The purpose of this study was to determine whether female college athletes prefer playing for a male coach, a female coach, or if gender is a factor. The participants included 58 females who ranged in age from 18 to 25 years old and are currently enrolled in a university in the Mid-Continent Conference. The schools in the Mid-Continent Conference include Western Illinois University, Valparaiso University, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis, Southern Utah University, and Oakland University. To address the purpose of this study, the Attitudes of Athletes Toward Male Versus Female Coaches (AAMFC) questionnaire was used. Six questions were added to the questionnaire to learn additional information about the female athletes.The research question was analyzed using t-tests comparing the responses for the hypothetical male and female volleyball coach. A chi-square analysis was used to analyze the question regarding the participants' gender preference of a coach. A significant difference (p<.05) was found for items 1 (t = -3.186), 2 (t = -2.437), 3 (t = -2.156), 4 (t = 2.836), 10 (t = 2.223), and 11 (t = 2.268). The results of this study indicate there is no gender preference of a coach for female college athletes playing basketball or volleyball.
Research Papers [5100] Research papers submitted to the Graduate School by Ball State University master's degree candidates in partial fulfillment of degree requirements.