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Coaches’ perspectives on contribution
International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology
Abstract
The purposes of this study were to (a) examine coaches’ perspectives on contribution through sport and (b) obtain their feedback on a previously established definition of contribution. Data were collected via focus groups with 13 coaches from a variety of individual and team sports (M age = 33 years, SD = 11.1). Focus group transcripts were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis [Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2019). Reflecting on reflexive thematic analysis. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 11(4), 589–597. https://doi.org/10.1080/2159676X.2019.1628806]. Findings were presented as two categories pertaining to the two purposes of the study. In the first category, youth sport coaches’ perceptions of contribution, the coaches’ discussion of contribution centred on three themes. Coaches discussed contributing as an athlete by providing sport specific examples of contribution behaviour. Through all their discussions, it was evident that coaches perceived that contribution involves having a positive impact and acting with intent. Regarding the second category, coaches’ feedback on the definition, coaches expressed that the definition fit with their conceptualisations of contribution, particularly the first sentence which contained the ideas that contribution is intentional and results in positive impacts on others. However, the coaches felt the definition was overly complex and questioned whether the definition should have focused on intent versus behaviour. A practical operational definition of contribution was suggested to address the coaches’ criticisms of the theoretical definition. These findings suggest that, whereas the theoretical definition of contribution is appropriate for academic discourse, the practical operational definition may be better suited for use by stakeholders and as a basis for interactions between researchers and sport stakeholders.
... The concept of Contribution in the Five Cs model is broad and inclusive rather than precisely defined and operationalized (Deal & Holt, 2021). Perhaps accordingly, Contribution has been measured variously across PYD studies. ...
Positive youth development (PYD) models are widespread, but the empirical evidence for them is primarily nomothetic (i.e., investigations of universal patterns). Contemporary developmental theory suggests that concepts and processes within PYD models should also be explored with respect to specificity. This study demonstrates how the Five Cs Model, a predominant PYD model, can be advanced using group-differential methods. Secondary data from four studies of adolescents were used to test: (1) Whether there were subgroups who varied in their patterns of scores across the Five Cs, and (2) Whether subgroups also varied in Contribution behaviors. Unexpectedly, the four data sets used could not be combined, yielding an opportunity to discuss consistencies and inconsistencies in findings across the four data sets through contextual and sample differences. Findings demonstrate how understanding specificity in theorized concepts and processes in PYD models can complement studies of universal patterns, which are both necessary to advance PYD research and practice.
Introduction
The term contribution is a key feature of approaches to positive youth development but has yet to be adequately defined. The purposes of this study were to identify properties that underlie contribution and to establish a theoretical definition of the construct.
Methods
A two‐phase scoping review was conducted. The first phase involved the systematic search, selection, and analysis of studies from which six properties of contribution were identified and a preliminary theoretical definition was constructed. In the second phase expert judges rated the degree to that the proposed definition and the six properties of contribution fit with their conceptualization of the construct on a 6‐point scale.
Results
Mean ratings for the definition and the six properties ranged from 5.05 to 5.70. Judges' ratings for the overall definition of contribution and the six properties were evaluated using Aiken's content validity coefficient (V). All V coefficients ranged in size from 0.81 to 0.94 and were statistically significant (p's < .01) indicating that the definition of contribution and the corresponding six properties fit well with experts' conceptualizations of the construct.
Conclusion
This study provides a theoretical definition of contribution that will serve as a foundation upon which future research in the area of positive youth development can build.
A qualitative description design is particularly relevant where information is required directly from those experiencing the phenomenon under investigation and where time and resources are limited. Nurses and midwives often have clinical questions suitable to a qualitative approach but little time to develop an exhaustive comprehension of qualitative methodological approaches. Qualitative description research is sometimes considered a less sophisticated approach for epistemological reasons. Another challenge when considering qualitative description design is differentiating qualitative description from other qualitative approaches. This article provides a systematic and robust journey through the philosophical, ontological, and epistemological perspectives, which evidences the purpose of qualitative description research. Methods and rigor issues underpinning qualitative description research are also appraised to provide the researcher with a systematic approach to conduct research utilizing this approach. The key attributes and value of qualitative description research in the health care professions will be highlighted with the aim of extending its usage.
