The Roles of Different Appraisals in Anxiety and Emotional Exhaustion: A Case of NCAA Division I Head Coaches
Abstract
The complex and unpredictable nature of sport competitions causes athletic coaches to experience a substantial amount of anxiety, which can be detrimental to their well-being and performance. Therefore, it is important to identify the psychological process of how coaches manage their anxiety. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationships between the four different cognitive appraisals, anxiety, and emotional exhaustion among coaches. To accomplish this objective, 203 head coaches in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I were recruited to complete an online questionnaire. The findings indicate that the goal incongruence appraisal positively predicts reported anxiety, whereas the coping efficacy appraisal negatively predicts it. Furthermore, reported anxiety is positively associated with subjective ratings of emotional exhaustion. The findings of this study contribute to the understanding of the cognitive appraisal process of emotion by demonstrating how different appraisals are associated with anxiety. Additionally, the finding can help coaches use more effective cognitive appraisals to enhance their emotional experience.
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Goal incongruence was a significant predictor of self-reported anxiety.
“both goal incongruence and coping efficacy were found to be significant predictors of self-reported anxiety [103]”
From The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review (2024) · cites this paper as [103]
Coping efficacy was a significant predictor of self-reported anxiety.
“both goal incongruence and coping efficacy were found to be significant predictors of self-reported anxiety [103]”
From The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review (2024) · cites this paper as [103]
Elite-level coaches experiencing symptoms associated with anxiety may encounter challenges in pursuing short- and long-term goals.
“For example, it was reported that elite-level coaches experiencing symptoms associated with anxiety may encounter challenges in pursuing short- and long-term goals [100, 103].”
From The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review (2024) · cites this paper as [103]
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The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review
Frost, J., Walton, C. C., Purcell, R., Fisher, K., Gwyther, K., Kocherginsky, M., & Rice, S. M. (2024) · Sports Medicine - Open · doi:10.1186/s40798-023-00655-8 · Cited by 59 · see citing works
“Other measurement tools included the Coach Burnout Questionnaire (CBQ) ( n = 1) [103] and Coach Burnout Affect Survey ( n = 1) [107].”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialSupporting The Mental Health Of Elite‐Level Coaches Through Early Intervention
Frost, J., Walton, C. C., Purcell, R., & Rice, S. (2023) · Arthroscopy Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation · doi:10.1016/j.asmr.2023.04.017 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
Work Demands, Responses, and Coping Strategies for Staff in High-Performance Sport: A Scoping Review
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Mental Health of Elite Sport Coaches and Entourage
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Additional file 2 of The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review
Frost, J., Walton, C. C., Purcell, R., Fisher, K., Gwyther, K., Kocherginsky, M., & Rice, S. M. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.25203736
Additional file 4 of The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review
Frost, J., Walton, C. C., Purcell, R., Fisher, K., Gwyther, K., Kocherginsky, M., & Rice, S. M. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.26679632
Additional file 6 of The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review
Frost, J., Walton, C. C., Purcell, R., Fisher, K., Gwyther, K., Kocherginsky, M., & Rice, S. M. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.26679638
Additional file 1 of The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review
Frost, J., Walton, C. C., Purcell, R., Fisher, K., Gwyther, K., Kocherginsky, M., & Rice, S. M. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.25203625
Additional file 3 of The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review
Frost, J., Walton, C. C., Purcell, R., Fisher, K., Gwyther, K., Kocherginsky, M., & Rice, S. M. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.26679629
Additional file 5 of The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review
Frost, J., Walton, C. C., Purcell, R., Fisher, K., Gwyther, K., Kocherginsky, M., & Rice, S. M. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.26679635
Integrating Strength and Conditioning Coaches’ Emotions Within a Reflective Practice Cycle
Abitz, C., Gearity, B. T., Kuklick, C. R., Potrac, P., & Cubbison, N. (2026) · International Sport Coaching Journal · doi:10.1123/iscj.2026-0031
- Authors
- Lee, Y. H.
- Affiliations
- Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (KR)
- Corresponding author
- Lee, Ye Hoon
- ORCID
- Lee, Ye Hoon
- Venue
- The American Journal of Psychology
- Publisher
- University of Illinois Press
- Published
- 2021-10-01
- Volume
- 134
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 269-283
- ISSN
- 0002-9556 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-8298
- OpenAlex
- W4210775885
- Cited by
- 12
- References
- 75
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 3
- FWCI
- 3.67
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The American Journal of Psychology (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Sport Psychology and Performance
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Stress and Burnout Research
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychological Treatments and Assessments
- Keywords
- cognitive appraisal, anxiety, emotional exhaustion, head coaches, NCAA Division I, goal incongruence, coping self-efficacy, sports coaches, coach well-being, emotion regulation
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