Overview

The Applied Practice Award is to recognise any members of the Division of the Sport & Exercise Psychology (DSEP) who have made significant contribution to applied practice within the field of Sport and Exercise Psychology.

To be eligible to apply for this award, you must have worked in applied practice as a (trainee) sport and exercise psychologist and/or have made a significant contribution to the population you have worked with. 

The award is open to those currently going through the Qualification in Sport and Exercise Psychology (Stage 2), Professional Doctorate students in Sport and Exercise Psychology, as well as more experienced practitioners with sustained success in the field.

Assessment Criteria

Only members of the Division of Sport and Exercise Psychology and those who are HCPC registered or those on the Qualification in Sport and Exercise Psychology (Stage 2) or on a Professional Doctorate are eligible to submit their work.

In determining who to award the applied practice award to, applications received for the awards will be judged by at least two independent assessors according to the following criteria:

1. The innovation and impact of evidence-based practice and its effectiveness.
2. The level of contribution to the field in applied practice relative to applicants career stage

Guidance for nominations

You will need the following information:

Nominee details:

1. Name
2. Title
3. Organisation/affiliation
4. BPS membership number

Supporting Documentary Evidence:

• A covering letter of not more than one page (Times New Roman, size 12 font, 1.5 line spacing) outlining the reasons for the application, should be included.
• A summary report of not more than four pages (Times New Roman, size 12 font, 1.5 line spacing) giving the main applied practice carried out, highlighting, where possible, the impact this work has had. This report may include a case study or case studies of practice.

Please note: these must be merged into one PDF document and provided as one attachment.

Following the submission of the report, you will receive an automated confirmation of receipt of your submission, and the outcome of the reviewers’ decision will be made within 2 months of the deadline.

The recipient of award will receive:

The award will be presented to the successful nominee at the Division’s Conference. The award recipient may be asked to deliver a keynote lecture or speech at the conference.

If submissions are received that do not conform to the high standards implied by the prize, no award will be made.

The recipient of this award will receive £300 and their registration fees will also be covered should they present their work at the DSEP Annual Conference within two years of receiving the award.

Overview

The Distinguished Contribution Award is to recognise any members of the Division of the Sport & Exercise Psychology (DSEP) who have made a distinguished contribution to the field of Sport and Exercise Psychology in any relevant area (e.g., research, applied consultancy, education) over a sustained period of time.

Entry Criteria

• Nominee must be a Full Member of Division of the Sport & Exercise Psychology (DSEP)
• Nominators must be Full Members of the Division of Sports & Excercise Psychology (DSEP)

Assessment Criteria

In determining who to award the distinguished contribution award to, applications received for the awards will be judged by at least two independent assessors according to the following criteria:

1. The innovation and impact of evidence-based sport and exercise psychology practice in relevant area nominated and its effectiveness.
2. The level of contribution to the field in the relevant area nominated.

How to apply

Applications for this award should be made by 2 nominators (who rather than individuals applying on their own behalf. In other words, if you feel that you have a colleague or someone you know has made a distinguished contribution to the discipline of Sport and Exercise Psychology, you can nominate them for this award. In addition to this, the DSEP committee also has the right to nominate someone each year for this award.

Guidance for nominations

You will need the following information:

Nominee details:

1. Name
2. Title
3. Organisation/affiliation
4. BPS membership number

Details of two nominators:

1. Name
2. Title
3. Organisation/affiliation
4. BPS membership number

Supporting Documentary Evidence:

• A covering letter of not more than four pages (Times New Roman, size 12 font, 1.5 line spacing) outlining the reasons for the nomination and the key achievements of the nominee in narrative form.

Please note: these must be merged into one PDF document and provided as one attachment.

Following the submission of the report, you will receive an automated confirmation of receipt of your submission, and the outcome of the reviewers’ decision will be made within 2 months of the deadline.

Recipient of award will receive

The award will be presented to the successful nominee at the Division’s Conference. The award recipient may be asked to deliver a keynote lecture or speech at the conference.

If submissions are received that do not conform to the high standards implied by the prize, no award will be made.

In total we have three research awards available per year.

In order to be eligible for submission and for you to be able to apply for these awards, your thesis must have been submitted for and awarded the relevant level (e.g., Undergraduate, MSc, PhD) at a UK institution of higher education within a year of the award nomination deadline. It must represent the independent work of the student submitting. 

Entry Criteria

• Nominee must be a Member of Division of Sport and Exercise Psychology (DSEP)

Assessment Criteria

Applications for the awards will be judged by at least two independent assessors according to the following criteria:

If submissions are received that do not conform to the high standards implied by the prize, no award will be made.

Guidance for nominations

You will need the following information:

Nominee details:

1. Name
2. Title
3. Organisation/affiliation
4. BPS membership number

Supporting Documentary Evidence:

• A covering letter of not more than one page (Times New Roman, size 12 font, 1.5 line spacing) outlining the reasons for the application.
• A letter (or any other appropriate evidence e.g., copy of degree certificate) confirming completion of the award being applied for.
• A summary report of not more than four pages (Times New Roman, size 12 font, 1.5 line spacing) giving the main findings in the thesis and theoretical and applied implications. All of the following headings should be used in the report:

  Title: The title should be short, informative and precise be written in Upper and Lower Case

  Introduction and Aims of the Research Programme: Outline the literature underpinning the research, the identified gaps in the literature, and the aims of the research programme.

  Abstract(s) for each Study Conducted: Provide abstracts for each of the studies conducted in your research. This may only be one abstract for the undergraduate and master’s awards, but is likely to be more for the PhD award.

