Advanced Diploma in Applied Sports Psychology

Motivation is the largest single topic in psychology, with at least 32 theories that attempt to explain why people are or are not motivated to achieve. Within sport psychology research, there are a plethora of techniques of how to increase and sustain motivation (strategies to enhance agency beliefs, self-regulation, goal setting, and others). However, when explaining the conceptual undergirding of motivation in sport, the why of motivation, two theories predominate: Achievement Goal Theory (AGT) and Self-Determination Theory (SDT). Both theories predict the same outcomes, such as increased achievement striving, sustained behavior change, and perceptions of well-being, but they differ in why those outcomes occur. AGT assumes that individuals cognitively evaluate the competence demands and meaningfulness of the activity, and that those perceptions govern behavior. SDT assumes that individuals are driven by three basic needs, competence, autonomy, and relatedness, and the satisfaction of those needs govern behavior. The module discusses both theories and concludes that each has their strengths and weaknesses.

This course covers stress management for athletes beginning with a brief behavioral conceptualization of athletic performance and analysis of stress. Examples of external and internal stressors are offered, as well as of stress responses from autonomic, somatic, and cognitive domains. Further discussed are specific types of stress management approaches used with athletes, and associated with external vs. internal sources of stress, and with the 3 stress response domains.

Sport injury and illness is relatively common among sport and exercise participants, and while the physical impact of injury is often easy to recognise, the psychological impact is not understood. In this course, you will examine the relationship between injury and psychological factors. You will look at the link between injury and psychology at two distinct points – before an injury has occurred and then following an injury. First, you will consider the psychological factors that may increase the likelihood of sustaining a sport injury (pre-injury), and then you will consider psychological reactions to the incidence of a sport injury (post-injury). The course will also allow you to examine how sport and exercise psychology can be used both to help minimise the risk of injury and to help people cope better with sport injury rehabilitation.

This course will expose students to the broad nature of the exercise and sport science discipline and its career pathways and opportunities. Students will learn about the pre-exercise screening assessments and professional behaviours that are expected in professional practice. Students will learn about the theory and application of health-related assessments and how to interpret the results.

This course aims to explore fundamentals in nutritional science to develop an understanding of the core concepts in human nutrition through exploring the role of macro- and micro-nutrients and their interaction across the lifespan, mostly in the healthy individual. The focus will be the biochemical reactions that take place, how these are influenced by different nutrients and what are the implications for the whole body.