Sport has the potential to foster the development of life skills, such as initiative, teamwork, emotion regulation, and goal setting, that transcend the fields and courts on which youth participate (Danish, Forneris, Hodge, & Heke, 2004). However, it is often acknowledged that this growth does not occur on its own. One factor that plays a central role in shaping positive sport experiences is the coach (Hellison & Cutforth, 1997). The purpose of this paper is to review the current literature on coaching strategies considered best practices for life skills development as well as to provide illustrative examples of many of these practices garnered from a case study of a model coach and the strategies he utilized in his high school tennis program. The paper concludes with additional practical considerations and recommendations for practitioners, coach educators, and scholars who continue to add to the body of knowledge regarding a coach’s role in positive youth development.
University student-athletes’ contributions in the form of volunteering, community engagement, and civic engagement have been the subject of recent research; however, no studies have specifically examined the factors that facilitate or serve as barriers to contribution in this population. As such, the purpose of this study is to explore the facilitators and barriers relating to university student-athletes’ contributions. Individual semi-structured
interviews were conducted with eight university student-athletes (two males, six females) between 18 and 21 years of age (M = 19.25) from two Canadian universities. The analysis led to the identification of two qualitatively distinct
profiles regarding how facilitators and barriers to contributions were experienced: (a) the first-year student-athletes and (b) the sustained contributors. Although the participants in each profile identified teammates, coaches, and athletics department staff as facilitators to contribution, they differed in their interpretation of how these individuals facilitated contributions. First-year student-athletes were more reliant than sustained contributors on
having facilitators create contribution opportunities. The profiles also differed in regards to how time constraints were overcome. First-year student-athletes utilized less complex, individual time-management strategies, while sustained contributors made use of more advanced time-management strategies to optimize their time.
Youth sport participation offers many benefits including the development of self-esteem, peer socialisation and general fitness. However, an emphasis on competitive success, often driven by goals of elite-level travel team selection, collegiate scholarships, Olympic and National team membership and even professional contracts, has seemingly become widespread. This has resulted in an increased pressure to begin high-intensity training at young ages. Such an excessive focus on early intensive training and competition at young ages rather than skill development can lead to overuse injury and burnout.
Youth civic engagement occupies a central space in applied developmental science.
However, understanding of the processes and contexts in which early adolescents become
civically engaged is still limited. This study draws on a sample of approximately 4,000
students from 11 urban middle schools in Tennessee to address several gaps in the civic
engagement literature. First, we use latent class analysis to identify types of civic
engagement in early adolescence. Second, we explore associations between types of
engagement and youth behavioral and academic outcomes. Third, we focus on urban
youth. A latent class analysis using survey items suggests a three-class structure for civic
engagement in urban middle schools. One distinction is between students who are engaged
and those who are not. Another distinction is that, among the engaged groups, one is
engaged both behaviorally and attitudinally (social justice actors), whereas another has
strong civic attitudes but infrequent civic behaviors (social justice sympathizers).
The 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development (PYD), a longitudinal investigation of a diverse sample of 1,700 fifth graders and 1,117 of their parents, tests developmental contextual ideas linking PYD, youth contributions, and participation in community youth development (YD) programs, representing a key ecological asset. Using data from Wave 1 of the study, structural equation modeling procedures provided evidence for five firstorder latent factors representing the “Five Cs” of PYD (competence, confidence, connection, character, and caring) and for their convergence on a second-order PYD latent construct. A theoretical construct, youth contribution, was also created and examined. Both PYD and YD program participation independently related to contribution. The importance of longitudinal analyses for extending the present results is discussed.
