Abstract

The growing privatization and professionalization of youth sport have undeniably resulted in an increase in the demands for coaches who work with children and adolescents. Researchers have suggested that mental toughness (MT) is a psychological resource that helps individuals cope with challenging circumstances. Although MT has been investigated extensively in athletes and other performers, there is a gap with respect to the construct as it relates to coaching. Accordingly, the purpose of the current study was to explore youth sport coaches’ experiences of MT. Fourteen youth sport coaches (nine male, five female; M_age = 37.7 years) from a variety of sports participated in phenomenological interviews. Using a hermeneutic process, five themes were developed: (a) mentally tough youth sport coaches overcome adversity, (b) mentally tough youth sport coaches control their emotions, (c) mentally tough youth sport coaches communicate effectively with athletes, (d) mentally tough youth sport coaches maintain high standards for themselves and the athletes with whom they work, and (e) mentally tough youth sport coaches develop athletes beyond the sport setting regardless of existing performance pressure. While there appears to be some consistency with previous conceptualizations of MT, the current results also highlight unique aspects of the construct (e.g., intrapersonal elements, focus on holistic development) as it pertains to coaches.

 Lay summary: Mental toughness (MT) is a psychological resource that helps people manage challenging circumstances. This study was designed to address a gap in the literature by exploring youth sport coaches’ MT. While the findings indicate similarities in the MT of coaches and other performers, they also highlight aspects specific to coaching.

• IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

• It appears that MT cannot only increase the likelihood that youth sport coaches function at an optimal level (e.g., serve as a coping resource to manage the demands of the role and, thus, experience more well-being) but, in turn, also allows them to effectively support athletes’ development.

• The current findings indicate value in developing youth sport coaches’ emotional intelligence, which can help them demonstrate empathy and set a positive emotional tone for the athletes with whom they work.

• Youth sport coaches in this study perceived that being open to input and emphasizing holistic development necessitated MT. It seems important for sport psychology professionals and coach educators to facilitate environments in which youth sport coaches feel more comfortable to go against the trend of focusing primarily on performance and, instead, develop athletes holistically.

摘要

不可否认，青少年体育日益私有化和专业化导致对与儿童和青少年一起工作的教练的需求增加。研究人员认为，心理韧性（MT）是一种心理资源，可以帮助个人应对具有挑战性的环境。尽管 MT 已在运动员和其他表演者中进行了广泛的研究，但在与教练相关的结构方面存在差距。因此，本研究的目的是探讨青少年体育教练的 MT 经验。十四名青年体育教练（九男，五女；M_年龄= 37.7 岁）来自各种运动项目参加了现象学访谈。使用解释学过程，开发了五个主题：（a）精神上坚强的青少年体育教练克服逆境，（b）精神上坚强的青少年体育教练控制自己的情绪，（c）精神上坚强的青少年体育教练与运动员有效沟通，（d）精神上坚韧的青年体育教练对自己和与他们一起工作的运动员保持高标准，(e) 精神上坚韧的青年体育教练在体育环境之外培养运动员，无论现有的表现压力如何。虽然似乎与之前的 MT 概念有一定的一致性，但目前的结果也突出了与教练有关的构造的独特方面（例如，个人内在元素，专注于整体发展）。

 总结：心理韧性 (MT) 是一种心理资源，可帮助人们应对具有挑战性的环境。本研究旨在通过探索青年体育教练的 MT 来解决文献中的空白。虽然研究结果表明教练和其他表演者的 MT 有相似之处，但它们也突出了教练特有的方面。

• 对实践的影响

• 似乎 MT 不仅可以增加青年体育教练在最佳水平上发挥作用的可能性（例如，作为应对角色需求的应对资源，从而体验更多的幸福感），而且反过来也允许以有效支持运动员的发展。

• 目前的研究结果表明，培养青年体育教练的情商很有价值，这可以帮助他们表现出同理心，并为与他们一起工作的运动员树立积极的情绪基调。

• 本研究中的青年体育教练认为，对投入持开放态度并强调整体发展需要 MT。对于运动心理学专业人士和教练教育工作者来说，促进青少年运动教练更自在地反对主要关注表现的​​趋势似乎很重要，而是从整体上培养运动员。