Dr Justine Allen

Associate Professor

Department: Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation

I am an experienced higher education academic who is passionate about facilitating the development of people whether in higher education working with students and colleagues or working in sport with coaches, coach developers, volunteers, and sport organisations. Originally from New Zealand, I joined Northumbria University in 2023 after working at the University of Stirling, University of Otago, and University of Waikato.

My research also focuses on the development of people, with a focus on the psychosocial environment that can support or thwart individuals’ motivation, well-being, psychological needs, and performance. My work developing people continues in the wider community as a coach developer and sport coach.

Email Justine

Research Themes and Scholarly Interests

My research focuses on understanding the processes and practices of coaches, teachers, and organisational leaders in their facilitation (or thwarting) of optimal human functioning within sport and education contexts. Specifically, I examine how (and why) these key influencers impact performers’, participants’, and volunteers’ motivation, performance, psychological needs satisfaction, well-being and life skill development. My research adopts a social psychological perspective to understand the social contextual and individual factors that influence coaches’ and athletes’ experiences in sport and includes the psychosocial development of young people.

Key Publications

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
The “Face” of Coach Development: A Systematic Review of the Role of the Coach Developer, Jones, T., Allen, J., Macdonald, S. 1 Jan 2024, In: International Sport Coaching Journal
Coaching high performance athletes, Allen, J., Muir, B. 19 Mar 2021, Coaching for Human Development and Performance in Sports, Cham, Switzerland, Springer
'Zooming in' on the antecedents of youth sport coaches' autonomy-supportive and controlling interpersonal behaviours: a multimethod study, Carroll, M., Allen, J. 1 Apr 2021, In: International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching
A self-determination theory based investigation of life skills development in youth sport, Cronin, L., Ellison, P., Allen, J., Huntley, E., Johnson, L., Kosteli, M., Hollis, A., Marchant, D. 18 Apr 2022, In: Journal of Sports Sciences
Development and initial validation of the life skills ability scale for higher education students, Cronin, L., Allen, J., Ellison, P., Marchant, D., Levy, A., Harwood, C. 3 Jun 2021, In: Studies in Higher Education

PGR Supervision

Ben King ‘The Coaches’ Role in Facilitating Thriving in the Junior to Senior Transition in Professional Football’ Start Date: 01/10/2023
Stephen Foley Incident Reporting Mechanisms and Cultures in Sea Kayaking Start Date: 01/10/2023
Alexandra Mollin Start Date: 01/10/2024
Timothy Jones (RE)CODE-ing Development as Skilled Helping: Locating the Coach Developer within the Morphogenetic Cycle Start Date: 01/10/2023
Sally Anderson Are parents of youth athletes burning out? The experiences of parents whose children play individual and team sports at regional or national level Doctor of Philosophy Sport Coaching Research Start Date: 01/10/2023

Qualifications

Sports Science PhD December 01 2001
Sports Studies MA May 01 1996
Physiology BSc December 01 1992
Sports Science BSc (Hons) May 01 1992
Senior Fellow Higher Education Authority Senior Fellow HEA 2022

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