Sheldon Hanton’s research while affiliated with Cardiff Metropolitan University and other places


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Publications (111)


Figure 1. Mental toughness development process.
Developing a ‘clarity of mind’: Exploring a behaviour-based approach to mental toughness development in international youth football
  • Article
  • Full-text available

December 2023

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99 Reads

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1 Citation

Journal of Applied Sport Psychology

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Sheldon Hanton
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Facilitating healthcare dieticians' communication skills: A reflective practice intervention

July 2023

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30 Reads

International Journal of Training and Development

Reflective practice (RP) is a widely accepted approach for facilitating experiential learning within the professional development of service delivery practitioners. However, a dearth of empirical evidence exists to support the potential efficacy of RP for improving applied practice effectiveness. This study examined whether improving professionals' ability to engage in RP at more advanced critical levels impacted their use of communication skills (CS) in practice. A quasi‐experimental, multiple‐baseline, crossover design was employed with 20 Emirati female dieticians who were assigned to one of two groups and exposed to three RP treatments and three control periods. Baseline and postintervention measures of RP and CS were administered to assess whether improved RP skills subsequently impacted practice behaviours. A significant difference between experimental and control groups' RP scores were reported over the treatment period. For CS there was an intervention effect for: listening and rapport; questioning skills; comprehensiveness; organization; transitional statements; and approach to planning and education. The findings indicate that the intervention was successful for improving participants' reflective skills, resulting in more favourable practice behaviours (e.g., CS). This study makes a novel contribution to the literature by providing rigorous empirical evidence to support the value of RP as a metacognitive strategy for improving service delivery behaviours in health professionals.





Characteristics of Effective FE Teachers -continued 683
(Re)conceptualising effective teaching in further education: an exploratory study

November 2021

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416 Reads

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7 Citations

Journal of Further and Higher Education

Government-led reforms in the Further Education (FE) sector in the UK have highlighted the impact that FE institutions can have on national productivity and economic growth. This has resulted in growing calls to support the performance of FE teachers in the classroom. There is a paucity of research that has considered effective teaching practice within the unique context of FE. To address this gap, we sampled 90 full-time FE teaching staff, who participated in one of 12 in-depth focus groups, which aimed to: (a) develop a working definition of effective teaching in FE; (b) examine the characteristics of effective FE teachers; and (c) explore the process of effective FE teaching and the factors that may impact on this. Using thematic analysis, a definition was constructed that considered effective teaching practice to be a learner-centred process that facilitated learners’ basic psychological needs resulting in a range of holistic outcomes. A number of effective FE teacher characteristics were also identified and categorised into four main themes: knowledgeable; professional skills; personal qualities; and interpersonal qualities. Finally, institutional-, learner-, and teacher-derived issues (e.g. institutional targets; learner expectations; teacher doubts over ability) were identified as factors that may influence the effectiveness of practice in FE. Our findings offer a unique insight into a context-specific conceptualisation of teacher effectiveness that can potentially support the training and development of FE teachers.


Psychosocial demands and situational properties of the club-to-international transition in male youth football

