Discriminating factors between successful and unsuccessful teams: A case study in elite youth Olympic basketball games

Archival data was gathered from the FIBA33 games during the 1st inaugural Youth Olympic Games held in Singapore. Data collected from 70 basketball games played by boys from 20 participating countries were gathered for analysis. Analysis of game-related statistics and FIBA33 final rankings differentiated successful from unsuccessful teams. Ninety-five percent of the cases were correctly classified using discriminant analysis and in the cross-validation (leave-one-out method) the correct re-classification was 75 percent. Data triangulated from interviews and field notes were used to determine key factors contributing to team's success in the FIBA33 games. Results of the present study showed that players from the top 10 successful teams could be differentiated from those in the bottom 10 unsuccessful teams. The determining factors were taller, had better shooting percentages, played aggressively (i.e., recorded more team fouls and the ability to draw fouls on opponents during games). Coaches can use these results to improve player's recruitment process, reinforce the importance of fundamental skills such as shooting, individual offensive and defensive concepts under different game situations during trainings

The coaching behavior scale for sport: factor structure examination for Singaporean youth athletes

The Coaching Behavior Scale for Sport (CBS-S) is designed to evaluate coaches’ involvement in developing athletes, taking into considerations the complex training and competition environment. Although the CBS-S has been used in a number of empirical studies, the factor structure of the instrument has not been examined rigorously. The present study was, therefore, conducted to assess the factor structure of the CBS-S for Singaporean youth athletes. A total of 519 participants completed the CBS-S, and their responses were examined with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and recent exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM). Both sevenfactor CFA and ESEM models fit to the sample data adequately. In addition, the sizes of factor loadings on target factors were substantial and found comparable between the CFA and ESEM solutions. The findings from this study supported the factorial validity of the CBS-S for the present sample

A guided reflection intervention for high performance basketball coaches

The purpose of this study was to conduct a guided reflection intervention for high performance basketball coaches. The study participants included two head basketball coaches and 10 of their players who were part of elite youth teams in Singapore. The coaches were highly experienced, each with 17 and 20 years of coaching experience respectively, and the players from both teams (one male and one female) reported on average three years of playing experience at the national youth level. The Singapore coaching behavior scale for sport (CBS-S basketball), on-site observations, and interviews were used to gather data from the coaches and players. Coaches also kept a reflective journal throughout the intervention. The results showed how the coaches responded differently to the guided reflection intervention (implemented by the first author) in terms of their willingness to adapt and integrate new perspectives into their coaching practice. The coaches' level of reflection was found to be contingent upon a) their motivation and desire to be engaged in the process and b) the worth they saw in the learning facilitator's recommendations to improve their athletes' technical and tactical development. The results also showed how the coaches' behaviors were linked to players' satisfaction level with their work. The results are discussed using the coaching science literature and practical implications are proposed to optimize coaches' use of reflection as a learning tool to improve their coaching practice

THE USE OF COACHING BEHAVIOUR SCALE - SPORT IN EVALUATING AND DEVELOPING THE WORK OF HIGH PERFORMANCE BASKETBALL COACHES IN SINGAPORE

Coaching is highly complex and dynamic, especially at the high performance level when the work demands and expectations are significant (Lyle, 2002). High performance coaches have to systematically plan, monitor and evaluate their programmes. At the same time, they have to manage a complex performance environment, including support systems (e.g., sports sciences, logistics and officials), to ensure that their athletes perform and achieve successful results (Knowles, Tyler, Gilbourne, & Eubank, 2006; Lyle, 2002; Potrac, Brewer, Jones, Armour, & Holf, 2000). Accordingly, I have substantiated throughout this thesis that there is a need to: (1) understand how the Singapore high performance basketball coaches develop to their current position, (2) examine what the perceived important work tasks of these coaches are as perceived by the team managers, players, coaches and experts in basketball, (3) develop a context-specific tool to evaluate basketball coaches’ work, and (4) engage coaches in reflection and to guide them through the reflection process, with the aim of enhancing their coaching practices, and subsequently improving players’ performance and satisfaction level in the Under-18 national team. Research showed that there is a strong correlation between the experiences/background of coaches and the way they coach (e.g., Erickson, Côté, & Fraser-Thomas, 2007). Study 1 identified the coaching pathways of high performance basketball coaches in Singapore to enhance understanding of how these experiences may have influenced and shaped their coaching behaviour. The result supports the benefits of diversified sports participation during early childhood. Qualitative data also shows that all coaches involved in this study perceived benefit from diversified sports participation during early childhood. Such exposure to a variety of physical activities was considered beneficial for later sports specialization during adolescence as some of the concepts and skills were transferrable (e.g., Erickson et al., 2007). A point that is consistently emphasized throughout this thesis is that coaching is context-specific. The work tasks performed by the high performance basketball coaches in Singapore may not be congruent with coaches in other countries and sports. Therefore, it is my view that there is a need to examine the important work tasks of high performance basketball coaches in Singapore, and consequently, to develop a sport and context-specific instrument to capture and evaluate their work appropriately. Study 2 sought to examine the key tasks of high performance basketball coaches in Singapore using the Coach Behaviour Scale for Sports (CBS-S; Côté, Yardley, Hay, Sedgwick, & Baker, 1999). The CBS-S (Côté et al., 1999) was developed from research conducted on high performance gymnastic coaches and athletes. It was subsequently used in a few countries in different sports to measure the perception of athletes and their satisfaction level with regard to the coaching they have received. Seventeen participants (national coaches, team managers, players and other experts) took part in the study in which quantitative (CBS-S) and qualitative (semi-structured interviews) data were collected. The quantitative data were analysed using SPSS (Version 15.0) and the qualitative data were content analysed by three experienced researchers in sport psychology and coaching. The findings revealed that the dimensions and items from the CBS-S were considered mostly relevant in evaluating the work of Singapore’s high performance basketball coaches. Nevertheless, some modifications were made to the CBS-S to make it more specific to the basketball context in Singapore based on conceptual, theoretical and empirical considerations. The final version of the Singapore CBS-S (Basketball) has 10 dimensions with 104 items as opposed to the original CBS-S with 8 dimensions and 77 items. Overall, the findings from this study were consistent with the literature on coaches’ work. There are benefits for engaging in the reflection process. As stated in Chapter 3, reflective practice has gained popularity in many contexts such as art (e.g., Roberts, 2001), education (e.g., Smyth, 1991) and sports (Gilbert & Trudel, 2001; Kidman, 2001) just to name a few. Reflection, if done properly, has the potential to enhance performance. The aim of Study 3 is to use the data collected from the Singapore CBS-S (Basketball) to guide coaches in their reflection, with the aim of enhancing the quality of their coaching practices. Feedback was given to these coaches at the end of pre-season and during training sessions. Qualitative data showed that both coaches in this study were involved in different forms (e.g., Gilbert & Trudel, 2004; Knowles, Gilbourne, Borrie, & Neville, 2001; Schön, 1983, 1987) and levels of reflection (Van Manen, 1977) as suggested in the literature. There was sufficient evidence to suggest that both coaches had made adjustments to their coaching behaviours and methods after the pre-season feedback session. Nevertheless, post-season results from the men’s team players revealed that their coach has made significant improvement in his coaching; whilst players from the women’s team felt otherwise. The difference in results may be closely linked to the coaching philosophy, athletic and coaching background of the two coaches who were involved in this study. These factors may have shaped the way they reflected and addressed the coaching issues. Post-season qualitative data showed that coaches and players affirmed the benefits of the feedback process, using the Singapore CBS-S (Basketball) as an objective tool to gather data. Such findings will have significant impact on the future of Basketball coaching in Singapore at the high performance level

