Recommendations from the Science to Practice Committee
Submitting AASP Conference Abstracts: Science to Practice Committee Recommendations
The annual Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) conference provides an opportunity for researchers and practitioners to present panels, roundtables, symposia, workshops, lectures, and posters to members. The submission process for a presentation to be accepted is competitive and there are many more submissions than places available to present. AASP provides numerous resources to help potential presenters construct an abstract to be submitted for presentation. On the AASP website, an author may find it useful to review well-written abstracts that have been accepted at previous conferences. Furthermore, the review process and scoring criteria are outlined in detail to help guide an author when writing their submission. Once an abstract is submitted it will be reviewed by multiple AASP members with content expertise against criteria in five areas: (1) quality of writing, (2) potential conference attendee interest, (3) importance of the topic to the profession, (4) integration of the scientist-practitioner model, and (5) overall quality of the submission. Although the quality of writing is important, highlighting importance of the topic to the profession and the use of the scientist-practitioner model within the abstract will influence the overall quality of the submission. Below we outline some recommendations for authors to strengthen these two important areas.
Importance of the Topic to the Profession
An important area to highlight within a submitted abstract is related to the innovation and contribution the presentation will make to the field. AASP describes the “Importance of the Topic to the Profession” as how the presentation will be of interest to conference attendees, how it may aid the professional development of attendees, the uniqueness of the submission (e.g., providing new perspective), or the overall importance of the topic even if it has been presented on in the past. Scored on a scale from 1 (not at all important) to 10 (extremely important), authors are encouraged to state how their presentation fulfills these criteria within their abstract. Multi-disciplinary projects (for example, taking a psychophysiological approach to implementing and assessing the effectiveness of an intervention) may satisfy the criteria for being innovative. Although some topics, such as confidence, motivation, and anxiety, have been covered more frequently at past conferences, a strong case for a unique presentation can be made if the abstract highlights a need for the presentation and is grounded in the best available current literature. For example, pointing out the latest research findings that support the authors’ ideas, the lack of cultural or applied considerations in the literature, or the need for integrating different frameworks/perspectives can strengthen the authors’ arguments on their innovation or contribution.
Use of the Scientist-Practitioner Model
AASP describes a scientist-practitioner focus as involving an identification of the reciprocal relationships among theory, research, and interventions/practice. When writing an abstract for submission, authors should therefore not only consider how theory and research influence practice, but also how practice influences theory and research. A scientist-practitioner approach to sport psychology is important as it helps to create a bridge between research and practice through ensuring strategies implemented in the field are grounded in rigorous science and the best available evidence. Review and scoring criteria given by AASP shows how the use of the scientist-practitioner model included within a submitted manuscript will be evaluated on a scale of 1 (lacking support or application) to 10 (excellent support and application). Although there are different types of submissions (e.g., workshop, poster, symposium), the scientist-practitioner model should still be evident to an abstract reviewer. For example, within an abstract for a lecture, the author should consider providing details of the theory underpinning their research in addition to highlighting takeaway points or best practices for practitioners based on their findings. For a workshop, abstract authors should consider including information related to any theory or research the professional practice strategy presented is based upon. Furthermore, authors submitting abstracts for applied presentations may consider detailing how their approach to practice can inform research by outlining how outcomes of their work aligned with existing research or can advance theory in a given area.
