UK Trainee Sport and Exercise Psychologists’ Perspectives on Developing Professional Judgment and Decision-Making Expertise During Training

Click name to view affiliation

Michelle Smith University of the West of Scotland

Search for other papers by Michelle Smith in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
*
,
Hayley E. McEwan University of the West of Scotland

Search for other papers by Hayley E. McEwan in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
*
,
David Tod Liverpool John Moores University

Search for other papers by David Tod in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
*
, and
Amanda Martindale University of Edinburgh

Search for other papers by Amanda Martindale in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
*
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1123/tsp.2018-0112
In Print:
Volume 33: Issue 4
Page Range:
334–343
Restricted access

The research team explored UK trainee sport and exercise psychologists’ perspectives on developing professional-judgment and decision-making (PJDM) expertise during their British Psychological Society Qualification in Sport and Exercise Psychology (Stage 2). An assorted analysis approach was adopted to combine an existing longitudinal qualitative data set with the collection and analysis of a new qualitative data set. Participants (1 female, 6 male) were interviewed 4 times over a 3-yr training period, at minimum yearly intervals. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and reflexive thematic analysis applied to transcripts using the theoretical concepts of PJDM. Experience, analytical reasoning, and observation of other practitioners’ practice was useful for developing PJDM expertise. PJDM expertise might be optimized through the use of knowledge-elicitation principles. For example, supervisors could embed critical cues in the anecdotes they share to expand the experience base that trainees can draw from when making decisions.

Smith and McEwan are with the School of Health & Life Sciences, University of the West of Scotland, Lanarkshire, United Kingdom. Tod is with Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, United Kingdom. Martindale is with the University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.

Smith (michelle.smith@uws.ac.uk) is corresponding author.
  • Collapse
  • Expand
Cover The Sport Psychologist

  • Andersen, M.B., Van Raalte, J.L., & Brewer, B.W. (1994). Assessing the skills of sport psychology supervisors. The Sport Psychologist, 8(3), 238–247. doi:10.1123/tsp.8.3.238

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Bjork, R.A. (2009). Structuring the conditions of training to achieve elite performance: Reflections on elite training programs and related themes in Chapters 10–13. In K.A. Ericson (Ed.), Development of professional expertise (pp. 312–332). Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Braun, V., Clarke, V., & Weate, P. (2016). Using thematic analysis in sport and exercise research. In B. Smith & A. Sparkes (Eds.), Routledge handbook of qualitative research in sport and exercise (pp. 191–205). London, UK: Routledge.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Castillo, S.L. (2014). Ethical issues in training future practitioners. In J.G. Cremades & L.S. Tashman (Eds.), Becoming a sport, exercise, and performance psychology professional: A global perspective (pp. 252–259). New York, NY: Psychology Press.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Collins, A., Brown, J.S., & Holum, A. (1991). Cognitive apprenticeship: Making thinking visible. American Educator, 15(3), 6–11.

  • Crandall, B., & Gamblian, V. (1991). Guide to early sepsis assessment in the NICU. Fairborn, OH: Klein Associates.

  • Crandall, B., Klein, G., & Hoffman, R.R. (2006). Working minds: A practitioner’s guide to cognitive task analysis. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Cropley, B., Miles, A., Hanton, S., & Niven, A. (2007). Improving the delivery of applied sport psychology support through reflective practice. The Sport Psychologist, 21(4), 475–494. doi:10.1123/tsp.21.4.475

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Cruickshank, A., Martindale, A., & Collins, D. (2018). Raising our game: The necessity and progression of expertise-based training in applied sport psychology. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology. Advance online publication. doi:10.1080/10413200.2018.1492471

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Davis, D.A. (2009). How to help professionals maintain and improve their knowledge and skills: Triangulating best practices in medicine. In K.A. Ericsson (Ed.), Development of professional expertise (pp. 180–202). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Ericsson, K.A., Krampe, R.T., & Tesch-Römer, C. (1993). The role of deliberate practice in the acquisition of expert performance. Psychological Review, 100(3), 363–406. doi:10.1037/0033-295X.100.3.363

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Geis, G.L., Wheeler, D.S., Bunger, A., Militello, L.G., Taylor, R.G., Bauer, J.P., . . . Patterson, M.D. (2018). A validation argument for a simulation-based training course centered on assessment, recognition, and early management of pediatric sepsis. Simulation in Healthcare, 13(1), 16–26. PubMed ID: 29346221

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Heaton, J. (2008). Secondary analysis of qualitative data: An overview. Historical Social Research, 33(3), 33–45.

