standards , or just give up on the whole idea of research , questioning the motivation and practices of researchers , and the relevance and utility of research to their everyday practices . In these conditions , is there any wonder that some report a research-practice gap ?
In research I am currently publishing , I identify at least five coaching knowledge types : ( 1 ) personal experiential , ( 2 ) group / community , ( 3 ) ( localised ) sports science information , ( 4 ) ( abstract ) institutionalised ‘ good ’ practice such as governing body coach education , and ( 5 ) ( abstract ) cultural resources such as academic research and popular science ( North , forthcoming ). In the main , coaches draw on 1 and 2 , and inform and challenge ( or reinforce ) their thinking with 3-5 .
The key point is : research is far from the dominant type of knowledge used by coaches and that academics should be more humble about the positioning of their research and more respectful of the other knowledge types . Academics come with their own biases , problems and disagreements ( and again I am as guilty of this as anyone ) and this may be seen as one of the major barriers to effective research use amongst practitioners . Even with 100 times the resource available for research it could never compete with the 1 and 2 types of knowledge – there is just too much contextual detail for coaches and researchers to manage .
Coaches need to be more aware of the different types of knowledge they draw on , and continually check and challenge each knowledge type against the others . This may mean for example opening up to governing body knowledge and research , but always in an open-minded , measured , intelligent , and reflective way . In this sense ( expert ) coaches are always researching their practice through exploring the alignments and misalignment between their different knowledge types . If coaches are not doing this kind of ‘ research ’ then they should be . Amongst the nuance of coaching , their rich personal experience and the range of issues that they face , coaches should be supported to explore their own practice , and this involves research variously defined ( e . g . Muir & North , forthcoming ).
References
Aikin , S . F ., & Talisse , R . B . ( 2020 ). Politcal argument in a polarized age . Polity Press .
Archer , M . ( 2007 ). Making our way through the world . Cambridge University Press .
Benson , B . ( 2017 ). Cognitive bias cheat sheet , simplified . https :// medium . com / thinking-is-hard / 4-conundrums-ofintelligence-2ab78d90740f
Collins , D ., Abraham , A ., & Collins , R . ( 2012 ). On vampires and wolves : Exposing and exploring reasons for the differential impact of coach education . International Journal of Sport Psychology , 43 , 255-271 .
Cushion , C . J . ( 2013 ). Applying game centered approaches in coaching : A critical analysis of the ‘ dilemmas of practice ’ impacting change . Sports Coaching Review , 2 ( 1 ), 61-76 . https :// doi . org / 10.1080 / 21640629.2013.861 312
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