September 2021

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267 Reads

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7 Citations

Athletes experience a number of within-career transitions that expose them to a multitude of demands. The club-to-international transition (CIT) is one transition that has received minimal attention. Through cognitive-motivational-relational-theory (CMRT), we sought to address this gap by exploring the psychosocial demands, and their situational properties, football (soccer) players experience during the CIT. Fourteen age-group international players, and 10 coaches (four club; six international) were interviewed. Using thematic analysis, a range of performance (e.g., competition intensity), organizational (e.g., new organizational culture), and personal demands (e.g., evolving identity), and situational properties (e.g., novelty, ambiguity) were identified. Further, the CIT was perceived as a unique adversity, due to its fluctuating and ambiguous nature. For example, international selection is never guaranteed and is predicated on current performance at club and international level. To positively negotiate this transition, we suggest players need to develop key psychological resources (e.g., mental toughness, resilience) and rely on organizational relationships (e.g., clear feedback processes), which assist them in taking ownership over their development. Our research has worldwide reach through offering international level organizations novel insights to help support players making the CIT and facilitate bespoke interventions that will positively impact both individual player development and long-term performance success. Lay summary: We explored the psychosocial demands experienced by international youth footballers’ during the club-to-international transition. This transition was defined as an ongoing journey, with many ups and downs and no guaranteed outcome. A range of personal, organizational, and performance demands associated with ‘being an international footballer’ were also identified. • Implications for Practice • Relevant stakeholders need to be educated about the demands associated with the CIT and its effective management in order to facilitate a more positive and successful CIT experience. • Applied sport psychologists and coaches should convey strategies for the development of personal characteristics in players (e.g., mental toughness, resilience) that facilitate positive adaptations to CIT demands and thus support youth development. • National Governing Bodies (NGBs) in international football should develop a structured feedback process, involving clear communication channels between the player, international coach, and club coach regarding players’ needs during the CIT.


An effective framework of single-session problem solving.
A Framework of Single-Session Problem-Solving in Elite Sport: A Longitudinal, Multi-Study Investigation

November 2020

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168 Reads

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6 Citations

In this 6-year, multi-study paper we summarize a new and effective framework of single-session problem-solving developed in an elite sport context at a world leading national institute of sport science and medicine (English Institute of Sport: EIS). In Study 1, we used ethnography (3.5 years) to observe how single-session problem-solving methods were being considered, explored, introduced and developed within the EIS. In Study 2, we used case-study methods split into two parts. A multiple case-study design (10 cases) was employed in Part one to evaluate how the approach was refined into an effective framework of practice. An individual case-study is then illustrated to detail the framework in-action. Collectively, findings realized a framework of single-session problem-solving for use both inside and outside of elite sport that focused on ways to reframe clients’ problems into more ‘solvable’ descriptions. Guidance for psychologists wishing to integrate these problem-solving techniques into their practice are offered.


Hierarchical analysis of hardiness development themes.
Elbow plot of the information criteria for the latent profile analysis.
Final latent profile solution. Profile 1, highly disengaged, non-reflective, habitual actors; Profile 2, moderately engaged, surface level reflective thinkers; Profile 3, disengaged, non-reflective thinkers; Profile 4, engaged reflective thinkers; Profile 5, highly engaged, intentionally critical reflective thinkers.
Latent profile differences in hardiness including means, standard deviations, and Cohen's d (n = 402).
A Multi-Study Exploration of Factors That Optimize Hardiness in Sport Coaches and the Role of Reflective Practice in Facilitating Hardy Attitudes

August 2020

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187 Reads

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8 Citations

Hardiness has been identified as a key personal characteristic that may moderate the ill-effects of stress on health and performance. However, little is known about how hardiness might be developed, particularly in sport coaches. To systematically address this gap, we present two linked studies. First, interviews were conducted with pre-determined high-hardy, elite coaches (n = 13) to explore how they had developed their hardy dispositions through the associated attitudinal sub-components of control, commitment, and challenge. Utilizing thematic analysis, we identified that hardiness was developed through experiential learning, external support, and the use of specific coping mechanisms. Key to all of these themes was the concept of reflective practice, which was thought to facilitate more meaningful learning from the participants’ experiences and, subsequently, enhance the self-awareness and insight required to augment hardiness and its sub-components. To investigate further the potential relationship between coaches’ reflective practices and their level of hardiness, we conducted a follow-up study. Specifically, a sample of 402 sports coaches completed the Dispositional Resilience Scale-15, the Self-Reflection and Insight Scale, and the Questionnaire for Reflective Thinking. Using latent profile analysis (LPA), we clustered participants into groups based on their reflective profiles (e.g., type of engagement, level of reflective thinking). We then examined differences in hardiness between the five latent sub-groups using multinomial regression. Findings revealed that the sub-group of highly engaged, intentionally critical reflective thinkers reported significantly higher levels of all three hardiness sub-components than all other sub-groups; these effect sizes were typically moderate-to-large in magnitude (standardized mean differences = −1.50 to −0.10). Conversely, the profile of highly disengaged, non-reflective, habitual actors reported the lowest level of all three dimensions. Collectively, our findings offer novel insights into the potential factors that may influence a coaches’ level of hardiness. We provide particular support for the importance of reflective practice as a meta-cognitive strategy that helps coaches to develop hardy dispositions through augmenting its attitudinal sub-components. Consequently, our research makes a significant contribution by providing a comprehensive insight into how we might better train and support coaches to demonstrate the adaptive qualities required to thrive in demanding situations.


