Coaches’ Communication of Sport Body Image: Experiences of Female Athletes

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to explore female athletes’ experiences of coaches’ communication of sport body image. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I female athletes. The results revealed that coaches encouraged nutrition and physical development during training thereby communicating a healthy, fit sport body image. The coaches communicated the sport body image through the sport and training environment, body comparisons and criticisms, recognition of athletic body change, individualized athlete-centered training, and role modeling. Individualized athlete-centered training and goal-setting were viewed as supportive means of communicating guidance about sport body image.

Acknowledgments

This research was funded in part by a thesis grant awarded to Angela M. Coppola from the Graduate School at Miami University, Oxford, OH 45056.

The current project was published within a larger Master's thesis project at Miami University through the OhioLINK database. In addition, portions of the study were presented at the Canadian Society for Psychomotor Learning and Sport Psychology Conference, October 14, 2011, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

The authors would like to acknowledge those who participated in the study and thank them for sharing their knowledge and experiences. The authors would also like to thank the reviewers and editor for their feedback and suggestions.