Coaching preferences of athletes in Brunei Darussalam and Great Britain: a cross-cultural test of the path-goal theory.

Abstract

[Introduction]: Path-goal theory (House, 1971, 1996; House & Mitchell, 1997) postulates that effective leader behaviour is influenced by the characteristics of individual group members and the characteristics of the task to be accomplished, in particular its variability and the degree of interdependence between group members. In the context of sport coaching, Path-goal theory suggests that participants in highly variable, interdependent sports such as soccer or basketball would prefer a more structured, autocratic leadership style than participants in more environmentally predictable, independent sports such as shooting or diving. Previous tests of Path-goal theory in a sport setting have provided partial support for the applicability of the theory to the coaching process (Capitao, 1995; Terry & Howe, 1984). For example, Terry and Howe showed that athletes in independent sports preferred more democratic behaviour and less autocratic behaviour than athletes in interdependent sports.