The Influence of Long-term Caregiving Experience for Parents with Geriatric Disabilities on the Development of Senior Sport Coaching Expertise: An Autobiographical Narrative Inquiry

This study explored how 31 years of caregiving for parents with geriatric disabilities shaped senior sport coaching expertise, using autobiographical narrative inquiry. The researcher cared for her mother (hemiplegia and aphasia, 1995–2010) and, for 16 years, her father (now 101, with sensory impairment, dementia, Parkinson's disease, and post-cancer surgery). Essays, a 31-year nursing report, and reflective journals served as field texts within the three-dimensional narrative space of temporality, sociality, and place (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000). Findings show that caregiving became a way of life driving individualized practice for two parents with differing conditions, and that physical activity practices—including interval exercise, tactile stimulation, and the "Live Joyfully Exercise" model—embodied tacit knowledge gained through experience. This shaped expertise across five layers: understanding of ageing and disability, nonverbal communication, empathic capacity, integration of private and public expertise, and a person-centred coaching philosophy. The findings suggest coaching expertise develops through biographical and informal learning alongside formal education.