Sport Psychology Professionals Research Articles

On the Frontline of Athlete Mental Health: The Mental Health Literacy of NCAA Coaches

Coaches’ knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about mental health—or mental health literacy (MHL)—affect teams’ mental health climates and the detection, referral, and treatment of athletes’ mental health concerns. Thus, assessing collegiate coaches’ MHL, and factors related to its presence, is critical. Using the Mental Health Literacy Scale, 1,571 NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) coaches were surveyed regarding their MHL and demographic and mental health experience factors. Overall, 99.9% of the coaches surveyed believe that athletes’ mental health affected their sport performances. Through hierarchical regression analyses, coaches’ exposure to mental health treatment, perceived helpfulness of mental health treatment, gender (i.e., woman), years coaching (i.e., fewer years), and current NCAA division (i.e., Division III) were significantly related to their MHL, explaining 15.5% of variance. However, coaches’ race/ethnicity did not reach significance. Recommendations regarding increasing coaches’ MHL and hiring appropriately trained and licensed mental health and sport psychology professionals are offered.

ISSP position stand on cultural praxis in sport psychology: reaffirming our commitments to the ethics of difference, cultural inclusion, and social justice

ABSTRACT The international sport psychology community is intricately interconnected with the broader geopolitical landscape. Therefore, our community can be a powerful agent, transforming political polarisation in sports into respectful conversations of differing opinions, valuing diversity, and promoting cultural safety, inclusivity, and ethical practices. The International Society of Sport Psychology (ISSP) has been at the forefront in providing a comprehensive scientific review of pressing topics facing our communities, sharing the best scientific and applied practices, and inspiring sport psychology professionals to envision a more equitable future. The current heated debates about self-identity and gender expression, protecting women athletes’ rights and opportunities, performance and mental health, and athlete activism, compel us to reaffirm our commitment to cultural praxis in sport psychology. This position stand demonstrates how cultural praxis can become a catalyst for genuine change, paving the way to a more culturally responsive, just, and inclusive future in sport psychology.

A Case Study of a Senior High-Performance Leader Managing Psychological Effects During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The potential scope for qualified sport psychology service providers is broadening. Recent empirical research and associated commentaries have highlighted the opportunity for applied sport psychology professionals to apply concepts and experiences toward having a positive effect on athletes’ training environment. This case study details a high-performance leader within an Australian national training institute who is also a trained sport psychology practitioner, attempting to optimize psychological effects in the time leading up to the Tokyo 2020 (i.e., 2021) Olympic Games. The objective was to meet or exceed medal targets though the provision of a strong, team-led approach where activity to achieve high-performance outcomes was prioritized but in a manner that leveraged strong professional relationships and through the prioritization of everyone’s mental and emotional health whenever practicably achievable.

Identifying Predictors of Burnout and Health of Certified Mental Performance Consultants

Researchers have established factors that impair (e.g., stress) or facilitate (e.g., occupational recovery) health among professionals operating in sport and performance (e.g., coaches). However, there is a paucity of research examining factors that impair or facilitate the health of sport psychology professionals. Given that sport psychology professionals have an obligation to manage their health to maintain effective service provision, research is needed to fill this gap. The purpose of this study was to identify predictors of burnout and health among certified mental performance consultants. Participants completed measures of perceived stress, burnout, occupational recovery, and health-related quality of life. Regression results, including a moderator analysis, indicated that perceived stress and occupational recovery predicted burnout, while occupational recovery moderated the relationship between perceived stress and burnout. Perceived stress and burnout further predicted health-related quality of life. Recommendations include certified mental performance consultants spending nonwork time in low-effort and/or physical activities, as well as exerting autonomy over nonwork time.