  • Hintze, N.R. (2008). First responder problem solving and decision making in today’s asymmetrical environment (master’s thesis). Defence Technical Information Center Database.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Hoffman, R.R., Ward, P., Fiore, S.M., Feltovich, P.J., DiBello, L., & Andrews, D.H. (2014). Accelerated expertise: Training for high proficiency in a complex world. New York, NY: Psychology Press.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Huntley, E., Cropley, B., Gilbourne, D., Sparkes, A., & Knowles, Z. (2014). Reflecting back and forwards: An evaluation of peer-reviewed reflective practice research in sport. Reflective Practice, 15(6), 863–876. doi:10.1080/14623943.2014.969695

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Hutter, R.I. (2014). Sport psychology supervision in the Netherlands: Starting from scratch. In J.G. Cremades & L.S. Tashman (Eds.), Becoming a sport, exercise, and performance psychology professional: A global perspective (pp. 260–267). New York, NY: Psychology Press.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Hutter, R.I., Oldenhof-Veldman, T., Pijpers, J.R., & Oudejans, R.R.D. (2016). Professional development in sport psychology: Relating learning experiences to learning outcomes. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 29(1), 1–16. doi:10.1080/10413200.2016.1183152

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Klein, G. (2017). Sources of power: How people make decisions. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

  • Klein, G., Calderwood, R., & Clinton-Cirocco, A. (2010). Rapid decision making on the fire ground: The original study plus a postscript. Journal of Cognitive Engineering and Decision Making, 4(3), 186–209. doi:10.1518/155534310X12844000801203

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Klein, G., & Crandall, B.W. (1995). The role of mental simulation in problem solving and decision making. In P.A. Hancock, J.M. Flach, J. Caird, & K.J. Vicente (Eds.), Local applications of the ecological approach to human-machine systems (pp. 324–358). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Klein, G., Hintze, N., & Saab, D. (2013). Thinking inside the box: The ShadowBox method for cognitive skill development [Paper presentation]. 11th International Conference on Naturalistic Decision Making (NDM 2013), Marseille, France.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Klein, G., & Hoffman, R. (1993). Seeing the invisible: Perceptual-cognitive aspects of expertise. In M. Rabinowitz (Ed.), Cognitive science foundations of instruction (pp. 203–226). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Klein, G., Moon, B., & Hoffman, R.R. (2006). Making sense of sensemaking 1: Alternative perspectives. IEEE Intelligent Systems, 21(4), 70–73. doi:10.1109/MIS.2006.75

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Knowles, Z., Gilbourne, D., Tomlinson, V., & Anderson, A.G. (2007). Reflections on the application of reflective practice for supervision in applied sport psychology. The Sport Psychologist, 21(1), 109–122. doi:10.1123/tsp.21.1.109

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Martindale, A., & Collins, D. (2005). Professional judgment and decision making: The role of intention for impact. The Sport Psychologist, 19(3), 303–317. doi:10.1123/tsp.19.3.303

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Martindale, A., & Collins, D. (2010). But why does what works work? A response to Fifer, Henschen, Gould, and Ravizza, 2008. The Sport Psychologist, 24(1), 113–116. doi:10.1123/tsp.24.1.113

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Martindale, A., & Collins, D. (2012). A professional judgment and decision making case study: Reflection-in-action research. The Sport Psychologist, 26(4), 500–518. doi:10.1123/tsp.26.4.500

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Martindale, A., & Collins, D. (2013). The development of professional judgment and decision making expertise in applied sport psychology. The Sport Psychologist, 27(4), 390–398. doi:10.1123/tsp.27.4.390

