Sociology of Sport Journal,1993,10, 205-212
O 1993 Human Kinetics Publishers, Inc.
Gender Differences in Burnout Among Coaches
of Women's Athletic Teams at 2-Year Colleges
Donna L. Pastore
Ohio State University
Michael R. Judd
Southern Illinois University
Burnout has been identified as a factor contributing to the continuing decline in the
number of female coaches. The present study examined the perceived level of burnout in
coaches of women's teams in 2-year colleges using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI)
to measure burnout levels. The findings revealed significant gender difSerences on the
Emotional Exhaustion subscale. The possible reasons for female coaches experiencing
higher levels of burnout are discussed.
L'tpuisement ("burnout") a ktk identifik comme facteur contribuant au dtclin continu
du nombre de femmes entraineures. La prtsente ktude se centre sur les niveaux perqus
d'kpuisement chez les entraineurs et entraineures d'kquipes fkminines dans des colltges
communautaires. Les niveaux perqus d'kpuisement furent mesurks a l'aide du "Maslach
Burnout Inventory." Les rksultats indiquent des diffkrences significatives entre les sexes
en ce qui a trait l'kpuisement &motif.Les raisons possibles explicant les niveaux plus
klevks d'tpuisement chez les femmes entraineures sont discutkes.
It is fairly well established that there has been a decline in the number of
females in the coaching profession (Acosta & Carpenter, 1992; Hart, Hasbrook, &
Mathes, 1986; Hasbrook, Hart, Mathes, & True, 1990; Holmen & Parkhouse,
1981; True, 1986). Although several reasons have been advanced for this trend,
burnout has been identified as one of the major reasons for females leaving the
coaching profession (e.g., Acosta & Carpenter, 1988; Lovett & Lowry, 1988).
Freudenberger (1980) identified burnout "as the state of fatigue or frustration
brought about by devotion to a cause or way of life" (p. 13). Typically, burnout
has been associated with the helping professions, such as education, allied health,
and community services (Dale & Weinberg, 1989; Fender, 1989; Maslach, 1976).
Recent research on burnout also focuses on other professions, such as business
(Liller & McDermott, 1990).
There are some common factors that may contribute to coaches leaving
the profession regardless of gender; however, it has been argued that for women,
burnout may be more of a factor than it is for men. Yet, the investigations
studying gender differences have yielded equivocal results. For example, Caccese
Donna L. Pastore is with the School of HPER, Ohio State University, 451 Larkins
Hall, 337 W. 17th Ave., Columbus, OH 43210. Michael R. Judd is with the Department
of Physical Education, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL 62901.
Pastore and Judd
206
and Mayerberg (1984) found that female coaches from Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) institutions experienced higher levels
of burnout than male coaches. Similarly, Dale and Weinberg (1989) reported
that female high school and National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA)
Division I coaches experienced higher levels of emotional exhaustion than their
male counterparts. In contrast, Wilson, Haggerty, and Bird (1986) found no
gender differences in burnout levels among Canadian National team coaches.
The present study is one more attempt to shed some light on the extent of gender
differences in burnout experienced among coaches.
Previous studies of burnout and the coaching profession have all focused
on high schools and 4-year colleges (Caccese & Mayerberg, 1984; Dale &
Weinberg, 1989; Felder & Wishnietsky, 1990; Hunt, 1984; Sisley, Capel, &
Desertrain, 1987). The present study investigated the extent of gender differences
in burnout among coaches at 2-year colleges. The percentage of females in
coaching positions at 2-year colleges has been declining since the 1970s (Abbott &
Smith, 1984; Anderson, 1978; Boojamra & Messing, 1973; Evans, 1975; Grant,
1981; Kane, 1978; Lovett & Lowry, 1988; Pastore, 1991a; Storby, 1988). The
argument linking higher levels of burnout among women coaches to the declining
number of women coaches in 4-year colleges and secondary schools should also
be applicable to 2-year colleges. Therefore, it is important to verify if female
coaches at 2-year colleges are experiencing burnout. One significant difference
between 2-year colleges and other types of institutions is that athletes at the
2-year colleges stay with their coaches for a shorter period of time. This fast
turnover of athletes may be an added source of pressure for coaches in 2-year
colleges and thus a contributing factor to burnout. On the other hand, the 2-yearcollege coaches may experience lower levels of burnout because the pressure to
win may not be as intense in a 2-year college as in a 4-year institution.
In summary, the primary purpose of this study was to determine if significant gender differences exist in the perceived burnout levels of coaches of women's teams in two-year colleges. A secondary purpose of the study was to explore
the relationship between the coaches' levels of burnout with age and years of
coaching experience. Burnout has been said to increase with time, and in several
of the earlier studies the male coaches have been older and more experienced
than the female coaches (Caccese & Mayerberg, 1984; Dale & Weinberg, 1989).
Method
Subjects
The subjects were male and female coaches of women's teams at 2-year
colleges. This study focused on coaches of women's basketball, cross-country,
tennis, and volleyball. These teams were selected because the percentage of
institutions offering these sports is higher than for any other women's sports
(Acosta & Carpenter, 1990, 1992). A random sample of 450 coaches of women's
teams was selected from the 1989-90 National Directory of College Athletics
(Women's Edition) through the use of a table of random digits. Of the 450
questionnaires mailed, 232 coaches responded for a 52% return rate, of which
23 1 were usable.
