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The vast majority of research on cognitive enhancement has focused on pharmacological cognitive enhancement (PCE), with relatively little exploration of public attitudes towards non-pharmacological cognitive enhancing substances. Limited research has investigated how the lay public ethically evaluates nootropic supplements (i.e. legal and purportedly natural over-the-counter products), or how such attitudes may differ from attitudes towards other cognitive enhancers. This experimental between-subjects study used a contrastive vignette technique to explore Irish students' attitudes towards caffeine tablets, nootropic supplements and PCE. One-hundred-and-thirteen Irish university students participated in the study (46 male, 64 female), ranging from 18 to 25 years of age (M = 21.9). Quantitative analyses examined differences in mean attitudes between cognitive enhancement conditions and genders. Results suggest that the three forms of cognitive enhancement provoked similar moderate responses in relation to safety and authenticity, however, students were more concerned about implicit coercion in relation to PCE and reported heightened fairness concerns in relation to nootropic supplements. Nootropic supplements may have distinct ethical implications which are not simply equivalent to those that accompany PCE or caffeine tablets, raising questions surrounding the effects of novel cognitive enhancing products; financial barriers to legal non-pharmacological cognitive enhancement; and the permissibility of cognitive enhancement advertising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motor imagery (MI; mental simulation of actions) shares certain mental representations and processes with executed movement (ME). This neurocognitive overlap between MI and ME may explain why the systematic use of MI improves skilled performance in numerous domains. Unfortunately, the attentional mechanisms underlying MI remain unresolved. Therefore, the present studies investigated the role of attentional effort (as measured by pupil dilation) in MI. We evaluated the effects of movement complexity and speed on expert pianists' pupil dilation as they physically executed and used MI to perform easy/complex and slow/fast music phrases. Results revealed that easy movements required similar levels of attentional effort during MI and ME. However, during complex movements performed at a fast speed, the correspondence between execution and imagery of movement was disrupted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eye tracking technology records the location, duration and sequence of people's visual fixations when they inspect a given scene. In this way, it elucidates what people pay attention to when they look at sources of information. The present paper investigates some practical implications of this technology for attentional training in applied sport psychology. Following a brief overview of eye movements, the article describes three popular types of eye trackers in sport psychology—fixed, mobile, and head-mounted systems. Then, it examines some recent eye tracking research on improving athletes' gaze behavior and skilled performance. After that, it summarize the practical implications of these studies for attentional training in applied sport psychology. The article concludes by exploring how eye tracking technology can augment cognitive training in sport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motor imagery, or the mental rehearsal of actions in the absence of physical movement, is an increasingly popular construct in fields such as neuroscience, cognitive psychology and sport psychology. Unfortunately, few models of motor imagery have been postulated to date. Nevertheless, based on the hypothesis of functional equivalence between imagery, perception and motor execution, Holmes and Collins in 2001 developed the PETTLEP model of motor imagery in an effort to provide evidence-based guidelines for imagery practice in sport psychology. Given recent advances in theoretical understanding of functional equivalence, however, it is important to provide a contemporary critical reflection on motor imagery research conducted using this model. The present article addresses this objective. We begin by explaining the background to the development of the PETTLEP model. Next, we evaluate key issues and findings in PETTLEP-inspired research. Finally, we offer suggestions for, and new directions in, research in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to provide an ecologically valid account of the experiences of 'admitted dopers'. In-depth interviews were conducted with five elite athletes from the sports of road cycling, mountain biking and weightlifting. The athletes had either tested positive for banned substances or had admitted to prior drug use after their retirement from competitive sport. Thematic analysis was used to extract meaning from the interview data. Individual psychological factors and contextual influences on the athletes' doping decisions were identified. The conflicting responses of these athletes make the identification of a psychological profile of athletes most at-risk for doping difficult, but morality was consistently cited as an important consideration. The culture of the athletes' team or training group and 'critical incidents' during the athletes' careers were often influential in precipitating drug use. Doping deterrents