Abstract
Paternalistic leadership, a cultural leadership of the overseas Chinese, has been the focus of attention in recent sports study. However, didactic leadership, a key concept of paternalistic leadership, has been little studied. Thus, this study examined the concept of didactic leadership, and the qualitative methods were used. Two elite high school teams participated in this study. Three issues were discussed in this study: didactic leadership and athletic performance, didactic leadership and athletic normative behavior, and didactic leadership and athletic career. Based on the results, this study proposed a conceptual model of didactic leadership to clarify the dual relationships of authoritative leadership and benevolent leadership. This model also explained the results of coaching behaviors analysis and extended the model of multidimensional model of leadership. Finally, this study also makes suggestions for the development of coaches and athletes.