Spirituality in sport

Human beings have always felt the urge to search for a deeper meaning to life, a meaning that transcends the mundane of everydayness. Historically, researchers have equated this search for inner spirituality with one’s religiousness. Integrating spirituality into sport psychology practice is ripe with potential difficulties. The taboo nature of spirituality within the dominant Euro-American approach in sport psychology has limited the extent to which spirituality has entered into the realm of sport psychology research and practice. The feelings associated with this state are subjective in nature and may be referred to as flow, peak performance, Zen, and/or feeling a greater sense of spirituality. sport psychology consultants are urged to move beyond viewing spirituality as a taboo subject and embrace the opportunity to empower athletes to develop their spiritual identity. Finally, there remains much to be explored and understood regarding spirituality and athletes’ performance and well-being.