Athletes’ perceptions of their head coach’s alcohol management strategies and athlete alcohol use

Abstract

Despite evidence regarding the salience of team-related antecedents of student-athlete drinking, less research has focused on the role coaches play in managing their athletes’ alcohol consumption. We examined the influence of athletes’ perceptions of coach attitudes and behaviors about athlete alcohol use on athlete alcohol use. Collegiate female softball athletes (N = 897) from 63 NCAA teams were surveyed during the competitive season. A measure to assess athletes’ evaluations of head coach attitudes and behaviors toward athlete drinking was developed by generating a pool of items based on the student-athlete alcohol use literature and interviews with six NCAA coaches, and subsequently examining its factor structure. An exploratory factor analysis indicated three factors: Concerned Communication, Conditional Leniency, and Enforcement. Athlete alcohol consumption was measured, including frequency of use and heavy episodic drinking. Multilevel modeling results revealed that higher concerned communication and lower conditional leniency were associated with less athlete alcohol use. Enforcement was unrelated to alcohol use. Findings demonstrate the impact of coaches on athletes’ alcohol use. Commensurate education and training should be provided for coaches to prevent and manage athlete alcohol consumption.

Keywords:

• Athletics
• leadership
• multilevel modeling
• softball
• sports
• student-athlete

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Collegiate Athletic Association Sport Science Institute under the graduate student research grant program.