Evaluating the effectiveness of the MASTER coaching program as a coach development tool for improving coaching practices of football coaches and improving a range of player outcomes

The overarching aim of this thesis is to design and evaluate a positive games-based coach education intervention for use in community level sport. To do so, this thesis by publication presents a series of studies related to the MASTER Coach Education Program in Football, which was developed to address gaps in the sports coaching literature and for the improvement of community level sports coaching. To gather evidence on best practice in sports coaching, in phase one, a systematic review of the literature in organised sport was undertaken to examine the impact of positive and negative sports coaching practices, and game-based pedagogy in schools. The findings from Phase 1 were used to inform Phase 2, which involved the design, development, implementation and evaluation of the MASTER Coach Education Program in football. Diagrammatically the thesis journey is displayed at Annexure L. Phase 1 The scoping review showed coach behaviours and practices do influence the athlete’s perception of the coach, motivation and performance, and perception of the sport. The systematic review provided evidence for the feasibility of a games-based intervention to deliver a range of outcomes to adolescent athletes. As a result, the authors proposed a definition of the previously undefined term “positive sports coaching”. Phase 2 The rationale and study protocol are included to determine intervention fidelity. Secondly, the thesis’s primary aim investigated whether coach’s who receive the MASTER Coach Education program reported improvements in several coach related categories. Significant effects were observed for the time devoted to playing-form activities [22.63% (95% CI (9.07-36.19), P=0.002, d=1.78), P=0.002, d=1.78]. Further, intervention benefits also observed for the several secondary outcomes for athletes including game skills and several wellbeing measures. Finally, a published book chapter provides valuable contextual information for the effectiveness of the MASTER Coach Education RCT in the Australian football landscape.