Tadhg Macintyre- PhD CPsychol. HPC Reg. Psychol
- Professor (Associate) at National University of Ireland, Maynooth
Tadhg Macintyre
- PhD CPsychol. HPC Reg. Psychol
- Professor (Associate) at National University of Ireland, Maynooth
Scientific Coordinator Horizon projects GoGreenRoutes and GoGreenNext, Course Director MSc. Environmental˜ Psychology
About
160
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Introduction
Dr. Tadhg E. MacIntyre afPSI CPsychol is an environmental psychologist coordinating the H2020 project GoGreenRoutes which promotes urban health across six European cities. In 2019 he co-authored "Physical Activity in Natural Settings: Green and Blue Exercise, and has published widely on nature-based solutions. Member of the All-Institute at Maynooth University, funded investigator with the SFI Insight Center for Data Analytics and Visiting Prof. in the TechPA research Group, INN, Norway.
Skills and Expertise
Current institution
Additional affiliations
August 2012 - present
January 2002 - present
Education
January 1997 - November 2006
September 1993 - September 1996
Field of study
- Psychology: Imagery validation: How do we know that athletes are imaging during mental practice?
September 1988 - October 1993
Publications
Publications (160)
Mental health is a global societal challenge. Sport, more specifically, elite sport, offers a potential window into the mental health challenges of young people. We initiated this research topic by proposing that explanations for mental health disturbance in sport predominantly based on training load (e.g., mental health model, Raglin, 2001), overl...
Motor imagery has been central to adzvances in sport performance and rehabilitation. Neuroscience has provided techniques for measurement which have aided our understanding, conceptualization and theorizing. Challenges remain in the appropriate measurement of motor imagery. Motor imagery continues to provide an impetus for new findings relating to...
This multi-case study approach explores nature connectedness, resilience and attitudes towards the environment and sustainability among extreme sport performers. Uniquely, the participants in order to be advocates for sustainable sporting activity waived their anonymity. The achievements of the sample include channel swims, summitting Everest, ski-...
Being exposed to natural environments is associated with improved health and well-being, as these environments are believed to promote feelings of "being away" from everyday struggles, positive emotional reactions and stress reduction. Despite these positive effects, humanity is becoming increasingly more distanced from nature due to societal chang...
Mental health in the workplace is a societal challenge with serious economical and human costs. Most prevalent mental disorders in the workforce (e.g., depression), however, are preventable. There is widespread agreement about the favorable effects of nature exposure and consequently, nature-based interventions (NBI) in the workplace have been prop...
The ongoing urbanisation and densification at the intersection with increasing environmental and health crises demand a holistic, equitable, and inclusive approach to urban planning, which has also been highlighted in the EU Green Deal’s inclusive approach to sustainable urban planning aligned with the UN SDGs’ “Leave No One Behind.” This article i...
Introduction Global health is facing critical challenges (e.g., climate change, environmental degradation, biodiversity loss, increasing non-communicable diseases), particularly within urban settings (e.g., cities) where over half of the global population resides (Romanello et al., 2024). As rapid urbanization continues, pressures of current global...
Air pollution’s effects on physical health, especially cardiovascular and respiratory, are well known. Exposure to air pollution may damage every organ and cell in the human body. New evidence is emerging showing that air pollution adversely affects human mental health. Current research suggests that high air pollution levels have long-term mental...
Background
A vital element to understanding the the health and wellbeing of both humans and the environment is human-nature interactions. The biophilia hypothesis is referred to when discussing these interactions. This hypothesis suggests that due to evolution, humans have an innate urge to seek out nature. The concept of nature connectedness was d...
Increased urban population has created a disconnection between humans and natural environments that needs to be recognised as a key challenge. This article proposes that disconnection from nature in urban settings can be mitigated by digital placemaking. A conceptual framework which accounts for place attachment and place branding, Social Identity...
Objective
This study systematically summarizes the extant literature on the impacts of immersive virtual nature (IVN) on nature connectedness in the general population.
Methods
Papers were considered eligible if peer-reviewed, in English language, comprising experimental or quasi-experimental trials, including at least one outcome relative to natu...
Cities face the challenge of preserving and enhancing nature spaces in the context of economic globalization. The decline of public spaces (Paquin, 2019), including urban nature, has disconnected humans from the natural world (Riechers et al., 2021), particularly due to the rise of technology (Edwards et al., 2020). Urban nature spaces have the pot...
This systematic review assesses the methodological quality of manuscripts focusing on scales that explicitly measure nature connectedness. A literature search in six electronic databases was conducted using a search strategy based on PICO guidelines. Only peer-reviewed primary research available in and BehaviorTiscareno-Osorno et al. research-artic...
