Studies using single-subject designs in sport psychology: 30 years of research.
Single-subject designs have been used sparingly but steadily in sport psychology for 30 years—behavior analysts can mine this literature for procedural ideas.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The authors read every sport-psychology paper that used single-subject designs between 1974 and 2004.
They found 40 studies spread across 30 years. They listed the sports, the behaviors, and the graphs.
What they found
Only a trickle of studies appeared each year. Most looked at golf, tennis, or gymnastics.
Few graphs showed full experimental control. Many skipped treatment integrity checks.
How this fits with other research
Leung et al. (2011) counted again seven years later and found just 25 more studies since 1990. The field stayed tiny.
Schenk et al. (2019) blew the count up to 101 studies and sorted them by sport. Their indexed table is the update the 2004 review asked for.
DePaolo et al. (2019) is one of those newer studies. They used an A-B-A-B design with a women’s lacrosse team and got fast gains. It shows the method the review said was missing.
Why it matters
If you coach athletes or work in school sports, this paper is your treasure map. It tells you which behaviors were already tackled and which sports still need data. Use Schenk et al. (2019) to pick an evidence-based protocol, then run your own reversal or multiple-baseline to show the coach the numbers.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
A prominent feature of behavior-analytic research has been the use of single-subject designs. We examined sport psychology journals and behavioral journals published during the past 30 years, and located 40 studies using single-subject designs to assess interventions for enhancing the performance of athletes and coaches. In this paper, we summarize that body of research, discuss its strengths and limitations, and identify areas for future research.
The Behavior analyst, 2004 · doi:10.1007/BF03393185