1. Demonstrate a systematic and critical understanding of knowledge at the forefront of professional practice in sport and exercise psychology.

Knowledge & Understanding

Critical Reasoning & Collaboration

2. Critically evaluate the theoretical and empirical evidence underpinning selected psychological techniques used within sport and exercise psychology practice.

Application & Problem Solving

Research Skills

3. Critically reflect on your personal approach to professional practice, demonstrating informed awareness of ethical and professional practice issues in performance psychology.

Personal Development & Entrepreneurship

Reflection

4. Critically analyse the application of sport and exercise psychology knowledge to a range of applied scenarios, justifying decisions with reference to relevant professional and ethical frameworks.

Communication

Digital Literacy

For this module students, will be required to produce one written case study response in which a proposed intervention is outlined, justified and critically appraised to address a hypothetical professional practice scenario. Students will be provided with formative assessment and feedback via on-line tasks and discussions throughout the duration of the module. Students will receive formative feedback throughout the module comprising a combination of task related feedback and comments on online discussion contributions.

In this module, students consider issues pertinent to the professional practice of sport and exercise psychology. As part of the module a range of psychological techniques available to practitioners are outlined (e.g., self-talk, imagery). Theoretical and empirical evidence for the effectiveness of these techniques will be considered. Students will be required to consider which psychological techniques are most appropriate and how they should best be applied to a range of scenarios (e.g., enhancing confidence in a novice exerciser, helping an elite athlete cope with a career ending injury). The module will support students to develop the skills required to practice effectively (e.g., philosophy of practice, counselling skills, communication skills and reflective practice) along with issues surrounding the delivery of psychological interventions to different groups (e.g., youth athletes, special populations). Ethical issues that may arise during the consultancy process in sport and exercise settings are considered and discussed throughout the module.¿Module content includes:

Introduction to the Practice of Sport and Exercise Psychology; The Profession.

Confidence and Anxiety

The Canon: Imagery and Relaxation

The Canon: Self Talk and Goal Setting

Philosophical Approaches to Practice

Needs Analysis and Case Formulation

Ethical Practice in Sport and Exercise Psychology

Working with Special Populations

Counselling Skills

Motivational Interviewing

Cognitive Behavioural Therapies: ACT and REBT

What does it take to become a Sport and/or Exercise Psychologist?¿

In this module you will consider issues pertinent to the professional practice of sport and exercise psychology. You will learn about a range of psychological techniques available to practitioners, including self-talk and imagery, whilst understanding the theoretical underpinnings and scientific research regarding the effectiveness of these techniques. You will be required to put yourself in the shoes of a psychologist and consider which psychological techniques are most appropriate and how they should best be implemented to a range of scenarios (e.g., enhancing confidence in a novice exerciser, helping an elite athlete cope with a career ending injury). This module will also give you the opportunity to develop and practice the skills required to work effectively as a psychologist in the real-world (e.g., counselling skills, communication skills and reflective practice).

Students follow an online learning guided study programme and access support material via the virtual learning environment (e.g., Blackboard). Learning is facilitated through the completion of core tasks (e.g., asynchronous lectures and synchronous seminars) and independent study (e.g., additional reading, optional tasks, assignment preparation). In addition, core tasks are updated weekly and may include set reading, personal reflection, and discussion board tasks in addition to various other activities. Students are regularly directed to recommended resources (e.g., reading, video tutorials) to support completion of activities. Students are required to access additional support material independently. Students will receive formative feedback throughout the module comprising task-related feedback on a week-by-week basis, together with discussions to encourage peer-learning in addition to comments from relevant tutors.

Dosil J. (2006) The Sport Psychologist's Handbook: A Guide for Sport-Specific Performance Enhancement. Chichester, UK: John Wiley.

Gallucci, N. T. (2013). Sport psychology: Performance enhancement, performance inhibition, individuals, and teams. Psychology press.

Keegan, R. (2020).¿Being a sport psychologist. Bloomsbury Publishing.

Access to an appropriate PC, with accompanying software including Office 365 (MS Teams, One-Drive, Word, PowerPoint et al.), Adobe, and Java software.