and/or to gain a competitive edge over rival performers. Indeed, research suggests that a
desire to perform better is the reason most frequently cited by athletes for their decision
to consult sport psychologists. For example, Meyers (1997) reported that when he worked
as an “on site” sport psychologist during the 1994 US Olympic Festival, most of his
referrals concerned performance enhancement issues. As well as providing practical
strategies to enhance athletic performance, sport psychologists are often asked to help
athletes to resolve a heterogeneous array of alleged “psychological problems” (e.g., poor
concentration, performance anxiety, low self-confidence) which tend to be self-diagnosed
and vaguely expressed. Indeed, Clough et al. (2002) captured the frustration engendered
by this unreliable referral system when they remarked that “being asked to solve a
problem that is ill-conceived, ill-defined and ill-considered is the lifeblood of sport
psychology. Coaches and athletes are more prone than most to using cliches,
abbreviations, or shorthand phrases” (p. 32).
Let us now consider the second type of applied professional services that sport
psychologists tend to provide for their clients—namely, consultations in the fields of
counselling and clinical psychology. Recent years have witnessed a growth of research
interest in the personal problems (e.g., alcohol abuse, stress and burnout, eating
disorders) that may afflict those involved in sport and exercise. For example, a recent
survey of professional soccer players in Britain for the BBC current affairs programme
Real Story found that 46 per cent of them were aware of colleagues who used illegal
recreational and/or performance-enhancing drugs on a regular basis (Jacob, 2003). Not
surprisingly, such shocking findings have led to a call for the provision of medical and
psychological services for athletes who suffer from drug and/or alcohol dependence
problems. More generally, Lavallee and Cockerill (2002) published the proceedings of a
workshop (organised by the British Psychological Society) which was designed to
provide theoretical, practical and ethical guidelines for those involved in counselling
people who are engaged in sport and exercise. Clearly, appropriate formal qualifications
and a great deal of sensitivity are required by sport psychologists who offer such services
because many athletes are afraid or embarrassed to seek professional help for personal
problems. Typically, such performers fear the possibility of ridicule from their peers for
seeking a consultation with a “shrink”. Unfortunately, media coverage of sport
psychology may serve only to exaggerate this problem due to the way in which this
discipline is portrayed. For example, The Times (2002) reported recently that Graham
Taylor (former manager of Aston Villa) called in “the shrinks” (p. 43) to offer
psychological services to the players. In view of this caricature of the discipline, it is
interesting to note that a scale has been developed by researchers to assess athletes’
attitudes to seeking help from sport psychologists (see Martin, Kellmann, Lavallee and
Page, 2002).
EducationMany sport and exercise psychologists are involved in educational aspects of the
discipline. This professional role usually involves teaching students, athletes, coaches and
perhaps business people about the principles, methods and findings of sport psychology.
Such educational services are extremely important. For example, in the absence of
accurate and up-to-date information conveyed by sport psychology professionals, myths
Introducing sport and exercise psychology: discipline and profession 19