Professional Advances in Sports Coaching: Research and Practice

Despite the rapid advance of the academic study of coaching science, there is a dearth of evidence on contemporary progressions within the coaching profession itself, particularly around the wide-ranging challenges that coaches face. Professional Advances in Sports Coaching constitutes an essential collection of the most innovative, up-to-date reviews and research on professional issues in sports coaching and coaching psychology.

Seeking to assess and challenge contemporary conceptual and theoretical research around the evolving nature of the coach’s role, issues associated with athlete and coach welfare, and societal demands of the coach, the book covers topics as diverse as:

• gender and spirituality within sports coaching;
• working in culturally diverse environments and disability sport;
• understanding hazing, mental health issues, and disordered eating in athletes;
• moral behaviour and safeguarding;
• high performance coaching and talent development;
• communicating with athletes in the age of social media, and managing cliques.

Written by leading experts from around the world, every chapter clarifies and defines key concepts, gives an up-to-date and comprehensive review of literature within the area, and examines the implications for future research and applied practice. This is a critical resource for any upper-level student enrolled in sports coaching science or practice classes, sports coaching academics with an interest in professional practice, and practicing sports coaches.

Richard Thelwell is Head of Department for Sport and Exercise Sciences, and Professor of Applied Sport Psychology at the University of Portsmouth, UK. His current research interests are within the area of coach psychology, psychological skills and behaviour change, and practitioner development. He serves as Associate Editor for Case Studies in Sport and Exercise Psychology, and on the Editorial Board for International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, and International Journal of Sport Psychology. In addition to his research activities, Richard has extensive applied-practitioner experience and is a Registered Practitioner Psychologist with the Health and Care Professions Council, a Chartered Psychologist of the British Psychological Society, and an Accredited Sport and Exercise Scientist with the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences.

Matt Dicks is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Sport and Exercise Science at the University of Portsmouth, UK. His research interests are centred on the study of perception and action processes that underpin the acquisition and control of skilled human movement. He has an extensive publication record across numerous fields including exercise and sports science, experimental psychology, and neuroscience and has presented over 25 keynote and invited lectures in nine different countries. He has held research assistant positions at the University of Chichester, UK and Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand, a research associate post at Queensland University of Technology, Australia, a postdoctoral research position at the VU University Amsterdam, Netherlands, and he has been a Visiting Professor at University of Caen, France and University of Rouen, France.