas de la adaptación al castellano del CART-Q / The coach-athlete relationship: psychometric properties of the spanish version of the CART-Q

Los objetivos del presente estudio fueron adaptar al castellano y examinar la validez de constructo del Cuestionario de Relación Entrenador-Deportista (CART-Q). Compusieron la muestra 162 deportistas(43.2% mujeres), especialistas de varias modalidades, con edades comprendidas entre los16 y los 59 años (M= 26.41,d.t. = 8.98).Se llevó a cabo un análisis factorial confirmatorio que reveló una estructura trifactorial, con adecuados índices de bondad de ajuste (GFI: .951,CFI: .890,TLI: .952)y error (RMSEA: .078,RMR: .067).En cuanto a las diferencias de género y nivel, se observó una interacción: las mujeres profesionales se mostraron significativamente más cercanas con sus entrenadores que el resto de participantes. Los resultados apoyan el uso del instrumento en el contexto de las relaciones deportivas hispanoparlantes. Se sugiere que se tengan en cuenta las diferencias de género y nivel encontradas para mejorar la satisfacción de deportistas. (AU)

The aims of the present study were to adapt into Spanish and examine the construct validity of the Coach-Sport Relationship Questionnaire (CART-Q). A total of 162 sports(wo)men (43.2% women), players of differente sports, were between 16 and 59 years old (M = 26.41, SD = 8.98), made up the sample. A confirmatory factorial analysis, revealed a trifactorial structure. Indexes of goodness-of-fit (GFI: .951; CFI: .890; TLI: .952 and error (RMSEA: .078; RMR: .067) were adequate. Regarding gender and level differences, professional sportswomen were significantly closer to their coaches than the rest of the participants. Results support the use of the instrument in the context of Spanish-speaking sport relationships. Gender and level differences need to be taken into account for the improvement of athletes’ relational satisfaction. (AU)

Effects of leadership style on coach-athlete relationship, athletes' motivations, and athlete satisfaction.

Introduction: The current study investigated the impacts of autocratic and democratic leadership styles on the coach-athlete relationship, athletes' motivations, and athlete satisfaction. Methods: Survey data were collected from 298 student-athletes (male = 157; 52.7%, female = 141; 47.3%) from 20 different Chinese collegiate sports. The Structural Equation Model was used to test the hypothesized model. Results: The results indicated democratic leadership had a direct positive influence on the coach-athlete relationship, while autocratic leadership had no direct effect. Both leadership styles did not influence autonomous motivation. The coach-athlete relationship, meanwhile, had a full mediation effect between democratic leadership and athletes' motivation and satisfaction. In addition, autonomous motivation had a partial mediation effect between the coach-athlete relationship and athlete satisfaction. Discussion: Ultimately, the findings of the current study underscore the need for coaches and administrators to understand the impact of different leadership styles and highlight the importance of democratic leadership in improving athletes' psychological outcomes.

When You Can't Play Sports: The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Motivational and Emotional Experiences in Coach-Athlete Dyads.

(1) Background: This study aimed to assess the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on athletes' and coaches' experiences. Following the Dualistic Model of Passion and the Self-determination Theory, the objectives of this study were to investigate whether the COVID-19 pandemic and its restrictions affected athletes' and coaches' passion experiences, emotional experiences and basic psychological needs while engaging in their sport activities. Furthermore, the relationship between passion and emotional experiences as well as between passion and the basic psychological needs were explored; (2) Methods: 87 coach-athlete dyads, active at the recreational or competitive level in an individual sport, participated in the study. Using a cross-sectional dyadic design, athletes and coaches reported separately on their passion experience, emotional experiences and basic psychological needs in the previous two weeks; (3) Results: In total, 30 dyads were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, while 57 were not. Athletes' obsessive passion as well coaches' negative affect were larger in impacted dyads, while athletes' positive affect was lower in that group compared to the not-impacted group. Moderated Actor-Partner Interdependence Models revealed that coaches' obsessive passion was more strongly related to their negative affect in coach-athlete dyads that were not impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic than in dyads that were impacted. Furthermore, the harmonious passion of coaches was more strongly associated with athletes' need satisfaction and need frustration in impacted dyads, while also the athletes' harmonious passion in impacted dyads was more strongly associated with coaches' need satisfaction; (4) Conclusions: Less positive outcomes and more negative outcomes were observed in both athletes and coaches that were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, the COVID-19 pandemic may have suppressed the negative effects of coaches' obsessive passion on their negative affect, but strengthened the positive impact of coaches' harmonious passion on the athletes' need satisfaction and vice versa.

How relationship-maintenance strategies influence athlete burnout: Mediating roles of coach-athlete relationship and basic psychological needs satisfaction.

