Can losing teams cope with destructive voice behaviour? The role of game results and athletes’ perceived motivational climate

ABSTRACT

This study examined the relation between losing a game and players’ destructive voice about the coach. As team performances would suffer when such behaviours are not managed properly, we tested the motivational climate as a potential mechanism by which coaches can manage these destructive behaviours. Twelve volleyball and basketball teams (N = 136) were weekly assessed during eight weeks using questionnaires. Players rated the extent to which their teammates expressed destructive voice about their coach. Each player’s indegree centrality (i.e. the average score received from all teammates) functioned as measurement of his/her destructive voice about the coach. As hypothesized, losing a game increased players’ expression of destructive voice about the coach. At both the within- and between-person level, perceived mastery (performance) climate negatively (positively) predicted players’ destructive voice about the coach. When players perceived a more salient performance climate than usual after a loss, their increase in destructive voice about the coach was magnified. These results highlight the dynamics of players’ destructive voice about the coach and how a single loss can start the utterance of such voice. A coach would be able to counter this process by increasing the focus on a mastery rather than a performance climate.

KEYWORDS:

• Destructive voice behaviour
• group dynamics
• team sports
• coaching
• motivational climate

Acknowledgments

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.