The Role of Self-Efficacy, Professional, and Educational Characteristics in Predicting Karate Coaches’ Professional Attitudes

Background/purpose. The purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which karate coaches’ professional attitudes are predicted by sociodemographic, professional, and educational characteristics, as well as by their coaching self-efficacy.

Materials/methods. The study, conducted using a cross-sectional correlational research design, included 99 karate coaches affiliated with the Turkish Karate Federation. Data were collected using the Attitudes Toward Coaching Scale, the Coach Self-Efficacy Scale, and a personal information form. A three-stage hierarchical multiple linear regression analysis was used to analyze the data. In the first stage, sociodemographic characteristics were included in the model; in the second stage, occupational and educational characteristics; and in the third stage, coaching self-efficacy.

Results. The findings showed that sociodemographic characteristics did not significantly predict professional attitude (R² = .015, p = .691). The increase in explained variance resulting from the addition of professional and educational characteristics to the model was also not significant (ΔR² = .035, p = .512). In contrast, the inclusion of coaching self-efficacy resulted in a significant increase in explained variance (ΔR² = .498, p < .001), and the final model explained 54.7% of the variance in professional attitude (R² = .547). In the final model, coaching self-efficacy (B = 0.711, p < .001) and the number of weekly training days (B = 0.048, p = .005) significantly predicted professional attitude in a positive direction, while professional experience (B = −0.008, p = .022) predicted it in a negative direction.

Conclusion. In conclusion, it was determined that coaching self-efficacy plays an important role in explaining the professional attitudes of karate coaches. The findings highlight the importance of incorporating practices aimed at developing perceptions of self-efficacy into coach education programs.

Keywords: Karate coaches, coaching self-efficacy, professional attitudes, coach education, hierarchical regression

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