What about the coach?

When we talk about pressure in sport, the focus almost always falls on the athlete. Yet, behind every athlete or team sits a coach managing not only their own stress and expectations, but also the emotional and psychological demands of everyone they support. Coaches have to learn to absorb pressure from every direction: athletes, parents, the media, job insecurity, and the list goes on. This creates a unique emotional demand that is sometimes overlooked within conversations around Sport Psychology and wellbeing. So, how do we support the coach? 

Why coach well-being matters

The question is importance because coach well-being doesn’t just influence the coach. Burnout can impair a coaches’ concentration, their decision-making, their interpersonal effectiveness. As highlighted by Norris et al., 2020, the consequences of coach burnout have a knock-on effect on the interactions they have with their athletes, leading to less effective coaching. It’s acknowledged that the emotional state of the coach impacts the athlete, making coaches a key component of the psychological environment in sport. Therefore, prioritising coach well-being is not just supporting the coach but supporting athlete performance too. 

Protective factors

Recent research has begun to explore what protects coaches from burnout. A systematic review (Woods et al., 2022) highlighted how social support and relationships among coaches are crucial in reducing feelings of unnecessary pressure and irrational expectations. The review really emphasised the importance of maintaining strong support networks, including through organisational support, colleagues, family, and friends. These support systems can improve wellbeing and reduce stress levels within coaches, and during particularly stressful periods, maintaining connections outside of sport may be especially valuable to provide some respite. 

Beyond social support, other psychological factors have been identified. For instance, research on Norwegian sport coaches found that both grit and social resources were associated with lower burnout risk (Moen et al., 2024). Interestingly, coaches’ beliefs about their own competence and efficacy also appeared important, and coaches who remain strongly connected to the intrinsic value of coaching appear less vulnerable to burnout too (Woods et al., 2022). This may suggest an important role for Sport Psychology support; psychoeducation around emotional regulation and maintaining intrinsic motivation may help coaches respond to challenges in more adaptive ways. Equally, this should be a prompt for sporting organisations to place a greater emphasis on coach wellbeing through more accessible support systems. 

Is Sport Psychology doing enough for coaches? 

While research into coach burnout has increased in recent years, coach wellbeing still receives limited attention within Sport Psychology discussions. This may reflect how the role of Sport Psychology is understood, with the priority being on athlete performance. Even searches for “coach motivation, sport psychology” frequently focus on how coaches motivate athletes, rather than how coaches themselves can be support psychologically. There is also evidence that the profession recognises this gap, with research by Kelly et al., 2018 finding that practitioners believed trainees are not adequately supported and prepared to work effectively with coaches. 

Encouragingly, research is beginning to explore practical ways to support coach wellbeing. Recent work investigating self-compassion interventions among high-performance coaches found that daily mindful self-reflection practices may increase self-compassion and promote more sustainable coaching (Hägglund et al., 2024). These authors also suggested that increasing awareness of vulnerability promote help-seeking behaviours and contribute to psychologically healthier sporting environments. Ultimately, by supporting coaches who are responsible for guiding and shaping athletes, we can help optimise both well-being and performance across sport, making coach well-being a key consideration in Sport Psychology. 

References

Hägglund, K., Göran Kenttä, Bentzen, M., Thelwell, R., & Christopher. (2024). Mindful self-reflection as a strategy to support sustainable high-performance coaching: A mixed method study. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1080/10413200.2024.2353288 

Kelly, S., Thelwell, R., Barker, J. B., & Harwood, C. G. (2018). Psychological support for sport coaches: An exploration of practitioner psychologist perspectives. Journal of Sports Sciences, 36(16), 1852–1859. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2018.1423854 

Moen, F., Lervold, K., Østerås, M. O., & Haugan, J. A. (2024). Protective factors of burnout among Norwegian sport coaches. Cogent Psychology, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311908.2024.2410560 

Norris, L. A., Didymus, F. F., & Kaiseler, M. (2020). Understanding social networks and social support resources with sports coaches. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 48(17), 101665. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2020.101665 

Woods, S., Dunne, S., Gallagher, P., & McNicholl, A. (2022). A systematic review of the factors associated with athlete burnout in team sports. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 1, 1–41. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750984x.2022.2148225