Dr Geoff Lovell

Geoff Lovell

Associate Lecturer, Department of Performance, Health and Wellbeing

School of Psychology

Associate Lecturers

Contact Details

email: g.lovell@worc.ac.uk

Geoff is a part-time associate lecturer combining practice as a HCPC registered practitioner psychologist, with research and teaching. He has taught at both UK and Australian Universities with a focus on research methods, wellbeing, and sport and exercise psychology. Geoff is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA).

Geoff has extensive experience in designing, leading, and providing elite sport psychology services supporting Great Britain and Australian Paralympic and Olympic Team successes. Geoff has supported athletes at every Olympic and Paralympic summer games since 1996 and has been to Commonwealth Games and Paralympic Games. Geoff has actively supported European Championship, World Championship, Paralympic, and Olympic medal winners. In Australia, Geoff has had substantial leadership roles in high-profile Paralympic and Olympic campaigns, e.g., Swimming (Olympic and Paralympic, pool, and open water). Tokyo was one of Geoff's most successful Paralympic and Olympic Games closely supporting the winning of numerous Gold medals. Geoff is currently the Olympic Psychologist for British Rowing, helping to prepare the Great Britain Rowing Team for Paris 2024.

Geoff’s specific area of research is the psychology of sport, exercise, health, and well-being. Geoff has published over 100 peer-reviewed journal articles, has considerable experience in successfully supervising research students including PhDs, and has had success in external grant applications.

Qualifications

  • 1998 – PhD Sport and Exercise Psychology

Teaching Interests

As a teacher Geoff has been recognized nationally as a recipient of the highly competitive Australian Office for Learning and Teaching Citation from the Commonwealth Office for Learning and Teaching, recognising his 22 years of excellence in inspiring and motivating psychology and sports science students to actively engage in learning through enthusiastic, student-centred teaching practice. Through his passionate, enthusiastic, and theoretically grounded teaching practice, Geoff actively engages students in the learning process. He has an extensive repertoire of real-world examples, data, case studies and stories drawn from his extensive experience in research, applied sports psychology and coaching at the elite level, with which he enlivens his classes and motivates his students to succeed in both their studies and professional lives. Geoff has taught across a breadth of subjects, but specialises in research methods, wellbeing, and sport and exercise psychology.

Geoff has taught across a breadth of subjects, but specialises in research methods, wellbeing, and sport and exercise psychology.

Research Interests

The psychology of sport, exercise, health, and well-being, with particular interests in:

  • Mental imagery
  • Injury recovery
  • Sports coaching
  • Para-sport
  • Metacognitions
  • Physical activity promotion
  • Volunteers
  • University student health, wellbeing, and physical activity

Recent Publications

Geoff’s specific area of scholarship is the psychology of sport, exercise, health, and well-being, with .

Recent chapters in books

Lovell, G. P., & Parker, J. K. (2022). In D. J. Collins & A. Cruickshank (Eds.), Sport Psychology Essentials. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

Recent peer reviewed papers (2021 and onwards)

Lovell, G. P, Bierton, J., Gorman, A. D., Lloyd, M., Gorman, A., & Parker, J. K. (2024). Imagery use gender differences across competition and training contexts in Australian elite level athletes. Journal of Imagery Research in Sport and Physical Activity. https://doi.org/10.1515/jirspa-2023-0034

Barrett, E., Kannis-Dymand, L., Love, S., Ramos-Cejudo, J., & Lovell, G. P. (2023). Sports specific metacognitions and competitive state anxiety in athletes: A comparison between different sporting types. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 37, 200-211. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.4040

Collins, J., Parker, J. K., McKean, M., Hogarth, L., & Lovell, G. P. (2023). Countermovement jumps and squat jumps can be used as measures of motor potential in the athletic assessment and profiling of elite development female football and rugby players. International Journal of Strength and Conditioning, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.47206/ijsc.v3i1.109

McGuffog, R., Rubin, M., Boyes, M., Caltabiano, M., Collison, J., Lovell, G. P., Muldoon, O., & Paolini, S. (2023). Sleep as a mediator of the relation between social class and health in higher education students. British Journal of Psychology. http://doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12645

Ryan, C. M., Innes, C. S., Kannis-Dymand, L., Mason, J., & Lovell, G. P. (2023). An efficacy trial of a brief group based, single session intervention delivered through Australian community sport clubs to reduce mental illness stigma and increase help-seeking intention. Asia Pacific Journal of Counselling and Psychotherapy, 14(1), 4-21. https://doi.org/10.1080/21507686.2023.2193751

