Decision and Planning Style of Spanish Handball Coaches

The aim of present study was to analyse how decision and planning styles of a coach are influenced by intrinsic variables: age, gender and experience of the coach, and by extrinsic variables: gender, age and competitive level of the teams trained. The investigation carried out focuses on the analysis of the characteristics of the coach and a number of actions linked to coaching, specifically decision making and planning in coaching. The study was developed through the use of a questionnaire applied to a sample of 334 Spanish Handball coaches. The results allowed identifying relations between decision and planning styles, given that the coach must take multiple decisions during the coaching session. The attitude of the coach towards taking decisions can have an influence on planning style. Gender, age and level of experience of coaches and competitive level of the teams affect the decision and planning styles adopted by coaches.