Views about knowledge acquisition for coaching practice

Abstract

This study explores coaches’ subjective views about how they acquire knowledge for their coaching practice. A Q sample of 45 opinions about different sources for knowledge acquisition, and how such sources affect learning at personal, relational, and content knowledge levels, was presented to sport coaches. Forty-five coaches from 11 different sports on both elite and national medium levels were asked to consider and rank-order the statements through a Q sorting procedure. Following Centroid factor extraction and Varimax rotation, a three-factor solution was chosen. The factors reflected three points of view about sources of knowledge acquisition for coaching practice. Some implications for coaching practice are noted and discussed.