Supporting Athletes with Long Covid: Practice Recommendations for Sport Psychology Professionals Navigating the Unfamiliar and Unknown

The SARS-COV-2/COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the athletic experiences of athletes worldwide. One in five infections has resulted in Long Covid (LC) conditions, however, the impact of LC on athletes is unclear. Recently several high-profile athletes have spoken publicly about their LC diagnoses, with some temporarily delayed in their return to athletics, while others were forced to retire due to LC. LC is particularly challenging to manage for athletic populations due to the unique influence of Post Exertional Malaise (PEM), a worsening of symptoms post physical exertion. Sport Psychology Professionals (SPPs) may encounter athletes with LC and need to be informed about LC and the influence it may have on athletic participation. The purpose of this article is to provide SPPs with clear guidance for supporting athletes with LC.

The Relationship of Resilience, Self-Compassion, and Social Support to Psychological Distress in Women Collegiate Athletes During COVID-19

Given how COVID-19 had caused significant increases in collegiate athletes’ psychological distress, we examined the extent to which such distress may have been ameliorated by the athletes’ psychosocial resources (e.g., resilience). We used structural equation modeling to examine the direct and indirect relationships of resilience, self-compassion, and social support to women collegiate athletes’ (N = 3,924; 81.2% White) psychological distress; athletes completed measures of these constructs from mid-April to mid-May 2020. Analyses revealed significant direct effects: More supported (β = −0.12 to −0.19), self-compassionate (β = −0.48 to −0.53), and resilient (β = −0.21 to −0.35) athletes experienced less psychological distress (R2 = .61–.65). Further, self-compassion and social support were related indirectly (and inversely) to psychological distress through higher levels of resilience. These psychosocial resources appear to have played a positive role in how athletes coped with the pandemic, being associated with less psychological distress. These findings have application beyond the pandemic, providing direction for how sport psychology professionals may assist athletes in maintaining their well-being.

A Novel Exploration of Occupational Recovery in Certified Mental Performance Consultants

Researchers have provided evidence that workplace demands impair professionals’ health and performance, while occupational recovery facilitates them. Sport psychology professionals experience workplace demands (e.g., organizational stressors) and must manage their health and performance to consistently deliver competent, ethical, and effective services. Therefore, the purpose of this novel study was to explore the prevalence of, and relationship between, perceived stress and psychological aspects of occupational recovery (i.e., recovery experiences, off-job activities) in certified mental performance consultants (CMPCs). A sample of 140 CMPCs completed measures of perceived stress and psychological aspects of occupational recovery. Results indicated that psychological aspects of occupational recovery significantly predicted perceived stress. Practical implications to reduce CMPCs’ perceived stress include the promotion of occupational recovery through prioritization of activities positively related to recovery experiences.

Cultural competence in a multinational group of sport psychology professionals

Sport psychology scholars and practitioners (SPPs) now recognize the importance of cultural competence (CC). However, only a few SPPs have deliberately centered CC in their practice. The purpose of this study was to understand how SPPs conceptualize and develop CC within their professional practice. Our study is grounded in a critical realist ontology and framed within the consensual qualitative research method (CQR). Using a semi-structured interview guide, we interviewed 25 globally situated SPPs (13 males, 12 females) with three to 40 years of professional experience (17.83, SD = 10.88) residing on four different continents. We constructed seven categories to provide a snapshot of how SPPs conceptualize, develop, and emphasize CC as an ethical and moral obligation to engage in effective professional practice. The participating SPPs described how CC is contextual and encompasses one’s cultural knowledge, awareness, and skills developed from professional and personal cultural interactions and investment in cultural professional development. The SPPs shared how CC plays a relevant role in their sport psychology practice. We also highlighted how culture and CC are frequently conceptualized and experienced from a one-dimensional perspective, overlooking the importance of how cultural identities and modes of being interact within and between SPPs and clients or participants. The implications for individuals and professional bodies are discussed for professional development, training, and effective practice. Lay summary: Cultural competence is an ethical and moral obligation for SPPs to engage in effective professional practice. In this study, a multinational group of SPPs shared how they conceptualize, develop, and implement cultural competence within their professional practice. Applied Implications The development of and deliberate consideration of CC into applied and scholarly practice is an ethical and moral responsibility It is important for SPPs to invest in developing their CC, becoming comfortable with making mistakes, and engaging in difficult conversations. It is important for SPPs to ground their CC development in their own reflections as well as personal and professional cultural encounters.

