Sports Science

The sports science preparatory course aims to homogenize the level of knowledge in the field of sports science among psychology graduates. The guiding principle behind the design of the course, in terms of scope and content, was the objective that all participants achieve a uniform baseline of knowledge in sports science fields relevant to sports psychology. The course conveys central concepts and theories of sports science practice in a brief, concise format. The reflection and application of basic sports science knowledge within the context of sports psychology is at the center of this. The goal is to provide general principles and a solid foundation of sports science knowledge, upon which subsequent advanced units can build to work specifically and practically.

Psychology

The psychology preparatory course aims to homogenize the level of knowledge in the field of psychology among sports science graduates. The guiding principle behind the design of the course, in terms of scope and content, was the objective that all participants achieve a uniform baseline of knowledge in psychological fields relevant to sports psychology. Consequently, the course conveys central concepts and theories of psychological practice in a brief, concise format. The reflection and application of basic psychological knowledge within the context of sports psychology is at the center of this. The goal is to provide general principles and a uniform foundation of psychological knowledge, upon which subsequent advanced units can build to work specifically and practically.

The module series "Sports Psychological Training and Coaching" deals with the systematic optimization of psychological skills of individual athletes, coaches, and training groups. Participants receive domain-specific action competences for the design, implementation, and evaluation of sports psychological training programs. The training of psychological skills (e.g., concentration, imagery) thus becomes a planned and systematic process that is comparable to the approach used to optimize sports-specific competences such as technique, strength, or endurance. Sports psychological training is therefore about training with and for the head, with the aim of strengthening the psychological stability of coaches and athletes during training and competition. In addition, basic competences are taught to strengthen, among other things, the psychological and physical health as well as the quality of life of clients, and to improve competitive stability in high-performance situations. These competences expand the area of sports psychological skill training to include aspects of psychosocial counseling. Accordingly, basic knowledge of 1:1 coaching, as well as, above all, a clear differentiation from disorders requiring therapeutic treatment, is necessary. Specific modules within the course highlight this aspect (including Clinical Psychology/Sports Psychiatry).

Module 1 "Introduction to the Module Series: Sports Psychological Training in Competitive Sports"
Basic conditions and principles of a successful sports psychological counseling and support activity.

Module 2 "Sports Psychological Work Processes"
Clarification of assignments, conceptualization, planning, documentation, and evaluation of sports psychological support mandates are covered. Further topics: Use of the QA manual, fee rates, funding possibilities, project application at BISp/ZKS/DOSB and ÖBS, fee invoices, and ethical frameworks.

Module 3 "Sports Psychological Supervision and Case Work"
This module prepares participants for practical activity under supervision.

Module 4 "Sports Psychological Diagnostics in Competitive Sports"
Overview of sports psychological diagnostic and evaluation procedures; interpretation as well as communication of results, use of structured interview guides, training and competition observation.

Module 5 "Leading Workshops - Basics of Moderation and Group Dynamics"
This module provides basic competences for leading workshops with small groups: moderation skills, pedagogical guidelines, group dynamics during workshops, and learning transfer to the participants' daily training and competition routines.

Module 6 "Motivation and Volition"
Based on typical motivational and volitional problems in elite sports, participants receive an overview of various forms of motivational and volitional diagnostics as well as suggestions for specific practice formats.

Module 7 "Imagery Training"
Imagery training involves participants learning how to introduce coaches and athletes to imagery skill training and how individual exercises for training imagery ability can be combined into a systematic training program.

Module 8 "Concentration Training"
This module examines the topic of concentration from the perspective of diagnostics and intervention. This includes, among other things, the development of (pre-start) routines and the targeted influencing of internal (e.g., thought management) and external (environment management) processes.

Module 9 "Psychoregulation and Stress Management"
The field of stress management provides elementary fundamentals for understanding the complexity and dynamics of how stress develops in competitive sports. Different intervention methods in training and competition are illustrated through numerous practical examples and personal experiences.

Module 10 "Self-Confidence & Dealing with Nervousness and Anxiety"
Self-confidence and mental toughness in competition, theoretical foundations, dealing with nervousness and performance pressure, anxiety, sports psychological training formats to increase competence and self-efficacy expectations, techniques for regulating nervousness, performance pressure, and competitive anxiety. The psychological specificities of major sporting events and squad qualifications are explained.

Module 11 "Sports Psychological Coaching in the Field"
The focus of this module is on the transfer of sports psychological interventions into training and competition practice. The module concludes with the presentation of the specificities, requirements, and tasks of the sports psychologist at major sporting events (World and European Championships; Olympic Games).

Module 12 "Injury and Crisis Intervention"
Professional sports psychological support for athletes in typical sports-specific crisis situations (including injury, career end) is the focus of this module. The main emphasis here is on injury management. In addition, emergency psychology intervention approaches for traumatic events (such as the death of a teammate, witnessing severe sports accidents, dealing with terrorist attacks/threats in the run-up to competitions) in sports teams as well as the possibilities and limitations of sports psychologists are presented.

Module 13 "Coach Counseling – Coach the Coach"
The specificities of sports psychological work with coaches are the focus. This involves, on one hand, topics that enable the coach to interact even better with the athlete (e.g., communication and feedback), and on the other hand, topics that support the coach in maintaining long-term performance capability (e.g., improving work-life balance through targeted regeneration and time-outs; constructive handling of failure).

Module 14 "Coaching Parents in Youth Competitive Sports"
This module focuses on the coaching of parents in youth competitive sports. Long-term support concepts for competitive sports families round off this module.

Module 15 "Team Counseling and Team Development"
Team counseling and team development are the focus: Theoretical frameworks for team development, specificities of the sports psychologist's role in team sports, and intervention measures to promote central phases of team development.

Module 16 "Clinical Psychology and Sports Psychiatry"
This module provides basic competences in clinical psychology for the recognition and differential diagnostic distinction of mental illnesses. Intervention concepts for specialized sports psychological topics are also taught (such as eating disorders, female athlete triad, drugs and doping in competitive sports, addiction issues and match-fixing, dealing with sexual abuse and sexualized violence, anxiety and panic disorders, depressive illnesses, burnout in coaches, etc.).

Module 17 "Overall Evaluation of the Module Series"
Preparation of the final report, situational analysis, final discussion, and award of certificates.

In addition to the preparatory courses and the "Module Series: Sports Psychological Training and Coaching," practical experience in performance-oriented sports must be demonstrated as part of the curriculum. The practical phase begins immediately with the preparatory courses and ends one month prior to the submission of the practical report. Practical experience in performance-oriented sports refers to sports psychological work in league sports or ranking-based sports with verifiable tournament and competition performances. During the practical phase, all participants work on core knowledge content from the preparatory courses and the "Module Series: Sports Psychological Training and Coaching."

Proportionate to the aforementioned practical experiences, supervised practice hours must be demonstrated under the guidance of a qualified and experienced expert in sports psychological support for elite sports. The supervision concept is implemented by certified asp supervisors and features a multicenter supervision approach. The multicenter supervision approach represents the central quality assurance measure throughout the entire training program and is offered in tandem with the sports psychological training.