AMERICAN PRESS, Applied Research in Coaching and Athletics Annual #38 (2023)

ARCAA Contents & Abstracts, Volume 38, 2023

ISBN 978-0-89641-628-4
$50.00 (includes shipping)

Influence of 1986-2020 ARCAA Articles in Sports Coaching Science — Duane Knudson — Applied Research in Coaching and Athletics Annual (ARCAA) is one of the longest continuously publishing coaching science journals, but few studies have documented its contributions to knowledge in the field. This study summarizes the influence of articles published in ARCAA over its first 35-year (1986-2020) history. Total citations to articles published by the journal in Google Scholar (GS) were collected, cleaned, and analyzed in May of 2022. Two hundred fifty-eight articles of the 476 published were indexed in GS and cited 1,589 times. Citations were skewed with a median of three citations per article. The top 5% articles by citation rate had a median between 1 and 5 citations per year. These citation rates were similar to previous studies of sport-specific coaching science articles. Top cited articles in the journal have been influential in advancing knowledge primarily in the topics within sport psychology, general coaching, coaching behavior, and gender issues. Keywords: Citation, Citation Rate, Impact, Knowledge, Publication (1-18)

A Phenomenological Examination of Female Interscholastic Athletic Directors’ Career Path — Mary Helen Martin, Chris Corr, Sarah Stokowski, Michael Godfrey, Meredith McDevitt — There is an underrepresentation of women in the role of athletic director in the interscholastic sport setting. Utilizing a phenomenological methodology, this study explored the career paths of female interscholastic athletic directors. Through a combination of sampling techniques, 13 female interscholastic athletic directors (FIADs) took part in semi-structured interviews. Emerging ideas from the lens of current female interscholastic athletic directors offer implications about direction and information needed to assist inspiring young females as they ascend the career ladder in becoming interscholastic athletic directors. Keywords: interscholastic athletics, athletic director, Title IX, career paths (19-46)

Shooting for Equality: Division II Basketball Coaches’ Perceptions of Gender Discrimination — Caroline George Fletcher, Sarah Stokowski, Michael S. Carroll, Jonathan E. Westfall — The implementation of Title IX brought hope and infinite possibilities for women in sport; however, less than half of women’s athletic teams are coached by women. Women in sport often face discrimination and harassment, and this population often receive less compensation than their male counterparts. Informed by equity theory, the purpose of this study was to examine potential gender discrimination in Division II basketball. Division II Head Men’s and Women’s Basketball Coaches (N=74) were administered a modified version of the General Ethnic Discrimination Scale (GEDS). The results indicated that Division II coaches felt they were treated unfairly based on gender (p = .008), as female head coaches reported feelings of discrimination. Considering the findings of the present study, the NCAA and its member institutions should promote inclusive hiring practices and assist athletic departments in programming that promotes gender equity. Keywords: Division II, Basketball Coaches, Gender Discrimination (47-75)

Group Cohesion and Its Relationship to Success in Women’s Intercollegiate Softball —Abby Hearn, David Barney — Being able to work well with others is an important factor for a business, military units and athletic team to be successful. Research has been conducted investigating cohesion is group situations. Team cohesion in athletics can affect team players attitudes, their motivation, and enjoyment with their teammates. The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a relationship between team cohesion and team success (win/loss percentage) in women’s intercollegiate softball. For this study 121 softball athletes from nine teams participated in this study. It was generally found that teams with a higher winning percentage were more cohesive teams. These results highlight the importance coaches can play in having a cohesive team. Keywords: Cohesion, Team Sports, Softball (76-94)

Ageism in Recruiting: Examining the Relationship between coaches’ Age and Recruiting Ability in Power-5 Football — Chris Corr, Christopher Atwater, Sarah Stokowski — A recent trend among National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) sports is the targeted hiring of younger coaches. Such strategic hiring is, ostensibly, due to the perceived recruiting ability of younger, more energetic coaches. Given the importance of recruiting to overall programmatic success in college athletics, perceived recruiting advantage is a significant and influential motivator for those in leadership positions. To test the assumption of youthfulness as a key indicator of recruiting ability, the present study sought to analyze the relationship between coaches’ age and recruiting ability in Power-5 football. An analysis of the 2019 and 2020 Power-5 football recruiting classes indicate that coaches’ age is not a significant predictor of recruiting ability. The findings of this study challenge the conventional perception that youthfulness is integral to recruiting ability. Keywords: NCAA, FBS, recruiting, hiring (95-109)

