This exploratory study contributes to the research on athlete leadership and team effectiveness in college sports. Athletic departments and sports coaches could benefit from a study about athlete leadership and team effectiveness in order to assist their student-leaders with leadership development and explore additional means to help improve team effectiveness. Three women's fall sports teams (cross country, soccer, and volleyball) at one university participated in this study. Two primary research groups provided the qualitative data: (a) athlete leaders (n=7) shared their experiences in interviews, and (b) team members (n=40) completed questionnaires.

The first purpose of the study was to examine the perceptions of athlete leaders about the leadership role (including their responsibilities and definitions for an effective athlete leader) and its possible connection with team effectiveness. The second purpose was to study the perceptions of team members about the leadership role (including leader responsibilities and traits a team leader should possess) and its possible connection with team effectiveness. The two groups of participants concurred that being a good example was of highest importance; however, the definition for 'good example' was inconsistent between participants. Both groups also credited unified team goals and team chemistry as the main conditions that create a top performing team. The third purpose was to fit the findings from the athlete leaders and team members into the context of Hackman and Oldham's (1980) model of how athlete leadership could influence team effectiveness. For the purposes of this study, the most pertinent aspect of their model on teams addresses a major influence on organizational productivity: the relationship between people and the tasks that they must perform.

The findings from the study generated more questions related to the athlete leadership role and team effectiveness, specifically: (a) how do athlete leaders and team members define 'being a good example'? And (b) how do athlete leaders and team members define 'having good team chemistry'?