psychologist is often on shaky ground theoretically because many of the intervention
techniques which s/he recommends have not been validated adequately. Finally, the
distinction between “expert” and “client” ignores the fact that sportspeople, including
athletes and coaches, are naïve psychologists in the sense that they have already
developed informal theoretical intuitive psychological theories to account for the
behaviour of their players (see Chapter 9 for information on the late Bill Shankley’s
attitude to injured soccer players). In these cases, such intuitive theories need to be
deconstructed through discussion with sport psychologists before a client can be helped.
Taken together, these three problems highlight the weaknesses of the traditional role of
the medically oriented sport psychologist.
Fortunately, an alternative model has been proposed for the delivery of sport
psychology services to athletes and coaches (see Kremer and Scully, 1998). Briefly, this
model identifies the coach rather than the athlete as the primary target for psychological
education. Accordingly, the role of the sport psychologist changes from that of a medical
expert to that of a management consultant—somebody who works as part of a team with
the coach/manager and his or her support staff. Of course, this new model does not
eliminate the need for individual consultation. There will always be situations which
warrant “one-to-one” consultations between athletes and sport psychologists. However,
the adoption of Kremer and Scully’s (1998) model does change one feature of the client-
psychologist relationship. Specifically, it challenges the myth that sport psychologists are
“shrinks” or “mind benders” who can provide instant solutions for athletes whose
problems have baffled their coaches. Evaluating the model that underlies one’s services is
not the only self-appraisal task faced by sport and exercise psychologists. Increasingly, in
this era of accountability
Figure 1.3 It is a myth that sport
psychologists are “shrinks”
Sport and exercise psychology: A critical introduction 22