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Martindale, A., Collins, D., & Morton, V. (2017, June 20). Cognition at the crime scene: Identifying cognitive demands on professional judgement and decision making expertise of crime scene examiners [Paper presentation]. 13th Bi-Annual International Conference on Naturalistic Decision Making, The University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • McCormick, A. (2014). Using solution-focused brief therapy with an amateur football team: A trainee’s case study. Sport & Exercise Psychology Review, 10(3), 45–57.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • McEwan, H.E., & Tod, D. (2015). Learning experiences contributing to service-delivery competence in applied psychologists: Lessons for sport psychologists. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 27(1), 79–93. doi:10.1080/10413200.2014.952460

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Militello, L.G., & Hutton, R.J. (1998). Applied cognitive task analysis (ACTA): A practitioner’s toolkit for understanding cognitive task demands. Ergonomics, 41(11), 1618–1641. PubMed ID: 9819578 doi:10.1080/001401398186108

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Patterson, M.D., Militello, L.G., Bunger, A., Taylor, R.G., Wheeler, D.S., Klein, G., & Geis, G.L. (2016). Leveraging the critical decision method to develop simulation-based training for early recognition of sepsis. Journal of Cognitive Engineering and Decision Making, 10(1), 36–56. doi:10.1177/1555343416629520

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Phillips, J.K., Klein, G., & Sieck, W.R. (2004). Expertise in judgment and decision making: A case for training intuitive decision skills. In D.J. Koehler & N. Harvey (Eds.), Blackwell handbook of judgment and decision making (pp. 297–315). Malden, MA: Blackwell.

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Pitt, T., Lindsay, P., Thomas, O., Bawden, M., Goodwill, S., & Hanton, S. (2015). A perspective on consultancy teams and technology in applied sport psychology. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 16, 36–44. doi:10.1016/j.psychsport.2014.07.002

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Poczwardowski, A., Sherman, C.P., & Ravizza, K. (2004). Professional philosophy in the sport psychology service delivery: Building on theory and practice. The Sport Psychologist, 18(4), 445–463. doi:10.1123/tsp.18.4.445

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Ross, K.G., Klein, G.A., Thunholm, P., Schmitt, J.F., & Baxter, H.C. (2004). The recognition-primed decision model. Military Review, 6–10.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Rouse, W.B., & Morris, N.M. (1986). On looking into the black box: Prospects and limits in the search for mental models. Psychological Bulletin, 100(3), 349–363. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.100.3.349

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Schubert, C.C., Denmark, T.K., Crandall, B., Grome, A., & Pappas, J. (2013). Characterizing novice–expert differences in macrocognition: An exploratory study of cognitive work in the emergency department. Annals of Emergency Medicine, 61(1), 96–109. PubMed ID: 23036439 doi:10.1016/j.annemergmed.2012.08.034

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Smith, B., & McGannon, K.R. (2018). Developing rigor in qualitative research: Problems and opportunities within sport and exercise psychology. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 11(1), 101–121. doi:10.1080/1750984X.2017.1317357

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Sparkes, A.C., & Smith, B. (2014). Qualitative research methods in sport, exercise and health: From process to product. Oxon, UK: Routledge.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Szabo, V., & Strang, V.R. (1997). Secondary analysis of qualitative data. Advances in Nursing Science, 20(2), 66–74. PubMed ID: 9398940 doi:10.1097/00012272-199712000-00008

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Tod, D., Andersen, M.B., & Marchant, D.B. (2009). A longitudinal examination of neophyte applied sport psychologists’ development. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 21, S1–S16. doi:10.1080/10413200802593604

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Tod, D., Hutter, R.I., & Eubank, M. (2017). Professional development for sport psychology practice. Current Opinion in Psychology, 16, 134–137. PubMed ID: 28813337 doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2017.05.007

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Tod, D., Marchant, D., & Andersen, M.B. (2007). Learning experiences contributing to service-delivery competence. The Sport Psychologist, 21(3), 317–334. doi:10.1123/tsp.21.3.317

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Van Raalte, J.L., & Andersen, M.B. (2000). Supervision I: From models to doing. In M.B. Andersen (Ed.), Doing sport psychology (pp. 153–165). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation

  • Walkington, J. (2005). Becoming a teacher: Encouraging development of teacher identity through reflective practice. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 33(1), 53–64. doi:10.1080/1359866052000341124

    • Crossref
    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
All Time Past Year Past 30 Days
Abstract Views 3331 467 38
Full Text Views 197 72 0
PDF Downloads 121 27 0