Elite coaching: the pursuit of ideal leader behaviour

Abstract

In the arena of elite sport, there is an eternal desire for continual improvement in athletes' performances. Often a component of an athlete's preparation, and, as such, the coach is a figure worthy of studying as a potential influence on an athlete's performance. The aim of this study is to determine whether it is possible to identify an ideal leader behaviour profile for elite coaches. It is intended as a pilot study; that is, a scoping of the subject to determine whether further research is warranted, and if so, what the focus of the research should be. Successful coaches of elite athletes participating in all sports, who train in New Zealand, are the focus of the research. Due to the pilot nature of the study, the review of related literature is a significant proportion of this study. One researcher, Chelluradai, has become prominent in the field of coach leader behaviour and has developed The Multidimensional Model of Leadership, on which this research is based. According to this model, the antecedents of leader behaviour are: the athletes; the coaches themselves; the environment in which these coaches and athletes are operating; and the interaction between all the preceding factors. Other factors influencing coach leader behaviour - gender, culture, type of sport and athlete maturity - are also identified and studied with regard to their effect on coach leader behaviour. The end product of the model is athlete performance and satisfaction. In some of the research, satisfaction is used as a surrogate measure for performance. The issue of perceived coach leader behaviour versus preferred coach leader behaviour is also discussed. To determine who the coaches of elite athletes training in New Zealand are, a survey was conducted of all Coaching Directors of individual sports; that is, sports in which athletes compete alone rather than in a team situation. The coaching status and rankings of the top three athletes competing in these sports were sought. Although the majority of these athletes were coached, there were a number of athletes ranked internationally in the top ten who did not have an individual they identified as a coach. Following the survey, interviews with elite coaches were conducted to determine whether the findings of the overseas literature were valid in a New Zealand environment. The coaches interviewed were not selected randomly, but as representative of the range of variables identified in the research as affecting coach leader behaviour. Some results supported the literature, while other findings were in direct contrast. No statistical conclusion can be drawn from the results due to the small sample size. There were sufficient similarities and differences in these coaches' responses, however, to justify further research about which recommendations are made. These recommendations reflect Chelluradai's model in that the athletes and environment need to be taken into account in addition to the coaches. An additional factor, professionalism and its effect on coaching, needs to be included in any further study.