“Should I Say It?”: Navigating the Complex Dilemmas of Honesty in High-Performance Gymnastics Coaching

We explored how high-performance gymnastics coaches navigate the complexities of honest communication while managing athletes’ psychological needs and parental involvement. Conducted over 18 months at a high-performance training center in the United Kingdom (UK), data were collected from coaches (n = 6), athletes (n = 12), and parents (n = 7) using participant and nonparticipant observations (n = 30), semi-structured interviews (n = 22), video analysis, and follow-up discussions. Upon analysis, three themes were developed: (a) the fragility of honest communication, (b) managing micro-expectations in the daily grind, and (c) working with parents. Interpreted through Self-Determination Theory, the findings show that honest communication is multifaceted, selective, and relational, with coaches continually judging how it may support or threaten athletes’ autonomy, competence, and relatedness. The emotional and ethical complexities coaches face when being honest with their athletes call for enhanced support through coach education programs focused on communication skills and relational awareness. By recognizing honesty as both a complex phenomenon and, at times, an idealistic one, organizations can better equip coaches to think carefully about communication in terms of what to say, when to say it, how to say it, and if to say it.