Training or education? Negotiating a fuzzy line between what “we” want and “they” might need

In this article, we reflect on what we consider to be an over-reliance among many in golf – including coaches, sport psychologists, and governing bodies – on a training-dominated vocabulary. To do so, we adopt a narrative approach to explore: i) the kinds of stories which circulate in golf; and ii) the stories women professional golfers told of their development and progression during life history interviews. By analysing these stories, we hope to provide a contrasting perspective on golfers’ long-term needs and show that alternatives to a training-dominated vocabulary are both possible and desirable. Through these reflections, we aim to present some more general insights concerning how to negotiate the fuzzy line between what “we” (as coaches, psychologists, governing body officials, performance directors, etc.) want and what “they” (players) might need in development terms. We conclude by suggesting an education-based alternative to the current training-dominated discourse which offers a healthier path to player retention, wellbeing, development, and progression in golf

Exploring taboo issues in professional sport through a fictional approach

While the need to consider life course issues in elite sport research and practice is increasingly recognised, some experiences still seem to be considered too dangerous to explore. Consequently, stories of these experiences are silenced and the ethical and moral questions they pose fail to be acknowledged, understood or debated. This paper presents an ethnographic fiction through which we explore a sensitive set of experiences that were uncovered during our research with professional sportspeople. Through a multi‐layered reconstruction, the story reveals the complex, but significant, relationships that exist between identity, cultural narratives and embodied experiences. After the telling we consider how the story has stimulated reflective practice among students, researchers and practitioners. While there are risks involved in writing and sharing taboo stories, the feedback we have received suggests that storytelling can be an effective pedagogical tool in education and professional development

Abandoning the performance narrative: Two women's stories of transition from professional sport

Despite its potential to illuminate psychological processes within socio-cultural contexts, examples of narrative research are rare in sport psychology. In this study, we employed an analysis of narrative to explore two women's stories of living in, and withdrawing from, professional tournament golf gathered through life history interviews conducted over 6 years. Our findings suggest that immersion in elite sport culture shaped these women's identities around performance values of single-minded dedication to sport and prioritization of winning above all other areas of life. When the performance narrative ceased to "fit" their changing lives, both women, having no alternative narrative to guide their personal life stories, experienced narrative wreckage and considerable personal trauma. They required asylum-a place of refuge where performance values were no longer paramount-to story their lives around a relational narrative that reinstated a coherent identity while providing meaning and worth to life after golf. © Association for Applied Sport Psychology

Opening doors: Poetic representation of the sport experiences of men with severe mental health difficulties

We present here a series of poetic representations that stem from our research into the sport and exercise experiences of men with severe mental health difficulties. Relying exclusively on scientific or realist tales risks omitting or misrepresenting participants' sometimes "messy" stories. By allowing space for these stories, which may not be considered "good stories" in terms of traditional narrative criteria of content, form, coherence, or plot, poetic approaches can contribute to a richer and more complex understanding of others' lives. The first poem was written in response to our experiences of doing qualitative research in the context of a rehabilitation day center for people with severe mental health difficulties. We created the subsequent poems, using only the participants' own words, as a way to further explore and represent their experiences of, and responses to, a golf activity group that was offered within the context the day center. © 2009 SAGE Publications

The contribution of exercise and sport to mental health promotion in serious mental illness: An interpretative project

In this article we synthesise the findings of previous research to explore the question: How can exercise and sport contribute to mental health promotion in the context of serious mental illness? We used an interpretive approach to gain insights into the sport and exercise experiences of 11 men with serious mental illness. Data were gathered through interviews and participant observation, and analysed through a content analysis and a narrative analysis of structure and form. These analyses suggest that exercise and sport contributed in three distinct ways: acting as a vehicle for other outcomes, facilitating recreation of a previous athletic identity, and providing a means to re-story self and identity through adventure experiences. We conclude that the ways in which exercise and sport can help promote mental health in the context of serious mental illness are varied, complex and closely related to the meaning the activity holds for the individual

Human performance issues arising from manned space station missions

Ten former NASA astronauts were interviewed using a set of 51 questions developed to encourage the contacts to discuss any thoughts, opinions, conclusions, or suggestions which might have evolved since they left the astronaut program. Strict confidentiality was maintained. At least one astronaut from each of the NASA manned space flight programs, excluding the Space Transportation System (Shuttle), was interviewed. The report records the answers to the questions asked, spontaneous comments, and the investigator's own personal evaluations of the material obtained. No statistical analysis of the material was attempted. The professional opinions of these ten experienced astronauts will be of value to persons concerned with the design and operation of manned spacecraft and manned space stations

Chapter 7 and Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Factors

In light of the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s August 2014 Accounting Standard Update on management Going Concern Statements, research using financial ratios to predict bankruptcy is more relevant than ever. Even though numerous research articles examine factors that predict bankruptcy, few make the distinction between the factors that affect Chapter 7 versus Chapter 11 bankruptcy. This work examines the factors that affect these two bankruptcy types (7 and 11) using the Securities and Exchange Commission data on 425 firms that filed for Chapter 7 or Chapter 11 bankruptcy. We tested our data using t-test, ordinary least squares (OLS), and logistic regression. Our results indicate that the asset turnover ratio and going concern statement are significant predictors of Chapter 7 versus Chapter 11 bankruptcy. We note the implications for auditors, corporate management, corporate creditors and investors, and the Financial Accounting Standards Board