The enactment of political skills in community sport coaching

Gale, L. A., Ives, B. A., Mitchell, T., Nichol, A. J., Stamp, D., Maskrey, C., Potrac, P.A. and Nelson, L.J. (2025) The enactment of political skills in community sport coaching. Sports Coaching Review. ISSN 2164-0629 (In Press)

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Abstract

Community sport coaches play a vital role in delivering sport and physical activity schemes to achieve (non)sporting government policy goals. While research has started to examine the social, relational and emotional features of this work, political skills remain underexplored. It is unclear which political skills are required and how they are enacted, learnt, and developed. This study addresses this gap through online semi-structured interviews with 17 community sports coaches, examining the political skills crucial for managing workplace dynamics, building relationships, and achieving professional goals. Through our application of political astuteness (Hartley et al., 2013, 2015, 2017) and political skill (Ferris et al., 2005, 2012) the findings highlight: a) the importance of reading and building effective relationships with key stakeholders in response to organisational and policy demands, b) the personal and interpersonal skills required to achieve goals strategically, and c) how these skills are typically learnt on the job, outside of formal coach education. This study contributes new insights to the critical social analysis of sport work by identifying the political skills underpinning community sport coaching practice. It also highlights the need to develop these skills in the coaching workforce and raises important questions about coach education and professional development.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This is an author accepted manuscript of a paper accepted on 11th June 2025 by Taylor & Francis for publication in Sports Coaching Review. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy.
Keywords:	Political skills, Organisational life, Community sport coaching, Coach education
Divisions:	School of Social Science
Depositing User:	Claire Maskrey
Date Deposited:	30 Jun 2025 09:38
Last Modified:	30 Jun 2025 09:38
URI:	https://bgro.repository.guildhe.ac.uk/id/eprint/1244

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