The role of psychological skills and characteristics in optimising talent development in a rugby union academy

This thesis sought to examine the role of PSCs in optimising talent development in a rugby union academy. The primary aims of this thesis were: (i) To conduct a review of the current literature to collate the research on psychological characteristics and skills (PSCs) that contribute to the development and performance of talented rugby union (rugby) players, to provide a rugby specific list of PSCs and highlight any limitations in the existing literature. (ii) To examine the PSCs of elite rugby players in a professional academy over a season; (iii) To gain insight into the players' experiences of being part of an academy including which PSCs the players perceive as important to be successful in a professional rugby academy, the challenges they face and the support they receive; (iv) To explore the attitudes towards and use of sport psychology in rugby union in Ireland. Ten studies examining the PSCs of talented rugby players were identified in the literature review. PSCs including motivation, commitment, coping skills, confidence, focus, and self-regulation were identified as being important for navigating the talent development pathway in rugby successfully. The first study of this research monitored and examined the PSCs of twenty rugby players that were part of a professional academy throughout a full competitive season. The next study used mixed methods to explore the experiences of four players of being part of an academy including what PSCs the players perceive as important to be successful in a professional rugby academy, the challenges they face and the support they receive. The final study investigated the attitudes of 144 Irish rugby players and coaches, towards the use of sport psychology. The results of this research revealed that those in their final year of the academy could be lower in confidence, aspects of motivation and self-regulated learning than those in their first year of the academy and therefore, may need more support during this time. Players that are rated as more likely to succeed may be less able to cope with adversity than those that are less likely to succeed. Furthermore, a range of PSCs can predict the number of playing caps a player has achieved. Further results showed that players need a range of PSCs to deal with the numerous challenges that they face when part of the academy. The results highlighted the importance of supporting players in dealing with challenges such as proving their worth, the pressure to gain muscle mass and recover from injury, living away from home and moving countries to join the academy. In addition, results revealed that players held a positive attitude towards psychological support. Nevertheless, they also indicated that they did not have enough access to psychological support in comparison to other sport science support. Finally, results showed that although rugby coaches and players in Ireland generally have a positive attitude towards sport psychology and demonstrate a willingness to use sports psychology for a variety of reasons the actual uptake on sport psychology services is currently low. Taken together, the results of this research extends previous research on the role of PSCs in talent development. Furthermore, these results have important implications for practice. More psychological support needs to be provided to players at all stages of development. This research provides a basis of what should be included in a curriculum of psychological skills that should be taught to players as part of the academy programme. It also provides support for monitoring PSC development.