Who’s Coaching the Coach? NCAA Division I Cross Country and Track and Field Coaches’ Knowledge of Depression and Attitudes Toward Continuing Education

Who’s Coaching the Coach? NCAA Division I Cross Country and Track and Field Coaches’ Knowledge of Depression and Attitudes Toward Continuing Education Public Deposited

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Hegarty, Erin
- Affiliation: College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Exercise and Sport Science

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The rate of depression among collegiate student-athletes is as high as 23% (Wolanin et al., 2016). Unfortunately, student-athletes underutilize available resources (Davoren & Huang, 2014). This study relied on the belief that coaches are integral to ensuring student-athlete wellbeing. The socioecological model was used as a framework for examining coaches’ preparation to fulfill that role. A survey of Division I cross country and track coaches revealed that coaches know depression well but may struggle putting knowledge into practice. They demonstrated a strong interest in education in many topics, including mental health. Coaches significantly underestimated the rate of student-athlete depression, highlighting a need for more collaboration/communication between coaches, student-athletes, and medical staff. The results of this study will add to the existing literature on the coaching profession and may help encourage the development of more educational resources for coaches, to their direct benefit and the indirect benefit of student-athletes and universities.

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