Scheduled for Research Consortium Social: Research Consortium Grant Findings and Top-Rated Posters, Wednesday, April 26, 2006, 4:30 PM - 6:00 PM, Convention Center: Exhibit Hall Poster Area I


Facets of Role Conflict in Interscholastic Coaching: The Effect on Turnover [Sport Management]

Timothy D. Ryan, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX and Michael Sagas, Texas A&M University-College Station, College Station, TX

Because teaching and coaching carry specific roles and expectations, the teacher/coach (TC) is especially vulnerable to interrole conflict between the teaching and coaching roles (Sage, 1987). Interrole conflict can lead to lower job satisfaction and higher withdrawal cognitions (Hom & Kinicki, 2001). In the profession of teaching, turnover is quite high, averaging 11% per year (Ingersoll, 2002). When the coaching role is added, the percentage would expectedly climb higher (Sage, 1987). However, no research has been advanced assessing the potential negative outcomes of role conflict on satisfaction and intentions to leave the teaching/coaching profession. Thus, an assessment of the effects of interrole conflict not only on job satisfaction, but also on teaching satisfaction and coaching satisfaction would be enlightening both pragmatically and theoretically. Therefore, the purposes of this study were to determine how interrole conflict between the two roles of teaching and coaching affects these two facets of job satisfaction and the intent to withdraw from a district. It was expected that perceived teaching interfering with coaching (TIC) and coaching interfering with teaching (CIT) would lower job satisfaction, as well as the individual facets of coaching satisfaction and teaching satisfaction. Each facet of satisfaction was also expected to be negatively correlated to turnover intentions. The data were collected through a web-survey questionnaire. Coaches were selected through a multistage stratified sampling process, and a total of 191 coaches responded. Both facets of interrole conflict were measured through a researcher developed instrument. Coaching satisfaction, teaching satisfaction, overall job satisfaction, and turnover intentions were measured using established valid instruments. Structural equation modeling was used to test the hypothesized model and fit indices indicated a good model fit (Χ2 = 277.1, p < .01; CFI = .902, PNFI = .68, RMSEA = .08). Significant standardized coefficients supported all but two of the hypothesized relationships. Specifically, CIT had a positive effect on coaching satisfaction, while TIC was negatively associated to teaching satisfaction. Furthermore, additional significant relationships indicated that both domain satisfaction variables were positively related to overall job satisfaction which was subsequently negatively associated with job turnover intentions. Thus, these results indicate that the conflict experienced between the two roles can be detrimental to satisfaction in each domain, and ultimately turnover from a job. Based on the findings that these distinct facets of conflict can negatively influence satisfaction in the opposite work domain, administrators should investigate the enactment of policies to better balance the role requirements associated with teaching and coaching.
Keyword(s): athletics/sports, coaching, high school issues

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