Cultural diversity and group dynamics in a professional women’s volleyball team

In this study, we explored athletes’ perceptions of cultural diversity regarding teammate interactions and team functioning. Specifically, we explored cultural diversity in relation to national and racio-ethnic diversity. A constructivist qualitative case study approach was employed with a professional women’s volleyball team comprising 11 athletes (Mage = 27, SD = 3.13) representing six nationalities and four racio-ethnicities. The athletes completed demographic and social network questionnaires intended to contextualize our case and to inform follow-up semi-structured interviews. The interviews involved conversations pertaining to team composition, member interactions, and team functioning. Generally, the results indicated that within this professional team, players’ perceptions of cultural diversity were mainly formed around subgroups and perceptions of dissimilarity between the self and the team. The subgroups were largely based on nationality and shared collective experiences with national stereotypes. The athletes also discussed factors such as language and various task and socially related behaviors associated with cultural diversity that impacted teammate interactions and the social dynamic within the team. Our results can serve to guide athletes and coaches interested in capitalizing on the strengths of multicultural professional sport teams. Lay summary: We examined perceived cultural diversity (i.e., national and racio-ethnic) embedded within a multicultural context of a professional women’s volleyball team. Participants described a natural divide based on nationalities, and how individual behaviors matched their perceptions of national stereotypes. Athletes were generally hesitant to discuss cultural diversity and positioned the topic as “good under certain conditions.” IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE The results from this research can help team managers and coaches to consider the impact that cultural diversity can have on team functioning and recognize the potential for the formation of national subgroups and biased perceptions of teammates’ behaviors. Our findings can reiterate to applied sport psychology professionals and coaches the importance of purposefully considering players’ perceptions of the cultural diversity within a team to identify ways to benefit from their team’s composition.

Critical reflections on second-generation mindfulness-based interventions

ObjectivesThe purpose of this paper is to provide a critical introduction on Second-Generation Mindfulness-Based Interventions (SG-MBIs) to sport and performance psychology scholars and practitioners. MethodThis essay is written as a commentary on Roychowdhury et al.’s, (2021, this issue) article in this issue. Specifically, I apply theoretical insights from Roychowdhury et al., (2021, this issue) to the practical model of SG-MBIs. ResultsI find that SG-MBIs attempt to respond to ethical concerns with the ways that mindfulness has been commodified, secularized, and universalized through appeals to cultural authenticity. DiscussionWhile acknowledging the cultural contexts from which practices like mindfulness have been taken is important, appeals to cultural authenticity often reproduce fixed and essentializing constructions of culture and are easily coopted by neoliberal multiculturalism. ConclusionAs sport and performance psychology professionals reflect on the next generation of mindfulness-based interventions, it will be important to attend to the contextual flexibility of neoliberalism to universalize and essentialize.

Sport and exercise psychology and the UN's sustainable development goals: Reflections and suggestions

In 2015, the United Nations adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and agreed that it is vital for current and future generations to pursue 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Science, education, and sport are seen as drivers and important enablers of sustainable development (SD). Yet, even though all professions are called upon to embed SD into their work to facilitate change, and even though sport and exercise psychology professionals could play an important role in this process, there seems to be only little awareness of the need to contribute to SD as a discipline. This paper aims at changing this by elaborating on the reasons why sport and exercise psychologists should care about SD and the SDGs; it explains how psychologists and their clients can benefit from using the principles of SD to guide their professional work and decision making. It will be illustrated how sport and exercise psychology professionals can promote sustainable physical activity and sustainable elite sport, and how they can contribute to the achievement of internationally agreed societal, and global goals as practitioners, as teachers, and as researchers. Furthermore, the normative dimensions of the concept of SD are being discussed.

