Dr Laura Swettenham
Sport and Exercise Sciences
Faculty of Science
Email: L.D.Swettenham@ljmu.ac.uk
ORCID
Laura is a Senior Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology. Her research interests span performance and well-being, professional practice, and equity in traditional sport and esports. Specifically, Laura explores cognitions using Think Aloud, the role of sport psychology in various domains, and experiences of sexism in performance contexts. Laura has conducted consultation projects for organisations, such as West Ham United FC, UK Coaching, and the British Psychological Society.
Laura is also a sport & exercise psychologist registered with the Health and Care Professions Council and a chartered member of the British Psychological Society. Laura has a wealth of experience supporting athletes, coaches and teams in a range of sports and esports such as tennis, football, League of Legends, and DOTA 2 at a regional and international level. In her applied work, Laura specialises in mindfulness and acceptance approaches, such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, to facilitate wellbeing and performance. Alongside her applied work, Laura is a supervisor for BASES trainee sport and exercise psychologists.
Degrees
Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom, Professional Doctorate in Sport and Exercise Psychology
Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom, MSc in Sport and Exercise Psychology
The University of York, United Kingdom, BSc in Psychology
Certifications
The Health Care and Professions Council, Practitioner Psychologist (HCPC)
British Psychological Society, Sport and Exercise Psychologist (CPsychol)
The British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences, Sport and Exercise Psychology Accreditation Route Supervisor
Academic appointments
Senior Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, 2023 - present
Journal article
Whitehead AE, Jackman PC, Vaughan S, Swettenham L, Birch P, Tod D, McEwan HE. 2025. A qualitative exploration of sport and exercise psychology practitioners’ perceptions and experiences of using Think Aloud in applied practice The Sport Psychologist, DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Horne G, Burkill R, Agarwal A, Swettenham L. 2024. Should aspiring esports psychologists train in esports? Reflections of trainee sport and exercise psychologists Journal of Electronic Gaming and Esports, 2 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Horne G, Swettenham L. 2024. Toward a Comprehensive Professional Philosophy in Performance and Well-Being Psychology: Integrating Functional Contextualism and Relational Frame Theory for Esports and Other High-Performance Environments Journal of Electronic Gaming and Esports, 2 :1-16 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Swettenham L, Leis O, Birch P, Price D. 2024. Expanding the Realms of Sport Psychology in Esports: An Epilogue Case Studies in Sport and Exercise Psychology, 8 :S148-S150 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Price D, Swettenham L. 2024. Beyond the Esports Horizon in Sport Psychology: An Introduction to the Special Issue Case Studies in Sport and Exercise Psychology, 8 :s1i-S1iii DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Agrawal A, Gupta S, Swettenham L. 2024. Same Game, Many Cultures: A Multicultural Reflection on a Trainee’s Intervention Work With a Professional Esports Team Case Studies in Sport and Exercise Psychology, 8 :36-45 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Di Nicola S, de Assunção C, Swettenham L. 2024. The Overrepresentation of Cisgender Men in Esports Research Jenny S. International Journal of Esports, 1 Publisher Url Public Url
McGinty-Minister K, Swettenham L, Champ FM, Whitehead AE. 2024. “Smile more”: Women’s experiences of sexism while working in sport from a social ecological perspective Sport in Society, :1-24 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Leis O, Watson M, Swettenham L, Pedraza-Ramirez I, Lautenbach F. 2023. Stress Management Strategies in Esports: An Exploratory Online Survey on Applied Practice Journal of Electronic Gaming and Esports, 1 :1-11 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Swettenham L, Whitehead AE. 2022. ACT-ing on Injury: Increasing Psychological Flexibility and Adherence to Rehabilitation Case Studies in Sport and Exercise Psychology, 6 :94-101 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Whitehead AE, Montgomery C, Swettenham L, Robinson N. 2022. The Effect of Think Aloud on Performance and Brain Oxygenation During Cycling – an Exploratory Study Perceptual and Motor Skills, DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Swettenham L, Whitehead AE. 2022. WORKING IN ESPORTS: DEVELOPING TEAM COHESION Case Studies in Sport and Exercise Psychology, 6 :36-44 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Swettenham L, Whitehead AE. 2021. Developing the Triad of Knowledge in Coaching: Think Aloud as a Reflective Tool within a Category 1 Football Academy International Sport Coaching Journal, DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Whitcomb-Khan G, Wadsworth N, McGinty-Minister K, Bicker S, Swettenham L, Tod D. 2021. Critical Pause: Athletes’ Stories of Lockdown during COVID-19 Sport Psychologist, 35 :43-54 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Robinson N, Montgomery C, Swettenham L, Whitehead AE. 2021. A pilot study investigating cortical haemodynamic and physiological correlates of exercise cognition in trained and untrained cyclists over an Incremental self-paced performance test, while thinking aloud. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 54 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Swettenham L, Eubank MR, Won D, Whitehead AE. 2018. Investigating Stress and Coping During Practice and Competition in Tennis using Think Aloud International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Chapters
McGinty-Minister K, Swettenham L, Whitehead A. 2024. Being on the same page! Coaching Stories :79-87 Routledge DOI Publisher Url
Swettenham L, Abbott C, Leis O. 2024. Applied Sport Psychology in Esports Jenny SE, Besombes N, Brock T, Cote AC, Scholz TM. Routledge Handbook of Esports Routledge 9781032531502 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Swettenham L, Bubna K, Watson M. 2024. Challenging the Myths of High Performance in Esports Whitehead A, Coe J. Myths of Sport Performance Sequoia Books 9781914110382 Publisher Url Public Url
McGinty-Minister K, Swettenham L, Whitehead A. 2024. Being on the same page!: Reconciling the coach- athlete relationship Coaching Stories: Navigating Storms, Triumphs, and Transformations in Sport :79-87 DOI
Swettenham L, McGinty-Minister K, Bicker S. 2021. The Evolving Role of the Sport Psychologist and the Myth that their Sole Role is to “Fix” Athletes Myths of Sport Coaching Sequoia Myths 9781914110122
McGreary M, Vaughn S, Swettenham L, Whitehead AE. Considerations for the use of Think Aloud within Self-Talk Research Thibodeaux J, Van Raalte J, Dickens Y. Review of self-talk and performance in real-world settings American Psychological Association. APA PsycBooks
Research Grants Awarded:
Mersey School of Endoscopy, Investigating Psychological Safety in Colonoscopy training, Laura Swettenham, Joe Causer, Sigrid Olthof, Paul O'Toole, Mel Rankin, Grant value (£): 20,000, Duration of research project: 12 months. 2024