NASPSPA Award Guidelines

A. NASPSPA Distinguished Scholar Award (Published in Fall, 1982 Newsletter)

1. The selection of an appropriate individual will be the responsibility of the Distinguished Scholar Award Committee (hereafter, the Selection Committee) of NASPSPA.
2. The Selection Committee will consist of the President, who will serve as chairperson, plus one representative from each of the areas of Motor Development, Motor Learning/Control, and Sport Psychology. These representatives must be approved by the NASPSPA Executive Committee. The term of membership will be two years.
3. An announcement requesting nominations will be made in the Fall Newsletter. Nominations will be made to the President by a specified date (usually October 15). Any current NASPSPA member may nominate appropriate candidates. The nomination should include a two or three page justification of why the nomination is being made.
4. In all cases, the nomination(s) should be kept in strictest confidence.
5. The Selection Committee, using the nominator's justification for the nomination, plus any other information that is appropriate (and without informing the nominee of his/her nomination) will make a decision by April 1. A simple majority is necessary for a recipient to be named and if a favorable vote ensure, the Chair of the Selection Committee will notify the nominee and an announcement will appear in the Spring newsletter.

B.NASPSPA Early Career Distinguished Scholar Award (Published in the Fall, 1982 Newsletter)

1. An announcement requesting nominations will be made in the Fall Newsletter. Nominations will be made to the President by a specified date (usually October 15). Nominations may be made by any NASPSPA member and should include the name of the nominee and a statement concerning the nominee's qualifications for the award.
2. The president will request each nominee to submit:
   1. a vita
   2. a one to three page summary of the nominee's work, emphasizing the basic theory, potential impact, and importance
   3. reprints of 3 to 5 publications
   4. names of 3 individuals who could write letters of recommendation for the nominee (the President will request these letters from the individuals named)
3. The Selection Committee will select the award recipient after reviewing the nominee's credential and qualifications and voting by means of a telephone vote no later than April 1, if possible. A majority vote of the committee is necessary for a recipient to be named.
4. The name of the recipient will be announced at the Annual Business Meeting. An announcement of the award recipient will appear in the Fall Newsletter.

1. Any one submitting a nomination or writing a letter of support for a candidate is disqualified from serving on the Selection Committee.
2. No member of the Selection Committee may be from the same institution as a nominee or have been the doctoral advisor or advisee of a nominee.
3. If either of the above two restrictions applies to the President (who serves as chair of the Selection Committee), he or she will refuse to exercise the right to vote in the selection.
4. Other letters of recommendation may be solicited as necessary by the President or the Selection Committee.
5. The Selection Committee will be comprised of senior members of the Society.

C. President's Award

1. Current or previous member of NASPSPA
2. At least 15 years beyond terminal degree
3. Made significant contribution to NASPSPA such as (but not limited to)
   1. serving in elected offices
   2. serving on committees
   3. hosting conferences
   4. organizing or influencing major changes

D. NASPSPA Outstanding Student Paper Award (Revised June, 11, 1998, Executive Committee Meeting)

1. To recognize meritorious research by student members of NASPSPA.
2. To foster research by student members of NASPSPA.

1. The research question should be original, innovative, important, and significant.
2. The researcher observed appropriate standards for the treatment of participants. That is, a statement certifying that ethical treatment of participants was followed in conducting this research should be included. (Note: These criteria are modified from the evaluation of research guidelines, p.3-4, of the APA Publication Manual 4th edition)

1. For student applying for the Graduate Student Award, the following must be sent to the area program chair:
   1. A short abstract (as described for the conference)
   2. A long abstract (no longer than 5 pages double-spaced, 12pt font, including figures). This abstract should include: the research question, a rationale for the importance of the question, methods, results (including selected figures if appropriate), and a discussion of the findings and their significance.
2. For the graduate student advisor:
   A letter of nomination for the award must be written by the advisor indicating why this student’s research is worthy of the Graduate Student Research Award. This should address the criteria being used by the committee to evaluate the research (see above). The letter should also include a statement indicating that the majority of the work done for this research was completed by the student. In the case of multi-authored publications, the advisor should indicate the individual contributions of each author.

1. Students may win the award more than once.
2. A permanent "button" will be added to the NASPSPA Website for Awards.
3. Information about awards will continue to appear in the Fall Newsletter.
4. The Student Column in the Fall Newsletter will continue to include info.
5. Students must be present at the conference to receive the award.
6. The awards will not be "named."
7. Winners will receive a plaque in addition to the cash award.

