On this episode we pick the brains of Dr James Newman. James is a senior lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology at Sheffield Hallam University. He is also a HCPC registered Sport and Exercise Psychologist and Associate Fellow and Chartered Psychologist with the British Psychological Society (BPS).

James’ area of expertise is bullying, banter and whistleblowing in elite sport, having conducted several research projects on this across various sports. One sport James has focused a lot on is football. Working in academy football, we (Brad and Toni) have first-hand experience of the ‘bullying and banter’ culture. Rolling back the years, we’ve even been part of environments as athletes, where bullying and banter takes place.

Join us as we discuss the fine line between bullying and banter in the sporting environment, whist offering up some solutions that organisations and those in positions power can consider to ensure that this balance is managed effectively.

Thanks to James for coming on!

Talking Points

1. Intro and welcome to episode (00:00)

2. James’ journey in sport (3:52)

3. Being captivated with research (9:14)

4. Working with the media (14:23)

5. ‘Bullying and banter’ in sport (18:29)

6. Systemic changes that address bullying and banter (28:53)

7. Organisational changes (38:14)

8. Should we punish bullies? (49:25)

9. Applied work vs research (58:08)

10. Closing thoughts (1:02:35)

Connect with James on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-newman-14610050/

Visit here for more information around his research publishings: https://www.shu.ac.uk/about-us/our-people/staff-profiles/james-newman#firstSection