- Feedback in sports coaching comes in many forms including verbal, non-verbal, intrinsic, and extrinsic. The literature supports the use of positive and constructive feedback to motivate athletes. - Effective feedback should be specific and actionable, focusing on external cues rather than internal body movements. It is most beneficial when provided immediately after a performance. - While feedback methods vary between sports and individuals, coaches must understand how their feedback affects each athlete in order to maximize learning and improvement.

1. FEEDBACK IN
SPORTS COACHING
Scott Ritchie

2. •Helpful for athletes to learn how
to correct errors quickly.
•Speeds up progress.
•Motivate, reinforce or
discourage, accelerate
improvement.

3. • Intrinsic mechanisms for feedback.
• Sense movements, see results and
then make conclusions.
• Extrinsic mechanisms are added by
coaches.
• Verbal feedback for encouragement,
explanation, education, and
exploration.
• Coaches should have some
pedagogical understanding.

4. • Paul E. Robinson
• Intrinsic feedback comes from
sensory information,
• Kinaesthetic, tactile, visual, and
auditory.
• Proprioception.
• Feeling the rush of air when running.
• Exteroception.
• Extrinsic feedback comes from
external sources.

5. • Frequency of giving feedback.
• Bandwidth feedback.
• Constructive feedback is beneficial
whether it is positive or negative.
• Negative comments should be framed
to sound positive.
• “That is poor” to “Try this way”.

6. • Craig A. Wrisberg
• Descriptive and Prescriptive Feedback.
• Descriptive is the coach saying what he
saw.
• Beneficial for experienced athletes.
• Prescriptive is the coach telling an
athlete what they need to do next,
based on what they saw.
• Prescriptive feedback requires more
knowledge and observation from a
coach.

7. •If athletes are attending to
intrinsic feedback, they do not
need extrinsic feedback.
•When in doubt, be quiet.
•Feedback is more beneficial
when athletes ask for it.
•Can improve with very limited
extrinsic feedback.
•Only ask about 10% of the time.

8. • Frank S. Pyke
• Positive reinforcement is very
effective.
• Frame feedback as questions.
• Athletes can construct their own
feedback.
• Avoid negative or corrective feedback
in front of others.

9. • Frank W. Dick
• Knowledge of Results (KR)
• Athletes can compare actual
performance with intended goal.
• KR helps with motivation.
• Goals must be established for KR
to work.

10. • Lynn Kidman and Stephanie Hanrahan
• Information and Motivational Feedback
• Informational provides athletes with
verbal or non-verbal communication
about how a movement was performed.
• Motivational Feedback provides athletes
with information that encourages or
discourages the attempt of a skill or
technique.

11. • The Query Theory
• Encourage improvement through
athlete self-awareness.
• Give them tools to solve problems by
themselves, rather than providing
answers.
• If an athlete does not understand the
movement, they cannot change it.
• Feedback must be given immediately.
• After a short time, an athlete may have
forgotten details of their performance.

12. •Positive, Negative, or Neutral
Feedback.
•Positive = Praise or
encouragement.
•Negative = Unhelpful or
demeaning.
•Neutral = Prompt with no
connotations: “Remember to
keep your head down.”
•Negative is used too often.

13. •Congruent and Incongruent
Feedback.
•Congruent is specific to the skill
that is being practiced.
•Incongruent is feedback on
aspects of a skill that are not the
focus of the drill.
•For example, giving feedback on
passing when practicing zone
defence.

14. • Tania Cassidy, Robyn Jones and Paul
Potrac
• Lack of research into non-verbal forms of
feedback.
• Over 70% of communication is non-verbal.
• Athlete’s perception of a verbal message
depends on the accompanying facial
expression.
• Positive feedback given with a negative
expression will be taken as negative
feedback.

15. • Allen and Howe
• Relationship between ability and feedback with
perceived competence and satisfaction.
• Higher ability and frequent praise and information after a
good performance, and less frequent encouragement
and corrective information after mistakes were related to
higher perceptions of competence.
• Black and Weiss found the opposite in their study.
• Allen and Howe offered that adolescent females are
more “sensitive to corrective information from coaches
than previously recognised” (1998).
• Highlights the complexity of verbal feedback.

16. •P.D Turman 2003
•Importance of positive and
equal feedback in a team.
•Increases team cohesion and
performance.

