Each student must choose a sport psychology topic in conjunction with the instructor. The topic should be very specific so the student can focus on all the recent research publications about the topic. Many times broad topics have too much information available for the nature of this review of literature. The review of literature must include a thorough review of all recent primary research articles. The following guidelines are expected:

American Psychological Association (APA) format must be used in writing the paper.

Carefully select sources from a library, through inter-library loan, online journal databases, web-journals, and other sources.

Sources must be primary reports of research (journal where actual research is reported). Examples include peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of Applied Sport Psychology or the Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology. Non-research publications that are academic in nature can be used to support the dialogue but do not count toward the 5 minimum research studies in the review.

The content of the paper should focus on dialogue comparing and contrasting the studies as well as critiquing the analyses and methodology. For example, if you feel the author’s conclusions from the research are wrong, explain why they are wrong and suggest a better conclusion. If you feel the author’s methods were flawed, identify the flaws and explain how they should have been changed. Use citations and examples throughout strengthen your arguments.

A good paper will synthesize the information from all studies into a cohesive discussion. The tendency to focus on one article at a time should be avoided and summaries of articles, if included, should be kept to a minimum of a couple sentences.

Visit the EOU Library Website. There you will find a link titled “Research Tools” where you can search various databases. You may also find this screencast by librarian Ken Watson helpful. If you are not using an EOU internet connection, you will be required to log in using your EOU library barcode. These databases are essential as you look up articles related to your topic. For sport psychology, you will want to look at search engines such as Ebscohost, PsycNET, and Firstsearch. The following are recommended databases to search:

PsycNET: PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES.

EbscoHost: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, SPORTDiscus, ERIC. Maybe a couple others. Check the “Peer Reviewed” box to help narrow your search.

Some articles will have the full-text version so you can download and read it immediately. Others may be available to read at a nearby library. You will probably need to order some articles through inter-library loan and a copy will be emailed to you. This will take some advanced planning because it may take a week or more before the articles are delivered.

When looking for primary sources, there are many factors that should be considered. One is the reputation of the source. Many articles that have a journal in the title are periodicals that are peer-reviewed and reputable. A good practice is to look at the journal titles listed in the bibliography of your textbook. Since authors are usually leaders in their field, they will have thoughtfully chosen reliable sources for their information. Most primary research articles have the following components: abstract at the beginning, introduction, methods, results, discussion, and conclusions. Articles written in this format are usually reliable primary sources when published in a reputable journal. First-hand web sources would include research papers published online in a web-based journal or university website. Use caution when using internet sources to ensure they are from a legitimate source. Secondary sources (second hand such as text books and web pages) should be avoided.