Thematic analysis is a poorly demarcated, rarely acknowledged, yet widely used qualitative analytic method within psychology. In this paper, we argue that it offers an accessible and theoretically flexible approach to analysing qualitative data. We outline what thematic analysis is, locating it in relation to other qualitative analytic methods that search for themes or patterns, and in relation to different epistemological and ontological positions. We then provide clear guidelines to those wanting to start thematic analysis, or conduct it in a more deliberate and rigorous way, and consider potential pitfalls in conducting thematic analysis. Finally, we outline the disadvantages and advantages of thematic analysis. We conclude by advocating thematic analysis as a useful and flexible method for qualitative research in and beyond psychology.
We introduce this special issue on the foundations and functions of adolescent thriving by summarizing the developmental systems theory-based, positive youth development (PYD) perspective. The PYD perspective frames much of contemporary research about health and positive development across the adolescent period and, more specifically, frames the 4-H Study of PYD, the data set from which the empirical work in this special issue is drawn. We discuss the different ways in which the articles in this special issue elucidate different facets of the PYD perspective. In addition, we summarize the implications of this research for future scholarship and for applications aimed at improving the life chances of diverse adolescents.
Sport has been deemed a favourable context to foster positive youth development and life skills. However, researchers have cautioned for vigilance before assuming that sport naturally leads to positive developmental outcomes. An important aspect in understanding sport participation outcomes consists of examining how sport leaders facilitate the development and transfer of life skills. In the context of Canadian high school sport, teacher-coaches are considered key adults in the delivery of sport programs. Informed by the Pierce et al. (2017) life skills transfer model and the Bean et al. (2018) life skills continuum, an intervention was implemented, using action research principles, with a high school teacher-coach to facilitate student-athletes’ life skills transfer from sport to the classroom. Data were collected via pre-post intervention interviews with the teacher-coach, post-intervention interviews with five student-athletes, coach observations, and a researcher reflective journal. A thematic analysis was conducted to examine the contextual and psychological factors influencing life skills development and transfer. Results indicated that the teacher-coach played an important role in influencing contextual and psychological factors, in both the sport and the classroom, which shaped student-athletes’ life skills development and transfer experiences. Implications for coach education are discussed as they relate to the benefits of on-the-ground support for coaches to promote positive youth development.
Lay Summary: An intervention was implemented to help a high school teacher-coach learn how to facilitate life skills transfer from sport to the classroom. Several factors were shown to influence student-athletes’ ability to transfer their life skills from sport to the classroom. The results are discussed in relation to their theoretical, methodological, and practical implications.
• Implications for Practice
• A life skills transfer intervention was designed to take advantage of the privileged position of teacher-coaches who hold considerable influence in both sport and in the classroom.
• For the athletes, being taught life skills by the same person in two different school contexts appeared to be conducive to transfer, thereby reinforcing the importance of consistent messaging.
• Awareness, support, and confidence were shown to be key factors in enabling the athletes to transfer their life skills beyond sport.
Since initially writing on thematic analysis in 2006, the popularity of the method we outlined has exploded, the variety of TA approaches have expanded, and, not least, our thinking has developed and shifted. In this reflexive commentary, we look back at some of the unspoken assumptions that informed how we wrote our 2006 paper. We connect some of these un-identified assumptions, and developments in the method over the years, with some conceptual mismatches and confusions we see in published TA studies. In order to facilitate better TA practice, we reflect on how our thinking has evolved – and in some cases sedimented – since the publication of our 2006 paper, and clarify and revise some of the ways we phrased or conceptualised TA, and the elements of, and processes around, a method we now prefer to call reflexive TA.
Theoretical issues pertinent to a dynamic, developmental systems understanding of positive youth development and the thriving process in such development are discussed. Thriving involves relative plasticity in human development and adaptive regulations of person–context relations. An integrated moral and civic identity and a commitment to society beyond the limits of one’s own existence enable thriving youth to be agents both in their own, healthy development and in the positive enhancement of other people and of society. Thriving youth become generative adults through the progressive enhancement of behaviors that are valued in their specific culture and that reflect the universal structural value of contributing to civil society.
