Perceptions of Coach Competence and Perceived Need Satisfaction: Assessing a Norwegian Coach Competence Scale

F Moen, R Federici International Journal of Coaching in Organizations 2011

One purpose of the present study was to develop and test the factor structure of a multidimensional and hierarchical instrument for measuring coaches’ competence called the Coach Competence Scale (CCS). Another purpose of the study was to validate the CCS through an inspection of the relation with the three psychological needs proposed by self-determination theory (SDT). The CCS was developed to capture important coach capabilities at five dimensions in terms of different competencies which coaches must possess in their roles as coaches. Need satisfaction was measured by a modified version of the Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction at Work Scale (BPNSWS). Confirmatory factor analyses supported both a first and second-order model of the CCS constituting the five dimensions of coach competencies. The structural model had an acceptable fit to data and revealed that the CCS was positively related to need satisfaction. The present study extends the literature on coach competence and its relation to other concepts. The results of the study are discussed together with limitations and suggestions for further research.