Communication in sport coaching: parameters and scopes

Author: 
García-Mateo, P., Casimiro-Artés, A. J., Casimiro-Andújar, A. J., and García-Marcos, F.

Introduction: A new scientific scope, interdisciplinarity, became the way of understanding complex realities, in many disciplines. Linguistics can be considered one of them, with a prolific multidisciplinary production from the analysis of the text. On the other hand, sport coaching is a personal development tool also applied in various fields, that aims to enhance personal well-being by implementing a sport program. Therefore, the aim of the study is to analyze the texts written by coaches undertaking a coaching program at the University of Almería and draw conclusions about the coaching process itself. Materials and Methods: The texts produced by 56 coaches were analyzed. Linguistic parameters such as cohesion, coherence, Primary and Secondary Maturity Indexes, lexical index and dictionaries were considered. Results: A positive correlation between the two scientific fields analyzed was obtained for this interdisciplinary approach. It has been possible to obtain expectation and learning patterns of the coaches from the verbal indexes analyzed. Discussion: Coaches showed a high concern about properly programming the training sessions, as well as having a good preparation for them and controlling the methodology used. Besides, the communication between them and their coachees was also considered as a key factor for the success of the programs, with a special focus on the correct use of the feedbacks given. Finally, transmitting values such as commitment, perseverance, overcoming or adopting healthy habits was considered as essential for progressively moving from an extrinsic to an intrinsic motivation towards the sessions. Conclusions: Empirical research has corroborated the complete relevance of the epistemological proposal. It has been possible to access a complex and dynamic reality with the shared tools and methods between linguistics and sports sciences. That reality would have been probably inaccessible from a single disciplinary perspective.

Paper No: 
3006