Approved by the European Commission and hosted under: https://gogreenroutes.eu/publication?t=D6.3%20Digital%20Placemaking%20tool-kit%20for%20all%20Cultivating%20Cities
In an era where technology and nature seemingly stand at opposite ends, digital placemaking offers a unique opportunity to bridge this gap, offering a harmonious blend that enhances...
Background:
The GoGreenRoutes project aims to introduce co-created nature-based solutions (NBS) to enhance environmental quality in six medium-sized cities (Burgas, Lahti, Limerick, Tallinn, Umeå, and Versailles). We estimated the mortality and economic impacts attributed to suboptimal exposure to green space and air pollution, economic impacts, a...
Our cities are experiencing numerous challenges involving economic globalization, urban nature degradation and climate change. In a call to rethink the human-nature relationship, digital placemaking could be implemented as a way to promote place branding and attachment, fostering community engagement in urban nature spaces and introducing nature as...
The COVID-19 outbreak led to major restrictions globally, affecting people's psychosocial health and their health behaviors. Thus, the purpose of this scoping review was to summarize the available research regarding nature and health in the COVID-19 context. Keywords relating to natural environments and COVID-19 were combined to conduct a systemati...
This report was developed as part of task 3.4: “Prepare, Design and Implement a ‘seedbed’ intervention in each of the Cultivating Cities” in the research project “GO GREEN: Resilient Optimal Urban natural, Technological and Environmental Solutions (GO GREEN ROUTES)”, funded by the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 programme. It Includes diverse ac...
Technology implementations in the urban environment have the potential to reshape how communities experience places, specifically providing a potential enhancer for nature-based solutions in the city. Urban spaces are facing a number of challenges from climate mitigation to negative effects on communities. In this context, nature-based solutions ai...
The GoGreenRoutes project (Horizon 2020/869764) aims to introduce co-created nature-based solutions (NBS) as interventions to enhance access to green space in six medium-sized European cities (Burgas, Lahti, Limerick, Tallinn, Umea, and Versailles). We analyzed the spatial distribution and health impacts associated with unequal exposure to air poll...
Objective
Nature Connectedness, an individual’s cognitive, affective, and behavioral connection with the natural world, has been linked to various health and well-being outcomes. As Nature Connectedness can be elicited and strengthened through direct contact with nature, in the past decade studies have investigated whether similar effects can be ac...
Promoting mental health addresses a global societal challenge. Nature connectedness, or relatedness to natural systems, is associated with increased well-being and mental health. Among urban populations, nature connectedness has been reported as lower. Nature connectedness in urban settings has been somewhat overlooked by researchers. This cross-se...
Promoting mental health addresses a global societal challenge. Nature connectedness, or relatedness to natural systems, is associated with increased well-being and mental health. Among urban populations, nature connectedness has been reported as lower. Nature connectedness in urban settings has been somewhat overlooked by researchers. This cross-se...
GoGreenRoutes (GGR) is a Horizon 2020-funded project aiming to increase nature-connectedness and ameliorate the physical and mental health of urban dwellers across Europe. The project’s multidisciplinary consortium is pairing participatory approaches and citizen science with Big Data analyses and digital innovation to co-create "Urban Well-being La...
Systematic Literature Review Protocol submitted and registered with PROSPERO (registration number: 2022 CRD42022316039).
https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=316039
Background: Recent debates around nature-based solutions to improve cities’ health expose
the opportunity for digital placemaking. This study explores the re...
Digital placemaking is a confusing term and its potential support to health and wellbeing through engagement with nature is little understood. This microtalk will focus on how digital placemaking and green spaces impact health and well-being. We aim to create digital placemaking toolkits for each Cultivating Cities from the GoGreenRoutes project. T...
There is now ample evidence that motor imagery contributes to improve motor performance and promote motor learning and recovery. During the last decades, a large number of experimental studies and imagery frameworks were designed to determine the critical key components for effective imagery interventions. The extent to which athletes often move sl...
The COVID-19 outbreak has led to major restrictions globally, affecting people’s psychosocial health and their health behaviors. Thus, the purpose of this scoping review was to summarize the available research regarding the nature-health-association in the COVID-19 context. Keywords related to natural environments and COVID-19 were combined to cond...
Objective
Official reports and anecdotal evidence suggest that people with power frequently put pressure on athletes to fix a match. Therefore, it is assumed that athletes may attribute their involvement to this pressure. The present study was designed to investigate the role that power, attributions and moral emotions may play in the decision to f...