Mental Performance and Mental Health Services in NCAA D1 Athletic Departments

Mental performance consultants (MPCs) and licensed mental health professionals (MHPs) offer distinct, yet complementary, services. Although the focus of their service delivery varies, past researchers have often combined these professionals, along with licensed sport psychology professionals (LSPPs) when investigating sport psychology services in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I (D1) athletic departments (e.g., Kornspan & Duve, 2006). The lack of distinction between these professionals has not allowed for a comprehensive understanding of the existence of these various psychological services in NCAA D1 athletic departments. Using content analysis methodology, the purpose of the current study was to identify the existence of three types of service providers—MPCs, MHPs, and LSPPs—listed on all NCAA Division 1 Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and Football Championship Series (FCS) athletic department websites. Out of 253 NCAA D1 athletic departments, 65 athletic departments were identified as having some form of mental performance and/or mental health services. Forty-one athletic departments employed one provider and 24 employed two or more providers. Of the 99 professionals identified, 56 provided both mental performance and mental health services, 23 provided solely mental performance services, and 20 provided solely mental health services. Additionally, 57 providers were identified as female while 42 were identified as male. Additional characteristics of professionals (i.e., title, terminal degree, licensure, and certification status) are provided. Implications for the growth of mental performance and mental health services within NCAA D1 athletic departments are discussed.

Preliminary Evidence for a Relationship Between Anxiety, Anger, and Impulsivity in Collegiate Athletes With Sport-Related Concussion

This study used an exploratory mixed-method sequential design to examine anger, impulsivity, and anxiety following sport-related concussions (SRC). Ten college athletes (M = 20.10 years, SD = 2.92) completed four measures 1–10 days postconcussion (Visit 1) and 11–20 days postconcussion (Visit 2). At return to play or 30 days postconcussion, the athletes completed a semistructured interview (follow-up) to assess their lived experiences of the emotional sequelae of concussions. All participants indicated experiencing some level of anxiety at Visit 1, with half the participants scoring above the measure’s threshold for probable clinical diagnosis of anxiety. The results found a significant decrease in symptoms and anxiety at Visit 2. Inductive coding revealed frustration, irritability, impulsive behavior, and fear of the unknown as themes pertaining to athletes’ experiences. The findings highlight the need for sports medicine and sport psychology professionals to provide athletes with information to normalize their emotional responses during recovery.

Coming to voice: Intersections of identity for Olympic female African American sprinters

The purpose of the current study was to bring to voice and position US African American female Olympians’ lived experiences of selected identity components (i.e., race, gender, athletic identity) as they navigated specific transitions during their competitive careers. Informed by Consensual Qualitative Research methods (CQR) including a semi-structured interview guide, 10 US African American female Olympians were interviewed regarding their experiences as a Black female athlete (i.e., M = 48.1 years). A four-member research team constructed five domains and 19 categories to represent participants’ experiences including: (a) initial track and field experience; (b) transition to university; (c) university experience; (d) transition to Olympic and professional competition; and (e) Olympic and professional experience. Suggestions for future research are also given. Lay summary: African American female track Olympians are visible in sport yet remain invisible in sport psychology research. Ten Olympians shared their identity transitions from early talent identification through recruiting and their collegiate experience to making the Olympic team through post-Olympic competition. Implications include the need for applied sport psychology professionals to understand: (a) the intersectional identity transitions and race-gendered experiences that African American female Olympians can face (i.e., this is essential so that we can offer culturally competent professional service delivery); (b) how African American female Olympians navigate white sport spaces (c) the lack of support structures needed for equitable access to practitioners; and (d) that Certified Mental Performance Coaches (CMPC) are uniquely situated to support athletes’ well-being and performance goals during these sport transitions.