Positive youth development (PYD) is an asset-oriented approach to adolescent development that has been adapted to sport. Interestingly, in sport, the PYD outcomes (i.e. competence, confidence, connection, and character) have largely been introduced as outcomes, with little attention to their dynamic nature or individual influences over time. In considering evidence from educational settings that indicates peer relationships fluctuate over time, the current project sought to explore the dynamicity of these relationships (i.e. connection) over the course of an athletic season. In addition, the potential for connection towards the beginning of a sport season to influence athlete character towards the end of the season was assessed. Athletes from five elite youth volleyball teams (N = 43 athletes; Mage = 15.86; SD = 1.17) completed peer nomination questionnaires (i.e. connection) at the beginning and end of an athletic season. At the end of the season, a practice session was videotaped and athlete behaviours were coded for frequency of prosocial and antisocial behaviours (i.e. character). Results indicate significant variability in connection over the course of a season, and those who were rated as popular by their team members at the beginning of the season were more likely to demonstrate prosocial behaviours at the end of the season. Discussions pertaining to the novel methodologies implemented, as well as the theoretical and practical implications of the results are advanced herein.
The general view of descriptive research as a lower level form of inquiry has influenced some researchers conducting qualitative research to claim methods they are really not using and not to claim the method they are using: namely, qualitative description. Qualitative descriptive studies have as their goal a comprehensive summary of events in the everyday terms of those events. Researchers conducting qualitative descriptive studies stay close to their data and to the surface of words and events. Qualitative descriptive designs typically are an eclectic but reasonable combination of sampling, and data collection, analysis, and re-presentation techniques. Qualitative descriptive study is the method of choice when straight descriptions of phenomena are desired. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Res Nurs Health 23:334–340, 2000.
Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between social identity and PYD in sport.
Method:
Youth engaged in recreational sport (N?=?219; Mage?=?11.61?years, SD?=?1.39 years) completed measures of social identity and PYD in sport. The social identity measure assessed 3 dimensions including ingroup ties (IGT; perceptions of similarity, bonding, belongingness), cognitive centrality (importance of being a team member), and ingroup affect (IGA; feelings associated with group membership). A regression analysis was performed separately for 4 PYD outcomes (personal and social skills, goal setting, initiative, negative experiences) with the 3 dimensions of social identity entered as predictors.
Results:
Regression analyses revealed that IGT and IGA were positively associated with personal and social skills (R(2) Adj.?=?.29). Further, IGT predicted initiative (R(2) Adj.?=?.16), whereas IGA was positively associated with goal setting (R(2) Adj.?=?.17) and negatively associated with negative experiences (R(2) Adj.?=?.08).
Conclusion:
The findings extend previous research highlighting the benefits of social identity on teammate behavior and team performance and demonstrate how social identity may contribute to PYD through sport.
Thematic analysis (TA) is one of a cluster of analytic approaches you can use, if you want to identify patterns of meaning across a qualitative dataset. The widely-used version of TA we outline in this chapter is fairly unique in the canon of qualitative analytic approaches in that it just offers the researcher analytic tools to make sense of data. It is not tied to a particular theoretical framework, and it does not come with methodological stipulations about, for example, how to sample, or to collect data. This gives the researcher great flexibility in how they use TA. Alongside the fact that TA is a relatively accessible qualitative analytic technique, these features make it an excellent and robust method for beginner qualitative researchers, for those wishing to do fairly descriptive work, for those working in teams across disciplinary contexts, or with researchers of mixed (qualitative) experience, and for those wanting to produce research for public consumption (e.g., policy- or practice- oriented research). That said TA also provides a tool that offers the potential for nuanced, complex, interpretative analysis. After introducing TA, and explaining why and when you might use it, we provide a detailed discussion of how you do TA, illustrated with examples from Paul’s focus group study exploring women’s perspectives on, and experiences of, exercise.
For athletes, life skills transfer represents the vital ongoing process in their personal development whereby they internalize the skills they have learned in sport and apply them to multiple life domains. The purpose of this article is to offer coaches practical strategies that they can integrate into their coaching to explicitly promote life skills transfer beyond sport. Seven broad strategies, emanating from a synthesis of current literature, are presented alongside specific activities for coaches to help their athletes transfer life skills from sport to other life domains.
