Huntley, E (2021) Exploring reflective practice engagement and development within trainee sport and exercise scientists. Doctoral thesis, Liverpool John Moores University.

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Abstract

It is generally accepted that engaging in reflective practice (RP) is important to be a competent and effective practitioner. However, evidence supporting this claim is sparse, highly theoretical and located within a variety of domains. Whilst the literature focusing on RP within sport has grown and continues to do so, there is also still a paucity of research specifically within a sport and exercise science (SES) setting, even though specific professional development focusing on RP exists for these SES practitioners within the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES) accreditation scheme. Therefore, the aim of this thesis is to evaluate the impact and role of an existing RP curriculum, as well as explore and plot the longitudinal development of RP within trainee Sport and Exercise Scientists. In doing so, a variety of data collection methods were utilised across several studies, including both qualitative (e.g., interviews) and quantitative (e.g., questionnaires) approaches. Findings confirmed that RP is a complex, highly individualised and context-dependent process. In addition, the RP workshop had a positive and significant impact on participants’ perceived confidence and competence to reflect. This was coupled with significant decreases in habitual action (HA) or ‘acting without thinking’ which suggested increases in self-awareness. Furthermore, significant increases were also observed in reflective learning scores over time from 12 months post-workshop attendance, suggesting that such behaviours can take time to develop. Level (or depth) of written reflection however did not statistically change over time, but when explored at the individual level this could have been due to the chosen content of the reflection. Participants also reported both positive and negative experiences regarding the facilitation of their RP beyond the attended workshop, which has implications for RP engagement. The thesis concludes with some recommendations for how to improve the existing approaches for RP facilitation and suggestions for future research.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	reflective practice; reflection
Subjects:	L Education > L Education (General) R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC1200 Sports Medicine G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GV Recreation Leisure > GV561 Sports
Divisions:	Sport & Exercise Sciences
Date Deposited:	26 Jul 2021 08:39
Last Modified:	08 Nov 2022 14:28
DOI or ID number:	10.24377/LJMU.t.00015307
Supervisors:	Knowles, Z
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/15307

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