Abstract
Coaches are a primary influences on athletes’ experiences in youth sport (Horn, 2008). However, the motivational tone of coaches’ behaviour has not been directly observed, not has its influence on athlete development been examined. The purpose of this short-term longitudinal study was to examine potential associations between the motivational tone exhibited by competitive youth sport coaches in their individualized interactions with athletes and athletes’ developmental trajectories over the course of a competitive season. 55 coach-athlete dyads from five competitive youth volleyball teams were observed at three time points. Athletes in each dyad completed measures of the 4C’s of athlete development at each time point. Cluster analysis revealed the presence of three distinct clusters based on athletes’ developmental trajectories over the course of the season: 1) high and increasing, 2) low and decreasing, and 3) moderate and maintaining. Profile analysis confirmed the longitudinal trajectories were significantly different between all clusters across all 4C’s. Analysis of dyadic interaction profiles revealed significant differences in interactive behaviour between clusters. Athletes in the low and decreasing cluster experienced significantly more performance-related interaction from their coach with a mastery or controlling motivational tone. Athletes in the high and increasing cluster experienced significantly more non-sport related communication from their coach. The present study on motivational tone lends insight into “how” coaches interact with their athletes and the resulting influence on athlete development. The results suggest that even with typically beneficial motivational tone, the relative amount of interaction in relation to other athletes maybe critical to its effectiveness.