  Contribution to Knowledge and Applied Implications: Outline the key contributions to knowledge and any applied implications which permeate from the work.

  Strengths and Limitations: Recognition of the key strengths and limitations of the work.

  References: Include a list of up to 5 indicative references which relate to the project.

  Appendixes (if required): Tables and figures may be included in the additional information as required.

• A letter of support from the supervisor of not more than one page (Times New Roman, size 12 font, 1.5 line spacing) outlining the suitability of the candidate for the award on offer and confirming that the work in the application it is the student’s own work.

In total, the main body of the application (e.g., covering letter, summary report of thesis, and supervisor support letter) should not exceed six pages.

Please note: these must be merged into one PDF document and provided as one attachment.

Following the submission of the report, you will receive an automated confirmation of receipt of your submission, and the outcome of the reviewers’ decision will be made within 2 months of the deadline

The Recipient of award will receive:

Distinguished Contribution Award

Overview

BPS DSEP Research Working Groups (henceforth referred to as “Research Working Groups”) are DSEP recognised research groups set up to investigate specific topics relevant to sport and exercise psychology. The primary aims of the Research Working Groups initiative are:

• To enable leaders of working groups to bring together experts from within a research area to foster greater collaboration.
• To encourage and support working groups who wish to progress a specific research area within sport and exercise psychology.
• To provide small funds to be exclusively used for travel and accommodation expenses for the members of the working group (as stated on the proposal).

How to set up a Research Working Group

To set up a Research Working Group, a working group lead (who must be a DSEP member) should submit a formal application to the DSEP Resrach Working Group Lead.

The proposal will be reviewed by the committee and assessed in relation to a set of specific criteria in October of each year.

The proposal must demonstrate the value of Research Working Group to DSEP.

A Research Working Group should comprise at least four members, and should not exceed 10 members.

The members of the Research Working Group are not required to be DSEP members, only the lead must be a member of DSEP. 

Requirements of a Research Working Group

In general, the proposed working group should clearly state why the working group is needed, it should be clear as to the importance of the research area being pursued, it should be led by an established researcher in the research area proposed, it should clearly state the anticipated outcomes of the group, should document a 2-year plan for group meetings and actions, and should state how the group will endorse the values of the BPS[1].

In addition, the criteria will outline to proposers that outcomes can include published papers, further research funding, a position statement, series of blogs/vlogs and other publicly available media, or conference posters/presentations/symposia.

Any outputs produced must acknowledge DSEP as a funder. The working group lead must present at the annual DSEP conference the following year (if the working group commences in October 2017, the lead must present in 2018).

The outcomes of each funded meeting should be minuted and submitted to DSEP to provide progress updates to the committee. The Research Working Group Lead (currently Dr Martin Turner) will visit each Research Working Group once per year to ensure adherence to the requirements of a BPS DSEP Research Working Group.

Funding and timescale

Research Working Groups will operate for two years from the date of approval by the committee. Expenses will only be funded to the amount of £1,500 per year, and will only be processed for approved Research Working Group members.

The number of working groups is dictated by how much the committee feels is appropriate. This may hinge on available funds. The group will not receive the funding directly, but will submit an expenses report to DSEP.

DSEP will fund two Research Working Groups per year (year 1 cost = £3,000 + two conference fee waivers, then £6,000 per year after that + two conference fee waivers). 

Benefits to the Research Working Group

Each Research Working Group will receive £1,500 for use on travel and accommodation expenses for UK members within the working group to attend research meetings.

This allows the working group to collaborate with experts in the area of interest without the barrier of travel and accommodation costs.

This is crucial because experts can be disparately located across the U.K., and travel can be costly (e.g., from Scotland, to London). It is stipulated that the lead must present at the DSEP conference the following year[2], and the fees for this individual will be waived, but travel expenses for the conference should be allocated from their Research Working Groups fund.

The working group will be a DSEP recognised group, which may help the group to garner further interest from collaborators and funders.

Benefits to DSEP

DSEP have an opportunity to support valuable research groups that will produce outputs that further the field. By supporting Research Working Groups DSEP can have a hand in helping research groups to form stronger, more expansive, and more productive networks. Inter and multi-disciplinary collaboration is highly beneficial for research, but can be costly and difficult to manage.

Better collaboration will lead to higher quality work being produced, therefore enhancing the reputation and impact of sport and exercise psychology. In addition, in the Research Working Group proposal, the Research Working Group lead must outline the benefits of the Research Working Group to DSEP. 

Growth

It is projected that in the first year of the initiative two working groups are approved. This would provide pilot groups to help the revision and refinement of the proposal, assessment, and administration processes. A £3,000 investment from DSEP in the first year would provide two valuable case-studies to help gather information about the success of the initiative, and the potential for growth.

If deemed successful, the initiative could expand to 4 groups (at a cost of £6,000). However, more than that would a. devalue the initiative, and b. become costly for DSEP.

How to apply

You must be signed-in to access the following material

• Download DSEP Research Working Group Application Form (members only)

Deadline for applications is 4 May 2018

Return forms to:

• DSEP Working Group Lead

1. We aim to work in a culture of: rigour and fairness; honesty and integrity; transparency; respect for a diversity of viewpoints; the highest standards of professionalism and ethical behaviour, attitudes and judgements, as laid out in our Code of Ethics and Conduct (The BPS Strategic Plan 2015-2020). 
2. If the Research Working Group is approved in October 2017, the lead must present at DSEP 2018