Evaluating gender-based leadership perceptions in youth sport

Introduction and Objective. The study aims to investigate associations between gender, sport type, and perceived coach leadership behaviors among youth athletes, including potential interaction effects across leadership dimensions. Methodology. Youth athletes aged 13–17 (N = 240, average age = 14.6 years; 50% girls) participated in a cross-sectional survey using the Leadership Scale for Sports (LSS). The LSS measured perceptions across five leadership dimensions: training and instruction, democratic behavior, autocratic behavior, social support, and positive feedback. Results. Perceptions of leadership varied significantly by gender. Girls reported higher ratings of democratic behavior (M = 4.3 vs. 3.5, p < 0.001, d = 1.91) and social support (M = 4.4 vs. 3.6, p < 0.001, d = 2.12), while boys scored higher on autocratic behavior (M = 3.8 vs. 2.7, p < 0.001, d = 2.26). MANOVA revealed a significant main effect for gender (Wilks’ λ = 0.854, F (5, 232) = 7.85, p < 0.001, η² = 0.145) and sport type (Wilks’ λ = 0.891, F (5, 232) = 5.42, p = 0.002, η² = 0.105). No significant interaction was found. Individual sport athletes rated coaches higher in democratic behavior and positive feedback (p < 0.01). Conclusions. These results emphasize the importance of adapting coaching styles to the gender and sport context of young athletes to maximize athlete development, satisfaction, and retention.