The effects of vicarious coach incivility on student-athlete motivation and well-being

Abstract

Drawing on incivility research and self-determination theory, this study examines how vicarious coach incivility (i.e., witnessing a coach's disrespectful behavior toward a teammate) affects student-athlete motivation and both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Using an experimental vignette design, data were collected from 210 collegiate student-athletes in South Korea. Results showed that vicarious coach incivility had significant negative effects on both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Vicarious coach incivility was positively associated with amotivation and controlled forms of motivation (introjected and external regulation), and negatively associated with autonomous forms of motivation (intrinsic, integrated, and identified regulation). Intrinsic motivation and integrated regulation were positively related to both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being, whereas amotivation and external regulation were associated with poorer well-being outcomes. Identified and introjected regulation did not significantly predict either dimension of well-being. The present study extends existing research on coach behavior by demonstrating that indirect exposure to coach incivility undermines student-athlete well-being through differentiated motivational pathways.