Developing the Effectiveness of Applied Sport Psychology Service Delivery: A Reflective Practice Intervention

April 2020

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899 Reads

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11 Citations

Sport & Exercise Psychology Review

Little empirical evidence exists to corroborate the proposed benefits that reflective practice may have for service delivery effectiveness in Applied Sport Psychology (ASP). To systematically address this gap, we collected data over a five-year period via a staggered, single-subject multiple-baseline intervention that aimed to: (a) investigate the effectiveness of a training program designed to enhance practitioners’ abilities to engage in higher levels of reflection; and (b) explore whether developments in level of reflection influenced practitioner effectiveness. Eight trainee and four professionally qualified, UK based practitioners participated in an individualized 14-week study, which contained a two week intervention and a two month post-study retention assessment. All participants demonstrated immediate improvements in the level they were able to reflect at, as well as augmented reflective learning following the intervention. Measures of effective practice (e.g., client feedback, self-assessments) also demonstrated improvements post-intervention. In-depth social validation procedures substantiated these findings, with participants reporting that through more critical levels of reflection they experienced enhanced self-awareness, approaches to meeting client needs, professional judgement and decision making, and a range of other characteristics associated with effective consultants. Our findings offer novel support for the links between reflective practice and service delivery effectiveness, as well as a better understanding of the mechanisms through which such adaptations occur. This study makes a significant contribution by providing an in-depth, longitudinal insight into the value of focusing practitioner training on reflective practice as a meta-cognitive strategy to enhance ASP practice.


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Citations (93)


... More recently, using a series of case-studies researchers have developed and tested the 112 effectiveness of a framework for single-session problem solving in elite sport context. Their 113 framework included several techniques and approaches used to reframe the client's initial description 114 of their problem, until it was described in a frame that was perceived as 'solvable' (e.g., Pitt et al., 115 2020;Pitt et al., 2023). Subsequently providing further evidence for the effectiveness of the approach 116 for problem resolution. ...

Reference:

Having Impact and Doing It Quickly: The Place for Brief and Single-Session Cognitive-Behavioral Therapies in Sport Psychology Practice
Brief and Single-Session Therapy
  • Citing Chapter
  • June 2023

... More than half (53.7%) of the participants disagreed with the statement that emotional detachment is required for palliative care, demonstrating a healthy recognition of the need for emotional engagement in caregiving. This result aligns with research by(10), which underscores the importance of empathy and emotional support in palliative care. However, 50% of participants agreed that drugs causing respiratory depression are appropriate for treating severe dyspnea in[Citation Tehseen, I., Rehmat, S., Nigar, Z. (2024). ...

(Re)conceptualising effective teaching in further education: an exploratory study

Journal of Further and Higher Education

... This study was conducted in collaboration with a UEFA National Football Association. Previous research conducted with this Association focused on identifying the psychosocial demands players face making the club-to-international transition (McKay et al., 2021). Incorporating the perceptions of international youth players and coaches, a range of performance (e.g., new football education), organizational (e.g., managing relationships) and personal demands (e.g., social pressures) were highlighted, as well as the situational properties of these demands (e.g., novelty). ...