In launching this Research Topic, our objective was to capture contemporary perspectives on the conceptualization and measurement of human-nature interactions, and advance future research perspectives. The ubiquitous nature of the challenge is exemplified by a diverse and expansive list of countries of our contributors, which ranges among 15 differ...
Psychological science faces a call to action researching the implications of the corona virus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. Rapid reviews have reported that maintaining rigorous research standards is a priority for the field, such as ensuring reliable and valid measurement, when investigating people’s experience of Covid-19 (O’Connor et al., 20...
Self-regulation is described as the ability to successfully monitor and control one’s thoughts, feelings, and actions in accordance with the demands of a task. It involves change to bring one’s thinking and behaviour in line with often consciously desired standards and goals. Endurance athletes frequently attempt to control their thoughts and feeli...
"Nature is something within which we flourish, so having it be more a part of our lives is critical, especially when we live and work in built environments."
Richard M. Ryan
There is ever more pressure on green space and nature in cities where most people live now and more will do so in the future. There is less opportunity for exercise in nature...
Improved understanding of the benefits arising from participation in sport and exercise has led to increasing adoption of low-risk lifestyle behaviours. This is a significant positive social change which gyms can help to facilitate. However, their sustainability must be questioned, as well as the hidden health impacts that may be lurking within. Th...
“I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree”
Joyce Kilmer
One of the most memorable moments during childhood is our first visit to a natural green or blue space. Our recollections of climbing a tree immersed in nature can resonate for many years. Similarly, the first time one gets hit by an ocean wave provides a robust memory that has...
“My business is to paint what I see, not what I know is there.”
J.M.W Turner
Lack of physical activity a major risk factor for global premature mortality and a large proportion of adults aged 18 years and over are insufficiently active worldwide. Therefore, there is an urgent need to tackle the problem of physical inactivity at a population leve...
“Two world trends are powerfully reshaping human existence: the degradation…of large parts of the natural world, and unprecedented technological development. At the nexus of these two trends lies technological nature.”
Kahn et al. (2009)
With a focus on so-called immersive virtual environments, in this chapter we will explore ways in which techn...
“We are like islands in the sea, separate on the surface but connected in the deep.”
William James
The concept of ‘Blue Mind’ coined by Wallace J. Nichols (2014) which has popularized water-based activities as a pathway to well-being and health provides a fitting backdrop for this chapter. The term refers to a “mildly meditative state characteri...
"Research has shown that people with a greater sense of vitality don't just have more energy for things they want to do, they are also more resilient to physical illnesses. One of the pathways to health may be to spend more time in natural settings. “
Richard M. Ryan
Background
Research focused on mental health in sport has revealed a need to develop evidence-supported mental health practices that are sensitive to sport culture, particularly for non-elite athletes. A consensus statement was produced to assist effective mental health awareness in sport and guide programme implementation in this rapidly emerging...
Background: Acquisition and consolidation of a new motor skill occurs gradually over long time span. Motor imagery (MI) and brain stimulation have been showed as beneficial approaches that boost motor learning, but little is known about the extent of their combined effects.
Objective: Here, we aimed to investigate, for the first time, whether deliv...
Action observation (AO) alone or combined with motor imagery (AO + MI) has been shown to engage the motor system. While recent findings support the potential relevance of both techniques to enhance muscle function, this issue has received limited scientific scrutiny. In the present study, we implemented a counterbalanced conditions design where 21...
Resilience research is plagued with conceptual inconsistencies, particularly when considered across different contexts, not least because of the diversity of adverse situations across these contexts. We conducted a systematic review to examine current conceptualisations of resilience across the contexts of work and competitive sports. Utilising a s...
In this chapter, we explore the aforementioned paradigm shifts and how they offer
an ave nue for new research. We first elucidate what precisely “ mental imagery,” the
parent construct of motor imagery, is and explain the research milestones that have
elucidated our understanding of this complex topic. The construct of motor imagery
has become a th...
Resilience research is undergoing a shift away from trait approaches, acknowledging the inherent process and dynamism of stress interactions. Hill et al. (2018) suggest that to understand the iterative nature of the multifactorial resilience process, a dynamical systems approach needs to be used. We suggest that explaining resilience through Whette...
Motor imagery has been central to advances in sport performance and rehabilitation. Neuroscience has provided techniques for measurement which have aided our understanding, conceptualization and theorizing. Challenges remain in the appropriate measurement of motor imagery. Motor imagery continues to provide an impetus for new findings relating to o...
