International audienceThe role of sex stereotypes and gender roles in the sex differences observed in sport and exercise has been extensively investigated in sport psychology, past studies showing that stereotypes are internalized into the self during the socialization process. Although this research has provided clear evidence of the psychosocial roots of sex differences in athletics, focusing exclusively on an internalization explanation may not allow a complete understanding of the influence of stereotypes in this domain. This article presents two approaches that have been developed in mainstream psychology and discusses their relevance in sport psychology: (1) the situational approach, which considers that the mere presence of stereotypes in the environment is sufficient to affect individuals (e.g., stereotype threat theory); (2) the content of stereotypes approach (e.g., stereotype content model), which suggests that stereotypes about a particular group may be ambivalent, and that this ambivalence may serve to legitimize the status quo

The main aim of this study was to examine mediating effects in the relationships between cohesion, collective efficacy and performance in professional basketball teams. A secondary aim was to examine the correlates of collective efficacy in a professional sport. A total of 154 French and foreign professional players completed French or English versions of questionnaires about cohesion and collective efficacy. Two composite measures of individual performance were used (pre- and post-performance). Individual-level analyses were performed. Regression analyses supported two mediating relationships with collective efficacy as a mediator of the pre-performance - Group integration-task relationship, and Group integration-task as a mediator of the pre-performance - collective efficacy relationship. Statistical analyses indicated that neither Group integration-task nor collective efficacy was a better mediator in the relationship between pre-performance and the other group variables. Results also revealed positive relationships between three dimensions of cohesion (i.e. Individual attractions to the group-task, Group integration-task, Group integration-social) and collective efficacy. These findings suggest that in professional basketball teams, staff members should look after athletes who perform at a lower or below their usual level because their performances might lead them into a downward cohesion - collective efficacy spiral. Staff members should also develop a high quality of group functioning, both on and off the basketball court, given its relationship with collective efficacy.

An empirical research study based upon the expectancy–value model of Eccles and colleagues (1983) investigated the effect of gender‐role orientations on psychological dimensions of female athletes' sport participation and the likelihood of their continued participation in a stereotypical masculine activity. The model (Eccles et al., 1983) posits that gender‐role orientation is linked to the intention to persist or discontinue sport participation, which is acted upon indirectly through mediation by two motivational variables: an individual's perceived competence and the perceived value of the activity. Three models were compared to test this mediation hypothesis with 333 female adolescent handball players in a prospective study. Results from structural equation modeling showed that a fully mediated model fit the data. The masculinity orientation positively predicted value for and perceived competence in handball, whereas the femininity orientation negatively predicted perceived competence. In addition, the two motivational variables negatively predicted intention to drop out. Finally, such intentions are the more proximal predictors of actual dropout.

This study explores the cognitive management of a successful experienced elite handball coach during a competition. A coach's activity was examined based on a “single case” by analyzing the content of two types of interviews (semi-structured, stimulated recall) through deductive, then inductive approaches. Results showed: (a) in the planning phase, game plans intended for the competition were elaborated from situations that had long been mastered during training sessions: And (b) in the interactive phase on offense, the coach carried out adjustments through his players (especially the playmaker); on defense, changes were made using a basic knowledge of game systems. The coach's activity was organized into six prioritized tasks relating to: i) players' physical engagement; ii) management of collective duels; iii) management of individual duels; iv) refereeing; v) players' energy management; and vi) technical-tactical instruction to the substitutes. Cognition was principally distributed by interacting with the team's playmaker.