Examining Coaches’ Instructional Behavior in Response to Challenge and Threat Feedback
Keywords:
Stress, cognitive appraisal, reflection, behavior analysisAbstract
This study examined coaches’ behavioral responses to challenge and threat feedback in a pressurized situation. We used a single-case experimental design consistent with the principles of applied behavior analysis and conducted follow-up interviews. The Arizona State University Observation Instrument (ASUOI; Lacy & Darst, 1989) was employed to systematically observe coaches’ instructional behaviors pre- and post- manipulation, which was delivered by random assignment of challenge or threat feedback to 10 novice coaches. A total of 1,084 instructional behaviors were recorded across both conditions. In the challenge condition two coaches exhibited relatively large increases instructional behavior, whilst three coaches showed small decreases. Coaches in the threat condition demonstrated greater within condition variance as two coaches showed relatively large increases in instructional behavior, two coaches showed large decreases, and one coach showed minimal change. Interview data highlighted the mediating roles of coaches’ emotional responses, resource perceptions, and goal orientation in the challenge and threat appraisal process. Implications for practice include the use of reflection to promote coaches’ resource perceptions and facilitate adaptive responses to stress.
References
Andrew, D. P. (2009). The impact of leadership behavior on satisfaction of college tennis players: A test of the leadership behavior congruency hypothesis of the multidimensional model of leadership. Journal of Sport Behavior, 32(3), 261.
Baldock, L., Cropley, B., Neil, R., & Mellalieu, S. D. (2021). Stress and mental well-being experiences of professional football coaches. The Sport Psychologist, 35(2), 108-122. https://doi.org/10.1123/tsp.2020-0087
Barker, J., McCarthy, P., Jones, M., & Moran, A. (2011). Single case research methods in sport and exercise. Routledge.
Barker, J. B., Slater, M. J., Pugh, G., Mellalieu, S. D., McCarthy, P. J., Jones, M. V., & Moran, A. (2020). The effectiveness of psychological skills training and behavioral interventions in sport using single-case designs: A meta regression analysis of the peer-reviewed studies. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 51, 101746. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2020.101746
Becker, A. J., & Wrisberg, C. A. (2008). Effective coaching in action: Observations of legendary collegiate basketball coach Pat Summitt. The Sport Psychologist, 22(2), 197-211. https://doi.org/10.1123/tsp.22.2.197 10.1123/tsp.22.2.197
Behnke, M., & Kaczmarek, L. D. (2018). Successful performance and cardiovascular markers of challenge and threat: A meta-analysis. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 130, 73-79. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2018.04.007
Blascovich, J. & Mendes, W. B. (2000). Challenge and threat appraisals: The role of affective cues. In J. P. Forgas (Ed.), Feeling and thinking: The role of affect in social cognition (pp. 59-82). Cambridge University Press.
Brimmell, J., Parker, J. K., Furley, P., & Moore, L. J. (2018). Nonverbal behavior accompanying challenge and threat states under pressure. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 39, 90-94. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2018.08.003
Cassidy, T. G., Jones, R. L., & Potrac, P. (2009). Understanding sports coaching: The social, cultural and pedagogical foundations of coaching practice (2nd ed.). Routledge.
Chadha, N. J., Turner, M. J., & Slater, M. J. (2019). Investigating irrational beliefs, cognitive appraisals, challenge and threat, and affective states in golfers approaching competitive situations. Frontiers in Psychology, 10(2295), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02295
Cooper, J. O., Heron, T. E., & Heward, W. L. (2007). Applied behavior analysis (2nd ed.). Prentice Hall.
Cumming, S. J., Turner, M. J., & Jones, M. (2017). Longitudinal changes in elite rowers’ challenge and threat appraisals of pressure situations: A season-long observational study. The Sport Psychologist, 31(3), 217-226. https://doi.org/10.1123/tsp.2016-0087 10.1123/tsp.2016-0087
Didymus, F. F. (2017). Olympic and international level sports coaches’ experiences of stressors, appraisals, and coping. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 9(2), 214-232. https://doi.org/10.1080/2159676X.2016.1261364
Dixon, M., & Turner, M. J. (2018). Stress appraisals of UK soccer academy coaches: An interpretative phenomenological analysis. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 10(5), 620-634. https://doi.org/10.1080/2159676X.2018.1464055
Dixon, M., Turner, M. J., & Gillman, J. (2017). Examining the relationships between challenge and threat cognitive appraisals and coaching behaviors in football coaches. Journal of Sports Sciences, 35(24), 2446-2452. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2016.1273538
Feinberg, J. M., & Aiello, J. R. (2010). The effect of challenge and threat appraisals under evaluative presence. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 40(8), 2071-2104. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1559-1816.2010.00651.x
Ferron, J., & Foster-Johnson, L. (1998). Analyzing single-case data with visually guided randomization tests. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers, 30(4), 698-706. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03209489
Frey, M. (2007). College coaches’ experiences with stress—“Problem solvers” have problems, too. The Sport Psychologist, 21(1), 38-57. https://doi.org/10.1123/tsp.21.1.38
Gallimore, R., & Tharp, R. (2004). What a coach can teach a teacher, 1975-2004: Reflections and reanalysis of John Wooden’s teaching practices. The Sport Psychologist, 18(2), 119-137. https://doi.org/10.1123/tsp.18.2.119
Hägglund, K., Kenttä, G., Thelwell, R., & Wagstaff, C. R. (2021). Mindful self-reflection to support sustainable high-performance coaching: A process evaluation of a novel method development in elite sport. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 1-24. https://doi.org/10.1080/10413200.2021.1925782
Hall, E. T., & Gray, S. (2016). Reflecting on reflective practice: A coach’s action research narratives. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 8(4), 365-379. https://doi.org/10.1080/2159676X.2016.1160950
Hall, S. J. H., & Getchell, N. (2014). Research methods in kinesiology and the health sciences. Wolters Kluwer Health.