E. NASPSPA Student Award for International Travel

1. The research question should be original, innovative, important, and significant.
2. The researcher observed appropriate standards for the treatment of participants. That is, a statement certifying that ethical treatment of participants was followed in conducting this research should be included. (Note: These criteria are modified from the evaluation of research guidelines, pages 5-6 of the APA Publication Manual, 5th edition)
3. The student must be the primary investigator and author of the research project.
4. The researcher demonstrates the potential benefits to her or his education and future/current collaboration prospects.

1. The Travel Awards Committee will consist of representatives of each area who will serve for three calendar years. The President will recruit individuals to serve on the Travel Awards Committee.
2. For the student applying for the Graduate Student Award for International Travel, the following must be sent to the Travel Awards Committee via the NASPSPA President:
   • A short abstract (as decribed for the proposed international conference and/or collaboration).
   • A long abstract (no longer than 5 pages, double-spaced, 12pt font, including figures). This abstract should include: the research question, a rationale for the importance of the question, methods, results or predicted results (including selected figures if appropriate), and a discussion of the findings and their significance.
   • A short letter (no longer than a page, single-spaced) describing the significance of the research and the potential for collaboration to be developed at the conference of attendance. The location and society hosting the meeting must be indicated in the letter. The letter should also indicate that the research was independently conducted by the student, or that the student was the lead investigator of the project, and that the research was approved by a review board for the protection of human participants.
3. For the graduate student advisor: A letter of nomination for the award must be written by the advisor indicating why this student's research is worthy of the Graduate Student Award for International Travel. This letter should address the criteria being used by the committee to evaluate the research (see earlier). The letter should also include a statement indicating that the majority of the work done for this research was completed by the student, or the role of the student in the proposed collaboration. In the case of multi-authored publications, the advisor should indicate the individual contributions of each author.

F. NASPSPA Graduate Student Research Grant

Purpose
To promote and support the scholarly activity of graduate student members of NASPSPA.

Eligibility
Students must be current members of NASPSPA to be eligible to apply for an award, and must also be currently enrolled in a Masters or Doctoral program at the time of application. Note: Collaborative projects among two or more student members of NASPSPA can be considered for receipt of this award.

Nature of the Award
This award can provide up to $1000 awarded at the NASPSPA Annual Conference. The award money must be used for activities directly related to conducting the proposed research project (e.g., equipment, travel for data collection, participant recruitment, etc.). Note: The funds may not be used for travel to conferences. To receive the funds, the applicant's advisor should provide a letter in support of the application and an indication that the home Department and/or Institution is willing to provide the funds to the student in advance of the study. Once the study is completed, the award recipient must provide the NASPSPA Secretary-Treasurer with the appropriate receipts and the home Department and/or Institution would then be reimbursed. Awardees will acknowledge NASPSPA as a source of their funding at any presentation of the research results. At least one research presentation will be made at a NASPSPA conference. Wording for the acknowledgment shall be: "This research was supported by a grant from the North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity (NASPSPA)." For more information, refer to the website: www.naspspa.org". Only the approved NASPSPA logo may be presented.

Criteria for evaluating the research proposal
1. The research question should be original, innovative, important, and significant, and must conform to the purpose of NASPSPA (see Policy Manual, Article 2).
2. The research will have passed an ethical review, and the certificate of ethical approval included with the application.
3. Applicant(s) must be the primary investigator(s) on the research project.
4. The researcher must demonstrate the potential benefits to her or his education and future collaboration prospects.

Guidelines

1. For the student applying for the NASPSPA Research Grant, four copies of the following must be sent to the selection committee via the NASPSPA President: President:
   1. a) A two to five page outline of the proposed study detailing the purpose, method and treatment of data (double-spaced, 12pt font, including figures). References may be included in additional pages using APA Publication format, 5th edition)
   2. A certificate or proof of ethical review approval for the study
   3. An estimated budget for allocation of the grant funds on research related costs that cannot be covered by other means.
   4. A short CV (not to exceed 2 pages single-spaced) demonstrating the applicant's ability to complete the proposed investigation.
2. For the graduate student advisor:
   1. A letter of nomination for the award written by the advisor indicating why this student's research is worthy of the NASPSPA Graduate Student Research Grant. This letter should address the criteria being used by the selection committee to evaluate the proposal, with emphasis placed on the student's role as primary investigator.
   2. A statement that the budget has been read and approved by the advisor, and that the advisor's Department and/or Home Institution has agreed to fund the study in advance. The advisor is also asked to verify that the budget costs can not be covered by other means.

Clarifications
Students may win the grant only once. The NASPSPA website will include a listing of grant awardees. Information about the grant and the title of the study will appear in the Newsletter. Students who receive the research grant are required to present the findings of their research at a NASPSPA conference.

Submission Deadline
April 1st of each year. The applicants will be notified of the results of the competition by no later than June 1st.