Applied Sport Psychology and Leadership in Sport Certificate

Enhance your knowledge of sport psychology from an athlete or coach perspective with this comprehensive applied course.

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Created byKeith Begley BSc Dip Ed. MSc SII

Last updated 10/2025

English

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What you'll learn

Unit 1 - Introduction to Sport Psychology - History of Sport Psychology, The Role of & How to Become a Sport Psychologist, Career Opportunities in the Field
Unit 2 - Social Perspectives - Drop-out From Youth Sport, Gender Differentiation and Disability, Parenting in Sport, Character Development
Unit 3 - Considerations for Psychological Skills Training (PST) - Regulating Anxiety, Over-arousal and Stress, Attention Control and Processing Efficiency,
Unit 4 - Psychological Skills Training - Attentional Focus, Self Tal Self Confidence, Visualisation, Performance Profiling, Goal-setting & Arousal Regulation,
Unit 5 - Team Processes – Motivation, Group Cohesion & Team Dynamics, Self-Efficacy in Sport. Theories of Motivation, Improving Motivation
Unit 6 - Effective Leadership and Communication - Athlete Needs, Transformational Leadership, Creating a Positive Team Climate, Values Based Approaches
Unit 7 - Enhancing Health and Well-being - Resilience / Mental Toughness, Exercise and Psychological Well-being, Burnout and Over-training, Well-being Factors
Complementary work-book, including 33 practical engagement tasks to develop your knowledge across all areas.
Numerous additional resources including blog articles and YouTube clips to support your learning and development.

Course content

7 sections • 60 lectures • 11h 26m total length

Welcome Message1:09
Receive a warm welcome and explore seven units of practical content, using the attached workbook for Unit one tasks and audio tips for volume, earphones, or a speaker.
Introduction to Sport Psychology8:03
Introduction
What is sport psychology
How sport psychology might help a team
History of Sport Psychology8:10
Early history of sport psychology
Post WW2 history of sport psychology development.
Modern history of sport psychology
The Role of a Sport Psychologist9:11
Role of a sport psychologist
Becoming a sport psychologist
Career opportunities
Exit pass
Unit 1 Quiz - Introduction to Sport Psychology

Unit 2 Introduction & Children in Youth Sport8:04
Why children play sport
Dropout From Youth Sport13:15
Reasons for drop-out from youth sport
Gender Differentiation - Women in Sport12:38
The development and growth of women's involvement in sport from mid 1800's to present day.
Disability in Sport5:17
Physical disability in sport and Paralympic movement.
Intellectual disability in sport and growth of Special Olympics movement.
Parenting in Sport16:13
Aggression in Sport13:06
Understanding and explaining aggression in sport
Character Development and Good Sporting Behaviour6:27
Understanding character development and good sporting behavior.
Exit Pass 2
Unit 2 Quiz - Sport Psychology Social Perspectives

Unit 3 Introduction0:35
Explore the more applied content in units three and four and engage with the videos, readings, and resources linked to these sections.
Arousal, Stress and Anxiety12:41
Explore how arousal, stress, and anxiety influence sport performance, distinguish trait and state anxiety, and apply physiological, cognitive, and behavioral responses with regulation strategies such as pre-performance routines.
Example 1 - Anxiety in Sport7:26
Explore how anxiety affects high-stakes sport performance, from a Gaelic football goalkeeper facing an 82,000-strong crowd to decision making and skill execution under pressure.
Example 2 - Anxiety in Sport19:47
How Over-arousal, Stress and Anxiety Affect Performance15:03
Regulating Anxiety, Over-arousal and Stress18:29
Examine how anxiety, over-arousal, and stress trigger performance meltdowns and learn regulation through pre-performance routines, cognitive behavioral therapy, imagery, deep breathing, and blue head strategies.
Attention Control, Processing Efficiency and Ironic Effects7:04
Personality in Sport12:59
Unit 3 Quiz - Individual Considerations Within Sport

Unit 4 Introduction0:56
Explore mental skills and mental skills training for sport and learn to apply these techniques to yourself or athletes. Engage with course resources to gain grounded, applied knowledge.
Introduction to PST and Attentional Focus7:46
Self Talk and Self Confidence17:41
Explore self talk as a psychological skill that enhances skill execution, focusing on motivational versus instructional cues, internal versus external focus, and its role in confidence and performance.
Visualisation / Imagery17:52
Goal Setting 19:16
Performance Profiling and Goal Setting - Applied Practice16:34
Arousal Regulation 14:56
Master arousal regulation to manage performance anxiety and stay calm in clutch moments, using self-talk, deep breathing, and progressive muscular relaxation to execute skills under pressure.
Arousal Regulation 26:58
Mindfulness in Sport10:14
Unit 4 Quiz - Psychological Skills Training

Unit 5 Introduction0:40
Explore how cohesion, motivation, and leadership foster player motivation and teamwork, and learn to engage course resources to gain new insights.
Group and Team Dynamics12:17
Group Cohesion 117:12
Group Cohesion and Social Loafing12:43
Examine group cohesion and social loafing, uncovering the Ringman effect and Steiner's model of actual productivity, and learn how motivation, coordination losses, and task importance shape team performance in sport.
The Role of Self-Efficacy in Performance and Motivation13:36
Introduction to Motivation4:34
Theories of Motivation 111:35
Theories of Motivation 218:07
Explore Herzberg's motivation and hygiene theory in sport, distinguishing satisfaction and dissatisfaction factors, and learn how growth mindset and deliberate practice foster intrinsic motivation and coach-driven feedback.
Theories of Motivation 36:52
Guidelines For Improving Motivation7:34