Professional training and development: The bedrock of ethical, competent, and sustainable sport psychology

To ensure public safety, duty of care, and professional advancement, scholars need to consider the competence, ethical practice, and well-being of sport psychology practitioners (SPPs). Despite the growth of sport psychology as a profession, scholars have predominantly focused on how to do applied sport psychology, with issues of professional formation, development, maturation, and SPPs’ well-being receiving limited attention. Yet, to safeguard the future of the field, we must better understand how SPPs develop as individuals and as professionals, the contextual factors that may affect their development, and how training and supervision may contribute to professionals’ experiences and development. In this invited article, we review “what we know” and “what we need to know” regarding the professional development of SPPs. In doing so, we hope to inform the reader on the critical developments in this area while presenting a commentary that facilitates discourse and future action. Lay summary: A field that aims to grow and evolve must understand the development of ethical and competent professionals. To aid in this understanding, we provide an overview of what we know and what we need to know about the development of sport psychology professionals. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE SPPs need to focus their attention on the development of themselves as persons and professionals regarding their competence development. SPPs may need to integrate who they are with what they do to promote an enriching, sustainable, competent, ethical, and effective practice. Supervisors on graduate and training programs should be aware of practitioner developmental processes and the factors that influence this for SPPs. Those leading training programs might adopt a developmental approach within their curricula, with priority given to assisting trainees to integrate their personal beliefs and professional philosophy into their service delivery.

Negotiating white normativity in sport

Student-athletes of color navigate white normativity daily, yet it is a form of racism rarely examined in sport psychology. Examining people of color’s daily experience can be instructive to understanding how whiteness gets normalized and challenged in various contexts. Moreover, as white normativity is ubiquitous, research methodologies themselves must explicitly acknowledge and challenge white normativity. This study examined (a) manifestations of white normativity in the daily lives of student-athletes of color, (b) student-athletes of color’s processes of negotiating and navigating whiteness, and (c) methodological designs for creating safe spaces for student-athletes of color to make meaning of race. Seven women student-athletes of color engaged in group and individual interviews during which the interviewer foregrounded race and racism and facilitated participants’ meaning-making. Specifically, building from humanizing research and heeding the call for empirical spaces to be culturally-responsive, participant storytelling was encouraged and stories were reexamined through critical lenses. Through our findings, we illustrate how women student-athletes of color are not merely passive recipients of dominant (white) culture but, in different ways, active agents negotiating their status as athletes, women, and people of color within white normative contexts. Conscious of their deviance from the white norm, participants engaged in continuous negotiation processes of normalizing, nuancing, and resisting whiteness. Lay Summary: Racism is often thought of as racist people harming people of color with malintent. In this paper, we show how racism is upheld and maintained even without individual racists through the normalization of whiteness. We also examined the everyday experiences of women student-athletes of color navigating, negotiating, and resisting white normativity. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS Racism is not limited to overt actions perpetrated by individuals with intent to harm but, rather, through the normalization of whiteness. Thus, we must all critically examine the racial implications of our everyday assumptions Studying race must be done thoughtfully and explicitly as racial consciousness is subverted due to white normativity in academia, research, and society There are diverse positions women student-athletes of color can take as they navigate daily racism and white normativity. Sport and exercise psychology (SEP) professionals should hold space for student-athletes of color to consider their perspectives as there is no single right way to dismantle racism. SEP professionals must also actively seek for strategies to agitate and disrupt white normativity

Evaluating Sport Psychology Service Delivery for Elite USA Track and Field Athletes: Findings and Recommendations

In preparation for the 2020–2024 Olympic cycle, members of the USA Track and Field sport psychology (SP) subcommittee investigated the SP service provision needs and preferences of 88 elite Olympic-level athletes. A mixed-methods needs analysis was employed, which consisted of surveys, interviews, and a focus group, to help understand current SP usage and shape future SP services for USA Track and Field. Findings highlighted a lack of knowledge and exposure to SP services and a desire for increased contact with SP professionals among athletes, exposing gaps and room for improvement in service delivery. Athletes cited flexibility in terms of service delivery mode and shared common core preferences for mental training, including help managing stress, pressure, emotions, and other challenges of competition and training. The results are discussed in relation to strengthening the effectiveness of service provision through increasing visibility, accessibility, and education regarding the benefits of SP services.

