<P> In 1979, Devi at the University of Illinois published an article ("About Smocks and Jocks") in which he contended that it was difficult to apply specific laboratory research to sporting situations . For instance, how can the pressure of shooting a foul shot in front of 12,000 screaming fans be duplicated in the lab? Martens contended: "I have grave doubts that isolated psychological studies which manipulate a few variables, attempting to uncover the effects of X on Y, can be cumulative to form a coherent picture of human behavior . I sense that the elegant control achieved in laboratory research is such that all meaning is drained from the experimental situation . The external validity of laboratory studies is at best limited to predicting behavior in other laboratories ." Martens urged researchers to get out of the laboratory and onto the field to meet athletes and coaches on their own turf . Martens' article spurred an increased interest in qualitative research methods in sport psychology, such as the seminal article "Mental Links to Excellence ." </P> <P> The first journal "The Journal of Sports Psychology" came out in 1979; and in 1985, several applied sport psychology practitioners, headed by John Silva, believed an organization was needed to focus on professional issues in sport psychology, and therefore formed the Association for the Advancement of Applied Sport Psychology (AAASP). This was done in response to NASPSPA voting not to address applied issues and to keep their focus on research . In 2007, AAASP dropped "Advancement" from its name to become the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP), as it is currently known . </P> <P> Following its stated goal of promoting the science and practice of applied sport psychology, AAASP quickly worked to develop uniform standards of practice, highlighted by the development of an ethical code for its members in the 1990s . The development of the AAASP Certified Consultant (CC - AAASP) program helped bring standardization to the training required to practice applied sport psychology . AASP aims to provide leadership for the development of theory, research and applied practice in sport, exercise, and health psychology . Also during this same time period, over 500 members of the American Psychological Association (APA) signed a petition to create Division 47 in 1986, which is focused on Exercise and Sport Psychology . </P> <P> Sport Psychology started to become visible at the Olympic games in 1984, when the Olympic teams began to hire sport psychologists for their athletes, and in 1985, when the U.S. team employed their first permanent sport psychologist . For the Summer Olympics in 1996, the U.S. already had over 20 sport psychologists working with their athletes . </P>

The following individual is generally referred to as the father of sport psychology in north america