Characteristics of Effective Leaders4:22
Explore how effective leadership and communication create a positive team environment, meet athlete needs, and apply transformational leadership, leadership styles, and psychological models through self-reflection.
Leadership - Athlete Needs10:48
Leadership Styles6:12
Explore leadership and management styles in coaching - laissez-faire, autocratic, transactional, and transformational - and how these styles shape motivation, engagement, and team dynamics in sport.
Transformational Leadership22:26
Transformational leadership empowers followers by creating a shared vision, fostering ownership, and challenging them to stretch competence within a socially connected, high-performance sport environment.
Psychological Models of Leadership3:49
Leadership models shape the climate for well-being and performance, influencing commitment, motivation, confidence, and cohesion to drive performance; key models include the multidimensional leadership model and transformational leadership.
Process of Effective Communication13:43
Practice effective sport communication by listening carefully, asking good questions, and delivering direct, consistent messages. Separate fact from opinion, praise in public, critique in private, fostering reception, retention, and comprehension.
Creating a Positive Team Climate - Introduction & The Leicester Effect8:31
Creating a Positive Team Climate - the practical stuff - Part 116:48
Leverage concise performance analysis using GPS and statistics to set attainable standards, reward improvement, and foster a competitive growth mindset through contextualized training and clear role understanding.
Creating a Positive Team Climate - the practical stuff - Part 212:21
Effective Leadership - A Values Based Approach 116:14
Effective Leadership - A Values Based Approach.
New Zealand All-Blacks example.
Effective Leadership - A Values Based Approach 230:51
A values based approach - Limerick Senior Hurling Team, Carlow GAA and Offaly GAA examples.
Developing a sense of purpose
Unit 5 & 6 Quiz - Leadership, Communication and Motivation
Effective Leadership - Self Reflection4:26
Reflect on your coaching impact to foster belonging, fairness, and empowerment; show you care and create a positive, engaging environment where every athlete feels valued, heard, and motivated.

Resilience14:12
What resilience is.
What resilience isn't.
"Super Champions" V's "Almost Champions".
Developing Resilience and Mental Toughness26:38
Psychological Well-being - Anxiety & Depression20:15
Managing Anxiety and Depression8:11
Explore managing anxiety and depression through medication when needed, psychotherapy and CBT, and how exercise, mindfulness, and relaxation techniques boost mood, sleep, self-esteem, and social connections for athletes.
Psychological Well-being - Athletic Identity9:35
Burnout and Over-training11:12
Well-being and Lifestyle Factors - Social Media24:12
Well-being and Lifestyle Factors - Gambling and Substance Misuse12:40
Exercise Behaviour and Adherence7:27
Exit Pass 7 and Course Wrap-up8:14
Provide coaching strategies to support athletes’ health and well-being, identify needs, and emphasize resilience, mental toughness, and adherence to exercise, inspired by 'Get up and win the race'.

Requirements

No pre-requisite knowledge but a very basic understanding and or experience of involvement in sport as a coach or athlete or any type of team management would be helpful.

Description

With over 12 hours of highly engaging content, covering every area of sport psychology, and including numerous examples from contemporary sport, this is the most comprehensive sport psychology course available on Udemy.

The course is presented as an applied sport psychology course for coaches, athletes and leaders in sport or anybody considering some learning in this area.

Using a series of multiple choice quizzes and a complimentary 45 page work-book with 33 separate practical tasks across 57 different lessons, this extensive course is designed to significantly enhance your knowledge and understanding in this area as an athlete, coach, sport psychologist, or leader in your field. Also included, are applied exercises on goal setting, self-talk, vizualisation, mindfulness and anxiety management, with practical tips and advice around mental skills implementation.

With over 20 years coaching and performance psychology experience across a range of sports and levels, from child and youth level up to and including elite international and Olympic level (see bio for further details), I have developed this course to help you broaden your understanding of sport psychology in an easy and practical manner. With applied references to the most cutting edge research in sport psychology, I have included countless examples of how the world's best teams, coaches, sport psychologists and athletes apply best practice in utilization of key sport psychology principles in their pursuit of excellence.

This course is pitched at a very attainable level to cater for all learners. The course is built to National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) Level 4 education standards in the UK. This equates to equivalent of Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) Level 6 standard course in Ireland, or pre-university course in other countries. Those who finish the course will receive Udemy certification on completion.

See Course Content tab below for the level of depth across 7 units of work or watch the video and check out the free preview lessons to get a taste of what is inside the course.

If developing this type of knowledge excites you, hit the "buy now" button to get started immediately.

Thank you for taking the time to research this course. I look forward to you signing up and seeing you on the other side, where you will greatly enhance your knowledge in this area.

Who this course is for:

This course is suitable for any athletes or coaches looking to extend their knowledge on this area or anybody in any type of management (sport, military or business) at any level - or anybody that just has an interest in the psychology behind high performance sport. This course is also an excellent starting point for anybody considering further study in the area of sport science or performance psychology.

Applied Sport Psychology and Leadership in Sport Certificate

What you'll learn

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Course content

Unit 1 - Introduction to Sport Psychology4 lectures • 27min

Unit 2 – Sport Psychology Social Perspectives7 lectures • 1hr 15min

Unit 3 - Considerations for Psychological Skills Training (PST)8 lectures • 1hr 34min

Unit 4 - Introduction to psychological skills training (PST)9 lectures • 1hr 32min

Unit 5 - Team Processes: Cohesion and Motivation10 lectures • 1hr 45min

Unit 6 - Effective Leadership and Communication12 lectures • 2hr 31min

Unit 7 - Enhancing Health and Well-being10 lectures • 2hr 23min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: