The last time I was on this stage, I was lucky enough to be performing (admittedly acoustic, and admittedly the audience were seated in front of the organ)! #ENUgrads #MustBeNapier

ICYMI: @richsimpson95.bsky.social, Clara Swedlund, and I pop up in the latest edition of @psychmag.bsky.social. where we talk about the December Sport & Exercise Psychology conference.

(Even better, elsewhere @dr-peter-olusoga.bsky.social features in a piece about creativity and communication)

Grateful to be flanked by this encouraging group who steered me into/through my PhD viva yesterday. Very appreciative to my supervisors and assessors, alongside the Sport & Exercise Psychology community, for facilitating this journey!

Now back to reviewing abstracts for the DSEP 2025 conference!

As the #TallShips in Aberdeen comes to an end, I'm reminded of the time a friend and I visited Bergen when it was hosting. In a surreal moment, while attending a Brann football game, we were even introduced to the city's mayor!

Some years later she didn't share this reminiscence...

Day 2 of #WCSS2025 and plenty more excellent presentations and new connections. Highlights include supporting female match officials, recording non-verbal behaviour, and team-level interventions.

Looking forward to the KNVB workshop later this afternoon.

How can psychology support match officials?
🏅Frameworks building self-confidence & preparation can help decision-making (Samuel, '15)
💡Like all performers, match officials can find optimal performance in flow (or clutch) states (Swann et al. '17)
🔬 Deployment of mental skills (Mathers & Brodie '11)

#Hogmanay is always an excuse to draw out the memories of playing my favourite show...
🕷️ 25 years since the millenium bug
🏰 12 years since playing at #Stirling Castle
💿 10 years since releasing this album
So here's a track I wrote about being of that Y2K generation.

open.spotify.com/track/0qnEcq...

What's "defusion" about anyway?

Cognitive fusion is when we become stuck (fused) to our thoughts or feelings, believing them and acting in accordance (e.g. "I'll not succeed in this game so why try?")

#Defusion is about creating distance, seeing thoughts as thoughts & liberating our actions. #ACT

In addition to learning from many excellent presentations, I shared part of my research at @bps-dsep.bsky.social:
🖥️Hybrid learning may help support development,
📚Create a library of accessible content that learners can interact with,
🤝Encourage collaboration between, but also autonomy in, learners.

Contemporary take of the obligatory airport pint, but with a conference vibe.

Outstanding couple of days, huge credit to @ciaranjkearney.bsky.social and the organising committee for all their hard work behind #DSEP2024 @bps-dsep.bsky.social

Excellent keynote from Dr. Paul Gaffney closing @bps-dsep.bsky.social day 1, reflecting on his career and supporting athletes at Paris 2024.
⛰️ Like ascending Everest, coming back is the hardest part of the journey
⚽ Sport is the ultimate intervention
#DSEP2024

Great keynote from Prof. Sophia Jowett to start #DSEP2024:
🤝The coach-athlete relationship is integral for sport, but both parties are seen as being at opposite poles
🗺️Wider context helps understand coach-athlete relationship.
✨The relationship makes the arduous journey to performance rewarding

#Athletes warm up to improve flexibility, reducing risks of breaking down or failure.

So, we should also prepare ourselves to be mentally flexible!

#MentalFlexibility allows us to drop the struggle, swiftly navigating the challenges - expected or not - that come our way.
#SportPsychoLEGOgy

Productive Sunday afternoon.

For the avoidance of doubt, Julmust is the optimal Christmas drink.

But what if these modern-day tamagotchis start to take research methods modules. What if that happens, Alex?!

(They'll probably skip those classes, granted)

#Resilience isn't just recovering from setbacks. It begins before kick off - our approach to the challenge ahead.

It doesn't end after responding to a mistake either. It is in the decompression that follows a game/session.

#SportPsychoLEGOgy

Confidence in sport comes from many sources; past accomplishments, supporters (literal or emotional), teammates, and coach feedback are just a few examples. #SportPsychoLEGOgy

Very pleased to present at the TIDES network today, a global community of academics/practitioners working in #talent in sport:
⚽ Hybrid learning for #psychology in youth soccer
💻 Foster an autonomous, social, flexible learning experience
🥅 Complement a library of online content with on-pitch tasks

A very delayed birthday purchase from last year, products of two small (remote) distilleries both with an environmental slant.
🥃Nc'Nean: an organic, certified #Bcorp whisky from near Mull.
🥃Ardnamurchan 10: a renewable energy driven #whisky from near Lochaber.
#SlàinteMhath