Kristen Dieffenbach

More Similar than Different: The Psychological Environment of Paralympic Sport

As the opportunities for sport participation have increased for individuals with disabilities so has the level of competition. Athletes with disabilities now routinely compete at the national and international level with participation at the Paralympic Games as the crowning opportunity. Unfortunately, in the sport context, the concept of disability is often seen as a cue for different or special needs. However, for top level athletes competing with disabilities, research indicates their needs and experiences are more similar to able bodied elite athletes than different. This paper explores the current understanding of the similarities and uniqueness of the Paralympic athlete.

Measuring Professional Ethics in Coaching: Development of the PISC-Q

Sport is commonly lauded as the ideal place for participants to learn life skills. However, concerns related to the “win-centered” sport culture has spurred research into ethical behaviors in sport. The purpose of the present study was to create a measure of professional ethics in coaching. Students enrolled in a collegiate coaching education course (N = 766) responded to a series of vignettes related to common situations in the coaching profession. Results indicate the Professional Issues in Sport Coaching Questionnaire is an acceptable measure of situation specific professional ethics. Conclusions and directions for future research are discussed.

Parental Responses to Professional Behaviors in Coaching and Teaching

Abstract While many believe there is a societal role in the development of personal morals and ethics, the outcome is still an individualized approach for navigating the complex world in which we live. Forsyth (1980) offers one such theoretical perspective in which he posits that one’s ethical behaviors are a reflection of one’s moral philosophy. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of one’s moral philosophy on perceptions of professional behaviors in the teaching and coaching setting. Specifically, researchers were interested in (a) differences in parents’ perceptions of professional behavior given the principal actor in the situation (i.e., teacher or coach) and (b) differences in parents’ perceptions of professional behavior given their individual moral philosophy (i.e., Situationist, Absolutist, Exceptionist, and Subjectivist). Participants in the study (N = 210) were asked to complete the Ethics Position Questionnaire and respond to a series of ethically toned situations reflecting either the coaching or teaching environment. Results indicate few differences exist in parental perceptions of professional behaviors in the teaching and coaching setting. However, one’s moral philosophy did influence responses on two of the scenarios (racial stereotyping and the use of harsh language). Results support the need for further research on professional behaviors and contextualized morals in the sport setting, specifically to better understand the moral lens through which parents perceive the behaviors of coaches and teachers. Results also support the need for a model of coaching education similar to that of teacher education

An exploration of the academic coaching education internship

Abstract Academic coach education programmes in the USA have been developed to offer a comprehensive approach to coach preparation and development. However, little is known about how these academic programmes prepare student coaches for the coaching profession, particularly with regard to practicum or internship experiences. This study surveyed coach education programme coordinators in the university setting and explored the current programmatic methods of implementing the internship. The coach education internship was found to vary widely in structure and expectations, leading to three main concerns: (1) lack of consistency in organizational structure; (2) over-estimation of the coaching opportunities student coaches were expected to experience; and (3) an absence of or limited amount of screening and evaluation of the mentor coaches supervising the student coach during internship. Recommendations regarding the internship within academic coach education programmes are explored.

Navigating the leadership labyrinth: barriers and supports of a woman collegiate coach in a 20-year leadership role

Abstract A multi-level ecological-intersectional model has been proposed as a way of understanding the intersecting social identities that shape women’s experience of power and social injustices in sports coaching. Using a case study of one of the most longstanding Division I National Collegiate Athletic Association woman soccer coaches, Coach Nikki Izzo-Brown, we investigated the constructs and processes that shaped her coaching career trajectory and how the intersectional nature of these constructs and processes enabled her to navigate the leadership labyrinth. Data were generated from three semi-structured interviews and analysed abductively to form categories aligned to the four layers of the ecological-intersectional model. Barriers identified by Coach Izzo-Brown were consistent with previous literature (e.g. soft-essentialism). However, greater focus on the supportive factors perceived by Coach-Izzo-Brown (e.g. woman coaching network) can create a more inclusive culture for woman coaches. Longstanding and successful woman coaches’ involvement in professional development and advocacy activities is recommended.

An Exploration of Coaching Research in Journal of Applied Sport Psychology from 1989 to 2017

This article seeks to examine the treatment of coaching research within Journal of Applied Sport Psychology (JASP) and, specifically, to explore whether the Association for Applied Sport Psychology’s mission in recognizing the coach as a performing “other” is being adopted in the field. The study followed a 3-phase design. In Phase 1, an exhaustive search was conducted to identify all coach-related research published in JASP from 1989 to 2017. Phase 2 consisted of accessing the 101 identified articles from a total of 690 articles that had been published in JASP during the review period. In Phase 3, articles were categorized into the multidisciplinary sport and exercise psychology (M-SEP) and contemporary multidisciplinary sport and exercise psychology (C-SEP) periods, and analysis of the articles was completed. Main results indicated that articles that focused on coach perceptions about different topics related primarily to SEP decreased in focus from 40% in the M-SEP period to 23% in the C-SEP period. A prominent focus in both periods was the impact of coaches (often interpersonal behaviors) on their athletes’ performance (M-SEP = 35%, C-SEP = 46%). A coach performance focus was coded in only 10% of articles in both periods. Articles decreased in their explicit discussion of how research applied to consulting from 60% to 44% across periods. The findings suggest that currently the literature in JASP does not directly provide SEP professionals with effective knowledge application for working with coaches as a performer within the sport context. This review emphasizes the lack of research positioning of coach as a performing “other” within JASP and may increase awareness of viewing the coach as a performer within the field of applied sport psychology. Lay Summary: This study was a review of research articles published within the Journal of Applied Sport Psychology (JASP) between 1989 and 2017. Only research with a main focus in coaching was included in the review. A multiple-step process was used to examine the articles and pinpoint the type of research about coaches that was being published in JASP. Results showed a large focus on how coaches contribute to their athletes’ performance, however, a lack of research examining aspects of the coach themselves and how they might enhance their own performance as a coach.

Essential Tools for the Evolution of Expertise in Coaching

Stone, Stone and Sands (2005) noted the critical lack of sport science and research based coaching practices in the United States. They noted that current practices are commonly not based on a systematic approach to coaching that allows for both intentionally applied evidence based scientific principles and valid and reliable evaluation methods. Coaching is a profession that requires strong decision making skills, constant assessment, and consistent integration of new information for successful talent development and performance management. Like athletic talent development, the development of these professional skills and the overall development of coaching expertise takes time and deliberate effort (Schempp, 2006). Unfortunately, while formal coaching education program and sport science studies emphasize the physiological, technical and tactical sides of preparing athletes, less attention is paid to the formal development of critical thinking and self-assessment necessary for professional growth and deve...