Parson-Smith, R. L., Barkase, S., Lovell, G. P., Vleck, V., & Terry, P. C. (2022). Mood Profiles of Age-Group Triathletes: Implications for Mental Health and Performance. Frontiers in Psychology, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.925992

McCarthy, C., Jones, M. I., Parker, J. K., Lastella, M., & Lovell, G. P. (2022). Psycho-behavioral momentum: Golf matchplay players’ perspectives. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 34, 734-750. https://doi.org/10.1080/10413200.2020.1821124

Baynes, J., Lovell, G. P., & Herbon, J. (2021). Psychological outcomes of REDD+ projects: Evidence from country case studies. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, 26, 1-27. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11027-021-09951-8

Baxter, D. & Lovell, G. P. (2021). Australian mental health practitioners’ reported practice, beliefs, and barriers to the prescription of dietary change for mental health conditions. Australian Psychologist, 56, 245-255. https://doi.org/10.1080/00050067.2021.1893597

Birkenhead, K., Kuballa, A., Lovell, G. P., Barr, S. I., & Solomon, C. (2021). The relationships of lifetime physical activity and diet with salivary cell telomere length in current ultra-endurance exercisers. Nutrition and Healthy Aging. 1-11. https://doi.org/10.3233/NHA-200090

Davies, E., McConn-Palfrey, W., Williams, J. M., & Lovell, G. P. (2021). A narrative review of the risk factors and psychological consequences of injury in horseracing stable staff. Comparative Exercise Physiology, 17, 303 – 317. https://doi.org/10.3920/CEP200073

Driver, C., Lovell, G. P., & Oprescu, F. (2021). Physiotherapists’ views, perceived knowledge, and reported use of psychosocial strategies in practice. Physiotherapy Theory and Practice, 37, 135-148. https://doi.org/10.1080/09593985.2019.1587798

Goninon, E. J., Kannis-Dymand, L., Sonderegger, R., Mugisha, D., & Lovell, G. P. (2021). Successfully treating refugees’ post-traumatic stress symptoms in a Ugandan settlement with group cognitive behaviour therapy. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 49, 35-49. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1352465820000478

Hinz, A., Mulgrew, K., De Regt, T., & Lovell, G. P. (2021). Is this what a female Yogi looks like? A content analysis of yoga images on Instagram. Body Image, 36, 117-126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2020.11.003

Hinz, A., Mulgrew, K., De Regt, T., & Lovell, G. P. (2021). Practice or performance? A content analysis of yoga-related videos on Instagram. Body Image, 39, 175-183. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2021.08.002

Kannis-Dymand, L., Myers, A., Human, B., Steven, L., & Lovell, G. P. (2021). Evaluation of collaborative cognitive-behavioural case formulations in a clinical psychology program: A client perspective. Clinical Psychologist. https://doi.org/10.1080/13284207.2021.1981745

Lawless, P., Allen, A., Kannis-Dymand, L., & Lovell, G. P. (2021). Metacognitions in heterosexual, bisexual, and homosexual men: With or without premature ejaculation and erectile dysfunction. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 49, 612-625. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1352465820000879

Love, S., Kannis-Dymand, L., & Lovell G. P. (2021). Sports specific metacognitions: Associations with flow state in triathletes. Australian Journal of Psychology, 73, 167-178. https://doi.org/10.1080/00049530.2021.1882267

Parker, J. K., Lovell, G. P., & Jones, M. I. (2021). An examination of imagery ability and imagery use in skilled golfers. Journal of Imagery Research in Sport and Physical Activity. https://doi.org/10.1515/jirspa-2021-0006

Membership of Professional Bodies

  • Health and Care Professional Council (HCPC) - Practitioner Psychologist; Sport and Exercise
  • Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA): Registered Psychologist (2012)
  • Advance HE – Senior Fellow (SFHEA)

External Roles

  • Private Practitioner Psychologist (Sport and Exercise Psychology)
  • Olympic Psychologist for British Rowing
  • Adjunct Associate Professor in Psychology, University of the Sunshine Coast (Australia)
  • Research Fellow, INTI International University (Malaysia)
  • Associate Editor for Frontiers in Sports and Active Living; Sports Coaching and Performance