Examining the impact of coaching for independence in adventure sports

This study of adventure sports learners expands on earlier work on adventure sports coaching. We examine learners’ perceptions of their coaching and its effect on their self-efficacy and independence as adventure sports performers. We utilise a convergent mixed approach that deploys the Outdoor Recreation Self-Efficacy Scale, pre- and post-coaching, and a reflexive thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews. The findings indicate improved self-efficacy and greater independence as a result of the coach’s practice, supporting our initial conjecture that the adventure sports coaches in this study developed independence as a definable outcome of their coaching practice