Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1486-5465

Semester

Fall

Date of Graduation

2022

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

PhD

College

College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences

Department

Athletic Coaching Education

Committee Chair

Kristen Dieffenbach

Committee Co-Chair

Sean Bulger

Committee Member

Sean Bulger

Committee Member

Melissa Thompson

Committee Member

Emi Tsuda

Abstract

Although coaching has a long history guided in the apprenticeship or mentorship model (Taylor & Garratt, 2013), research has primarily focused on the athlete, rarely on the coach, and almost never on whom the coach is serving as an apprentice to, or being mentored or supported by. Internationally, this role has been termed a ‘coach developer,’ but the formalized title and role of the coach developer is still a rather new concept (ICCE, 2014), with most research focused on the coach developer working at elite levels. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the roles and responsibilities of a coach developer in the United States youth soccer sport context, specifically within a single organization. Using a two-round modified Delphi approach, six panelists agreed 108 of the 184 tasks were the responsibility of the regional coach developer, 131 tasks were important to the role of the coach developer, and 51 tasks were completed at least weekly by the coach developer. Of the 184 tasks, 48 were agreed to be the current responsibility of, and important to, the weekly coach developer role. This is an increase from the 22 tasks that were identified in the organization’s onboarding materials. Furthermore, one task reached a consensus for responsibility but not importance, while 20 tasks reached a consensus for importance but not responsibility. The discrepancies demonstrate an opportunity for growth within the coach developer role at the organization. This study echoes Cale and Abraham (2016) and Harvey and colleagues (2021) recommendation’s regarding the need for the identification of more specific knowledge, skills, and attitudes for coach developer positions in order to better inform professional development opportunities, especially for those functioning in the youth sport context.

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