The relationship between coaches’ emotional intelligence and basic need satisfaction in athletes

ABSTRACT

Scant empirical evidence exists on the importance of coaches’ emotional intelligence (EI). This cross-sectional study examined whether coaches’ EI is linked to the perception and satisfaction of their athletes’ basic psychological needs. Coaches (n = 16, male = 68.8%, mean age = 33 ± 11 yrs) and youth athletes (n = 171, male = 46.9%, mean age = 15 ± 1.5 yrs) from 16 non-elite German sports teams (basketball n = 3, football n = 5, handball n = 3, and volleyball n = 5) participated in this research. Coaches’ EI, athletes’ need satisfaction, and athletes’ perceived autonomy support were assessed by self-report questionnaires. Multilevel analyses showed that coaches’ EI self-control significantly predicted the accuracy of coaches’ perceptions of athletes’ competence satisfaction. Furthermore, coaches’ EI well-being significantly related to athletes’ perceived autonomy support. Findings suggest a partial role of coaches’ EI in supporting athletes’ need satisfaction.

KEYWORDS:

• Trait EI
• basic psychological need satisfaction
• coaching

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Dr. Christian Zepp and Christin Roßmann for their help with data collection.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.