How Coaches’ Motivations Mediate Between Basic Psychological Needs and Well-Being/Ill-Being

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of the present research was to test how behavioral regulations are mediated between basic psychological needs and psychological well-being and ill-being in a sample of team-sport coaches. Based on self-determination theory, we hypothesized a model where satisfaction and thwarting of the basic psychological needs predicted coaches’ behavioral regulations, which in turn led them to experience well-being (i.e., subjective vitality, positive affect) or ill-being (i.e., perceived stress, negative affect). Method: Three-hundred and two coaches participated in the study (M_age = 25.97 years; 82% male). For each instrument employed, the measurement model with the best psychometric properties was selected from a sequence of nested models sustained by previous research, including exploratory structural equation models and confirmatory factor analysis. These measurement models were included in 3 structural equation models to test for mediation: partial mediation, complete mediation, and absence of mediation. Results: The results provided support for the partial mediation model. Coaches’ motivation mediated the relationships from both relatedness need satisfaction and basic psychological needs thwarting for coaches’ well-being. In contrast, relationships between basic psychological needs satisfaction and thwarting and ill-being were only predicted by direct effects. Conclusion: Our results highlight that 3 conditions seem necessary for coaches to experience psychological well-being in their teams: basic psychological needs satisfaction, especially relatedness; lack of basic psychological needs thwarting; and self-determined motivation.

Keywords::

• behavioral regulations
• mediation model
• statistical measurement
• structural equation model

Acknowledgments

The authors want to thank Luana Prato and Yago Ramis for their collaboration in this manuscript.

Funding

This research was funded in part by the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (DEP2010-15561).

ORCID

Saul Alcaraz http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5720-8801

Miquel Torregrosa http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1117-9977

Carme Viladrich http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7464-1455