Postgraduate Course: Practitioner Skills: Sport and Performance Psychology (SPRT11023)
Course Outline
| School | Moray House School of Education and Sport |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course explores key skills required for by those working within the performance psychology domain. Specifically, the course will focus on: a) Communication (e.g., communication with different audiences); b) Content (e.g., philosophical approaches to practice, ethics codes and standards); c) Conceptualisation (e.g., needs analysis, case conceptualisation). The content of this course is, therefore, designed to introduce students to key concepts and skills necessary to function within the performance psychology domain.
The teaching, learning, and assessment in this course will be research informed. Team teaching will be incorporated to best utilise staff knowledge and expertise and to maximise student experience. Members of academic staff from the Institute for Sport, Physical Education and Health Science (ISPEHS) who contribute to this course are all members of relevant research groups hosted by ISPEHS, including the Applied Coaching Science Research Group and the Human Performance Science Research Group. |
| Course description |
The course is built around three sequential blocks of Communication (e.g., interpersonal and presentational skills), Content (e.g., what performance psychology interventions usually entail) and Conceptualisation (e.g., how client needs can be individually evaluated and interventions designed) - the 3Cs. These 3Cs are included with an aim to equip students with the necessary practitioner skills. The new Practitioner Skills course will focus on covering more up-to-date industry-relevant skills that more accurately reflect professional skills needed for pracademics (practitioner academics; c.f. Dickinson et al., 2022). Furthermore, and to align this course with the wider Programme changes, the assessments are modified to more closely align with industry-specific applied skills (communication with different audiences, intervention/activity design).
|
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Course Delivery Information
|
| Academic year 2026/27, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
|
Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Full Year |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
196 )
|
| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
|
| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Request for tender (Slide deck - 10 slides + References equivalent) - 100%
Details: A request for tender is increasingly being used by practitioners to gain consultancies. This essentially includes the practitioner submitting a 'tender' or 'proposal' to potential employers, specifically focusing on their background, what they can offer within the consultancy etc. The key is for practitioners to highlight their USP, whilst addressing what they can offer within the consultancy. Therefore, the assessment would include elements of self-reflection, but also scientifically-driven content underpinning the practitioner's approach |
| Feedback |
Formative feedback will be a key feature of the 20-credit course, ensuring students are supported through their learning and development as well as from an assessment perspective. To achieve this and avoid extended periods of time where students receive no feedback on their academic performance, but also without over assessing, we will embed smaller, meaningful feedback opportunities (e.g., formative assessments, group/peer discussions etc.), thus avoiding elevated risks from solely end-of-course assessments.
Summative assessment feedback will focus on areas of development for students that they can use within future assessments or careers (after the MSc) |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Develop interpersonal and presentational skills necessary for a performance psychology practitioner to communicate with a range of audiences
- Apply knowledge and understanding of using appropriate methods through which client needs can be individually assessed and interventions designed.
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of the different components involved within performance psychology interventions.
- Develop necessary professional skills for practitioner academics across the 3Cs: communication, content and conceptualisation.
|
Reading List
1. Turner, M. (2022). The rational practitioner: The sport and performance psychologist's guide to practicing rational emotive behaviour therapy. Routledge.
2. Tod, D., Hodge, K., & Krane, V. (2023). Routledge handbook of applied sport psychology. Taylor and Francis. Retrieved from https://www. routledge. com/Routledge-Handbook-of-Applied-Sport-Psychology-A-Comprehensive-Guide-for-Students-and-Practitioners/Tod-Hodge-Krane/p/book/9781032002972.
3. Platow, M. J. & Jillson, C. (2002). Giving professional presentations in the behavioral sciences and related fields: A practical guide for novice, the nervous and the nonchalant. Taylor & Francis Books Inc., Hove. NB: See Chapter 1 on Design & Chapter 2 on Delivery. For a pitch presentation also see Chapter 4 on Persuasion.
4. Seely, J. (2013). The Oxford guide to effective writing and speaking: How to communicate clearly. Third Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press (Online resource).
5. Portenga, S. T., Aoyagi, M. W., & Cohen, A. B. (2017). Helping to build a profession: A working definition of sport and performance psychology. Journal of Sport Psychology in Action, 8(1), 47-59. |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Graduate Attributes and Skills
This course addresses 10 of the 20 graduate attributes developed on the MSc Sport and Performance Psychology degree.
Skills and abilities in Research and Enquiry
- search for, access, critically analyse, evaluate and synthesise relevant literature and information in order to develop stduents knowledge and understanding relating to Sport and Performance Psychology (hereafter SPP)
- critically question current SPP knowledge and training recommendations and how they relate to global challenges (e.g., preparation for future performance vs. performance today; challenge vs. support)
Skills and abilities in Personal and Intellectual Autonomy
- be able to exercise substantial autonomy and initiative in academic activities, including decision making on the basis of independent thought
- be able to recognise diversity of opinion in SPP, reflecting and evaluating this range and formulating justified and evidence-based ideas for application
- be able to reflect on social and ethical responsibilities linked to the application of their knowledge and judgments in SPP
Skils and abilities in Communication
- be independent learners who take responsibility for their own learning, and are committed to professional development, self-evaluation and self-improvement
Skills and abilities in Personal Effectiveness
- have the confidence to make informed decisions relating to problems and issues in SP
- be able to identify and manage risks appropriately (e.g., during applied experiences, designing a suitable research project)
- be able to transfer knowledge, skills and abilities from one professional context to another (e.g., development vs. performance context, or between different sports)
Technical/Practical skills -
- have developed their SPP skills and attributes towards professional standards including BPS Stage 1
|
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | |
Course secretary | |
|
|
University Homepage