M.Ed. (Didactics Training) / Limited data regarding the pedagogic didactic responsibilities of the sport mentor could be obtained. Consequently very few guidelines do exist in this regard. Research therefore indicates to a large extent what responsibilities regarding the coaching of sports are. The framework of this research includes the pedagogic (educational) and didactic perspectives as well as the guidelines concerning the task of the sport mentor. A prerequisite for effective communication between the sport mentor and the players (adult to be) is the creation of a suitable learning situation. The relevant components for the coaching of sports are: The young sportsman (adult-to-be) /child; an effective relationship; goals; content; sequence and The sport mentor. This research highlights the complexity of coaching and concludes that coaches (sport mentors) who are well versed in didactic pedagogic principles should be able to fulfil this responsibility successfully.

This study examined the relationship between coaching behaviors and traits and their impact on athlete motivation and affective learning in a collegiate coactive team setting. By conducting in-depth interviews with NCAA Division I men’s tennis players at a Midwestern, mid-sized University it was discovered that Coach Craig Keller’si credibility and caring behaviors had the most salient impact on athlete intrinsic motivation, his use of mild verbal aggression and his career record had the most salient impact on athlete extrinsic motivation, and his extreme verbal aggression and lack of feedback/praise significantly decreased their levels of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Moreover, the athletes noted that Coach’s credibility and caring behaviors increased their levels of affective learning, his will to win and desire to be professional increased affective learning through trait modeling, and his inability to follow through with claims decreased their affective learning. The most significant finding was that Coach’s dynamic leadership had the most positive impact on player intrinsic motivation while his mild verbal aggression had the most positive impact on player extrinsic motivation. However, it was discovered that this type of leadership ceased being motivational when the sentiment of the messages became negative and singled out individual players. / Department of Speech Communication

Access to abstract permanently restricted to Ball State community only. / Access to thesis permanently restricted to Ball State community only. / School of Physical Education, Sport, and Exercise Science

The sport of women's basketball has evolved into a high profile event. The demands of the job during the competitive season can exceed coaches' ability to cope and endure the stressful profession. Research has shown that hardiness decreases the impact of stress on health by influencing one's coping strategies. Individuals who are low in hardiness have a higher chance of professional burnout, illness, and health problems due to the inability to handle stress The purpose of this study was to identify the hardiness levels and coping strategies of female head women coaches in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The following questions were researched: 1) Are there differences in hardiness between female head women basketball coaches across the NCAA divisions? 2) Are there differences in coping strategies between female head women basketball coaches across the NCAA divisions? One hundred and five coaches participated in the study (n = 29 for division I, n = 38 for division II, n = 38 for division III) by completing the Personal Views Survey II for the hardiness levels and the Ways of Coping Questionnaire for the coping strategies. A one-way ANOVA was calculated to determine if differences existed in hardiness scores across the three divisions. A MANOVA was conducted to determine if differences existed in the three hardiness components as well as with the different coping styles across the three divisions. No significance differences were observed in the hardiness scores, the three hardiness components, or the coping strategies across the three NCAA divisions (p <.05). / School of Physical Education