Robert Gordon University (RGU) hosted a workshop this week, with the aim of using sports and exercise psychology to enhance workplace resilience.
The event – titled ‘Using Sport Psychology to Develop Resilience in the Workplace: The Use of Smarter Thinking’ – was organised by RGU in partnership with The British Psychological Society (BPS) and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).
It took place on the evening of Wednesday November 16 and was attended by around 200 RGU students and staff, BPS members, CIPD members and other interested parties.
The workshop educated attendees about the concept of ‘Smarter Thinking’ and how a range of evidence-based psychological techniques could be taken out of the sports and exercise world and applied in a business setting.
The activities were delivered by guest speakers Dr Martin Turner and Dr Jamie Barker from The Smarter Thinking Project – senior lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology and Associate Professor of Applied Performance Psychology at Staffordshire University respectively.
Bryan McCann, lecturer in Sports and Exercise Science in RGU’s School of Health Sciences, organised the event this week and was keen that academics learn about ways they can enhance their own workplace productivity.
He said: “Each of the delegates left the workshop with an increased awareness of their thoughts, feelings and behaviours and will be able to use the series of techniques they were taught to deal with difficult or challenging situations in the future.
“It is important that people remember that psychology can be used to benefit people in any number of different performance settings, whether it is on the field, in the classroom or in the office.
“At RGU, we have a strong Sport and Exercise Science programme, which includes psychological content and I would like to thank my colleagues from The Smarter Thinking Project for demonstrating the results of their valuable research.”
Bev Pirie, Chair for the CIPD North Scotland & Islands Branch, said that: “Wellbeing and resilience are at the heart of the CIPD’s purpose of championing better work and working lives, by improving practices in people and organisation development, for the benefit of individuals, businesses, economies and society.
“The CIPD has a programme of research, exploring how findings from behavioural science are influencing the HR and learning and development (L&D) profession. It reveals how several high profile organisations have used insights into how the brain works and the direct relevance to key HR issues, such as recruitment, people management, learning and development and organisational chance.
“There was a natural fit with this workshop and we were delighted to be a sponsor.”
Dr Emmanuelle Rey-Marmonier, who has been the liaison between RGU and the CIPD branch for the organisation of this event, said: “It has been fantastic to see such a surge of interest for this event, combining both sport and business. It is definitely encouraging us to consider more interdisciplinary collaborations.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Mr McCann chaired a meeting of the BPS Division of Sport and Exercise Psychology (DSEP) Scotland Network, which saw academics, researchers, practitioners and students from across Scotland come together to share their practice and discuss topical issues.
This was the first time the triannual event took place in Aberdeen and it was hosted at RGU.
Mr McCann said: “The BPS DSEP Scotland Network has made it a priority to raise the profile of Sport and Exercise Psychology in Scotland and has held meetings at various locations and academic institutions around the country.
“As Chair of the Scotland Network, it was a pleasure to bring the meeting to the North-East for the first time and I hope there will be more meetings and workshops at RGU in the near future.”
For more information on ‘Smarter Thinking’, visit: http://thesmarterthinkingproject.com/.