EXAMINING THE COACH-ATHLETE RELATIONSHIP AS A PREDICTOR OF NCAA STUDENT-ATHLETE SATISFACTION

The purpose of this non-experimental study was to investigate NCAA student-athletes’ perceptions of the quality of their current coach-athlete relationship as well as ratings of student-athlete satisfaction. An additional aim was to determine if student-athlete perceptions of the quality of the coach-athlete relationship had a predictive relationship with their ratings of athlete satisfaction. A total of 387 NCAA student-athletes of all levels completed measures of coach-athlete relationship quality and athlete satisfaction. Respondents indicated generally positive perceptions of their relationship with their coach and reported moderately high levels of satisfaction. There were statistically significant differences between groups based on sport type and NCAA division. The coach-athlete relationship was clearly linked with athlete satisfaction and regression analyses indicated that coach-athlete relationship quality significantly predicted ratings of athlete satisfaction. Implications for sport coaches, the NCAA, and coach education outlets were also discussed.