Women working in sport psychology : a feminist examination of women's career experiences

In 1995, Gill examined women's place in the history and development of the field of sport psychology and noted the contributions of numerous notable women from physical education, psychology and motor learning. However, no research to date has explored women's experiences working in the field of sport psychology. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of professional women's experiences working in the field of sport psychology. More specifically, I qualitatively explored women's entrance into the field, any obstacles or barriers confronted throughout their career advancement, their alignment within feminism and feminist theory, and their future aspirations and goals as female professionals in the field of sport psychology. This study used a semi-structured interview guide format (Patton, 1990). Eight "professional" women working in the field of sport psychology were interviewed. Interviews lasted approximately 90 minutes.