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The purpose of this study was to investigate the practice of redshirting studentathletes by football and men's swimming coaches in the Southeastern and Mid-American Conferences. Questionnaires were sent out to each of the coaches regarding their practices of redshirting. The data was tabulated in SPSS format and the Pearson ChiSquare was used to find out if there were any statistical significance. The results of the Chi-Square analysis revealed no statistical significance between the two conferences redshirting practices, however there were some differences between the two sports. One difference between the sports was in both the freshman and sophomore years of eligibility in the use of redshirting as a coaching strategy. Another difference between sports existed in the junior year of eligibility in the use of redshirting for medical reasons. Coaching strategy was the number one reason why football coaches used and believed that redshirting is used. The men's swimming coaches used, and believe, that medical reasons was the main reason for redshirting athletes. / School of Physical Education

The current study aimed to assess the relationship between perceived occupational stress and social support among collegiate coaches, and if years of coaching experience and competition level (NCAA Division I, II, III) add to the explanation of occupational stress above and beyond social support. The study utilized the Administrative Stress Index (Koch, Gmelch, Tung, & Swent, 1982) in order to measure perceived occupational stress and the Personal Resource Questionnaire: Part 2 (Brandt & Weinert, 1981) to measure perceived social support. Results suggested that task-based stress is significantly related to perceived social support, but years of experience and competition level do not add to the occupational stress explanation. This study provides the field of sport and exercise psychology and the coaching profession with more information about work-related stress in coaches; it also supports previous literature on the stress-support relationship. / School of Physical Education, Sport, and Exercise Science

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 purpose of this paper was to gather information from college athletic directors from Division I-A and Division III institutions concerning the factors that they deem the most and least important in evaluating their institution's head football coach for job retention. The study identified 10 factors that are instrumental in evaluating head football coaches. Athletic directors prioritized these 10 factors in order of importance when evaluating their head football coach.Surveys were sent to 106 Division I-A athletic directors and 106 Division III athletic directors. Of the 151 surveys returned, 47 from Division I-A athletic directors and 67 from Division III athletic directors were deemed usable.The surveys revealed that Division I-A athletic directors primarily evaluate their head football coaches by win/loss percentage and compliance with NCAA rules. Of the ten factors selected for this study, public relations and organizational skills were considered the least important factors in their evaluation process. For Division III athletic directors, the primary factors of evaluation for their head football coaches were knowledge of the sport, loyalty to the institution, and serving as a role model for student-athletes. The least important factors were win/loss percentage and public relations.These findings suggest that the philosophy of athletics for each of these two levels is quite different. Head football coaches at the Division I-A level are expected to win games to maintain their jobs while Division III coaches do not experience the same pressure to win. Differences in the evaluation factors are illustrated for each level of collegiate athletics and understanding these differences may better guide aspiring young coaches who are pursuing a career in college football coaching. / School of Physical Education

The purpose of this study was to examine what effect Propostion 48 has had on black representation on NCAA Division IA men's basketball and football teams. A one - page questionnaire was mailed to the compliance coordinator at each of the 106 col1eges and universities participating in men's basketball and football at the NCAA Division IA level from 1985-86 to 1990-91. The questionnaire contained two charts and one open - ended question. The questionnaire was designed to identify any change in black representation on football and basketball teams since the inception of Proposition 48. This was done by comparing the final year prior to the introduction of Proposition 48 with each of the 5 succeeding years. Responses were received from 45 of the colleges and universities. However, due to incomplete information, and several declinations the data was computed on only 19 responses. The data was analyzed through a statistical test of differences between two populations at a .05 confidence level. Analysis indicated only a total of 4 significantly positive Z scores out of a possibility of 205 scores. This confirmed the belief of the researcher that Proposition 48 did not have a significantly negative effect on the representation of black student and universities athletes participating in football and basketball at NCAA Division IA colleges / Master of Science

The purpose of this research was to investigate various factors that contribute to attendance levels at NCAA Division I men's soccer games. A questionnaire was sent to all NCAA Division I men's soccer programs. The final response rate was 84.5 percent with 158 of 187 questionnaires returned. The questionnaire examined four areas: team success, field location, promotional activities and ticket price. The data indicated that there is a significant relationship between average attendance levels and home soccer fields that are between .6 and mile away from the dormitories. Off-campus fields and the existence of an admission fee were found to have significant relationships with attendance levels. The use of many promotional activities and materials were also found to have a relationship with average attendance levels. / Master of Science

This study investigates how perceptions vary in athletic trainers regarding issues pertaining to women in the profession. Subjects included 1500 male and 1500 female certified athletic trainers who responded to 44 demographic and perceptions survey items used to determine whether perceptions were different based on the respondent's gender. Results were compared to a previously disseminated survey in 1996 to also determine if perceptions had changed from 10 years earlier. Results regarding the presentation of awards and the attainment of leadership positions in the organization were also compared to actual data collected. The data suggested that males perceptions had not changed, but females' perceptions had changed, in that females perceived that opportunities had improved. Data regarding the number of females who had ascended to leadership positions or had received awards did not support these perceptions, however, and female athletic trainers continue to struggle to obtain equality in both of these areas. Additionally, homosocial reproduction continues to influence the decreased number of women who are hired into various jobs, or advance into leadership positions, maintaining patriarchy in the athletics arena and in the athletic training organizations. Results suggested that because athletic training has been dominated by men since its inception, patriarchy continues to influence the lack of ascension of women into leadership positions and awards recognition. Many women are choosing to leave the profession due to the gender role pressure that they can not sustain a career in athletic training and raise a family. Men's professional sports continue to reject the concept of hiring women to serve as athletic trainers with their athletes, which also continues to preserve a patriarchal environment.

This study explored the preparation methods, qualifications and criteria that both university and athletic directors deemed necessary when searching for athletic directors. Participants completed a survey via Qualtrics online software. Two different populations were sampled for this study: 651 university presidents and 651 athletic directors whose schools compete in either Division I or II in the NCAA, resulting in 96 and 150 usable responses respectively. Participants in both groups were primarily white males with mean ages of 62 for presidents and 52 for the athletic directors. The study provided demographic information, educational history, professional experience, and prior careers of athletic directors. The rankings of the athletic were compared to the rankings of the presidents and identified consistencies of opinions. The respondent groups were in agreement on the qualities and ranking of many dimensions of leadership in this role. The top seven, for both groups, in order, were ethics, budgeting and finances skills, fundraising, communications, sport leadership, strategic management and policy, and athletic administration. This information could be used as a guide for people who want to strategically maneuver up the ranks in athletics administration. Presidents might use the information as they prepare to hire candidates for the athletic director position.