History Of Sport Psychology Research Articles

The effects of goal priming on cortisol responses in an ego-involving climate

ObjectivesThis study examined the potential for a motivational priming session to buffer the psychophysiological stress response to an ego-involving climate in a physical activity setting. Research in Achievement Goal Perspective Theory (AGPT) suggests that creating a caring/task-involving climate can have beneficial effects on participants in physical activity settings, even buffering the physiological response to stress. However, less is known about how individuals might buffer that response when an ego-involving climate is occurring beyond their control. DesignMale college students (N = 38) between the ages of 18 and 30 years (Mage=20.68,SD=2.66) were randomly assigned to either a control group with no exposure to AGPT or an experimental (i.e., AGPT motivational priming) group, and took part in an ego-involving juggling session. Psychophysiological stress responses (e.g., cortisol) were assessed. MethodPrior to juggling, the experimental group received a motivational priming session that briefly reviewed the body of AGPT literature, while the control group received information on the history of Sport Psychology as a professional field. Cortisol was measured at five time points throughout the study via saliva samples. Participants also completed pre- and post-measures of self-reported anxiety and self-confidence (CSAI-2). ResultsResults showed a marked increase in cortisol (as measured by percent change from baseline) in the control group, but not the experimental group. Psychological responses were stable across groups. ConclusionProviding athletes and exercisers with nothing more than basic information on AGPT can reduce their physiological markers of psychosocial stress in ego-involving climates. Such education may be a beneficial practice for coaches, physical educators, and trainers.

Resilient Excellence

Consistent with other sciences (e.g., Kass-Simon, 1993; Tang, 2006), the field of kinesiology has been called a “masculine domain,” which has an institutionalized culture biased against women (Brackenridge, Mutrie, & Choi, 2005). This paper represents the second part of a larger project that examined the life histories of eight trailblazing women in sport and exercise psychology. In the first paper (Krane & Whaley, 2010) we made the case for re-placing these women into the history of sport psychology, based on their contributions to research, teaching, and service to the field. In this study, we explored the experiences of these women with regard to the challenges they faced and how they overcame or coped with them. The specific themes emerging from the data analysis were the trailblazers' graduate school and early professional experiences, general campus climates, departmental politics, gender or discipline, coping and the cost of caring, and giving back and moving forward.

Women’s Place in the History of Sport Psychology

Women and women’s issues have a place in sport psychology today, but women have no place in most histories of the field. Some women sport psychologists, particularly Dorothy Harris, were instrumental in the development of sport psychology as a subdiscipline in the 1960s and 1970s. Re-searching the historical foundations reveals that the notable contributions of Harris and other women sport psychologists have roots in earlier work in both psychology and physical education. Pioneering women psychologists conducted research and challenged sexist assumptions and practices since psychology’s earliest days. At the same time, prominent women leaders developed women-oriented programs and contributed to the professional literature in physical education. Women and women’s issues have a place in sport psychology today, but too often that is an “other” or special interest place. By taking steps to re-place women in history and by engendering current research and practice, sport and exercise psychology will be a stronger science and profession.

History of Sport Psychology in Cultural Magazines of the Victorian Era

The 19th century can be characterized as a time of avid public interest in team and spectator sports. As diverse and challenging new sports were developed and gained popularity, many articles on a rudimentary sport psychology began to appear in cultural magazines in the United States and Great Britain. Athletes, physicians, educators, journalists, and members of the public wrote on topics such as profiles and psychological studies of elite athletes, the importance of physical training, exercise and health, and the detrimental effects of professional sports to the role of age, gender, and culture in sports. Although a scientific foundation for such observations was largely absent, some of the ideas expressed in early cultural magazines anticipate contemporary interests in sport psychology.