Report
International Study of Professional Development in Sports Coaching: Awareness of Neuromyths, Brain Knowledge, and Evidence-Based Practices
The Sport Journal
17 Jan 2025
Abstract
Purpose: Professional development is fundamental to coaching. It can expand a coach's knowledge, skills, and practice by building upon fields such as neuroscience, psychology, and education. The purpose of this study was to (a) examine professional development attended by sports coaches, (b) compare awareness levels regarding neuromyths, general knowledge about the brain and learning, and evidence-based practices among sports coaches, and (c) identify interest levels in acquiring scientific knowledge about the brain. Methods: This study reports on the first phase of a two-year explanatory sequential mixed methods study focusing on sports coaches working in Pre-Kindergarten to 12th grade schools, higher education, and sports-related organizations. Descriptive and inferential statistics were conducted, including Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) to compare mean percentages of accurate responses between groups and factors associated with awareness. Results: While there were no statistically significant differences between the three groups of sports coaches or across demographics, the data revealed an opportunity to enhance professional development to increase levels of awareness of neuromyths, general knowledge about the brain and learning, and evidence-based practices. All three groups of sports coaches ranked onsite professional development as their preferred format followed by hybrid, online, and HyFlex. High levels of interest were found among all groups of sports coaches regarding scientific knowledge about the brain. Conclusions: Professional development provides a unique opportunity in sports coaching education to integrate research to increase awareness about the brain, learning, and evidence-based practices as well as debunk neuromyths and pseudoscientific ideas. Applications in Sports: This study contributes to sports education since it provides insightful research into professional development and identifies opportunities for enhanced awareness of neuromyths, general knowledge about the brain and learning, and evidence-based practices. Furthermore, it provides data on the types of strategies, practices, and concepts that participants are applying to their coaching, where they learned about them, and what they would like to learn more about. Keywords: neuroscience, psychology, pseudoscientific beliefs, training
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Details
- Title
- International Study of Professional Development in Sports Coaching: Awareness of Neuromyths, Brain Knowledge, and Evidence-Based Practices
- Creators
- Kristen Betts - Drexel UniversityCam Kiosoglous - Drexel UniversityTamara Galoyan - Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyFiona Murray - Special Olympics International (Ireland, Dublin)Julie Perrelli - Western Connecticut State UniversitySara Steinman - Drexel UniversityMariette Fourie - University of the Western CapeEllana Black - Drexel University
- Publication Details
- The Sport Journal
- Publisher
- United States Sports Academy
- Resource Type
- Report
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- School of Education
- Identifiers
- 991022029671904721