Differences in behaviour and interactive decision-making between experienced and inexperienced basketball coaches in secondary schools

There has been an increasing growth of external coaches employed by schools in Singapore to train and prepare their athletes for inter-school competitions. As these coaches come from different educational and professional backgrounds, their standard of coaching has varied. This study focused on the behaviour and interactive decision-making of experienced and inexperienced basketball coaches. A review of the literature revealed that there are differences between experienced and inexperienced teachers / coaches both in the classroom and in the sports setting. This study compared five experienced and five inexperienced secondary school male basketball coaches as they planned and executed a 30-minute "Pick and Roll" practice session. All practice sessions were videotaped. Interval recording procedures (four second observe / one second code) were employed with the Arizona State University Observation Instrument (A.S.U.O.I) to collect coach behaviour data. Coaches were also interviewed and audiotaped immediately after the practice session. Their responses were analysed using Sherman's Model of Interactive Decision-making instrument, to determine coaches' decision making patterns.Master of Educatio

Discriminating Factors between Successful and Unsuccessful Teams: A Case Study in Elite Youth Olympic Basketball Games

Archival data was gathered from the FIBA33 games during the 1st inaugural Youth Olympic Games held in Singapore. Data collected from 70 basketball games played by boys from 20 participating countries were gathered for analysis. Analysis of game-related statistics and FIBA33 final rankings differentiated successful from unsuccessful teams. Ninety-five percent of the cases were correctly classified using discriminant analysis and in the cross-validation (leave-one-out method) the correct re-classification was 75 percent. Data triangulated from interviews and field notes were used to determine key factors contributing to teams success in the FIBA33 games. Results of the present study showed that players from the top 10 successful teams could be differentiated from those in the bottom 10 unsuccessful teams. The determining factors were taller, had better shooting percentages, played aggressively (i.e., recorded more team fouls and the ability to draw fouls on opponents during games). Coaches can use these results to improve players recruitment process, reinforce the importance of fundamental skills such as shooting, individual offensive and defensive concepts under different game situations during trainings.

Testing a proposed model of perceived cognitive learning outcomes in outdoor education

The purposes of this study were to propose a model of cognitive learning outcomes in outdoor education and examine their relationships with two antecedents (quality of support resource and involvement) and one consequence (satisfaction). A total of 343 physical education student teachers in Singapore completed a questionnaire upon completion of a 5-day outdoor education camp. The questionnaire consisted of 25 items measuring cognitive learning outcomes, quality of support resource, involvement, and satisfaction with the camp. A confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the four-dimensional construct of cognitive learning outcomes with adequate global and internal structure fit. Structural equation modeling supported the proposed sequences indicating both quality of support resource and involvement as antecedents and satisfaction as a consequence of cognitive learning outcomes. This study provides insightful information on the design, implementation, and evaluation of outdoor education curricula to enhance student teacher’s satisfaction with the course during their pre-service training

A guide to conducting systematic reviews of coaching science research

Research in coaching science continues to grow and as such, there is a need for rigorous tools to help make sense of the rapidly expanding literature. The purpose of this paper is to provide a detailed description of a systematic review methodology that can be used to summarise literature in coaching science. To do so, we present a test case of a systematic review we conducted on the sport coaching experiences of global Indigenous populations. More precisely, we conducted a systematic review of English, Spanish, French, Mandarin, and Portuguese peer-reviewed journal articles, spanning twelve databases (e.g., Sport Discus, ERIC, and Scopus) from 1970 to 2014. ENTREQ and COREQ guidelines were followed to report the results of the systematic review, and Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory was used as a theoretical framework to extract and synthesise relevant findings from the included articles. In sum, this paper presents a robust methodology for systematically reviewing research in coaching science and provides practical insights for those who endeavour to conduct rigorous literature searches in this domain