Sexual attractions and boundary crossings among sport psychology graduate students and professionals

ABSTRACT The training relationship between sport psychology professionals (SPPs) and their students is a critical aspect of graduate training. Maintaining ethical, appropriate boundaries within training relationships is imperative, as boundary crossings can have deleterious effects on students. SPPs (N = 152) and Sport Psychology graduate students (N = 165) completed The Survey of Applied Sport Psychologists to explore their experiences and perceptions of sexual attractions and boundary crossings within training relationships. Nearly 30% of SPPs acknowledged sexual attractions toward their students, yet few students (8.5%) perceived such attractions. Compared to the SPPs, the students reported higher levels of anxiety regarding the SPP’s attraction toward them; both groups reported infrequent use of supervision for this attraction. Nine students and 13 SPPs reported engaging in sexual behaviors (e.g., kissing, dating, intercourse) with the other. Within the larger sample, the three most common nonsexual boundary crossings were becoming social friends, attending social gatherings, and the SPP initiating nonsexual touching. Both groups are advised to engage in ongoing monitor their behaviors, receive training specific to ethics within training relationships, and seek consultation/supervision to ensure appropriate boundaries remain intact.

The identity of the sport psychology profession: A multinational perspective

ObjectiveTo ensure public safety, duty of care, and professional advancement, there is a need for scholars to explore factors that impact the professional experiences of sport psychology professionals (SPPs). One such factor is professional identity, which has been shown to positively contribute to an enhanced sense of legitimacy of the profession in the eye of the public and sport stakeholders (i.e., athletes, coaches, sport scientists, administrators) and to positively impact the experience and effectiveness of practitioners. Yet, little research has directly examined the construct of professional identity within sport psychology, with this oversight posing a risk to the future of the profession. DesignThis interview-based study was situated within critical realism. We conducted a qualitative study using semi-structured interviews to explore the understanding and perceptions and experiences of the professional identity among SPPs. MethodsFollowing theoretical criterion-based sampling, we interviewed 33 expert (n = 13), experienced (n = 12), and early career (n = 8) SPPs regarding their views on PI. The nationalities of these SPPs (male n = 16; female n = 17) represented sixteen different countries on four different continents. ResultsData were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis and showed a relatively shared meaning of professional identity which unfolded across the career span. Moreover, the professionals in this study seemed to identify their pride for and their knowledge of the profession as key factors in the development of their PI. Furthermore, they identified how their professional role, expertise, and interactions with other professionals within the field played an important role in sustaining a professional identity. ConclusionWe interpreted the interview data as supporting the importance of professional identity for SPPs and consider the contribution of this within a developmental framework for effective practice.

Multicultural Training and Awareness Among Sport Psychology Practitioners

Guided by an interpretivist–constructivist paradigm and phenomenological framework, this study explored sport psychology professionals’ lived experiences to better understand their multicultural training and competence within the field of sport psychology. Twelve sport psychology professionals participated in semistructured interviews from March 2020 to May 2020. The following four themes emerged: (a) a call to reform training programs, (b) a shift from multicultural competence to cultural humility, (c) professional and ethical responsibilities of sport psychology practitioners, and (d) reflexive practice and culturally sensitive interventions. Study findings support expanding multicultural training for students of sport psychology graduate programs and suggest that sport psychology professionals have an ethical responsibility to be culturally aware. Further study findings and clinical implications are discussed.