Last month, eight Southern Illinois University Edwardsville exercise and sport psychology students attended and presented at the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) 34th Annual Conference in Portland, Oregon. The conference is the largest of its kind worldwide, and features over 100 workshops, lectures and panels for students and professionals alike.
Lindsay Ross-Stewart, PhD, associate professor of exercise and sport psychology (ESP) and graduate program director in the SIUE Department of Applied Health, attended the conference as the faculty author on 9 of the 10 presentations given by students.
“The opportunity for students to both attend and present at an internationally attended conference such as AASP is invaluable for their education,” said Ross-Stewart. “The conference gave students a chance to learn about different areas within applied psychological skills training and see what the current research trends are within the field. By presenting their work, students learned how to communicate with others in the field, allowing for networking connections.”
Current graduate students in attendance included Victoria Roberts, Karen Swanner, Aleia Campbell, Ginny Kjer, Parker Hardcastle, Destinee Ganious, Jailin Allen and Camille Watkins. Student authors unable to attend included Megan Mottola, Zach Osborne and Paige Davis.
“I was pleasantly surprised on how many insightful sessions there were in a variety of topics, which in turn confirmed that I had picked the perfect discipline to be a forever student,” said Watkins. “I’m so grateful for the opportunity to attend this phenomenal conference.”
“Participating in the conference was an amazing way to gain insight into what the sport psychology realm is like,” agreed Hardcastle. “It was the perfect opportunity to make connections with students and professionals in the field, along with the opportunities to learn from them and teach them what we’ve learned.”
Students presented posters on the following research studies at the conference:
- Living with Post-Concussion Syndrome
- How Self-Reflective Practice Can Facilitate Learning in Neophyte Sport Psychology Consultants
- Body Dissatisfaction, Self-Efficacy and Trait Self-Control in NCAA Athletes
- Go Home and Bake Cookies: A case study of a Female Official’s Experience in Men’s Soccer
- The Effect of Socioeconomic Status and Sport Participation on Resilience of High School Students
- Investigating the Effectiveness of an Imagery Assisted Virtual Reality Protocol for Soccer Goalkeepers Physical and Psychological Development
- High Intensity Resistance Training has Positive Effects on Perceived Physical and Mental Health of Anorexia Nervosa patients after hospitalization
In conjunction with these studies, students presented posters based off the experiential work they completed while taking a graduate-level sport psychology course. These projects were made possible due to a collaboration with SIUE club sports, overseen by Philip Leyer, an ESP alum. During the course, students served as mental performance coaches (in-training) to an assigned SIUE club team. The following studies were presented as a result of this collaboration:
- Promoting Team Cohesion in Collegiate Club Baseball Players through Team Building Exercises
- Applying the P.A.C.E Performance Program to Collegiate Endurance Athletes
- The Benefits of Sport Psychology Consulting with a Collegiate Club Dance Team
Alumni who were authors on the various presentations included Molly Josephs, Kerry Guest, Moira Kelly and Jeffrey Price.
“At the conference, students were able to meet with alumnus Kerry Guest and Jermaine Bean, both of whom are currently completing PhDs in the field, to discuss their paths in the field and receive advice on their futures,” said Ross-Stewart. “Having alumni of their caliber to help our students navigate the field is a true asset.”
“For me, the experience was amazing,” claimed Swanner. “Attending the conference was an opportunity for me to present my research and to get a sense of its relevancy. I found that there was considerable engagement during my poster presentation, and meeting others who had also presented helped in my learning experience.”
“In the exercise and sport psychology program, we focus on giving students opportunities to truly engage with the material, while grounding their interventions and applied work in theory,” added Ross-Stewart. “Seeing students and alumni live this philosophy at the conference was truly meaningful.”
Photo (L-R): SIUE students Destinee Ganious, Karen Swanner, Parker Hardcastle, Camille Watkins, Zach Osborne, Jailin Allen, Aleia Campbell and Victoria Roberts at the Association for Applied Sport Psychology 34th Annual Conference.