The percentage of male coaches (65%) responding to the questionnaire
was higher than the percentage of female coaches (35%). The sample represented
Gender Differences in Burnout
207
coaches from four sports: basketball (34%), volleyball (30%), cross-country
(22%), and tennis (14%). The coaches ranged in age from 22-62 years (M = 38
years). Female coaches (M = 34 years) were younger than male coaches (M =
40 years). Over 50% of the coaches held a master's degree, 65.5% of the male
coaches and 54% of the female coaches. Number of years at present coaching
position ranged from 1 to 35 years (M = 8 years), with males (M = 9 years)
holding their current coaching positions longer than females (M = 6 years). Total
number of years of coaching experience ranged from 1 to 35 years (M = 12
years), with males (M = 15 years) having more coaching experience than females
(M = 9 years).
Instrument
The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) contains three subscales: Emotional
Exhaustion (EE), Depersonalization (DP), and Personal Accomplishment (PA).
The Emotional Exhaustion subscale "assesses feelings of being emotionally
overextended and exhausted by one's work"; the Depersonalization subscale
"measures an unfeeling and impersonal response toward recipients of one's
service, care, treatment, or instruction"; and the Personal Accomplishment subscale "assesses feelings of competence and successful achievement in one's
work with people" (Maslach & Jackson, 1986, p. 2). The Emotional Exhaustion
subscale consists of nine items (e.g., "I feel emotionally drained from my work"
and "I feel used up at the end of the work day"); the Depersonalization subscale
comprises five items (e.g., "I've become more callous toward people since I
took this job"); and the Personal Accomplishment subscale contains eight items
(e.g., "I have accomplished many worthwhile things in this job").
The respondent is requested to indicate the frequency of the feeling represented by each item on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 0 (never) to 6
(occurring every day). Although the MBI may be used to measure both frequency
and intensity, only the measure of frequency was used in the present study
because frequency and intensity were found to be highly correlated (Maslach &
Jackson, 1986). A high degree of burnout is noted when the coach has high
scores on the EE and DP subscales and a low score on the PA subscale. Low
scores on the EE and DP with a high PA score indicate a low degree of burnout
(Maslach & Jackson, 1986).
Validity for the MBI was demonstrated by correlating the following:
(a) an individual's MBI score with "behavioral ratings made independently by
persons who knew the individual well (e.g., spouse or co-worker)," (b) the
MBI scores with the "presence of certain characteristics that were expected to
contribute to burnout," and (c) the MBI scores with "measures of various
outcomes that have been hypothesized as related to burnout" (Dale & Weinberg,
1989, p. 4). The reliability coefficients for the MBI subscales are reported to be
.90 for EE, .79 for DP, and .71 for PA (Maslach & Jackson, 1986).
Data Collection and Analysis
The Maslach Burnout Inventory and a demographic questionnaire were
mailed to each coach. A cover letter asked the coaches to complete the instrument
Pastore and Judd
208
within 2 weeks. If the coaches did not respond within the requested time frame,
a follow-up letter was sent approximately 3 weeks after the first mailing.
To assess the effects of gender, age, and experience on the three MBI
dimensions (EE, DP, PA), three separate multifactor ANOVAs were carried out
(2 x 3 x 3; Sex x Age x Total Coaching Experience). For the purposes of these
analyses, three groups of subjects were formed based on age (Group 1 = 31 years
and below, Group 2 = 32 to 43 years, and Group 3 = 44 years and above).
Similarly, subjects were grouped into three categories based on total coaching
experience (Group 1 = 6 years and below, Group 2 = 7 to 15 years, and Group
3 = 16 years and above). For ease of interpretation, only two-way interactions
were computed. In addition, Scheffe's post hoc analysis was carried out as
necessary.
Results
Means and standard deviations for each of the three subscales (EE, DP,
PA) are presented in Table 1. The results of the multifactor ANOVAs indicated an overall main effect for gender on the Emotional Exhaustion subscale,
F(1, 203) = 23.19, p < .000. None of the other main or interaction effects were
significant. The MBI subscale norms for males and females are presented in
Table 2, along with the coaches' subscale means.
Discussion and Recommendations
This study was concerned with determining the burnout levels of male and
female coaches of women's teams in 2-year colleges. Female coaches in the
current study reported significantly higher levels of emotional exhaustion than
male coaches. The result is consistent with that of Caccese and Mayerberg (1984),
but the reasons for this finding are not clear. Caccese and ~ a ~ e r b e (1984)
rg
speculated that in 1984 women's athletic teams were a relatively new phenomenon
and female coaches might have put extra stress on themselves to prove that
women's sports were deserving. seven years later when the currentstudy was
completed female coaches continued to report higher emotional exhaustion levels
than male coaches. It is conceivable that both male and female coaches from the
current study are feeling pressure to continually prove the worth of women's
sports, and it may be that female coaches are feeling this pressure more than
male coaches.
