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Challenges-and-opportunities-for-community-sport-coach-development-1.pdf

When we talk about coach development, most roads lead to the same familiar places: NGB awards, scientific theory, and on the job learning. These are of course valuable, but they're also predictable (or 'samey-samey' as I like to put it), and keep coaches learning within the same narrow corridors of knowledge.

Enter fiction and novel reading as a creative, fun and enriching alternative for unlocking new learning for coaching.

In this episode I break down how novels can: 1) sharpen emotional intelligence (both for understanding and managing ourselves as well as others) through complex characters and nuanced relationship told with rich vocabulary; 2) widen our perspective by transporting us to different culture, contexts, and ways of thinking; and 3) offer escapism from the 24/7 mental load of coaching.

I also offer practical tried-and-tested tips for how to pick your first novel and create a habit of benefiting from this overlooked resource.

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Consultancy – Mark J Carroll

WATCH ME PRESENT AT UNIVERSITY OF STIRLING & SPORTSCOTLANDCOACHING SYMPOSIUM 18TH NOVEMBER 2025.

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| University of Stirling & sportscotland Coaching Symposium

In the small corner of motivational psychology for coaching, self-determination theory reigns supreme for its modern and empirically backed view of athlete behaviour and environmental supports. So much so that alternative view points have been largely cast aside and rarely discussed. Maslow's hierarchy of needs is one such model. While not without its faults and increasing datedness, Maslow's worldview still holds relevant and useful insights that - when combined synergistically with a more modern outlook - can aid coaches in problem solving athlete motivation and supporting long term athlete development. Tune into this episode to learn how balancing hierarchy and universality can help coaches meet athletes' needs across ages and stages - from - in Maslow's words - building safety and belonging to inspiring purpose and self-actualisation. Sound familiar?

Learn more about your host and access services and added resources:

Consultancy – Mark J Carroll

WATCH ME PRESENT AT UNIVERSITY OF STIRLING & SPORTSCOTLANDCOACHING SYMPOSIUM 18TH NOVEMBER 2025.

REGISTER FOR FREE BELOW.

| Universityof Stirling & sportscotland Coaching Symposium

In this episode I’m joined by Professor Alan Chu to discusshis recent paper looking at the intersectionality of race, gender, and skill level as potential determinants for the way individuals experience the coach-created motivation environment. It turns out that athletes’ identity characteristics can have unique effects not only on how they see coaches’ motivational behaviours, but also how they feel about the level of psychological needs support we offer. This conversation offers a nuanced insight into the collectiveeffects of identity characteristics on athletes’ perceived empowerment vs disempowerment in sport, and led to interesting speculation on potential causes to ponder,including the influence of culture on coach behaviour and athlete motivation.

Paper discussed in this episode:

Chu, T. L. A., Treacy, A., Moore, E. W. G., Petrie, T. A.,Albert, E., & Zhang, T. (2024). Intersectionality matters: Gender, race/ethnicity, and sport level differentiate perceived coach-created motivational climates and psychological needs. Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology, 13(1), 59-75.

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https://markjcarrollcoaching.wordpress.com/consultancy/