The purpose of this study was to determine to what extent a coach’s coaching style is associated with the athlete’s basic psychological needs fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. A survey was distributed to 204 varsity student-athletes at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo representing 13 teams. The data were used to determine the impact of coaching style on the athlete’s fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. An authoritative head coaching style was found to have a positive impact on an athlete’s fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. A similar result was found for assistant coaches. Overall, these findings can help coaches and athletic departments.
","abstract_html":"<p>The purpose of this study was to determine to what extent a coach’s coaching style is associated with the athlete’s basic psychological needs fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. A survey was distributed to 204 varsity student-athletes at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo representing 13 teams. The data were used to determine the impact of coaching style on the athlete’s fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. An authoritative head coaching style was found to have a positive impact on an athlete’s fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. A similar result was found for assistant coaches. Overall, these findings can help coaches and athletic departments.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Byrd, Kelsey Louise"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"MS in Agriculture - Recreation, Parks and Tourism Management","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"Agricultural Education and Communication","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Brian Greenwood"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2018,"date_issued":"2018-06-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2018-06-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:32:08Z","subjects":["coaching style","Baumrind’s parenting style","self determination theory","basic needs","college athletes","autonomy","competence","relatedness","Leadership Studies","Leisure Studies","Other Psychology","Sports Studies"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["10.15368/theses.2018.108"],"render_values":[{"text":"10.15368/theses.2018.108","href":"https://doi.org/10.15368/theses.2018.108","code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/theses/1904","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Brian Greenwood"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Byrd, Kelsey Louise"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2018-08-07T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Agricultural Education and Communication"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["MS in Agriculture - Recreation, Parks and Tourism Management"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["coaching style","Baumrind’s parenting style","self determination theory","basic needs","college athletes","autonomy","competence","relatedness","Leadership Studies","Leisure Studies","Other Psychology","Sports Studies"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/theses/1904","10.15368/theses.2018.108"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The purpose of this study was to determine to what extent a coach’s coaching style is associated with the athlete’s basic psychological needs fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. A survey was distributed to 204 varsity student-athletes at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo representing 13 teams. The data were used to determine the impact of coaching style on the athlete’s fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. An authoritative head coaching style was found to have a positive impact on an athlete’s fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. A similar result was found for assistant coaches. Overall, these findings can help coaches and athletic departments.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Coaching Styles and the Basic Psychological Need Fulfillment of College Athletes"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Brian Greenwood"],"dc:creator":["Byrd, Kelsey Louise"],"dc:date.available":["2018-08-07T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The purpose of this study was to determine to what extent a coach’s coaching style is associated with the athlete’s basic psychological needs fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. A survey was distributed to 204 varsity student-athletes at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo representing 13 teams. The data were used to determine the impact of coaching style on the athlete’s fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. An authoritative head coaching style was found to have a positive impact on an athlete’s fulfillment of autonomy, competence and relatedness. A similar result was found for assistant coaches. Overall, these findings can help coaches and athletic departments.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/theses/1904","10.15368/theses.2018.108"],"dc:subject":["coaching style","Baumrind’s parenting style","self determination theory","basic needs","college athletes","autonomy","competence","relatedness","Leadership Studies","Leisure Studies","Other Psychology","Sports Studies"],"dc:title":["Coaching Styles and the Basic Psychological Need Fulfillment of College Athletes"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Agricultural Education and Communication"],"thesis:degree_name":["MS in Agriculture - Recreation, Parks and Tourism Management"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:32:08Z"}