Overview

This 5th edition, provides readers with the most current theories and practices of group dynamics in sport teams. In this updated edition, each chapter identifies and discusses key theoretical concepts of group dynamics and offers extensive and relevant examples that reinforce the principles covered. Topics include: the nature, study, and development of groups; foundational elements of the group including member attributes and the groups environment; structural elements including group positions, roles, norms, and status; and group processes and emergent states such as leadership, communication, and cohesion, collective efficacy, and team building. Authors Mark Eys, Blair Evans, and Alex Benson stress the theoretical significance of studying groups to gain a richer understanding of human nature, as well as the importance of application to real life linking concepts to elite sport examples and practical strategies to enhance groups. As a comprehensive and formative text for sport group dynamics, this is an invaluable introductory resource for undergraduate and graduate students, researchers, and practitioners interested in better understanding how groups work both on and off the sport field.

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9781940067520

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M. Blair Evans, PhD, joined the Kinesiology Department at Penn State in 2015 in his current role as an assistant professor. His educational pathway includes doctoral studies in social psychology at Wilfrid Laurier University (2014), along with Masters education from the University of Lethbridge and undergraduate education from Laurentian University. He also completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Queens University in the School of Kinesiology and Health Studies. Research conducted by Blair and his students in the team lab focuses on how our peers within small groups can influence our wellbeing and health behaviors. Although this research spans varying contexts, developmental stages, and populations, he focuses on young athletes and individuals with disabilities. His research is published in leading journals related to sport and health psychology and is supported by sport-related research foundations as well as federal funding bodies in Canada and the United States. He lives with his wife and two young children in State College, Pennsylvania. Alex Benson, PhD, joined the department of psychology at Western University as an assistant professor in 2017, bridging the cluster areas of industrial/organizational psychology and social, personality and developmental psychology. He completed his formal education at Wilfrid Laurier University, beginning with a BSc and MSc in kinesiology before going on to complete his doctoral studies in social psychology. He was awarded a SSHRC postdoctoral fellowship to investigate group dynamics in youth sport teams at Nipissing University. He is the director of the Group Experiences Laboratory, where he and his students integrate a variety of theoretical and methodological approaches to better understand the conditions and processes that shape peoples experiences in teams. Reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of his work, he has published in top-tier journals in the areas of sport psychology, organizational behaviour, social psychology, and personality psychology. His labs research is supported by funds from the Canada Foundation for Innovation, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and Mitacs.

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