Although experts have noted that adolescent athletes should be educated about concussions to improve their safety, there is no agreement on the most effective strategy to disseminate concussion education. The purpose of this study was to develop, implement and assess a concussion education programme. More precisely, four interactive oral presentations were delivered to high school student-athletes (N = 35, M = 15.94, SD = 0.34) in a large urban centre. Participants completed a questionnaire at three time-points during the season to measure changes in their knowledge (CK) and attitudes (CA) of concussions, and focus group interviews were conducted following the concussion education programme. Questionnaire data revealed participants' post-intervention CK scores were higher than their pre-intervention scores. During the focus groups, the student-athletes said they acquired CK about the role of protective equipment and symptom variability, and in terms of CA, they intended to avoid dangerous in-game collisions in the future. Our study was the first to create and deliver a concussion education intervention across multiple time-points, and to use mixed-methods in its assessment. These findings may be of interest to researchers, practitioners and stakeholders in sport who are invested in making the sport environment safer through concussion education and awareness.

Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) is a qualitative research methodology used to understand participants’ subjective realities through personal interpretations of their lived experiences and the meanings they attach to these experiences (Smith, 2011). IPA has been used predominantly in health psychology, with rising interest within the field of sport psychology and coaching. This article seeks to describe insights about the processes of IPA by a research team using the methodological approach for the first time. These experiences are shared against the backdrop of research exploring the lived experiences of Masters athletes within the context of coached competitive swim programs. We describe how the multiple facets of IPA influence the refinement of the research question, the planning and implementation of data collection, and data analysis and interpretation. We elaborate on our perceptions of the complexities of IPA and make recommendations for how future research teams might smoothly navigate the rigorous research process to yield rich in-depth data and interpretations.

High school sport is one of the most popular school-based extracurricular activities in North America, situated as a developmental activity during which coaches can foster quality relationships with students to promote basic psychological needs satisfaction and teach life skills. The primary purpose of the study was to examine associations between coach–athlete relationships, basic psychological needs satisfaction and thwarting, and the teaching of life skills in Canadian high school sport. The secondary purpose consisted of addressing the psychometric properties of the scales employed in the study, namely the Coach–Athlete Relationship Questionnaire, the self-report version of the Interpersonal Behaviors Questionnaire, and a modified coach version of the Life Skills Scale for Sport. The sample was comprised of 1238 (58.8% male) Canadian high school coaches and the data were analysed using structural equation modelling. The mediated model indicated that coaches' perceptions of their interpersonal behaviours satisfying athletes' basic psychological needs either fully or partially mediated the positive relationships between coach–athlete relationships and the teaching of life skills. Coach–athlete relationships, particularly those within which coaches exhibit interpersonal behaviours that satisfy athletes' basic psychological needs, appear to be associated with the teaching of life skills in the context of high school sport.

Investigations into the strategies that are used by participants when they control their knowledge of results (KR) schedule during practice have predominantly relied on multiple-choice questionnaires. More recently, open-ended questions have been used to allow participants to produce their own descriptions rather than selecting a strategy from a predetermined list. This approach has in fact generated new information about the cognitive strategies used by learners to request KR during practice (e.g., Laughlin et al., 2015). Consequently, we examined strategy use in self-controlled KR learning situations using open-ended questions at two different time points during practice. An inductive thematic content analysis revealed five themes that represented participants’ unique strategies for requesting KR. This analysis identified two dominant KR strategies: “establish a baseline understanding” in the first half of practice and “confirm a perceived good trial” in the second half of practice. Both strategies were associated with superior retention compared with a yoked group, a group that was unable to engage in KR request strategies because KR was imposed rather than chosen. Our results indicate that the learning advantages of self-controlled KR schedules over yoked schedules may not only depend on what strategy is used, but also when it is used.

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Coaches working with Masters Athletes (MAs) are tasked with facilitating learning and enhancing performance and quality of experience specifically for an adult cohort. In education, the Andragogy in Practice Model (APM) characterizes adult learners and provides teachers with principles for how to best facilitate learning (Knowles, Holton III, & Swanson, 2012). The purpose of the current study was to explore how coaches describe approaches with their MAs to discover how they align with andragogical principles. Eleven coaches were interviewed regarding their approaches in working with Masters swimmers. Data were thematically analyzed according to the six APM principles. The results revealed the bidirectional pattern of communication between the coaches and MAs, the coaches’ awareness of the athletes’ matured self-concept and prior experiences, the personalized goal oriented approach, the various approaches coaches used to motivate, and strategies that the coaches used to prepare MAs for training. The findings suggest that coaches who reported approaches in keeping with andragogical principles more effectively accommodated their MAs’ interests. When their approaches countered the principles, there appeared to be a disconnect between the coaches’ approaches and the MAs’ preferences. Together, these results provide evidence of the importance of coaches’ understanding of adult learning principles when coaching MAs.

The purpose of the study was to gain an in-depth understanding of the characteristics head coaches looked for when hiring their head assistant coach, the main roles and responsibilities assigned to assistants, and the techniques and behaviors used to develop them. Data were obtained through interviews with six accomplished Canadian University head football coaches. Results indicated head coaches hired loyal assistants who possessed extensive football knowledge that complimented their own skill sets. Once hired, head coaches had their assistant coaches help them with recruiting, managing a major team unit, and developing athletes. They helped advance their assistants' careers through personal mentorships which included exposure to external sources of knowledge such as football camps and coaching conferences. These results represent one of the first empirical accounts of head coaches' perceptions on hiring and developing head assistant coaches.

Evidence suggests Canadian university sport programs can foster positive development. Further, university coaches have claimed to focus on their athletes’ personal and psychosocial development. Despite coaches’ claims, little is known about university coaches’ strategies for enhancing positive development. The aim of the present study was to explore the role of the coach in fostering positive development in the university context from the perspective of coaches. Specifically, this study addressed two research questions: (a) Who was responsible for athletes’ development? and (b) What is the role of the coach in athletes’ development? Semi-structured open-ended interviews were conducted with 14 recommended Canadian university coaches (9 male and 5 female). Interviews were analyzed using an inductive approach. Coaches highlighted the conditions of university sport that foster positive development. In addition, the coaches described how they maximized athletes’ development by establishing a support network, building team culture, and empowering athletes.