I coached high school and college for over 20 years and have used yelling as a motivational tool but also if a player can learn to deal with that pressure during practice then when they go to the free throw line with 5 seconds left and the score tied their knees won't be weak. Since I stopped coaching the kids that I hear from the most are ones that I was hardest on. This includes male and female athletes. I can remember one time in practice years ago where I asked one young lady if she was stupid. She got mad as I expected and played even worse for a few minutes. When we took a break she came over and said "That was a question wasn't it?" I said yes and she said the answer is NO and I will stop making the same mistakes over and over. Today she is married and has 3 kids and still goes out of her way to talk to me when she sees me in town. I would not have used that tactic on all girls but I knew she was smart enough to figure it out. The only problem was with other girls and their parents as a few could not believe I called her stupid. Many people hear what they want instead of listening to the meaning of words and how they are used. Her parents had no problem because their daughter understood the end result. It depends on the way things are said, the reasoning behind it and whether the player will benefit from the tactic as wheather it should be used.