The Perceived Impact of the New Rules Regulating Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) on Intercollegiate Sports Michael McCall, Sam Fullerton, Ronald Dick, Ron Wade — College athletes can earn significant income from promotions and the sale of promotional items that bear their name, image, or likeness (NIL). The short-and-long term impact of NIL remains a topic of debate among coaches and athletic observers and is proving to be a fertile new area for academic researchers. The purpose of this research was to better understand the impact of NIL at the consumer level. A purposive sample of 404 students from five American universities in three states provided feedback regarding their perceptions of nine NIL-related considerations: the impact that the new NIL rules have had on several potential beneficiaries of the new rules, college sports, the school, and the athletes who participate in collegiate sports. Several interesting findings emerged: (1) university students generally have a favorable impression of the benefits that NIL provides to student athletes, recruiting efforts and the institution. (2) There was considerably less agreement about the impact of NIL on Title IX considerations. (3) Results were mixed regarding the impact of NIL on amateur sports. These data begin to offer insight into the kinds of issues surrounding this dramatic shift in amateur sports with a particular focus on intercollegiate sports. The overall sense that athletes should be able to capitalize on their NIL was consistent across multiple institutions. Future research might consider this preliminary effort an early data point in an attempt to better understand the mid and long-range effects of this SCOTUS ruling. Keywords: Endorsement, student-athlete, Collegiate Sports, Pay (109-140)

Idaho Concussion Law Compliance: A Ten-Year Update — Caroline E. Faure, Madeline P. Casanova — Concussion laws in all fifty U.S. states regulate how school-sponsored sport programs address concussion identification and management. This study provides a 10-year update to the compliance levels of Idaho high schools in relation to the Idaho Youth Sports Concussion Law. Specifically, our study examined the ways in which Idaho’s high schools were addressing the law’s CE and concussion management (including removal from play, return to play, and return to learn) components. More than 12,000 concussions were reported at Idaho’s high schools in a 10-year period since the law was passed—a number that represented approximately three percent of all sport participants. We found Idaho schools were complying with the basic tenets of the law, despite initial concerns that they could not. Parent and athlete education was occurring more frequently, athletic directors’ confidence in their coaches’ ability to recognize possible cases of concussion (and subsequently remove athletes from participation) increased, and access to qualified medical professionals improved. There was no evidence to suggest Idaho’s rural schools were burdened by the law’s requirements, even though the state appropriated no additional financial resources. External athletic training partnerships and an expansion of telehealth services were positively cited as contributing factors, especially regarding return to play decision-making. Even with these improvements, parents and unqualified providers were still allowed to make return to play decisions in some areas, which ran contrary to the law’s requirements. Keywords: concussion, law, high school, sport, risk management, Idaho (141-171)

Selected Demographic Characteristics and Attitudes toward Coaching Certification of Arkansas Varsity High School Head Coaches — C. Dwayne Massey, Ryan O. Gray, Denise F. Baldwin, V. Lynn Fox, Jeffrey L Longing, Melinda M. Salloukh — Two hundred twelve high school varsity head coaches who coached sanctioned sports in the Arkansas Activity Association (AAA) served as subjects for this study. A questionnaire-based on a previously existing instrument was modified to meet the parameters and specifications of this investigation (Gray, 1995). The focus of this presentation of data was on determining specific demographic information to include the gender, age, highest college degree obtained, institution granting degree, total years coaching, and times moved during career, as well as attempting to determine the coaches’ perspectives as it pertained to athletic coaching licensure in the state of Arkansas. A key feature of the investigation was an 11 item Likert scale questionnaire used to determine the aforementioned attitudes and opinions of the subjects related to coaching licensure within the state. The Likert scale items indicated considerable satisfaction with the variables scrutinized. Three questions had to do with the coaches’ estimation of the preparation they received in their undergraduate college degree programs. Combining the total percentages for these questions 79.99%, of the coaches provided positive responses to these queries. Six questions were specific to coaching licensure in the state. When the percentages of these questions were combined, 80.30% of the coaches signified an overall positive view of coaching licensure within the state. Two questions on the survey pertained to the esteem the subjects held continuing education efforts within the state. The combined positive response for these items was 71.56%. Keywords: demographic information, athletic coaching, coaching licensure, continuing education (173-193)

BOOK REVIEW

Get Your Ducks in a Rowe
Get Your Ducks in a Rowe A-D-A-P-T-E-R
Reviewed by Dr. Warren K. Simpson (194)

A Call for Papers and Subscriptions (196-201)

E-mail americanpress@flash.net to order PDFs of any article.