Date of Award

12-2012

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Legacy Department

Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management

Committee Chair/Advisor

Aurthur-Banning, Skye

Committee Member

Barcelona , Robert

Committee Member

Rembert , Kellye

Committee Member

Schmalz , Dorothy

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to identify the primary motivations for people to become and continue as equestrian vaulting coaches. Using a nomothetic context for research, this study focused on gaining a better understanding of equestrian vaulting coaches by identifying factors that generally motivate their participation in the sport. The first research question related to what motivates someone to become a vaulting coach while the second question related to what motivates these coaches to continue in the coaching role.
Fifteen female coaches were selected for interviews from the American Vaulting Association membership. Interview questions were based on a preliminary survey and were designed to expand upon general motivational data. The resulting information showed strong support for the voluntary nature that drives vaulting coaches to initiate and sustain their action. Motivations for becoming a coach centered on intrinsic factors while motivations to continue as a coach centered on vaulter (athlete) success. Aside from contributing to the growing research literature related to the motivation of coaches and to the sport of equestrian vaulting overall, many avenues are provided for this research to be applied to the management of volunteer coaches by sports organizations.

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