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Coaching efficacy refers to the extent to which a coach believes that he or she has the capacity to affect the learning and performance of his or her athletes. The purpose of the current study was to empirically synthesize findings across the extant literature to estimate relationships between the proposed sources of coaching efficacy and each of the dimensions of coaching efficacy. A literature search yielded 20 studies and 278 effect size estimates that met the inclusion criteria. The overall relationship between the proposed sources of coaching efficacy and each dimension of coaching efficacy was positive and ranged from small to medium in size. Coach gender and level coached moderated the overall relationship between the proposed sources of coaching efficacy and each of the dimensions of coaching efficacy. Results from this meta-analysis provided some evidence for both the utility of, and possible revisions to, the conceptual model of coaching efficacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research was supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. The purposes of this study were to examine how coaching context and level of coaching education were related to coaching efficacy and, subsequently, how coaching efficacy was related to perceived leadership behaviors in youth sports. One hundred and seventy-two youth sport coaches completed the Coaching Efficacy Scale and Revised Leadership Scale for Sports. Structural equation modeling revealed that coach education significantly affected the multidimensional construct of coaching efficacy whereas coaching context did not. Coaching efficacy predicted perceived leadership behaviors comprising training and instruction, positive feedback, social support, and situational consideration. These findings question the issue of coaching efficacy as a factor that may distinguish between coaches at different organizational contexts but highlight the importance of coach education training for improving coaching efficacy in youth sport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple conceptual frameworks support the link between coaches' attitudes and behaviors, and their effect on a variety of athlete outcomes, such as performance, motivation, and athlete self-perceptions. The present study explored the relationships among coaches' attitudes and behaviors, with respect to psychological skills training (PST), and the beliefs of their athletes. One hundred and fifteen coaches completed PST attitude (SPA-RC-revised) and behavior measures, while 403 athletes completed two perception measures (CCS and SCI). Structural Equation Modeling showed that the proposed relationships were statistically significant, except for the pathway between coaches' attitudes and their behaviors. Results support the disconnect between coaches' attitudes and behaviors previously established in PST research, as well as the theoretical links between coaches' behaviors and athletes' perceptions (i.e., evaluation of their coach and self-confidence). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Research on the relationship between self-efficacy beliefs and subsequent performance on a task has typically supported a positive linear model. However, these results typically excluded a moderate level of self-efficacy as an independent variable nor used quadratic regression analyses to test for a curvilinear relationship. There are reasons to believe that a more accurate relationship between self-efficacy and performance is curvilinear (i.e., that some self-doubt of self-efficacy may predict optimal effort) under certain circumstances. Design The current study examined this relationship with the muscular endurance task of a plank exercise. Methods Seventy-five participants participated in two trials of the exercise. Self-efficacy was recorded prior to each trial and performance in the plank exercise was used as an indicator of motivational effort. Results There was a significant curvilinear relationship between efficacy and performance on the first trial and a significant linear relationship between the two on the second trial. Further analyses showed that individuals who substantially over or underestimated their abilities on the first trial did not significantly alter their effort on the second trial. Conclusions The current study provides some support for the possibility that some self-doubt can be a motivating factor for individuals to exert maximal effort when initially attempting an exercise endurance task. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Although coaches recognize their role in preventing doping, research has shown that they lack self-confidence in how to deal with athletes whom they suspect of doping. Considering the importance of this efficacy, the current study was designed to develop and validate a measure of coaches' efficacy to confront doping athletes. Coaches' perception of motivational climate (i.e., ego- or task-oriented) was used to provide evidence for the predictive validity of coaches' doping confrontation efficacy. Design A survey-based study was conducted to develop a theoretically-based, psychometrically-sound scale. The scale was designed according to Bandura's (1997) guidelines for efficacy measures, and based in the conceptual framework of Newell and Stutman's (1991) Social Confrontation Model. A sample of 560 coaches of high school athletes completed the Doping Confrontation Efficacy Scale (DCES) and a modified version of the Perceived Motivation Climate in Sport Questionnaire-2 (Newton, Duda & Yin, 2000). Results A 21-item version of the DCES showed acceptable psychometric properties, including a good fit of the data to the proposed five-factor model of the construct (CFI = .967, TLI = .962, RMSEA = .040, SRMR = .037). Structural equation modeling revealed that coaches' confrontational efficacy is significantly predicted by coaches' perceptions of motivational climate, specifically, that it is positively related to task-involving climate and negatively related to ego-involving climate.. Conclusion The DCES is a valid and reliable measure of a very specific domain of coaching efficacy. This measurement can be useful in helping address significant gaps in both basic and applied research in the field.. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although studies have shown that the self-efficacy–performance relationship can be studied within performances (LaForge & Sullivan, 2010), no studies have directly compared noncontinuous (i.e., between performances) and continuous (i.e., within performances) conditions. The present study examined the efficacy–performance relationship within a continuous task and between a noncontinuous sport conditions. Path analyses revealed reciprocal efficacy–performance relationships in both the continuous and noncontinuous conditions, with higher goodness of fit indicators in the noncontinuous condition and a higher number of significant pathways in the continuous condition. These results imply potential differences in the cognitive processing of efficacy information between and within sport performances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sullivan & Feltz (2003) offered a preliminary multidimensional measure of communication in team sports, the Scale for Effective Communication in Team Sports (SECTS). The current research attempted to further the development and support for the psychometric properties and validity of the measure. In one study, 350 athletes completed an updated version of the SECTS. Confirmatory factor analyses showed good support for the 4-factor structure. Correlations to team cohesion offer construct validity for the scale. A second study, with an independent sample ( N = 79), revealed that team performance was negatively related to the communication of Distinctiveness at the team level. This updated version of the SECTS represents a parsimonious, valid, and reliable operational definition of sports-specific effective team communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the relationship between physical self-perception and the involvement of Jamaican youths in sport and physical activity. A sample of 1052 high school students aged between 12 and 19 years completed a Background Information Questionnaire and the Physical Self-Perception Profile. Participants were involved in competitive sport and recreational physical activities, or were non-participants in sport. Results revealed that the 5-factor structure of the PSPP as proposed by Fox and Corbin (1989) was not appropriate for the data obtained. A three-factor model based on the original PSPP items was proposed, consisting of the factors of Physical Self-Worth, Physical Appearance, and Physical Competence. Significant differences between different levels of sport participation on the three factors were found amongst these factors. Practical implications and proposal for further investigation of physical self-concept measures in this culture are made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditionally, intrateam conflict has been viewed as the antithesis of team cohesion. However, with a multidimensional view of both conflict and cohesion, certain types of conflict may be positively related to some aspects of cohesion. It was predicted that constructive styles of conflict would be positively related to cohesion, whereas destructive conflict would be negatively related to cohesion. Sixty-two male hockey players completed the Group Environment Questionnaire and Canary, Cunningham, and Cody's conflict style measure. Higher levels of social cohesion were related to greater use of constructive conflict style and lesser use of destructive style. Task and social cohesion were negatively correlated with greater use of destructive style. Two of the four cohesion factors were predicted from regression models based on the conflict style scores. These results support the hypothesis that constructive conflict may be positively related to cohesion, as well as previous research that inferred that negative conflict was negatively related to team unity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a rich history of the study of various personality traits in sport psychology. One trait that has not been studied extensively is humor. A measure of humor styles has recently been published by Martin et al. (2003) that has been supported in terms of validity and reliability. The Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ) measures humor as a multidimensional trait. It may be aimed at oneself or at others, and may be positive and negative in content. The resultant four factors are termed affiliative humor, aggressive humor, self-enhancing humor, and self-defeating humor. The current study was an investigation into the psychometric properties of the HSQ with a sample of athletes. A sample of 339 athletes (163 male, 176 female) completed the HSQ. The sample was examined for the assumptions of multivariate data analysis (i.e., univariate and multivariate normality, and multicollinearity). This resulted in the data set being reduced to 311 cases. The four factors of HSQ were examined for internal consistency. Three of them provided acceptable values for reliability although one value was slightly below the conventionally accepted level of .70. This data was then subjected to a confirmatory factor analysis through EQS to see if it fit Martin et al.'s model. The results showed poor fit of the model to the data (CFI = .807, RMSEA = .058, SRMR = .079). Standard methods of modification were unlikely to improve the fit to acceptable levels. Given the heterogeneous sample, two analyses of invariance were conducted to see if model would show a better fit depending on gender or type of sport (i.e., team or individual). There was no invariance by either factor. In conclusion, the HSQ does not appear to have acceptable psychometric properties for use in sport psychology. A final exploratory factor analysis was conducted which revealed a 3-factor solution that may prove to be more valid. Future research will have to support the properties of this resultant model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emerging field of youth development has been associated with indicators of Positive Youth Development (PYD) known as the 5Cs (competence, confidence, connection, character and caring). The 5Cs model (Lerner et al., 2005) describes PYD as the culmination of the Cs, whereby higher scores on each of the Cs contributes to a resultant higher score for PYD. Researchers have suggested sport is a salient context for developing the 5Cs. However, there is no specific evidence for the existence of the 5Cs among young people who play sport. The purpose of this study was to examine the latent dimensionality of PYD in sport. Two hundred and fifty eight youth sport participants (59 males, 199 females; M age= 13.77 years, SD = 1.23; range 12-16 years) attending summer sport camps at a Canadian university completed a 30-item instrument that was adapted from Phelps et al. 's (2009) 78-item measure of the 5Cs of PYD. Confirmatory factor analyses failed to provide support for the 5Cs model identified in previous research (i.e., Lerner et al. and Phelps et al.). Instead, exploratory factor analyses indicated that PYD in sport might be comprised of two factors that reflect pro-social values and confidence/competence. It is proposed that the 5Cs did not emerge in this study because (a) each C may not be uniquely identified by the current sample due to their stage of ontogeny, and (b) some of the Cs are so similar in nature (i. e., so highly correlated) that they are perceived as similar constructs. Implications of this study suggest that, in a sporting context, PYD might best be represented by pro-social values and confidence/competence rather than the 5Cs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]