A systematic review of the literature examining the roles coaches, peers, and parents in sports

What is it about?

At the core of self-determination theory, autonomy, competence, and relatedness are three basic psychological needs that must be satisfied in order to help individuals achieve intrinsic motivation and psychosocial well-being. The purposes of this mixed-studies review were to summarize (a) the social environments created by coaches, peers, and parents concurrently, (b) the relative influence of social agents in youth athletes’ psychological needs, and (c) the emerging research gaps for future research in and practical implications for youth sport. Literature was searched in six databases, resulting in 20 final studies with 2,851 participants.

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Photo by Petr Sevcovic on Unsplash

Photo by Petr Sevcovic on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Within the context of sport, coaches, peers, and parents are three most significant social agents influencing the environments and subsequent motivational processes. Because ‘‘athletes may experience the motivational ‘pull and push’ from varying social agents,’’ it is imperative to examine the concurrent motivational influence from these three social agents, who may create different types of supportive and thwarting environments that respectively satisfy and frustrate athletes’ autonomy, competence, and relatedness. In congruence with the literature, this review shows that both coaches and peers are important social agents in shaping social environments in youth sport, which in turn produce positive and negative influences on athletes’ psychological needs and motivational outcomes.

Perspectives