Age, sex and skill level preferences for leader behavior in competitive swimming

The purpose of this study was to test how age, sex and skill level affect the preference of individual swimmers for the leader behavior of their coaches. The five factors of leader behavior were: (a) autocratic behavior, (b) democratic behavior, (c) training and instruction, (d) positive feedback, (e) social support. The subjects were 424 swimmers of varying skill level divided almost equally by age and sex. They responded to the adapted version of the Leadership Scale for Sport (Chelladurai & Saleh, 1980). Pearson product-correlation technique was utilized to determine whether swimmers preferences for leader behavior were related to age. The student's t-test was used to determine whether swimmers preferences for leader behavior were related to: (a) sex or (b) skill level. The results showed that age was related to swimmers preference for leader behavior in democratic behavior, positive feedback and training and instruction. As age increased the swimmers' performances for democratic behavior decreased and their preferences for positive feedback and training and instruction increased. Elite swimmers' preference for leader behavior was related to social support. The elite swimmers preferred their coach to demonstrate more social support. There was a sex difference for the leader behavior factors of: (a) autocratic behavior, (b) democratic behavior, and (c) training and instruction. The male swimmers preferred more autocratic behavior than the female swimmers, while the female swimmers preferred more democratic behavior and training and instruction than the males.