Unfortunately, the results of the present study do not help clarify the reasons
for gender differences in burnout among coaches. Although the finding of no
gender differences in depersonalization is consistent with the results of Caccese
and Mayerberg (1984), it is contrary to those of Dale and Weinberg (1989), who
reported that male coaches scored significantlyhigher on this subscde than female
coaches. Similarly, a lack of gender differences in personal accomplishment is
consistent with the research of Caccese and Mayerberg (1984), Dale and Weinberg
(1989), and Wilsonet al. (1986) but inconsistentwith that of Haggerty (1982), who
reported male coaches had significantly higher scores than the female coaches.
Several explanations for the gender differences across studies were presented by Dale and Weinberg (1989). First, the "time of the season that the
questionnaires were completed" (Dale & Weinberg, 1989, p. 9); questionnaires
Gender Differences in Burnout
Table 1
Means and Standard Deviations
of Burnout Subscales for Demographic Variables
Emotional
exhaustion
Variable
Sex
Male
Female
Age categories
31 and below
32-43
44 and above
Total years of
coaching experience
6 and below
7-1 5
16 and above
Total
Depersonalization
n
M
SD
M
SD
150
82
15.45
22.33
10.19
9.44
6.96
7.82
5.07
5.60
75
77
65
19.63
18.57
15.08
8.87
10.61
10.71
7.56
7.81
6.29
5.39
5.49
4.64
78
80
72
18.56
18.74
15.78
8.62
11.04
11.17
7.17
7.80
6.54
5.18
5.56
4.90
232
17.88
10.44
7.26
5.27
Personal
accomplishment
Note. The EE subscale consists of nine items, the DP subscale five items, and the PA
subscale eight items. The subscale items are added together for a total subscale score. The
mean score reflects the total score for all respondents.
completed in the middle of the competitive season may indicate higher depersonalization scores and those completed during the postseason period may show higher
feelings of personal accomplishment. The current study surveyed coaches at
different times in their competitive seasons. A recommendation for future research
is to administer the burnout questionnaire to coaches four times during the year
(preseason, midseason, postseason, and out of season).
Second, gender differences in burnout levels may vary with the level of
coaching or type of institution where a coach is employed (Dale & Weinberg,
1989). Several studies have examined the burnout levels of 4-year college, high
school, and national team coaches (Caccese & Mayerberg, 1984; Dale & Weinberg, 1989; Haggerty, 1982). It is conceivable that the roles of 2-year college
coaches may be very different from those employed in other institutions. It
may be that 2-year college coaches have administrative responsibilities, teaching
responsibilities, or both, in addition to coaching. This issue may be resolved in
future studies that examine the roles and responsibilities of male and female
coaches from the different types of institutions (Dale & Weinberg, 1989).
The findings from the current study indicated that coaches' emotional
exhaustion levels seemed to decrease with age and years of coaching experience,
whereas their personal accomplishment levels increased slightly. Depersonalization levels appeared to be highest among coaches who were in the 32-43 years
age category with 16 or more years of coaching experience.
Pastore and Judd
Table 2
Comparison of Present Coaching Sample to Gender Norms
on the Maslach Burnout Inventory
Emotional
exhaustion
MBI norms
Male
Female
Present study
Male
Female
Depersonalization
Personal
accomplishment
M
SO
M
SD
M
SO
19.86
20.99
10.47
10.66
7.43
7.02
5.99
6.34
36.29
36.50
6.76
6.56
15.45
22.33
10.19
9.44
6.96
7.82
5.07
5.60
36.51
34.98
6.37
7.44
Although there were no gender differences, an interesting finding from the
current study is that female coaches in comparison to the MBI norms reported
higher scores in emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, and lower scores
in personal accomplishment, whereas male coaches, in comparison to the MBI
norms, reported lower scores in emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, and
higher scores in personal accomplishment. Several studies (e.g., Boojarnra &
Messing, 1973; Pastore, 1991b) reported that females coaching in 2-year colleges
tend to coach more than one sport more frequently than do males. It may be that
some females in the current study were coaching two sports and this may be the
cause for their experiencinghigher levels of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. The additional coaching duties may create a more stressful environment
for coaches. This issue may be resolved by future studies of the burnout levels
of male and female coaches involved in coaching two sports. In addition, it is
recommended that future research studies identify factors that may cause coaching
to be a stressful environment and determine how these factors affect both men
and women.
Further research on burnout and coaching is needed to identify the factors
that may cause both male and female coaches to leave the profession. It is
recommended that demographic variables such as marital and parental status be
examined to determine how these variables affect male and female coaches'
burnout levels. A further recommendation for research would be to survey former
coaches. These coaches may be the ones who were truly burned out. Their reasons
for leaving the profession may be very different from those currently employed
in coaching positions. The difficulty is in finding these former coaches. Further
research needs to focus on identifying strategies that can help reduce the level
of burnout experienced by coaches. This is especially important for women,
because their percentages as coaches of women's sports are declining and they
are leaving coaching positions at a faster rate than men. The identification of
such strategies may encourage coaches to remain in the profession longer, especially female coaches.
Gender Differences in Burnout
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