ABSTRACT

A decade ago, we used a bottom-up approach to design and deliver a coach education course for football coaches which aimed to improve their interpersonal skills. This chapter describes a follow-up study which involved interviewing ten coaches who participated in the original course regarding their perceptions and thoughts on the impact, if any, the course had on their interpersonal skills and coaching practice. Drawing upon a social constructionist approach which assumes that knowledge emerges from social interactions within cultural contexts, we were specifically interested in understanding how such a course may have constructed coaches’ knowledge and practice. The findings indicated that six of the ten coaches suggested they were able to implement at least some of the content within their practice, which could indicate that the original course content reflected their bespoke needs as a coach. This chapter critically analyses these findings amongst others, situates them within the literature, and begins to suggest recommendations to enhance the longevity of course content.