ABSTRACT
Of all the branches of psychology which have yet to reveal their full worth to the world of sport, occupational psychology must surely head the list. Looking across the gamut of potentially relevant material the casual reader is struck not by the way in which occupational psychology has been picked clean but instead by the exciting opportunities which remain to be discovered. Two exceptions to this rule do stand out however, these being the areas of leadership/effective management and goal-setting. While a plentiful sport psychology literature exists dealing with both, neither is without its problems, and these will be discussed later. Alongside this material, we have also identified areas which we consider are ripe for further research. Possibilities which spring to mind and which have long interested occupational psychologists include work on personnel selection and recruitment, and on work motivation and job satisfaction. Both have immediate relevance to so many sport settings, and we would suggest, eagerly await closer attention. To structure this material, the chapter is divided into four primary sections. The first reviews the management of sport, encompassing work on leadership and coaching styles. The second deals with goal-setting in sport, while the third and fourth sections, dealing with selection and work motivation respectively, look more towards the future and suggest possibilities for further work. The first topic to be addressed is leadership and management in sport. You could easily imagine that this issue will also be covered in Chapter 8 under teacher effectiveness, but in actual fact the two literatures remain very much distinct, one focusing on teaching and delivery techniques in physical education, the other with how to manage and motivate athletes. Whether this is an artificial divide is up to you to decide when you have had the opportunity to read both chapters; we are certainly of the opinion that the distance separating the two at present cannot be healthy.
