Parent Perceptions of Their Child's Coach: Coaching Knowledge, Behavior, and Interpersonal Relationships

The two most significant agents for youth athletes are coaches and parents. Even though the parent-child and coach-athlete relationship has been well explored, the relationship between parents and coaches has remained largely unexamined in the literature. Therefore, the current project surveyed 251 parents of children involved in the USTA 10 & Under tennis program concerning parent perceptions of their coach and the coach-parent relationship. Overall, parents rated their relationship with their coach as positive and communicated with them frequently on several aspects of the tennis environment and their child’s development. Additionally, parents saw their child’s coach as knowledgeable and positive. Even though these coaches were highly effective, attention should be paid to ensuring communication between parents starts early to prevent further issues and ensure parents are well-informed on how they can best support their child’s development.