The aim of the master's thesis was to identify the viewpoints of Slovenian sports coaches towards LGBTQ+ athletes. More specifically, due to the focus on homophobia, we were interested in their viewpoints towards homosexual and bisexual athletes (LGB athletes).In order to reduce homophobia in sport, it is necessary to know their attitudes towards LGB people, as sports coaches are a key link in creating the atmosphere in a sports team. The goal of the thesis was to investigate the attitudes of Slovenian coaches towards LGB athletes and, based on the results, to further develop guidelines targeting coaches with the aim of reducing homophobia. We were interested to see what influence different factors, such as age, gender and personal contact with an LGBTQ+ person, have on sports coaches' attitudes towards LGB athletes.
The research was conducted using an online survey questionnaire. We included responses from 312 coaches, of whom 265 were male and 47 were female, aged between 20 and 75 years. Sports coaches' attitudes were measured using the Athletic Trainers' Attitudes Toward Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual National Collegiate Athletic Association Student-Athletes questionnaire (Ensign et al., 2011), which was translated and adapted for the purposes of this study.
We have found that female coaches have more positive attitudes towards LGB athletes than their male counterparts, older coaches have more negative attitudes towards LGB athletes compared to their younger counterparts, and coaches who have a family member or friend who is a member of the LGBTQ+ community have more positive attitudes towards LGB athletes.
This master's thesis contributes to a better understanding of sports coaches' attitudes towards LGB athletes and thus provides a valuable baseline for further research and coach education in this field.
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