Abstract
Objectives: To date, research on teamwork in sport has focused primarily on conceptualizing and measuring teamwork, and testing its impact on salient consequences (e.g., athlete commitment, team resilience). Less attention has been invested into examining how teamwork might be facilitated. Teamwork training in sport has been identified as one potential antecedent that may promote teamwork behaviours, which in turn could benefit other group constructs such as team cohesion, collective efficacy, and team performance. The purpose of this study was to examine university-level team sport athletes’ and coaches’ experiences of participating in a season-long teamwork training intervention.
Methods: We recruited 29 members from the five participating intervention teams to participate in semi-structured interviews and focus groups at two time points (i.e., mid- intervention and post intervention). The coach participants (n=6; 1 female; Mage = 38.7) completed one-to-one interviews at two time points, and 2-4 athletes from each team participated in focus groups at each time point (n=23 athletes total; 8 female; Mage = 20.3). Using reflexive thematic analysis, we generated 14 subthemes and three higher-order themes.
Findings & Discussion: Specifically, the higher-order themes were: leadership as a catalyst (and/or barrier) for change, forging and sustaining optimal relationships, and intervention engagement drivers and inhibitors (e.g.,
apprehension towards teamwork training, season- long participation, and facilitator integration). Findings provide insights into how the design, facilitation, and implementation of teamwork training impacts teams’ teamwork behaviours, team cohesion, and performance.
Conclusion: This study provides valuable insights for both future researchers looking to design teamwork training
23 programmes in sport, as well as applied practitioners who are interested in improving their teams' teamwork behaviours.
Methods: We recruited 29 members from the five participating intervention teams to participate in semi-structured interviews and focus groups at two time points (i.e., mid- intervention and post intervention). The coach participants (n=6; 1 female; Mage = 38.7) completed one-to-one interviews at two time points, and 2-4 athletes from each team participated in focus groups at each time point (n=23 athletes total; 8 female; Mage = 20.3). Using reflexive thematic analysis, we generated 14 subthemes and three higher-order themes.
Findings & Discussion: Specifically, the higher-order themes were: leadership as a catalyst (and/or barrier) for change, forging and sustaining optimal relationships, and intervention engagement drivers and inhibitors (e.g.,
apprehension towards teamwork training, season- long participation, and facilitator integration). Findings provide insights into how the design, facilitation, and implementation of teamwork training impacts teams’ teamwork behaviours, team cohesion, and performance.
Conclusion: This study provides valuable insights for both future researchers looking to design teamwork training
23 programmes in sport, as well as applied practitioners who are interested in improving their teams' teamwork behaviours.
Original language | English |
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Pages | 22-23 |
Number of pages | 2 |
Publication status | Published - 30 Jul 2024 |
Event | International Conference on Qualitative Research in Sport and Exercise - University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom Duration: 30 Jul 2024 → 1 Aug 2024 Conference number: 9 https://www.qrsesoc.com/conference-programme |
Conference
Conference | International Conference on Qualitative Research in Sport and Exercise |
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Country/Territory | United Kingdom |
City | Bath |
Period | 30/07/24 → 1/08/24 |
Internet address |