Gender Differences in Hungarian Basketball Coaches’ Views on Their Pedagogical and Professional Roles and Responsibilities

Abstract

Sports coaching is traditionally a male-dominated profession all over the world, though there is no explicit evidence that either gender outperforms the other in this profession. The current paper aimed to uncover the differences between female and male coaches regarding their pedagogical and professional beliefs. A total of 357 basketball coaches (30.8% women and 69.2% men) working in Hungary responded to an online questionnaire. A background analysis of the sample revealed that most of the coaches manage youth teams and that women coach younger age groups than men. Female coaches proved to be more educated than their male counterparts, both in general and on a professional level. The results showed that, regardless of gender, the coaches were well aware of their pedagogical functions. Significant differences were found in terms of relationships, personal development, motivation, and discipline; the women reported higher values in all cases. Female coaches were also more concerned about factors that help gain respect and appreciation. Based on the results, education, qualifications, and pedagogical and professional views of coaches do not justify the underrepresentation of women in sports coaching. Club managers, sports federation boards, and other decision makers should promote programs that are aimed at engaging more women in sports coaching.

Gender Differences in Coaching Behaviors Supportive of Positive Youth Sports Experience

“…Youth sports, then, become a space for reproduction, rather than disruption, of gendered notions of gender, power, and leadership (LaVoi, 2009). For girls, specifically, female coaches serve as positive role models and are key to higher rates of sports participation, retention, and pursuit of careers in coaching (Balogh & Trzaskoma-Bicserdy, 2020;The Aspen Institute, 2019a). Creating another type of "bind," the lack of female coaching in youth sports leads to fewer female coaching in youth sports.…”

“…This includes individual-level solutions, for example, directly asking women to coach and offering options for cocoaching. On the other hand, more organization-level solutions, such as communities of practice, coach trainings specifically for women (Balogh & Trzaskoma-Bicserdy, 2020;LaVoi & Dutove, 2012), and trainings that identify the gendered social processes at play could also be considered. In addition, Leberman and LaVoi (2011) recommend, when recruiting mothers, to highlight the ways mothers' values and behaviors are aligned with the needs of young athletes and the "transferable skills that mothers are able to bring to coaching " (p. 486).…”

“…Coaches play an important role ensuring the youth sports experience is a positive one, physically, psychologically, and socially (Balogh & Trzaskoma-Bicserdy, 2020;Merkel, 2013;Vella & Perlman, 2014). The nature of coach "interactions with athletes can markedly influence the effects of sport participation on children and youth" (Smith et al, 2007, p. 40).…”