Hase, A., O'Brien, J., Moore, L. J., & Freeman, P. (2019). The relationship between challenge and threat states and performance: A systematic review. Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology, 8(2), 123-144. https://doi.org/10.1037/spy0000132
Høigaard, H., De Cuyper, B., Fransen, K., Boen, F., & Peters, D. M. (2015). Perceived coach behavior in training and competition predicts collective efficacy in female elite handball players. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 46(6), 321-336. https://doi.org/10.7352/IJSP 2015.46.321
Horner, R. H., Carr, E. G., Halle, J., McGee, G., Odom, S., & Wolery, M. (2005). The use of single-subject research to identify evidence-based practice in special education. Exceptional Children, 71(2), 165-179. https://doi.org/10.1177/001440290507100203
Jones, M., Meijen, C., McCarthy, P. J., & Sheffield, D. (2009). A theory of challenge and threat states in athletes. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 2(2), 161-180. https://doi.org/10.1080/17509840902829331
Lacy, A. C., & Darst, P. W. (1989). The Arizona State University observation instrument (ASUOI). In P. W. Darst, D. B. Zakrajsek & V. H. Mancini (Eds.), Analyzing physical education and sport instruction (2nd ed., pp. 369-377). Human Kinetics Publishers.
Lazarus, R. S. (1999). Stress and emotion: A new synthesis. Springer Publishing Company.
Lyle, J. (2018). The transferability of sport coaching research: A critical commentary. Quest, 70(4), 419-437. https://doi.org/10.1080/00336297.2018.1453846
Mageau, G. A., & Vallerand, R. J. (2003). The coach–athlete relationship: A motivational model. Journal of Sports Sciences, 21(11), 883-904. https://doi.org/10.1080/0264041031000140374
Meijen, C., Turner, M., Jones, M. V., Sheffield, D., & McCarthy, P. (2020). A theory of challenge and threat states in athletes: A revised conceptualization. Frontiers in Psychology, 11(126), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00126
Normand, M. P. (2016). Less is more: Psychologists can learn more by studying fewer people. Frontiers in Psychology, 7(934), 1-4. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00934
Norris, L. A., Didymus, F. F., & Kaiseler, M. (2017). Stressors, coping, and well-being among sports coaches: A systematic review. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 33, 93-112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2017.08.005
O’Donoghue, P., & Mayes, A. (2013). Coach behavior. In T. McGarry, P. O'Donoghue, J. Sampaio, & A. J. de Eira Sampaio (Eds.), Routledge handbook of sports performance analysis (pp. 183-193). Routledge.
Olsen, M., Haugan, J., Hrozanova, M., & Moen, F. (2020). Coping amongst elite-level sports coaches: A systematic review. International Sport Coaching Journal, 8(1) 34-47. https://doi.org/10.1123/iscj.2019-0051
Olusoga, P., Butt, J., Maynard, I., & Hays, K. (2010). Stress and coping: A study of world class coaches. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 22(3), 274-293. https://doi.org/10.1080/10413201003760968
Olusoga, P., & Thelwell, R. (2017). Coach stress and associated impacts. In R. Thelwell, C. Harwood, & I. Greenlees (Eds.), The psychology of sports coaching: Research and practice (pp. 128-141). Routledge.
Smith, M., & Cushion, C. J. (2006). An investigation of the in-game behaviors of professional, top-level youth soccer coaches. Journal of Sports Sciences, 24(4), 355-366. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640410500131944
Smith, B., & Sparkes, A. C. (2020). Qualitative research. In G. Tenenbaum & R. C. Eklund (Eds.), Handbook of sport psychology (pp. 1001-1019). Wiley.
Solomon, G. B., & Reece, S. D. (1995). Training manual for the Arizona State University observation instrument. University of Virginia.
Sparkes, A. C., & Smith, B. (2014). Qualitative research methods in sport, exercise and health: From process to product. Routledge.
Thelwell, R. C., Wagstaff, C. R., Rayner, A., Chapman, M., & Barker, J. (2017). Exploring athletes’ perceptions of coach stress in elite sport environments. Journal of Sports Sciences, 35(1), 44-55. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2016.1154979
Tracy, S. J., & Hinrichs, M. M. (2017). Big tent criteria for qualitative quality. The International Encyclopedia of Communication Research Methods, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118901731.iecrm0016
Tschannen-Moran, M., & Hoy, A. W. (2007). The differential antecedents of self-efficacy beliefs of novice and experienced teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education, 23(6), 944-956. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2006.05.003
Turner, M. J., Ewen, D., & Barker, J. B. (2020). An idiographic single-case study examining the use of rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) with three amateur golfers to alleviate social anxiety. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 32(2), 186-204. https://doi.org/10.1080/10413200.2018.1496186
Turner, M. J., Jones, M. V., Sheffield, D., Barker, J. B., & Coffee, P. (2014). Manipulating cardiovascular indices of challenge and threat using resource appraisals. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 94(1), 9-18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2014.07.004
Turner, M. J., Jones, M. V., Sheffield, D., Slater, M. J., Barker, J. B., and Bell, J. J. (2013). Who thrives under pressure? Predicting the performance of elite academy cricketers using the cardiovascular indicators of challenge and threat states. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 35(4), 387–397. https://doi.org/10.1123/jsep.35.4.387
van der Mars H. (1989). Systematic observation: An introduction. In P. W. Darst, D. B. Zakrajsek, & V. H. Mancini (Eds.), Analyzing physical education and sport instruction (2nd ed., pp. 3-19). Human Kinetics Publishers.
