As the sports world constantly looks for an edge over its competition, new philosophies have developed over time. Before the release of Michael Lewis’ “Moneyball,” back in 2003, analytics was considered an alien concept in sports. Now, every organization in every major sport has a department of some kind.
When it comes to coaching, there are two schools of thought. The traditional negative reinforcement system that’s been in sports forever and a more nuanced positive reinforcement system that’s becoming more common as younger people are put in positions of authority.
The best coaches are able to reach their players in a variety of different ways, so no one theory works best in every case.