were also discussed, of which guilt and shame were predominant. The athletes outlined their perceived personal and social consequences of doping. Their future outlook for reducing the problem of doping in sport was generally optimistic. The findings have significant implications for the design of anti-doping research and education, and the implementation of anti-doping policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers have suggested that skill performance deteriorates when people try to exert conscious control over automatic actions. Unfortunately, little is known about the effects of different types of conscious processing on skilled performance by expert athletes. We conducted two experiments to address this issue. Experiment 1 investigated the influence of a specific form of conscious control (making technical adjustments to a stroke) on the putting skills of expert golfers. The expert golfers maintained putting proficiency (i.e. number of putts holed) when making technical adjustments. However, this form of conscious processing altered the timing and consistency of golfers' putting strokes. Experiment 2 compared the influence of technical adjustments and conscious monitoring (paying attention to the execution of the stroke) on expert golfers' putting skills. Technical adjustments had no disruptive influence on expert golfers' putting proficiency but did reduce the consistency of their strokes. However, conscious monitoring was found to impair putting proficiency. The implications of the work for theory and future work are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The past decade has witnessed increased interest in the visual search behaviour of athletes. Little is known, however, about the relationship between anxiety and eye movements in sport performers or about the extent to which athletes' planned and actual visual search strategies correspond. To address these issues, we conducted two studies. In Study 1, eight expert female gymnasts were presented with three digital slides of a model performing a skill that is known to be anxiety-provoking in this sport – namely, the 'back flip' on the beam. By varying the height of the beam and the presence or absence of safety mats, the slides differed in the amount of anxiety that they elicited vicariously in the viewer. In the study, the gymnasts were asked to imagine themselves in the position of the depicted model and to describe the anxiety that they felt. As they viewed the slides, their eye movements were recorded. As predicted, anxiety was associated with an increase in the number of fixations to peripheral areas. In addition, the more 'threatening' slides elicited significantly more fixations than the less feared images. In Study 2, the plans of 15 equestrian performers (5 expert, 5 intermediate and 5 novice) were elicited as they engaged in a virtual 'walk' around a computerized show-jumping course. Contrary to expectations, the congruence between intended and actual search behaviour was not significantly greater for expert riders than for the less skilled groups. Also, the fact that the top riders allocated more fixations to slides than the less skilled performers challenged the prediction that expertise would be associated with economy of visual search. Finally, as expected, the expert riders were significantly less dependent on the overall 'course plan' than the intermediate and novice equestrian performers when inspecting the fences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reflects on origin of the journal International Review of Sports and Exercise Psychology (IRSEP), its mission, and the approaches adopted by its team members to achieve the mission and purpose. Topics include consumer base of IRSEP, values of IRSEP's readers, and plans of the journal to promote the publication.

Explores how research in learning styles can benefit from certain findings in cognitive psychology. Background of learning styles; Assumptions of and problems in research on learning styles; Lessons from contemporary cognitive psychology; Conclusions.

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An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses papers within the special issue of "Journal of Applied Sport Psychology (JASP)" focusing on contemporary single-case designs (SCDs).

An introduction is presented in which the editor-inc-chief discusses articles within the issue on topics including positive organizational psychology in sport (POPS), the role of 'simple heuristics' and development of expertise in football.

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including moral disengagement in sport, well-being in competitive athletes and perfectionism in sports.

The article discusses various reports published within the issue, including one by David Tod and David Lavallee on muscle dysmorphia, and another by Stewart Cotterill on pre-performance routines in sport.

The article discusses various reports published within the issue, including one by Daniel Memmert on visual attentional expertise in sport, another by Marc Jones, Carla Meijen, and Paul McCarthy on threats and challenges in athletes, and another by Clive Jones on overtraining.

The article discusses various reports published within the issue including one by Shauna Burke, Albert Carron and Kim Shapcott on the relationship between "cohesion" and exercise behaviour in group settings and another by Maria Kavusaanu on moral behavior in sport.