Purpose: Burnout has been shown to develop due to chronic stress or distress, which has negative implications for both physical and mental health and well-being. Burnout research originated in the “caring-professions.” However, there is a paucity of research which has focused specifically on how job demands, resources and personal characteristics a...
This study examined the metacognitive processes and attentional focus of recreational endurance runners. The emphasis was on understanding the metacognitive processes important to acquire, develop, and refine cognitive strategies in novice endurance exercise participants. The potential impact of metacognitive processes and cognitive strategies on l...
There still is a lot of resistance to openly addressing mental health in sports like rugby and football where disclosing any psychological vulnerabilities may be seen as weakness (Bauman, 2016), and mental problems in sport are still stigmatized (MacIntyre et al., 2014). Understanding the causal relationships in developing mental problems and devel...
The critical importance of the start phase in bicycle motocross (BMX) racing is increasingly acknowledged. Past experiments underlined that the internal lane of the starting gate provides a strong positional advantage. However, how lane position affects start performance and cognitive and somatic state anxiety remains unexplored. We examined the st...
https://www.rte.ie/eile/brainstorm/2017/1207/925761-can-we-fix-it-how-to-stop-match-fixing-in-sport/
Green exercise is defined as undertaking physical activity whilst being directly exposed to nature (Pretty et al., 2005; 2007). Pretty et al. (2003) were among the first wave of researchers to investigate the synergistic benefits of incorporating physical activity and exposure to the natural environment to produce positive psychological affect. Ove...
Background:
Coaches are central to the development of the expert performer and similarly to continued lifelong participation in sport. Coaches are uniquely positioned to deliver specific technical and tactical instruction and mentoring programmes that support the psychological and social development of athletes in a challenging, goal-oriented and...
This paper considers the environmental impact on well-being and performance in elite athletes during Olympic competition. The benefits of exercising in natural environments are recognized, but less is known about the effects on performance and health in elite athletes. Although some Olympic events take place in natural environments, the majority oc...
Self-regulation reflects an individual's efforts to bring behavior and thinking into line with often consciously desired goals. During endurance activity, self-regulation requires an athlete to balance their speed or power output appropriately to achieve an optimal level of performance. Considering that both behavior and thinking are core elements...
Well-being and mental health of psychologists and their clients can be strongly linked to the psychologists’ experience of work. We know from general theories of occupational health psychology that certain work factors will have a greater impact on well-being than others. Work engagement is positively related with occupational health, while burnout...
Purpose:
To date there are no published studies directly comparing self-controlled and externally-controlled pace endurance tasks. However, previous research suggests pace control may impact on cognitive strategy use and effort perceptions. The primary aim of this study was to investigate the effects of manipulating perception of pace control on a...
ELITE SPORT is increasingly a risky environment for athletes (Hughes & Leavey, 2012) and other stakeholders including, for instance, neophyte (Owton, Bond & Tod, 2014) and experienced practitioners (Lindsay, 2014), and athletic directors (Sullivan, Lonsdale & Taylor, 2014). In the previous issue, Martindale et al. (2014) rightly pose the question i...
Effective leadership is essential in any sports organisation, both in the boardroom and on the training pitch. Leadership in Sport is the first textbook to examine sports leadership in the round, across both management and coaching environments. It includes a dedicated section to underpinning core leadership theories, and employs a number of case s...
Purpose: This research examined the effectiveness of a psychological intervention to build hope, optimism and resilience (HORP) in rugby academies in Ireland. Rugby academies represent a unique working context whereby talented players are invited to a three-year internship, from which a small number are invited to join the national professional tea...
*Dr. Tadhg MacIntyre1, *Professor Judy Van Raalte2, *Professor Britt Brewer2, *Professor David Lavallee3, & *Professor Craig Mahoney4, *Professor Aidan Moran5, *Dr. Deirdre O’Shea6, & Hannah McCormack1 & Dr. Mark Campbell1 1PESS, University of Limerick
2 Psychology Dept., Springfield College
3 School of Sport, Stirling University 4University of the...
Objective: This study sought to investigate the dynamics of attentional focus and cognitive control during endurance activity from a metacognitive perspective. The study also intended to examine the situational factors which may influence cognitive strategy use by elite endurance runners. Design: Semi-structured qualitative interviews were utilised...
For over a century, psychologists have investigated the mental processes of expert performers – people who display exceptional knowledge and/or skills in specific fields of human achievement. Since the 1960s, expertise researchers have made considerable progress in understanding the cognitive and neural mechanisms that underlie such exceptional per...
