Estilo decisional de los entrenadores, motivación y rendimiento percibido en jóvenes deportistas

Resum

Sports performance depends on a number of factors, including psychological aspects and the coach's decisional style. In this sense, the theoretical framework of the theory of self-determination and achievement goals establishes that - the satisfaction of basic psychological needs, the most self-determined motivational forms and the motivational climate directed to a given task, are related to positive behavioural consequences and, therefore, can benefit the perceived performance of athletes. Theoretical references also tell us that the coach is one of the most important figures in the training process of the athlete and that his behaviour or interpersonal style and way of making decisions will influence the young athletes they train. The main objective of this research was to relate the coach's decision-making process with motivational variables and the sports performance of young athletes. In order to achieve this objective, several variables were studied: the coach’s decision-making process’s style, the motivational climate and autonomy support transmitted by the coach, the satisfaction of basic psychological needs, the types of motivation of young athletes and the perceived performance in sport. A questionnaire was applied to 447 young Portuguese athletes with an average age of 15.72 years (SD = 1.8), of whom 340 were boys and 107 girls. Concerning coaches, it was applied to 142, with an average age of 38.18 years (SD = 10.42), of whom 124 were men and 17 were women. Portuguese versions of the Support to Perceived Autonomy (PAS) questionnaire, the Basic Psychological Needs in Exercise Scale (BPNES), the Motivational Climate Scale in Sport, the Regulation of Behaviour in Sport Questionnaire (BRSQ), the Perceived Performance in Sport Questionnaire and the Coach Decision-Making Questionnaire (QTDT) were used. The results of study number 1 showed that the Sports Perceived Performance Questionnaire had a unifactorial structure, good internal consistency, very satisfactory test-retest reliability and confirmatory factorial analysis with appropriate adjustment indices. The criteria validity of the questionnaire was verified through the positive and significant prediction of the satisfaction of the need for competence and autonomous motivation on the perceived performance of athletes. The results of study number 2 showed that coaches with a higher level of specific technical education can make more effective decisions without effort; that they have greater ability to detect more subtle and relevant information, assess the situation and make quick and intuitive decisions. In addition, coaches of ages between 38 and 46 years old, with more than 10 years of experience, can identify more specific and relevant information patterns in each situation, which also leads to more effective decisions. In study number 3, the results of the structural equation model showed that the perception of an interpersonal style of support for autonomy, positively predicted the satisfaction of the psychological needs for autonomy, competence and relationship with others, of the athletes. The satisfaction of the three psychological needs predicted autonomous motivation. In addition, the need for competence positively predicted the perceived performance in sport, obtaining an explained variation of 61%. The model was invariable according to gender. In study number 4, the results of the multilevel analysis showed that there was variation in the satisfaction of the three basic psychological needs in the intrinsic motivation, demotivation and perceived performance of the athletes depending on the decisional style of the coach. The results are discussed on the basis of the theory of self-determination and the following conclusions are presented: the Portuguese version of the Perceived Performance in Sport Questionnaire is a valid and reliable tool; coaches with more specific technical education, with more than 10 years of experience and with ages between 38 and 46 seem to make better decisions; the support of the coach's autonomy predicts the satisfaction of the psychological needs of the athlete, the satisfaction of the psychological needs predicts the autonomous motivation and the need for competence predicts the perceived performance in sport; the coach’s decisionmaking process affects the variability of the satisfaction of the psychological needs, the motivation and the perceived performance of the athlete.