Paul Potrac – författare

In many Western nations, community sport coaches occupy a central role in supporting the physical health, mental wellbeing, and wider social development of individuals and communities. However, there is no existing academic textbook that examines the policy contexts in which their work is located or, indeed, the challenges and opportunities that are an inherent feature of their everyday practice.

Bringing together an international team of leading researchers in sport policy, sport development, sport pedagogy, and sport coaching, as well as some of the best emerging talents, this book is the first to critically consider a range of policy and practice issues directly connected to community sport coaching.

Comprehensive, timely, and cutting-edge, no other text brings together in one place such a depth and breadth of scholarly material addressing this important field of endeavour. This book is an essential resource for educators, students, practitioners, and policy makers concerned with community sport coaching globally.

In many Western nations, community sport coaches occupy a central role in supporting the physical health, mental wellbeing, and wider social development of individuals and communities. However, there is no existing academic textbook that examines the policy contexts in which their work is located or, indeed, the challenges and opportunities that are an inherent feature of their everyday practice.

Bringing together an international team of leading researchers in sport policy, sport development, sport pedagogy, and sport coaching, as well as some of the best emerging talents, this book is the first to critically consider a range of policy and practice issues directly connected to community sport coaching.

Comprehensive, timely, and cutting-edge, no other text brings together in one place such a depth and breadth of scholarly material addressing this important field of endeavour. This book is an essential resource for educators, students, practitioners, and policy makers concerned with community sport coaching globally.

Every successful sports coach knows that good teaching and social practices are just as important as expertise in sports skills and tactics. Now in a fully revised and updated fourth edition, and introducing a new author team, Understanding Sports Coaching introduces theories and practices while exploring pedagogical, social and cultural concepts underpinning good sports coaching practice.

Broken into four sections, Understanding Sports Coaching examines the complex interplay between coach, athlete, coaching programme and social context, and encourages coaches to develop an open and reflective approach to their own coaching practice. It covers key aspects of coaching theories and practice, including important and emerging topics, such as:

• leadership

• athlete learning

• emotion in coaching

• culture as meaning making

• quality in coaching

• talent identification and development

• philosophy and sports coaching

Understanding Sports Coaching also includes a full range of practical exercises and extended case studies designed to encourage coaches to critically reflect upon their own coaching strategies, their interpersonal skills and important issues in contemporary sports coaching. This is an essential textbook for any degree-level course in sports coaching, and for any professional coach looking to develop their coaching expertise.

Every successful sports coach knows that good teaching and social practices are just as important as expertise in sports skills and tactics. Now in a fully revised and updated fourth edition, and introducing a new author team, Understanding Sports Coaching introduces theories and practices while exploring pedagogical, social and cultural concepts underpinning good sports coaching practice.

Broken into four sections, Understanding Sports Coaching examines the complex interplay between coach, athlete, coaching programme and social context, and encourages coaches to develop an open and reflective approach to their own coaching practice. It covers key aspects of coaching theories and practice, including important and emerging topics, such as:

• leadership

• athlete learning

• emotion in coaching

• culture as meaning making

• quality in coaching

• talent identification and development

• philosophy and sports coaching

Understanding Sports Coaching also includes a full range of practical exercises and extended case studies designed to encourage coaches to critically reflect upon their own coaching strategies, their interpersonal skills and important issues in contemporary sports coaching. This is an essential textbook for any degree-level course in sports coaching, and for any professional coach looking to develop their coaching expertise.

Research Methods in Sports Coaching is a key resource for students and scholars who are completing research into sports coaching. The book comprises five distinct parts that prompt readers to think about important considerations:

This fully revised edition places particular emphasis on introducing the diverse research paradigms, research designs, as well as methods of data collection and analysis available to coaching researchers.

Written by a team of leading international scholars and researchers from the UK, Sweden, the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia, this book bridges the gap between the theory and practice of sports coaching research. The second edition of Research Methods in Sports Coaching is an essential text for any research methods course taken as part of a degree programme in sports coaching or coach education.

Research Methods in Sports Coaching is a key resource for students and scholars who are completing research into sports coaching. The book comprises five distinct parts that prompt readers to think about important considerations:

This fully revised edition places particular emphasis on introducing the diverse research paradigms, research designs, as well as methods of data collection and analysis available to coaching researchers.

