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Module Specifications

Academic Year 2026 - 2027

Module Title Decision Making in Applied Sport Practice
Module Code SPO1071 (ITS: SS506)
Faculty Science & Health School Health & Human Performance
NFQ level 9 Credit Rating 10
Description

This module explores theory, research and practice relating to decision-making in sport, with particular emphasis on athlete and practitioner decision-making in complex performance environments. Students will examine how decision-making is developed, the cognitive and metacognitive processes that underpin effective judgement, and the ways in which knowledge, ethics and values shape reasoning and action in sport. The module will provide opportunities to consider how these concepts apply within elite and applied sport settings, and to critically evaluate the evidence base underpinning decision-making in their own domain. In doing so, students will consider how both athletes and practitioners learn, interpret information and make decisions for effective practice and performance.

Learning Outcomes

1. Critically analyse information relating to professional practice and make informed judgments on professional practice issues relevant to their sport performance domain
2. Critically evaluate the decision making process in their professional context
3. Critically analyse information relevant to athlete and practitioner decision-making, and apply in their sport performance domain.


WorkloadFull time hours per semester
TypeHoursDescription
Online activity33Students will engage with online material via Loop including but not limited to webinars, online tasks, quizzes, and tutorials
Directed learning34Stimulus presentations and discussion, delivered online using blended learning formats, will be used to tease out possible contributing topics and test the student’s current levels of knowledge and experience with them. As their reading progresses, students may be directed towards relevant recent investigations in their own and parallel domains.
Independent Study133Independent pursuit of relevant issues and ideas raised during the module. Participants will be expected to engage in reading and critical review of literature relevant to the module
Assignment Completion50Students will individually complete assignments
Total Workload: 250
Section Breakdown
CRN21487Part of TermSemester 2
Coursework100%Examination Weight0%
Grade Scale40PASSPass Both ElementsN
Resit CategoryRC1Best MarkN
Module Co-ordinatorJamie TaylorModule Teacher
Assessment Breakdown
TypeDescription% of totalAssessment Date
AssignmentA written report exploring decision making processes in the student's professional context. The assessment format is flexible. Indicative assessment formats are below: (a) Written report – 8000 words (b) Journal article – 3000 - 8000 words depending on target journal (c) Portfolio submission (e.g., powerpoint slides, visual data, AV data) with accompanying narrative (3000 - 5000 words)70%n/a
PresentationIn an oral presentation, students will summarise and challenge an identified common assumption from their performance domain and reflect critically on the implications for applied practice30%n/a
Reassessment Requirement Type
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories;
RC1: A resit is available for both* components of the module.
RC2: No resit is available for a 100% coursework module.
RC3: No resit is available for the coursework component where there is a coursework and summative examination element.

* ‘Both’ is used in the context of the module having a coursework/summative examination split; where the module is 100% coursework, there will also be a resit of the assessment

Pre-requisite None
Co-requisite None
Compatibles None
Incompatibles None

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

Critical Thinking in Performance Domains
Students will critically examine the theory and practice of problem solving and critical thinking in complex environments by considering how individuals in performance domains think critically and creatively. Students will examine metacognitive skills and how they apply to learning and development in their performance domain. Students will further consider the evidence base underpinning our understanding of how people reason, learn and make interpretations about their domain and how this impacts on decision making in performance domains

Professional Judgement and Decision Making
Carr (1999) has identified that professions are defined by their recourse to theoretical and/or empirical knowledge in making judgements. Students will explore the decision making literature and the extent to which practitioners in sport engage in professional decision making in all of their decisions. Professional judgement and decision-making (PJDM) is an important skill for applied sport practitioners, because decisions made by the practitioner hold an influential role in the selection, design, and implementation of successful interventions. Students will explore how decision making is acquired and the cognitive skills that underpin effective decision making in complex environments such as sport.

The decision making process in sport
Students will examine decision-making processes in sport at athlete, practitioner, group and organisational levels. This will include consideration of how decisions unfold in dynamic contexts, the individual and contextual factors that shape judgement, and the heuristics and biases that may support or constrain effective decision-making. Students will critically explore how decision processes differ across levels of sport practice and performance, and the implications this has for understanding and improving decision-making in their own domain.

Indicative Reading List

Books:
  • Lyle, J., and Cushion, C: 2919, Sports Coaching: Professionalisation and Practice., Churchill Livingstone, Oxford,
  • Kahneman, D.: 2911, Thinking, fast and slow, Penguin, London,
  • Bar-Eli, M., Plessner, H., & Raab, M.: 2011, Judgement, decision making and success in sport.,, Wiley., Sussex,


Articles:
  • Abraham, A., and Collins, D.: 2011, Taking the next step: ways forward for coaching science, Quest, 63, 366, 524623
  • 2015: The illusion of competency versus the desirability of expertise: seeking a common standard for support professions in sport., Sports Medicine, 45, 1–7, 524624, 1
  • Integration of professional judgement and decision-making in high-level adventure sports coaching practice: Journal of Sports Science, 33, 622, 524625, 1, Cotterill, S., & Discombe, R.
  • Sport & Exercise Psychology Review: 12, 24, 524626, 1, Kirschner P and van Merriënboer J, 2013
  • 48: 169, 524627, 1, Kirschner, P, 2016, Stop propagating the learning styles myth
  • 106: 524628, 1, Bailey RP, Madigan DJ, Cope E and Nicholls AR, 2018, The Prevalence of Pseudoscientific Ideas and Neuromyths Among Sports Coaches, Frontiers in Psychology
  • 524629: 1, Pennycook, G., Cheyne, J. A., Barr, N., Koehler, D. J., & Fugelsang, J. A., 2015, On the reception and detection of pseudo-profound bullshit., Judgment and Decision Making, 10(6), 549,
  • 1: Kirschner PA, Sweller J and Clark RE, 2006, Why minimal guidance during instruction does not work: An analysis of the failure of constructivist, discovery, problem-based, experiential, and inquiry-based teaching., Educational Psychologist, 41, 75,
  • Collins, L, & Collins D.: 2020, Developing coaches’ professional judgement and decision making: Using the ‘Big 5’, Journal of Sports Sciences, 524632
  • 2015: The epistemological chain in high-level adventure sports coaches, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 15, 224,
Other Resources

  • 1: Website, Jones, J., 2017, Carl Sagan Presents His “Baloney Detection Kit”: 8 Tools for Skeptical Thinking. Open Culture,

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