Leading sport psychologist helps develop new papers

 

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Professor Gary Hermansson

Gary Hermansson has re-joined Massey University part-time as Professor of Sport Psychology based in the School of Sport and Exercise.

He will teach the third-year paper Sport Psychology and Leadership for Managers and Coaches and contribute in other ways to the work of the school.

Professor Hermansson began in 1974 as a lecturer in education. Later he was course director for the counsellor education programme and, in 2001, he received a personal chair as Professor of Counsellor Education, From 2002-05 he headed the Department of Health and Human Development in the School of Education before leaving to pursue a fulltime career as a sport psychologist.

He has worked with New Zealand's Olympic and Commonwealth Games teams as well as the national cricket and equestrian teams. When he travels to London next month to provide sport psychology services to the New Zealand Olympic team, it will be his eighth consecutive games with the team since the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur.

Professor Hermanssson, who has published extensively in the field of counselling, is also the author of Going Mental in Sport: Excelling Through Mind-Management, a book that provides high-performance athletes and coaches with the perspectives and skills they need to prepare for and perform at the highest level.

School of Sport and Exercise head Associate Professor Steve Stannard says it is fantastic to have someone with Professor Hermansson’s standing and experience working at the school. As well as teaching Professor Hermansson will help develop new papers around mental skills training, with a view to establishing a minor in the sport psychology/mental skills area, Dr Stannard says.

 

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