Becoming a Better Sports Coach: Development through Theory Application

By: Andreas Carlsson

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Synopsis: Research on coaching education and development highlights, repeatedly, the difficulties of traditional coaching education to impact coaching practice. Practice seems to be disconnected from scientific theory with few coaches accessing the scientific literature as it too often is presented in dry, academic tones. This volume sets out to provide an integration of theory and everyday practice that to date has not yet been published in the field of coaching science in a text easily used by sports coaches. In order to bridge this theory to practice gap, Becoming a Better Sports Coach: Development through Theory Application presents theory and science connected to practice in a way that makes it possible for coaches to test, evaluate and improve upon their existing coaching practice. This hands-on approach sets out to improve coaches’ cognition and raising self-awareness as well as improve coaches' learning using specific tools for behavioural feedback and reflection. Improving on self-reflective skills and eliciting feedback on the coach’s own behaviour is how coaching practice is improved. What coaching practice includes and what is laid out for coaches in this new text is motivational climate, coaching behaviours, pedagogy, feedback, coach–athlete relationship, each in one chapter. Reflection and behavioural feedback are applied to each of these areas.