ABSTRACT
The provision of applied services to athletes is an accepted practice in elite sport and has recently gained traction at the intercollegiate, high school, and even youth levels. The common end-goals of applied psychological services are the enhanced performance and increased well-being of athletes. In adopting a holistic lens, a recent call has been made to account for the broad range of social relationships that take place in sport while addressing the ways these relationships shape and are shaped by an athlete’s sport experiences. The purpose of the present chapter was to highlight systems theory as a dynamic framework that can be used by clinical and/or counseling sport psychologists in the design and delivery of interventions in organized sport. As such, we introduce the systems perspective, outline its major tenets, and describe how it can be applied by sport psychologists. We also provide an overview of the salient family and team literature, highlighting the roles of the individuals that surround athletes in sport. Finally, we will integrate these concepts by providing a range of applied considerations for those working in applied settings. These reflections will offer strategies for working with youth, high school, intercollegiate, and elite athletes.
