An Exploration of Two-year College Female Basketball Athletes Experiences of Being Coached by Male and Female Coaches

Purpose. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand and systematically describe the essence of the experience of two-year college female basketball athletes coached by male and female coaches. Methodology. A phenomenological design was used to explore two-year college female basketball athletes’ experiences being coached by male and female coaches. The researcher interviewed 10 two-year college female basketball athletes from Los Angeles, San Bernardino, and Riverside Counties in southern California. The researcher chose the hermeneutic approach because it was grounded in interpretation. As defined by Wojnar and Swanson (2007), “hermeneutic phenomenology is the interpretation of the structures of experience and with how things are understood by people who live through these experiences” (p. 173). Findings. Transcripts from interviews were reviewed and common themes emerged from statements made by the participants. Four major themes emerged from the interpreted meanings, and supported by the participants. The essence of the two-year college female basketball athletes’ experiences of being coached by male and female coaches was described. Conclusions. The results of the study supported previous findings on this topic. However, the results explored an underrepresented group of two-year college female basketball athletes. The key themes that emerged were fundamental basketball (being taught the rudiments of the game, discipline, and structure); perceived authority; coaching preference (male coaching qualities viewed more positively than female coaching qualities), and coaching characteristics (fostering relationships and building trust). Recommendations. Future studies could involve more participants, random sampling, or other qualitative or quantitative methods that would provide results more generalizable to a larger population. This study was performed after two-year college female basketball players completed their first year of sports eligibility and required the athletes to recall their past experiences. Further phenomenological research could be conducted looking at two-year college, high school, travel ball (AAU), and four-year college female players in different regions. Finally, the researcher recommended exploring the male and female coaches’ backgrounds in basketball to explore their experiences and training methods, and how those played into the coaching relationship