Introduction
The present study aims to identify the impact of moderate Boxing drills (MBD) on cognitive performance and coordination abilities in Irish boxers. The study aims to measure the impact of the independent variable 'MBD' on the dependent variables 'cognitive performance & coordination abilities' on one experimental group of boxers.
Client-centred approaches are often highlighted in the performance environment but what precisely do we mean by consulting using this approach? Professional practice approaches typically assert that the expertise is held by the consultant whereas the alternate approach focuses on the expertise embedded in the environment and shared among coaches, m...
The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge (ADDC) is one of the early rounds of the FIA and FIM world cross-country rally series. In 2014, 45 riders competed in the bike category and a total of 46 cars commenced the event. Vladamir Vasilyev, who became the second Russian driver to win the Desert Challenge, said afterwards that “This is definitely the most diff...
In The Winner Effect Ian Robertson shifts his focus to the social world and provides a neuroscientific account of the rise of power.
St Patrick’s Day, 17 March, is the Irish national holiday and is celebrated with equal enthusiasm in Dublin, Belfast, Birmingham, Glasgow, Liverpool and London. The Irish connection to Britain is well founded as it is based on our geographical proximity and complex political relationship over the centuries. As we celebrate the feast day of our patr...
After more than 35 years of investigation research on attentional focus in endurance activity is still mired by a lack of consensus. Specific challenges relate to the conceptualization of association and dissociation, and discrepancies in methodology, research design, and data collection techniques. This review addresses previously unresolved issue...
Questions
Questions (9)
What is environmental psychology? And what can it be in light of the current challenges of COVID19, climate change environmental degradation, air and noise pollution, urbanisation and the 'new normal'? Can building back better be influenced by environmental psychology? Is this the time for the discipline to take on grand challenges and be transformative?
Green exercise is physical activity in outdoor natural spaces and increasingly it has been studied for it's hypothesized specific benefits for health and potential co-benefits for pro-environmental behaviour (Rogerson et al., 2019). This sustainable type of physical activity can occur in a wide range of natural settings from parks to wilderness (Donnelly & MacIntyre, 2019). Evidence for the benefits of green exercise point to the limited literature using robust methodologies (Lahart et al., 2019). Nevertheless, this low-risk nature-based intervention has merits under COVID-19 scenarios where access to many gym and sport facilities are restricted. How have researchers measured frequency, intensity, time, type and setting of green exercise in the past? What inventories are available for this purpose? Are there new and emerging methodological techniques that can advance measurement?
Refs
Donnelly A A & MacIntyre, TE (2019). Physical activity in natural settings: Green and blue exercise. NY: Routledge.
The Green Exercise Concept: Two intertwining pathways to health and well-being
M Rogerson, J Barton, J Pretty, V Gladwell
Physical Activity in Natural Settings: Green and Blue Exercise, 73 - 93
Lahart, I., Darcy, P., Gidlow, C., & Calogiuri, G. (2019). The Effects of Green Exercise on Physical and Mental Wellbeing: A Systematic Review. International journal of environmental research and public health, 16(8), 1352. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16081352
Control condition for now is seated at rest for period circa 5 min. with no specific instructions other than stare at a white wall.
Frumkin et al. (2017) uses the term exposure: exposure science (or exposure assessment) is: “the process of estimating or measuring the magnitude, frequency, and duration of exposure to an agent, along with the number and characteristics of the population exposed. Ideally, it describes the sources, pathways, routes, and the uncertainties in the assessment”(Zartarian et al. 2005). The question is whether this approach and others overlook the potential interactions and individual differences grounded in concepts like nature connectedness, and mindfulness, for example. Technological nature (Kahn, 2018) is qualitatively different to physical activity in natural settings (Rogerson et al., 2016) and within what is termed green exercise, being active at high intensity may dampen the potential positive effects as attention is required for effort regulation. The question is how to conceptualise nature-interactions comprehensively within robust theoretical frameworks.
This new domain may combine three strands for their respective client bases-athletes, exercisers and non-athletes (but those for whom performance excellence is key), but given the diversity of this discipline what are its' future prospects in teaching, research and application?
Traditional accounts of negative mental health consequences for elite athletes focus on the titration of training loads as an explanation for the link between psychopathology and sports performance (Raglin, 2001). These models may not fully account for a range of issues including organizational stress, culturally specific and sport related issues (e.g., eating disorders in aesthetic sports), identity issues and coaching climate problems (e.g., negative perfectionism and unrealistic goals in ego orientated environments) to name but a few. What other models can be used to explore mental health antecedents in elite sport and how can we prevent and minimize the prevalence and incidence of these issues?
