Background: The goals of participation youth sports are primarily concerned with the facilitation of positive youth development as opposed to outright success. Consequently, there are strong theoretical and empirical links between sports coaching and athlete development. Transformational leadership behaviours, in particular, have been theoretically linked to positive developmental outcomes within a youth sport context, while the coach–athlete relationship is a key tool used by coaches who aim to teach life skills to young athletes. Outright team success has also been shown to correlate with important developmental variables such as a mastery climate and athlete perception of youth sports coaches. Aims: The purpose of this study was to test the relationship between coach transformational leadership behaviours, the perceived quality of the coach–athlete relationship, team success, and the positive developmental experiences of adolescent soccer players. Method: Cross-sectional data were taken from 455 adolescent athletes aged between 11 and 18 years. Each participant was competing in a local soccer competition that is classified as a participation sport. Thus, the theoretical focus is on developmental and skill gains. Each participant completed the Differentiated Transformational Leadership Inventory for Youth Sport, the Coach–Athlete Relationship Questionnaire, and the Youth Experience Survey for Sport. Team success was measured by the total number of competition points accumulated during the season. Findings: The results show that coach transformational leadership behaviour and the coach–athlete relationship have a moderate positive correlation with developmental experiences. Team success has no relationship with overall developmental experiences. The best predictor of developmental experiences is a combination of coach transformational leadership behaviour and the quality of the coach–athlete relationship. The most influential leadership behaviours are individual consideration, intellectual stimulation, and appropriate role modelling. Discussion: Transformational leadership and the quality of the coach–athlete relationship may work synergistically to influence positive athlete outcomes within youth sports. Importantly, coaches who practise within the youth sport context are able to facilitate positive developmental outcomes from both team success and team failure by taking advantage of naturally occurring teachable moments. The best way to take advantage of these may be to engage in intellectual stimulation, individual consideration, and positive role modelling, in addition to facilitating positive, developmentally appropriate coach–athlete relationships. Future coach education programmes should incorporate relevant interpersonal and intrapersonal skills that allow youth sports coaches to engage in these behaviours. Longitudinal work is needed in order to make causal inferences between transformational leadership behaviour, the quality of the coach–athlete relationship, and positive youth development through sports.

Organized sport is a context in which to promote positive youth development (PYD). Interventions with a PYD lens are often implemented to promote a wide range of physical or psychosocial benefits through sport participation. To date, no meta-analytic review of the effect of these interventions has been conducted. This is important because such interventions are held in high regard when it comes to policy development. In the present study, we conducted seven meta-analyses to evaluate the overall effect of sport-based interventions on PYD outcomes. Aspects of the study design and sample also were tested as moderators. In total, 35 studies (from 29 published articles) reporting on 74 effect sizes highlighted small to medium effects of PYD interventions on competence, confidence, and life skills outcomes. No significant overall effects were found for outcomes related to character, connection, PYD climate, and health. Further, moderation analyses showed that: (a) character was moderated by study design, sport type, and study duration; (b) competence was moderated by design and participant sex; and, (c) life skills were moderated by design, sport type, duration, and participant age. Implications for theory and practice concerning the use of sport-based interventions to influence PYD are discussed.

Goal-setting is a widely used and accepted strategy for promoting physical activity. Locke and Latham’s goal-setting theory is the primary theoretical framework for setting goals in psychology and plays a prominent role in physical activity promotion. Recently, however, there have been calls to reconsider current goal-setting practice in this field. Therefore, we aimed to critically review and update the application of goal-setting theory in physical activity promotion, by examining core developments in this theory since 1990. Current practice relies on setting specific ‘performance’ goals as a means of increasing physical activity (e.g., 10,000 steps; national physical activity guidelines). This approach was initially consistent with key tenets of goal-setting theory. However, since 1990 this theory has evolved to differentiate between performance and learning goals. Both goal types are context-dependent and it is now recognised that, in some cases, performance goals can even be detrimental to the achievement of desired outcomes. Consequently, current practice may be theoretically appropriate for physically active individuals but a different approach (e.g., learning goals) may be preferable for inactive individuals who are new to physical activity (i.e., most of the population). We conclude by discussing implications for policy, research, and practice in goal-setting for physical activity promotion.

This consensus statement from Sports Medicine Australia and the Australian Psychological Society aims to provide guidance to practitioners on the ways that physical activity can be promoted to maximise benefits to mental health. Following the Clinical Consensus Statement protocol, an expert group comprised of eight members with expertise in physical activity and mental health articulated recommendations regarding five physical activity contextual factors: type, physical environment, delivery, domain, and social environment. To optimise the mental health benefits of physical activity, we recommend: i) activity selection be guided by factors associated with adherence and enjoyment as opposed to any specific type (type); ii) facilitators (i.e., teachers, coaches, instructors, practitioners) deliver organised physical activity sessions using an instructional style that satisfies individuals' basic needs for autonomy, competence and social connection (delivery); iii) participation in physical activity with others who provide support, facilitate positive interactions, or make people feel valued, so long as it does not undermine a preference to be active alone (social environment); iv) where possible and appropriate, some physical activity should be undertaken outside in pleasant natural environments (physical environment); and, v) at least some physical activity be undertaken during leisure-time or via active travel, where possible prioritising activities one personally chooses to undertake (domain). The type, domain, physical and social environment of physical activity, as well as the way in which it is delivered, will determine mental health outcomes. Practitioners can use these recommendations to optimise the effects of physical activity on mental health.

The purpose of this study was to explore the socio-ecological determinants of participation and dropout in organised sports in a nationally-representative sample of Australian children.

There has been a rapid proliferation of empirical research on the relationship between sport participation and mental health. As a result of this movement, there has been an increased focus on the constructs that can predict or explain mental health outcomes in sport. Psychological safety in sport is among the constructs surfaced in the movement. Despite this, there is a considerable lack of conceptual clarity regarding how to define psychological safety and how it can be fostered in sport. As such, the aim of this study was to provide conceptual clarity of the term psychological safety in the context of sport. To achieve this aim, we first systematically searched for all currently available studies that have discussed psychological safety in a sport context. Then, a concept analysis approach was applied wherein the definitions, attributes, antecedents, and consequences were thematically analysed across 67 studies. As a result of this synthesis, psychological safety in sport was conceptualised as a continuous, group level construct that is perceived (and reported) at an individual level. We also provide a descriptive model of psychological safety in sport that we hope lends clarity and debate to the field moving forward.