Written by a team of leading international scholars and researchers from the UK, Sweden, the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia, this book bridges the gap between the theory and practice of sports coaching research. The second edition of Research Methods in Sports Coaching is an essential text for any research methods course taken as part of a degree programme in sports coaching or coach education.

''The art of coaching is recognising the situation, recognising the people and responding to the people you are working with... that''s the big thing, to handle people''. Steve Harrison, Coach, Middlesbrough Football Club.

Responding to the fast growing subject in academic sports departments, this groundbreaking new coaching studies text offers a view that focuses the coach as a person and the coaching practice as a complex social encounter.

Unlike existing titles in the field which look at coaching as a science, this book examines the personalities, histories, relationships and individual styles of eight coaches at the top of their profession.

One-to-one interviews with some of the best-known and respected elite sports coaches include Steve Harrison, Hope Powell and Graham Taylor from football; Ian McGeechan and Bob Dwyer from rugby; Di Bass from swimming; Lois Muir from netball; and Peter Stanley from athletics; and form the basis for subsequent exploration of four key themes in sports coaching:

* coaching pedagogy * the coach''s role * the coach''s interaction with athletes * the coach''s power.

This text will be of significant interest to students of coaching science and sports science, and will appeal to the considerable body of amateur sports coaches with an interest in the styles of those at the top.

''The art of coaching is recognising the situation, recognising the people and responding to the people you are working with... that''s the big thing, to handle people''. Steve Harrison, Coach, Middlesbrough Football Club.

Responding to the fast growing subject in academic sports departments, this groundbreaking new coaching studies text offers a view that focuses the coach as a person and the coaching practice as a complex social encounter.

Unlike existing titles in the field which look at coaching as a science, this book examines the personalities, histories, relationships and individual styles of eight coaches at the top of their profession.

One-to-one interviews with some of the best-known and respected elite sports coaches include Steve Harrison, Hope Powell and Graham Taylor from football; Ian McGeechan and Bob Dwyer from rugby; Di Bass from swimming; Lois Muir from netball; and Peter Stanley from athletics; and form the basis for subsequent exploration of four key themes in sports coaching:

* coaching pedagogy * the coach''s role * the coach''s interaction with athletes * the coach''s power.

This text will be of significant interest to students of coaching science and sports science, and will appeal to the considerable body of amateur sports coaches with an interest in the styles of those at the top.

Sports coaching is a social activity. At its heart lies a complex interaction between coach and athlete played out within the context of sport, itself a socio-culturally defined set of practices. In this ground-breaking book, leading international coaching scholars and coaches argue that an understanding of sociology and social theory can help us better grasp the interactive nature of coaching and consequently assist in demystifying the mythical ‘art’ of the activity.

The Sociology of Sports Coaching establishes an alternative conceptual framework from which to explore sports coaching. It firstly introduces the work of key social theorists, such as Foucault, Goffman and Bourdieu among others, before highlighting the principal themes that link the study of sociology and sports coaching, such as power, interaction, and knowledge and learning. The book also outlines and develops the connections between theory and practice by placing the work of each selected social theorist alongside contemporary views on that work from a current practicing coach.

This is the first book to present a critical sociological perspective of sports coaching and, as such, it represents an important step forward in the professionalization of the discipline. It is essential reading for any serious student of sports coaching or the sociology of sport, and for any reflective practitioner looking to become a better coach.

Sports coaching is a social activity. At its heart lies a complex interaction between coach and athlete played out within the context of sport, itself a socio-culturally defined set of practices. In this ground-breaking book, leading international coaching scholars and coaches argue that an understanding of sociology and social theory can help us better grasp the interactive nature of coaching and consequently assist in demystifying the mythical ‘art’ of the activity.

The Sociology of Sports Coaching establishes an alternative conceptual framework from which to explore sports coaching. It firstly introduces the work of key social theorists, such as Foucault, Goffman and Bourdieu among others, before highlighting the principal themes that link the study of sociology and sports coaching, such as power, interaction, and knowledge and learning. The book also outlines and develops the connections between theory and practice by placing the work of each selected social theorist alongside contemporary views on that work from a current practicing coach.

This is the first book to present a critical sociological perspective of sports coaching and, as such, it represents an important step forward in the professionalization of the discipline. It is essential reading for any serious student of sports coaching or the sociology of sport, and for any reflective practitioner looking to become a better coach.