Foreword
With increasing interest in and even a fascination with sport psychology and health
psychology in academic environments, to the sports world and exercise settings, it is not
surprising to note the variety of books being published on such themes at a rapid rate in
recent years. Contents range from the very superficial or highly practical to the
exceptionally scholarly and scientific, depending on the purpose and possible audience of
the publication. The challenge for the author of a textbook, especially intended for
undergraduate students, is to somehow present the research literature in an interesting,
informative, useful, understandable, and organized manner. Ideally, the reader would be
enthusiastic about learning the subject matter.
Professor Moran succeeds admirably. This is not just another sport psychology
textbook. Perhaps what primarily sets it apart from others is the integration of scientific
substance with real-sport examples of and reference to many famous athletes and
coaches. As a highly respected scholar and practitioner, his passion for sport as well as
sport and exercise psychology is obvious throughout the pages of the book.
Consequently, the reader becomes absorbed in the contents. Even though I am quite
familiar with the areas of sport psychology addressed by Professor Moran, my attention
was captured and my motivation sustained as I reviewed the various topics. They include
a blend of summaries of investigations and theories, issues needing to be resolved, and
anecdotes and references to sports, athletes, and coaches.
What I particularly admired was the recency of the scholarly literature and sport figure
references. Professor Moran is evidently very familiar with the latest happenings in the
field. His writing style is reader-friendly, and the contents are presented in an interesting
and intellectually stimulating way. Helpful are exercise boxes sprinkled throughout the
chapters, with questions to challenge the reader. These are intended to spark reflection on
issues of debate, as well as to generate possible small-scale research projects. The subject
matter throughout the book is organized very well, and evidence supportive of
conclusions is indicated as is inconclusive evidence. Thus, the reader can appreciate the
difference between scientifically based knowledge vs. intuition and beliefs based on
personal experiences and hearsay.
Professor Moran does not attempt to include every conceivable topic or theme
associated with sport and exercise psychology in his book. This is a wise decision. The
body of knowledge and areas of interest have exploded in contemporary times, making it
impossible to do justice to all these topics in one textbook. Professor Moran has included