This research aimed to (a) develop a measure of prosocial and antisocial behavior in sport, (b) examine its invariance across sex and sport, and (c) provide evidence for its discriminant and concurrent validity. We conducted two studies. In study 1, team sport athletes (N = 1,213) recruited from 103 teams completed questionnaires assessing demographics and prosocial and antisocial behaviors in sport. Factor analyses revealed two factors representing prosocial behavior and two factors representing antisocial behavior. The model had a very good fit to the data and showed configural, metric, and scalar invariance across sex and sport. The final scale consisted of 20 items. In Study 2, team-sport athletes (N = 106) completed the scale and measures of empathy and goal orientation. Analyses provided support for the discriminant and concurrent validity of the scale. In conclusion, the new scale can be used to measure prosocial and antisocial behaviors in team sport.
Little research has examined why student-athletes contribute. Contribution can be defined as the actions taken by individuals that benefit their own well-being or that of their family, community, and civil society. The purpose of this study was to examine university student-athletes’ motivations to contribute. Interviews were conducted with 10 university student-athletes (three males, seven females) between 18 and 22 years of age (M = 19.4). The findings indicated student-athletes engaged in contributions for reasons that satisfied their needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Additionally, motivations to contribute represented a complex interplay of intrinsic and extrinsic motives rather than a singular motive. Contribution experiences during the university years appear to help student-athletes make informed career decisions and to develop a willingness to be lifelong contributors.
The general view of descriptive research as a lower level form of inquiry has influenced some researchers conducting qualitative research to claim methods they are really not using and not to claim the method they are using: namely, qualitative description. Qualitative descriptive studies have as their goal a comprehensive summary of events in the everyday terms of those events. Researchers conducting qualitative descriptive studies stay close to their data and to the surface of words and events. Qualitative descriptive designs typically are an eclectic but reasonable combination of sampling, and data collection, analysis, and re-presentation techniques. Qualitative descriptive study is the method of choice when straight descriptions of phenomena are desired.
Liberty: Thriving and Civic Engagement Among America’s Youth examines what it means to develop as an exemplary young person - that is, a young person who is thriving within the community and on the rise to a hopeful future. The book explores several key characteristics of positive youth development such as competence, character, confidence, social connections, and compassion that coalesce to create a young person who is developing successfully towards an "ideal" adulthood, one marked by contributions to self, others, and the institutions of civil society. In this unique work, author Richard M. Lerner brings his formidable knowledge of developmental systems theory and facts on youth development to analyze the meaning of a thriving civil society and its relationship to the potential of youth for self-actualization and positive development.
While previous studies indicate that participation in sport has the potential to facilitate positive developmental outcomes, there is a lack of consensus regarding the possible transfer of these outcomes to other environments (i.e., school or work). An important issue within the positive development literature concerns how sport programs should approach the issue of transfer. This article outlines two distinct approaches to the transfer debate: the explicit approach and the implicit approach. Specifically, this article discusses the relative strengths and limitations of these two approaches with regards to their effectiveness, sustainability, and balance of adult- and youth-driven learning. Recommendations for future research directions are also presented.
Theories of positive youth development (PYD) regard such development as bases of both community contributions and lessened likelihood of risk/problem behaviors. Using data from the 4-H Study of PYD, we tested these expectations by examining if PYD in Grade 5 predicted both youth contributions and risk behaviors and depression in Grade 6. Results of random effects regression and SEM models indicated that, as expected, PYD in Grade 5 predicted higher youth contributions and lower risk behaviors and depression at Grade 6. There were significant sex differences for contribution (girls had higher scores) and for risk behaviors (boys had higher scores), but not for depression. In turn, the structural model fit was equivalent for boys and girls. Results are discussed in regard to promoting PYD to enhance successful development, or thriving, and to reduce problem behaviors.
