Associate Professor
HPER 360A2
865-974-3743
kbecker2@utk.edu
COURSES TAUGHT
| KNS 541 | Supervision in Sport Psychology |
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Dr. Becker’s research involves studying factors that enhance and inhibit the learning and performance of motor skills. A large portion of his work has been dedicated to understanding the complexities of how attentional focus (i.e., what one thinks about while performing a task) impacts performance and learning. Additional topics of interest include how factors such as task difficulty, variability, and practice structure influence perceived competence, performance, and learning. Dr. Becker has interest in applying this work in clinical and rehabilitation settings as well as high performance sport.
EDUCATION
| PhD | University of Tennessee, Knoxville | Kinesiology and Sport Studies – Sport Psychology and Motor Behavior |
| MS | Illinois State University | Kinesiology; Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity |
| BS | University of Wisconsin-La Crosse | Physical Education; School Health Education |
EXPERIENCE
| 2022 – Present | Associate Professor, University of Tennessee, Knoxville |
| 2020 – 2022 | Associate Professor, Texas Women’s University |
| 2014 – 2020 | Assistant Professor, Texas Women’s University |
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Aiken, C. A., & Becker, K. A. (2022). Utilising an internal focus of attention during preparation and an external focus during execution may facilitate motor learning. European Journal of Sport Science, 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2022.2042604
Becker, K. A., & McNamara, S. W. (2021). The Absence of Vision Impacts Attentional Focus Effects During a Balancing Task. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1080/02701367.2021.1946462
Abedanzadeh, R., Becker, K.A., & Mousavi, S. M. (2021). Both a holistic and external focus of attention enhance the learning of a badminton short serve. Psychological Research, 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-021-01475-9.
Goh, H., Stewart, J., Becker, K.A., & Hung, C.* (2021). Perceived effort for reaching is associated with self-reported fatigue. Journal of Motor Behavior., 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1080/00222895.2021.1871877.
Fuchs, C. T., Becker, K. A., Austin, E., & Tamplain, P. (2020). Accuracy and vividness in motor imagery ability: Differences between children and young adults. Developmental Neuropsychology. 45(5), 297-308. https://doi.org/10.1080/87565641.2020.1788034.
Becker, K. A., & Hung, C.* (2020). Attentional focus influences sample entropy in a balancing task. Human Movement Science, 72, 102631. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.humov.2020.102631.
Becker, K. A., Georges, A.F.†, & Aiken, C. A. (2019). Considering a holistic focus of attention as an alternative to an external focus. Journal of Motor Learning and Development, 7 (2), 194-203, https://doi.org/10.1123/jmld.2017-0065.