Life skills in youth sport and Physical Education: a preliminary analysis of coach knowledge and experience of holistic session delivery

Life skills are psychosocial competencies developed in one context (e.g. sport), that can be transferred to another context (e.g. school). This study investigated youth sport and Physical Education (PE) coaches’ perceptions and experiences of developing life skills in sport and PE sessions. 53 youth sport and PE coaches completed a mixed-methods survey. Coaches held a minimum Level 1 coaching qualification and had at least one year coaching experience. All participants believed that coaches support development of children’s life skills during sport and PE, yet 25% did not consider life skills when planning sessions. 68% of coaches believed that life skills were developed automatically during sport and PE. Whilst 50% coaches surveyed believed that life skills were addressed during coach education courses, 33% stated life skills were not addressed on courses. Chi-squared tests showed a significant association (p = 0.036) between coaching qualification level and participants perception of whether coaches influence life skill development. Thematic analysis of qualitative data showed that coaches typically use sport to develop life skills such as communication, leadership, problem solving and teamwork. Coaches expressed a desire for NGB-endorsed resources to aid in planning and delivering sessions in which life skills were embedded. Coaches also stated the need for coach educators to raise the awareness of life skills by speaking about them on courses, provide demonstrations of how to embed life skills in sessions, and give coaches opportunities to practice teaching life skills on coaching courses.