The Relationship between Soccer Club Coaches’ Decision-Making Style, Basic Psychological Needs, and Intention to Continue to Exercise: Based on Amateur Male Soccer Club Members in Korea

Abstract

Numerous studies in sports science have investigated the relationships between coaching behavior, basic psychological needs, and intention to continue to exercise in sport participants in order to promote their continued exercise participation. However, little is known about the effect of the coach’s decision-making style on sport participants’ basic psychological needs and intention to continue to exercise. Thus, this study empirically investigated the relationship between these three variables. For this purpose, a survey was given to a convenience sample of 200 members of amateur male soccer clubs in Seoul and Gyeonggi, Korea. The results of multiple regression analysis showed that the type of coach that makes decisions based on a thorough analysis and reasonable evaluation of all possible solutions had a greater effect on the satisfaction of basic psychological needs and a greater effect on intention to continue to exercise in soccer club members than the types of coaches who use other styles of decision making in coaching. In addition, the intention to continue to exercise in soccer club members was higher when they voluntarily participated in soccer activities and when they made a strong emotional bond with the people they were exercising with. The findings of this study may provide the basic data on the coaches’ decision-making style needed to improve sport participants’ internal motivation and to stimulate their intention to continue to exercise.

Keywords

• amateur soccer club
• basic psychological needs
• coach’s decision-making style
• intention to continue to exercise