Utilising the ecological–intersectional model to identify the factors that impact LGBTQ+ coaches’ experiences in sport

Burgess, Beth ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2711-9998, Vinson, Don ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3116-4828, Richardson, Emma ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7409-778X and Molnár, Győző ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1732-5672 (2025) Utilising the ecological–intersectional model to identify the factors that impact LGBTQ+ coaches’ experiences in sport. Sport, Education and Society. pp. 1-15. ISSN Print: 1357-3322 Online: 1470-1243

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Abstract

Intersectionality enables a deeper understanding of the experiences of LGBTQ+ coaches in sport, as an individual’s sexuality is not experienced in isolation from other identity factors. Research often addresses the LGBTQ+ community as a homogenous group or focuses solely on one category of identity. For example, previous research has commonly focused on the experiences of lesbian women coaches [e.g. Iannotta, J., & Kane, M. (2002). Sexual stories as resistance narratives in women's sports: Reconceptualising identity performance. Sociology of Sport Journal, 19(4), 347–369; Krane, V., & Barber, H. (2005). Identity tensions in lesbian intercollegiate coaches. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 76(1), 67–81; Kauer, K. J. (2009). Queering lesbian sexualities in collegiate sporting spaces. Journal of Lesbian Studies, 13(3), 306–318], but other aspects of identity that also shape coaches’ experience (such as race, class, disability, etc.) remain underexplored. Resultantly, we adopted the umbrella term ‘non-heterosexual’ to be inclusive of all genders and non-heterosexual identities, in an attempt to platform voices that are currently absent. The participants (n = 14) were coaches across nine different sports, with a broad range of coaching experience (2–30 years) and represented a variety of coaching levels (grassroots to professional). We adopted the Ecological–Intersectional (E–I) model to foreground exploration of how LGBTQ+ coaches’ intersectional identities shape their experiences. Specifically, the intersections of sexuality, gender, and race were emphasised by the coaches as factors that significantly impacted their experiences. How and why these intersections worked to shape experience is explored. In doing so, we show the heterogeneity of the LGBTQ+ sport coaching community, and the nuance and complexity of LGBTQ+ coaches’ lives.

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