Chelsi Ricketts is a fourth-year doctoral candidate working with Dr Leps Malete in the psychosocial concentration. Chelsi is also an International student from Jamaica, where she completed her Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology and Master of Science degree in Clinical Psychology from the University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica. Chelsi’s dissertation is a cultural extension of the Sport-Confidence Model to Jamaican and Botswana athletes, to examine the role of positive body image in athletes’ sport-confidence and sport performance evaluations.
What brought you to the ISYS?
I was brought to the ISYS through working with my advisor, Dr Leps Malete, whose lab, International Research on Youth Sport, Physical Activity, and Health (IRYSPAH), is housed within the ISYS. As a research team, we are committed to using sport and physical activity as a vehicle for nurturing youths’ talents, health, well-being, and various positive developmental outcomes. Moreover, we are committed to advancing international and cross-cultural research in youth sport, while increasing access to sport and physical activity-based programming to underserved youth and communities, visions aligning with that of the ISYS.
What are some highlights of your time in the ISYS?
I am grateful to have contributed to mission objectives of the ISYS while at MSU, specifically as it relates to research dissemination and outreach. In Spring 2022, I provided assistance with the execution of the Midwest Sport and Exercise Psychology Symposium (MSEPS) hosted at MSU, and planned and executed by the ISYS. As a Graduate student, this experience contributed to my professional development by providing opportunities for networking and collaboration. Likewise, my involvement as a workshop co-facilitator at the 2022 Women in Sport Leadership Conference, organized by the Michigan High School Athletics Association, was another key highlight of my time in the ISYS. As research to practice translation is a highly valued component of my scholarly agenda, I was grateful for the opportunity to share practical strategies with coaches on supporting healthy body image environments in sport and with athletes on development positive body image.
What are your research interests?
My research interests include body image in sport and physical activity and positive youth development through sport. Specifically, I am interested in understanding the role that positive body image plays in facilitating mental skills critical to performance (e.g., confidence) as well as factors that contribute to the experience of positive body image in sport and physical activity (e.g., individual & contextual factors). Likewise, I am interested in understanding how sport can be utilized as an avenue for promoting positive outcomes (e.g., well-being) and nurturing youths’ strengths.
Is there anything else you’d like us to know about your time at the ISYS, your work today, or for future students?
The ISYS provided a safe and supportive environment for me to explore my personal and professional interests. I received opportunities to prepare for conference presentations, receive constructive feedback, and process next steps post-PhD. Shout out to Lauren Secaras for facilitating Student Productivity (SPA) meetings, which served as a means of accountability for goal attainment each semester. Overall, the ISYS ensured that as students, we never had to encounter important milestones alone. I am grateful to be a member of this supportive community.
Fun fact about yourself
My hidden talent is singing. 🙂