17. • Wulf, McConnel, Gartner and Schwarz
• Feedback with an External Focus.
• Refers to the movement effects, rather
than the body movements of a skill.
• Internal Focus refers to the body
movements of an action.
• Research clearly showed feedback with
an External Focus was more beneficial
to athletes learning a complex motor
skill.

18. •Amorose and Weiss
•Feedback can illustrate the ability
of an athlete to the athlete.
•Positive feedback is helpful to
any athlete of any age and
gender.
•Majority of the literature
surrounding feedback reflects
this.

19. • Feedback comes in a range of forms.
• Gilbert (2002) says on 7% of literature
has focused on feedback.
• Solomon et al. (1998) claim that the
research has been ‘extensive’.
• Discussion on feedback has largely
focused on it as an intervention
strategy for coaches.

20. • Feedback is integral.
• Any athlete, any sport.
• Literature supports positive and
constructive feedback.
• Intrinsic feedback is most helpful.
• Many different techniques,
strategies, and opinions.
• Coaches must understand their
subjects and how best to serve
them.

21. References
Allen, J. B., & Howe, B. L. (1998). Player Ability, Coach Feedback, And Female Adolescent Athlete's Perceived Competence and Satisfaction. Journal of Sport and Exercise
Psychology, 20, 280-299. Retrieved April 5, 2013, from https://dspace.stir.ac.uk/bitstream/1893/8939/1/AllenandHowe_JSEP_1998.pdf
Amorose, A. J., & Weiss, M. R. (1998). Coaching Feedback as a Source of Information About Perceptions of Ability: A Developmental Examination. Journal of Sport and Exercise
Psychology, 20. Retrieved April 3, 2013, from
http://content.ebscohost.com/pdf25_26/pdf/1998/SEG/01Dec98/1376105.pdf?T=P&P=AN&K=1376105&S=R&D=s3h&EbscoContent=dGJyMMvl7ESeprY4v%2BbwOLCmr0ueqK5
Ss6m4TbeWxWXS&ContentCustomer=dGJyMPGptFC3qLNMuePfgeyx44Dt6fIA
Cassidy, T., Jones, R. L., & Potrac, P. (2004). Understanding sports coaching the social, cultural and pedagogical foundations of coaching practice. New York: Routledge.
Dick, F. W. (2007). Sports training principles (5th ed.). London: A & C Black.
Gilbert, W. (2002) ‘An annotated bibliography and analysis of coaching science’, unpublished report sponsored by the Research Consortium of the American Alliance for Health,
Physical Education, Recreation and Dance.
Kidman, L., & Hanrahan, S. J. (2004). The coaching process: a practical guide to improving your effectiveness (2nd ed.). Palmerston North, N.Z.: Dunmore Press.
Pyke, F. S. (2001). Better coaching: advanced coach's manual (2nd ed.). Australia: Australian Sports Commission :.
Robinson, P. E. (2010). Foundations of sports coaching. London: Routledge.
Solomon, G., Golden, A., Ciapponi, T. Matine, A. (1998) ‘Coach expectations and differential feedback: perceptual flexibility revisited’, Journal of Sport Behaviour, 21(3): 298-310
Turman, P. D. (2003). Coaches and cohesion: the impact of coaching techniques on team cohesion in the small group sport setting.. Journal Of Sport Behaviour, 26. Retrieved
April 6, 2013, from
http://zh9bf5sp6t.scholar.serialssolutions.com/?sid=google&auinit=PD&aulast=Turman&atitle=Coaches+and+cohesion:+The+impact+of+coaching+techniques+on+team+cohesi
on+in+the+small+group+sport+setting&title=Journal+of+sport+behavior&volume=26&issue=1&date=2003
Wood, D. K. (2009). Effective Coaching Feedback to Enhance Sport Learning. Sports Training Adviser. Retrieved April 4, 2013, from http://www.sports-training-
adviser.com/coaching-feedback.html
Wrisberg, C. A. (2007). Sport skill instruction for coaches. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Wulf, G., Gartner, M., McConnel, N., & Schwarz, A. (2002). Enhancing the Learning of Sport Skills Through External-Focus Feedback. journal of motor behaviour, 34. Retrieved
April 4, 1992, from http://content.ebscohost.com/pdf13_15/pdf/2002/MBH/01Jun02/6837247.pdf?T=P&P=AN&K=SPHS-
823962&S=R&D=s3h&EbscoContent=dGJyMMvl7ESeprY4v%2BbwOLCmr0ueqK9Srqe4TK6WxWXS&ContentCustomer=dGJyMPGptFC3qLNMuePfgeyx44Dt6fIA