Psychosocial demands and situational properties of the club-to-international transition in male youth football

... The 77 mindset of a practitioner adopting a single session approach was characterised by a focus on helping 78 guidance from just one session or encounter (Pitt et al., 2015). Although some may desire or need 87 long-term psychological support, many athletes and coaches often look to Sport Psychologists (SPs) 88 to help them become unstuck and point them in the right direction (Pitt et al., 2020). This may be 89 because the athlete or coach is under time pressure to improve performance quickly, is not ready to 90 commit to long-term work, or has financial constraints. ...

A Framework of Single-Session Problem-Solving in Elite Sport: A Longitudinal, Multi-Study Investigation

... Thinking about reflective practice as an infinite loop is not a new perception (Cropley et al. 2020). Attempts to adapt this method for use in professional fields other than education would likely develop and enhance the toolkit of any type of professional. ...

A Multi-Study Exploration of Factors That Optimize Hardiness in Sport Coaches and the Role of Reflective Practice in Facilitating Hardy Attitudes

... This said, the sub-theme 'lack of voice' highlighted that, even in a team that has made significant improvements in psychological safety, there is still potential for others to feel a lack of direction within the team. This could be due to other factors such as personal performances and organisational fit [59], supporting the notion that psychological safety is dynamic, fragile, and reliant upon a variety of contextual factors [25]. Members of the team may feel psychologically safe when interacting with the coach, but because of the construct's dynamic nature, this may change depending on other interactions. ...

Developing the Effectiveness of Applied Sport Psychology Service Delivery: A Reflective Practice Intervention

Sport & Exercise Psychology Review

... This leads them to assess the available resources (i.e., self-efficacy, perceived control and achievement goal), the physiological responses (e.g., a state of challenge promotes the efficiency of glucose [energy] supply, and increases blood flow to the brain and muscles, and this results in improved decision-making and more efficient self-regulation) and the emotional consequences resulting from challenging and threatening states (Meijen et al., 2013(Meijen et al., , 2020. In this regard, athletes' physiological symptoms could appear and increase significantly just before or during competitions, making it difficult to perform at their maximum potential (Thomas et al., 2004). Furthermore, not having a good management of stress leads individuals to a lack of immune response to exercise, producing negative consequences to their wellbeing (Edwards et al., 2018). ...

Temporal Aspects of Competitive Anxiety and Self-Confidence as a Function of Anxiety Perceptions
  • Citing Article
  • June 2004

Sport Psychologist

... Of note, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is especially pervasive regarding injured athletes' confidence to return to sports post-injury recovery. A 2019 study found that injured athletes who experience significant pre-injury adversity are often overwhelmed by their injury and lack healthy coping mechanisms [4]. This suggests that both the psychological burden of the COVID-19 pandemic and its physical impact on training may thwart athletes' abilities to recover from their injuries. ...

Can Preinjury Adversity Affect Postinjury Responses? A 5-Year Prospective, Multi-Study Analysis

... Yet, literature on best practice coaching for life skill development suggested that coaches are often unaware that these parallels exist and do not know how, when or why to embed life skills in lessons (Carson Sackett & Gano-Overway, 2017), arguably due to the lack of formalised holistically-focused coach education they receive. In a cohort of 22 U.K.-based Level 1 and Level 2 grassroots football coaches, Bowley et al. (2018) found that prior to a life skills coaching intervention, participant coaches could only offer generic definitions of life skills and did not consider what the fundamental nature of life skills are. This illustrates how, despite their stated content, football coaching qualifications may not be aiding coaches to understand concepts such as life skill development and apply holistic coaching practices in lessons. ...

A life skills development programme for youth football: Programme development and preliminary evaluation.

Sport & Exercise Psychology Review

... The convergence of disciplines such as exercise physiology, sport psychology, biomechanics, and nutrition has proven to be fundamental in enhancing sport performance (Hanton, 2006;Jeukendrup and Gleeson, 2019). By integrating knowledge and techniques from different fields, a deeper understanding of the factors that influence sporting success is achieved, allowing for the design of comprehensive strategies that maximize performance and prevent injury (Kraemer and Fleck, 2007). ...

Literature reviews in sport psychology
  • Citing Book
  • January 2006