Do coaching style and game circumstances predict athletes' perceived justice of their coach? A longitudinal study in elite handball and volleyball teams

Abstract

ObjectiveThe present longitudinal study is the first to examine game to game fluctuations of perceived justice of elite volleyball and handball coaches. More specifically, we studied whether coaching style (i.e., need support versus control), coach behaviors (decision justifications), player’s status (i.e., starter or substitute), and game result (win/loss) predicted athletes’ perceived justice and its fluctuations.MethodsA longitudinal questionnaire study was performed during 6 consecutive weeks among Belgian female volleyball (N = 57) and male handball players (N = 39). We administered a general questionnaire (i.e., need support/control) the first week, and game-specific questionnaires (i.e., justice, decision justifications, game circumstances) after six consecutive games. Because game-to-game measures (i.e., within-athlete) were nested into individuals (between-athletes) we conducted Hierarchical Linear Modeling to examine the hypotheses.ResultsMultilevel analyses showed that 49% of the variance of perceived justice was situated at the within-athlete level. Furthermore, coaches’ need support and the provision of decision justifications were positive predictors of athletes’ perceived justice of the coach. More specific, the impact of justifications was less strong in a high need supportive environment and stronger in a high controlling environment. Finally, both the status of the player and the game result were negative predictors of athletes’ perceived justice.ConclusionsWe can conclude that athletes’ perceived justice of their coach shifts considerably from game-to-game. Furthermore, the coaching style and coaching behaviors can help to overcome the negative effects of specific game circumstances such as being a substitute or losing a game on athletes’ perceived justice of the coach.

Perception of Coach According to the Role of Starter or Substitute in the Final Stage of the Season

“…Apparently, the deterioration in the perception of the coach in the final part of the season does not occur so much with respect to his competence, but rather with the fairness and leadership style he manifests. In this line, our results are congruent with other studies in which competence and playing time did not explain the satisfaction with the coach as much as justice variables [27]. It is possible that both the deterioration of players' perception of the coach and the decline in satisfaction in the final part of the season are due more to issues related to perceived fairness or leadership style than to procedural or technical skills.…”

“…In a recent study, Bandura and Kavussanu [26] conclude that authentic leadership facilitates the enjoyment and commitment of athletes, which can occur through the autonomy and trust granted by the coach. Therefore, the perceived role of each player as a starter or substitute and its direct relationship to the fair distribution of playing time becomes an significant leadership task [3,27].…”

“…On the other hand, procedural justice is concerned with the fairness of the procedures used to determine these distributions [29]. In sports teams, an athlete may be dissatisfied with his status as a substitute when he perceives the procedures used to determine that role as unfair (e.g., inconsistent, inaccurate) [27]. However, if he or she perceives the procedures used to select the initial team to be fair (e.g., the coach uses objective information), the athlete is more likely to accept the final decision [30].…”

Pengembangan Jr-Design Volleyball Smash Drills Bagi Mahasiswa Jurusan Olahraga

“…Analisis data penelitian analisis deskriptif kualitatif (untuk data berupa pernyataan dari saran perbaikan ahli dan hasil-hasil diskusi) dan analisis deskriptif kuantitatif (untuk data berupa angka dari hasil penilaian angket). Hasil penilaian masing-masing ahli dianalisis (disesuaikan) dengan Norma Kategorisasi Skala Psikologi menurut (Azwar, 2012), dengan ketentuan seperti pada Tabel. 1.…”

A Stakeholder Perspective on Ethical Leadership in Sport: Bridging the Gap Between the Normative and Descriptive Lines of Inquiry

“…Furthermore, broadening the scope to professional football, Constandt, Parent, and Willem ( 2020 ) have shown that fans care little about ethical leadership in their club, as they focus mainly on those aspects that impact their own position, such as clear communication and strengthening the fans’ position within the governance of the club. Finally, studying Belgian handball and volleyball settings, De Backer et al ( 2018 ) have indicated a positive influence of a need supportive coaching style on athletes’ perceived justice of their coach.…”