PhD Research.
My PhD project is based at the University of St Andrews, investigating the cognitive and neural mechanisms affecting performance under pressure.
Performers often experience a negative impact of a high-pressure environment on their performance quality, such as missing a penalty in a competitive football game or playing the wrong notes in a public music performance.
Recently, sports scientists have suggested that the quality and accuracy of movements can depend on what the performer attends to while executing an action. Evidence suggests an external focus of attention directed at the effects of movement on the environment leads to better (more accurate and efficient) performance under pressure than an internal focus where attention is directed at the performer’s own body movements (e.g., Wulf, 2013, Zachry et al., 2005). Similar effects can be found for music performance, recently confirmed by a lab study on skilled piano performance (Jentzsch & Braun, 2022). This PhD project is designed to systematically investigate the mechanisms underlying these empirical findings, with the aim of developing effective intervention methods to combat performance anxiety and choking under pressure.
The project will adopt an interdisciplinary approach, using a combination of behavioural and physiological methods (cortical as well as autonomous nervous system responses). The project supervisory team combines the expertise of two cognitive neuroscience researchers with substantial experience and expertise in using physiological methods such as mobile EEG to investigate behaviour in real-world settings (Ladouce et al., 2017) and advanced statistical methods (e.g., Bayesian analysis, multi-level modelling). Critically, the project also capitalises on the supervisors’ existing complementary expertise in performance science, in the distinct domains of highly skilled music performance (e.g., Jentzsch & Braun, 2022) and elite sports performance (e.g., Carey, Stone, Hunter & Donaldson, 2021).
During my PhD project, I will test models of human performance and translate knowledge to applied settings. I will be learning about experimental design, programming of experiments, data collection and behavioural analysis techniques. I will also learn how to design, conduct, and analyse physiological experiments using EEG and autonomous nervous system measures. Alongside this, I will be undertaking training with the eastbio doctoral training partnership who, in collaboration with UKRI and BBSRC, provide the funding for my project.
Postgraduate Research.
For my MSc dissertation project, I collected data as part of a PhD project at KU Leuven in Belgium. I used this data to shape my own research.
My research looked at the impact of coach and team captain identity leadership on psychological safety in footballers. Additionally, team identification was introduced as a potential mediator of the relationship between perceived engagement in identity leadership by football coaches and team captains, and psychological safety in footballers.
It was found that perceived engagement in identity leadership by coaches predicts psychological safety and team identification in footballers. Perceived engagement in identity leadership by team captains predicts team identification in footballers, but not their psychological safety. There was no mediation effect of team identification on relationships between identity leadership and psychological safety.
Findings from my research demonstrate the importance of football coaches and team captains engaging in dimensions of identity leadership, as this enhances their players’ team identification. Importantly, team identification is a predictor of psychological safety in footballers. It is therefore recommended that leaders (whether from above or within) engage in dimensions of identity leadership, as this will improve team identification amongst the group. This enhanced team identification will then improve players’ psychological safety. It can be ascertained that coaches’ and team captain’s engagement in identity leadership will have demonstrable positive outcomes for footballers.
Undergraduate Research.
My undergraduate research measured changes in lifestyle behaviours during and after COVID-19 lockdowns.
Personality types of participants were identified, allowing us to see whether certain individuals are more susceptible to changes in lifestyle behaviours dependant on the lockdown context. This association between personality type and lifestyle behaviours allows for targeted interventions for at-risk populations.
COVID-19 is an infectious severe acute respiratory syndrome caused by SARS-CoV-2 (Ammar et al., 2020). To help prevent the spread of the disease, governments throughout the world imposed lockdowns which limited the movement and interaction of populations (Robinson et al., 2020). Existing research in relation to the COVID-19 lockdowns suggests that social distancing and self-isolation generate a burden throughout the population, and scientific data is needed to aid in identifying potential risk factors for psychosocial strain on the population (Ammar et al., 2020). Cross-culturally, the data suggests that COVID-19 lockdowns have had a negative effect on lifestyle behaviours such as sleep pattern and internet usage, particularly in students (Ali et al., 2021). Extensive research has been carried out investigating changes in lifestyle behaviours in specific populations throughout the world, such as children with obesity in Italy (see Pietrobelli et al., 2020), Pakistani students (see Ali et al., 2021), Spanish adolescents (see Carrillo et al., 2021) and French chronic coronary syndrome patients (see Cransac-Miet et al., 2021), however little research is existing for more general populations.
The study measured life satisfaction, mental wellbeing, social participation, mood, physical activity, sleep quality and personality. Each topic was measured using retrospective self-reporting for Jan – Mar 2021 (during a strict lockdown in the UK), and for the present day. Personality was used as a potential predictor of changes in the outcome variables between the start of 2021 and the present day.
Here are four key findings from the results:
Mental wellbeing was significantly negatively affected during lockdown
Social participation was significantly negatively affected during lockdown
Sleep quality was poor during lockdown and still is poor after lockdown. Interventions may be required
Physical activity has declined since lockdown
The above key findings are useful for future lockdowns, as we know that mental wellbeing and social participation are statistically significantly negatively affected during lockdown and social isolation. Interventions can be implemented to counteract these negative changes. It is also useful to know that sleep quality was poor during lockdown and is still suffering now. While it is difficult to pinpoint direct causation for this, we can draw from previous suggestion that increased physical activity improves sleep quality. Public health authorities should also be aware that people who usually lead an active lifestyle, might be particularly susceptible to such disruptions (Martinez-de-Quel et al., 2021).