Introduction: Athlete burnout has many potential negative effects on athletes' sporting performance and careers. Maintaining and promoting the coach-athlete relationship to meet athletes' basic psychological needs is one way to reduce burnout. Existing studies of the correlation between coach-athlete relationships and athlete burnout have mainly focused on the coaches' leadership style, with little attention given to relationship-maintenance strategies and the mechanism of athlete burnout from the athletes' perspective. Methods: Using an online survey of 256 adolescent athletes, we explore the relationship between relationship-maintenance strategies and athlete burnout, including the potential mediating effects of the coach-athlete relationship and basic psychological needs satisfaction. Results: (1) Athletes' relationship-maintenance strategies negatively predicted athlete burnout. (2) Besides the direct effect, we found evidence to support three mediation paths: (a) the coach-athlete relationship, (b) basic psychological needs satisfaction, and (c) both as serial mediators. Discussion: These findings enhance understanding of the mechanism of athlete burnout, demonstrating the influence of factors beyond the coach's role. The study also provides a theoretical basis for practical intervention by coaches, athletes, and sports organizations to reduce athlete burnout by focusing on athletes' perspectives.

Adopting Evaluative Conditioning to Improve Coach-Athlete Relationships.

Coach-athlete relationships are key to athletes' well-being, development, training, and sports performance. The present study explored the effect of an evaluative conditioning (EC) intervention on the improvement of coach-athlete relationships. We applied a 6-week EC intervention to the athletes in a volleyball team with two of their coaches involved in the EC while the third coach taken as control. In the EC, we repeatedly presented the coaches' facial images (i.e., conditioned stimuli) together with positively valenced pictures and words (i.e., unconditioned stimuli) to the athletes. The results showed that the EC intervention led the athletes to recognize their coaches' neutral faces as showing more happiness, respond faster to coach-positive associations in the implicit association test (IAT), and give higher ratings to the coaches in the Coach-Athlete Relationship Questionnaire (CART-Q). The present study suggests that EC may be adopted as an effective intervention for coach-athlete relationships, altering athletes' affective associations with their coaches to be more positive and improving their explicitly evaluation of the relationship.

"Do Elite Sport First, Get Your Period Back Later." Are Barriers to Communication Hindering Female Athletes?

Competitive female athletes perceive their hormonal cycles to affect their training, competition performance and overall well-being. Despite this, athletes rarely discuss hormonal-cycle-related issues with others. The aim of this study was to gain an in-depth understanding of the perceptions and experiences of endurance athletes and their coaches in relation to barriers to athlete-coach communication about female hormonal cycles. Thirteen Swedish national-/international-level female cross-country skiers (age 25.8 ± 3.6 y) and eight of their coaches (two women and six men; age 47.8 ± 7.5 y) completed an online survey relating to their educational background, prior knowledge about female hormonal cycles and a coach-athlete relationship questionnaire (CART-Q). They then participated in an online education session about female hormonal cycles and athletic performance before participating in semi-structured focus-group interviews. Thematic analyses revealed three main barriers to communication: knowledge, interpersonal, and structural. In addition, the results suggested that a good coach-athlete relationship may facilitate open communication about female hormonal cycles, while low levels of knowledge may hinder communication. To overcome the perceived barriers to communication, a model is proposed to improve knowledge, develop interpersonal relationships and strengthen structural systems through educational exchanges and forums for open discussion.

The Dynamic Mechanism on Team Effectiveness in Youth Football: A Chain Mediation.

This study aims to deepen our understanding of the relevant research on coach-athlete relationship theory, moral leadership, and team effectiveness theory, and thus explore how to maximize team performance. As such, this study adopts an input-process-output model to explore the effect of coach-athlete relationships on team effectiveness in youth football teams. Participants in this anonymous survey included 312 young athletes, aged 13-19, from professional football schools who filled in questionnaires to provide data on the coach's moral leadership, team effectiveness, coach-athlete relationships, and trust in the coach. The results indicate that coach-athlete relationships have a significant predictive effect on the moral leadership of coaches, which in turn, has a significant positive correlation with athletes' trust in coaches; however, coach-athlete relationships have no direct positive correlation with team effectiveness. The coaches' moral leadership and athletes' trust in coaches have a chain mediation effect in the impact of coach-athlete relationships on team effectiveness. This study validates the assertion that coach-athlete relationships have a substantial effect on coach leadership. It also refines the coach-athlete relationship theory, provides evidence on the dynamic mechanism in which coach-athlete relationships affect team effectiveness, and enriches team effectiveness theory.

Mental Well-Being or Ill-Being through Coaching in Adult Grassroots Sport: A Systematic Mapping Review.

There is convincing evidence on the effects of sport and exercise on mental health and well-being. Less evidence is provided about how to achieve these benefits in the context of grassroots sport coaching. We systematically reviewed the scientific literature of three databases to narratively synthesize the current knowledge about which coaching-related factors influence well-being or ill-being, and how to promote mental health in adult athletes through sport coaches. The review includes 52 studies with different methodological and theoretical approaches and mental health outcomes. The wide range of themes were mapped and synthesized within two clusters, i.e., coaching behavior, antecedents, and context; and coach-athlete relationship and social support. The results highlight the importance of the promotion of empowering environments, autonomy-supportive coaching behavior, and coach-athlete relationship quality that relate to the satisfaction of basic psychological needs. The review also calls for a critical perspective, in the sense that the coaching context and working environment may not be empowering and supportive to the well-being of coaches and consequently to the athletes, and that coaches who want to provide autonomy-supportive environments may face various obstacles. Finally, the review synthesizes recommendations for the training of coaches, as one piece of a holistic mental health promotion.