PART ONE: THINKING ABOUT QUESTIONS Guiding Principles of Asking Questions The Topic Guide Versus the Questioning Route How and Where to Begin Sequence for Developing Questions PART TWO: THE ART AND MECHANICS OF ASKING GOOD QUESTIONS Categories of Questions Phrasing the Questions Sequencing the Questions Probes, Follow-Ups, and Unplanned Questions Know the Limits Changing Questions The Importance of Consistency Pilot Testing and Reviewing the Plan PART THREE: QUESTIONS THAT ENGAGE PARTICIPANTS Listing, Rating, and Choosing Questions Projective Questions Group Activities
This article explores the recent approach to youth research and practice that has been called positive youth development. The author makes the case that the approach grew out of dissatisfaction with a predominant view that underestimated the true capacities of young people by focusing on their deficits rather than their developmental potentials. The article examines three areas of research that have been transformed by the positive youth approach: the nature of the child; the interaction between the child and the community; and moral growth. It concludes with the point that positive youth development does not simply mean an examination of anything that appears to be beneficial for young people. Rather, it is an approach with strong defining assumptions about what is important to look at if we are to accurately capture the full potential of all young people to learn and thrive in the diverse settings where they live.
This review is designed to summarize and critique current life skills through sport research. In particular, life skills are defined, the conditions needed to examine life skills development are explored, and the possible theoretical explanations of how, when, under what conditions and why life skills develop in sport participants are discussed. A heuristic model of coaching life skills is offered. To conclude, future research directions are forwarded and include the need for: (a) quantitative and qualitative research; (b) the development of valid life skills through sport measures; (c) an examination of sport program type differences; (d) evaluation research; (e) longitudinal studies; (f) studies focusing on identifying theoretical explanations for the life skill development sport participation link; (g) the utilization of experimental designs; and (h) an examination of the transferability of life skills. The importance of conducting this type of research for both theoretical and practical reasons is emphasized.
Civic participation does not necessarily equate to civic engagement. However, to date, integrated measures of civic engagement that go beyond civic behaviors have not been developed. In this article, we propose an integrated construct of civic engagement, active and engaged citizenship (AEC), that includes behavioral, cognitive, and socioemotional constructs. Using data from 909 adolescents (62.4% girls) who took part in the Grades 8-10 assessments of the longitudinal 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development (PYD), we assessed the structure and measurement invariance of AEC. AEC was proposed as a second-order latent construct that encompasses four first-order latent factors: Civic Duty, Civic Skills, Neighborhood Social Connection, and Civic Participation. Measurement invariance was tested over time (from Grade 8 to Grade 10) and between boys and girls. The results supported strong invariance of AEC over time and between sexes. Implications of AEC for future research and practice are discussed.
"Whatever Happened to Qualitative Description?" (Sandelowski, 2000) was written to critique the prevailing tendency in qualitative health research to claim the use of methods that were not actually used and to clarify a methodological approach rarely identified as a distinctive method. The article has generated several misconceptions, most notably that qualitative description requires no interpretation of data. At the root of these misconceptions is the persistent challenge of defining qualitative research methods. Qualitative description is a "distributed residual category" (Bowker & Star, 2000). Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press) in the classification of these methods. Its value lies not only in the knowledge its use can produce, but also as a vehicle for presenting and treating research methods as living entities that resist simple classification.
Theoretical issues pertinent to a dynamic, developmental systems understanding of positive youth development and the thriving process in such development are discussed. Thriving involves relative plasticity in human development and adaptive regulations of person-context relations. An integrated moral and civic identity and a commitment to society beyond the limits of one's own existence enable thriving youth to be agents both in their own, healthy development and in the positive enhancement of other people and of society. Thriving youth become generative adults through the progressive enhancement of behaviors that are valued in their specific culture and that reflect the universal structural value of contributing to civil society.
Eliminating health disparities by the year 2010 has become a clear priority for nursing and health sciences research. To date, much of the research has relied on traditional analytic methods to identify the disparities and develop clinical interventions. However, health disparities are typically embedded in complex, cultural and contextual issues. Interventions to improve access, quality and care among vulnerable populations need to be developed with these factors in mind. This article illustrates the benefits of using Qualitative Description as one method for assessing, developing and refining interventions with vulnerable populations. Qualitative Description study results have tremendous potential to translate directly to pressing health care situations and provide clear information about ways to improve care.
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