The Token Female: Women’s Experiences as Division I Collegiate Head Coaches of Men’s Teams

Fifteen women who coach NCAA Division I men’s teams were interviewed about their experiences coaching men. Six themes emerged after a comprehensive analysis of the interview transcripts: 1) Gender barriers experienced by women coaching men, 2) Obtainment of their position coaching men in unique ways, 3) Women coach only men’s minor sports, 4) Characteristics contributing to their success coaching men, 5) Reasons for a lack of women coaching men, and 6) Strategies for change. Findings confirm previous research on women coaching men (i.e., Kane & Stangl, 1991) and point to the tokenism and marginalization that women coaching men experience. Unique findings of this study included that women have to be decorated athletes or coaches to coach men, many of the women in this study were unaware of the opportunity to coach men, and athletic director support is key in the success of women who coach men

How Coaching Philosophy Drives Coaching Action : A Case Study of Renowned Wrestling Coach J Robinson

This case study examined the coaching philosophy of J Robinson, one of the most respected and successful NCAA wrestling coaches in the United States, and the founder of J Robison Intensive Wrestling Camps. Research has that shown that his camps foster short and long term psychological development in its youth participants (Driska et al., in press; Pierce, et al., 2016). He has established a well-delineated system for developing psychological skills in young athletes. The researchers were therefore interested in understanding the link between his coaching philosophy and coaching behavior, and in identifying factors that have influenced the development of this coaching philosophy over his lifetime. Using a case study approach, in-depth interviews at several points in time with Robinson were conducted. These were supplemented with interviews with camp staff and observations of the camp and Robinson’s coaching. Results revealed that Robinson had a clearly defined philosophy, was very intentional in developing mental skills, and had clearly thought out rationales that guided his coaching actions. The coaching philosophy and approach to developing psychological skills in youth evolved over 35 years of implementing these camps and from Robinson’s own life experiences. Implications for studying coach development and delivering coaching education are provided

Understanding psychological changes in adolescent wrestlers participating in an intensive training camp: a mixed-methods investigation

Research has indicated that adversity created in training environments can develop mental toughness in adolescent athletes (Bell, Hardy, & Beattie, 2013; Connaughton, Hanton, & Jones, 2010; Gucciardi, Gordon, & Dimmock, 2008). However, few studies (Bell et al., 2013) have explored this development prospectively. Employing a pragmatic, longitudinal, mixed methods design, this study assessed 70 adolescent wrestlers participating in an established intensive wrestling camp that systematically employed adversity. The Trait Sport Confidence Inventory, the State Hope Scale, and the Athletic Coping Skills Inventory-28 were administered at the outset, conclusion, and nine-months-following the camp. A repeated measures MANOVA with post-hoc measures showed increases in seven variables, maintained at the nine-month follow-up, with the strongest partial effect sizes in hope (η = .242), sport confidence (η = .151), and coping with adversity (η = .142). Interviews with eight participants, conducted throughout the camp, one-week post-camp, and nine-months post-camp, yielded five high-order themes: enhanced confidence, work ethic, development of empowering attributes (e.g., responsibility, internal control), enhanced thought processes (e.g., self-awareness), and enhanced interpersonal skills. Results suggest that this highly-structured adverse training environment has the ability to develop a range of skills and dispositions related to mental toughness, and that some of these factors may transfer to other life contexts

Estimates of cellular mechanics in an arterial smooth muscle.

Estimates of force generation or shortening obtained from smooth muscle tissues are valid for individual cells only if each cell is contracting homogeneously and if cells anatomically arranged in series are mechanically coupled. These two assumptions were tested and shown to be valid for the pig carotid media under certain conditions. Homogeneity of cellular responses in carotid strips was estimated from the motion of markers on the tissue during K+ -induced isometric contractions. When tissues were stretched to L0 (the optimum length for force generation), there was little marker movement on stimulation. However, considerable marker movement was observed on stimulation at shorter muscle lengths, reflecting localized shortening or stretching. The mechanical coupling of the very small cells in the media was determined by measuring the dependence of cell length on tissue length. Tissues were fixed with glutaraldehyde during isometric contractions at various tissue lengths (0.4--1.1 x L0). The fixed tissues were macerated with acid and the lengths of the dispersed cells were measured. Cell lengths were broadly distributed at all muscle lengths. However, the direct proportionality between mean cell length and muscle length (as a fraction of L0) indicated that cells which are anatomically in series are coupled force-transmitting structures. We conclude that valid estimates of cellular mechanical function in this preparation can be obtained from tissue measurements at lengths greater than about 0.9L0