Dr Anna Stodter
Senior Lecturer Leeds Beckett
Media
Social
Biography
Anna joined Leeds Beckett in 2022 after seven years at Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge (UK), where she was the course leader for MSc Sport Coaching and MSc Sport and Exercise Science.
Anna's main research focus lies in the processes and impacts of coach learning, coach education and coach development. Her PhD research, completed at Loughborough University, adopted mixed methods and grounded theory to generate an evidence-informed process that explains how coaches learn.
Anna has a background in rugby union as a former international player and UKCC Level 3 qualified coach. She has strong applied links as an associate coach developer, alongside knowledge exchange and consultancy work with varied sporting bodies including The RFU, England Netball, Archery GB, SportScotland, UK Coaching, UK Sport, and World Rugby.
Anna is interested in translating and applying evidence to promote positive experiences for all in sport, demonstrated by her current role on the World Rugby Women’s Rugby Player Welfare Working Group. This independent steering group provides expert, evidence-informed recommendations to advance welfare for girls and women at all levels of rugby union.
Industry Expertise
Areas of Expertise
Accomplishments
Level 3 Coaching Award
2019
England Rugby
Senior Fellow
2020
Higher Education Academy
Education
Loughborough University
MSc
Psychology of Sport and Exercise
2009
The University of Edinburgh
BSc
Psychology
2007
Affiliations
- World Rugby Women’s Rugby Player Welfare Working Group
Languages
- English
Media Appearances
Research to support women in rugby kicks off
ScrumQueens online
2024-08-21
It will be led by Dr Anna Stodter, who has a strong background in rugby union as a former Scotland international and player at Saracens. She has significant experience in mixed-methods research with national governing bodies including UK Sport, UK Coaching, the RFU and the FA.
Innovative support for our Coaching Leads
Sport Wales online
2024-06-13
A group of Coaching Leads from across Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are taking part in an innovative learning programme to help them ensure that coaching within their respective sports meets the needs of participants and helps to reduce the inequalities which exist in sport.
Coaching safe and creative ways to fall
Rugby Coach Weekly online
2024-03-11
Coach learning researcher and rugby coach DR ANNA STODTER explains how to develop contact confidence at a pace that suits the players in front of you.
Articles
Who Coaches the Coaches? Exploring the Biographies of Novice Athletics Coach Education Tutors
International Sport Coaching Journal2024
Despite coach education being a focus of academic inquiry for over 20 years, coach developers (e.g., tutors) have been neglected from the literature until recently. In recognizing and understanding the role of the tutor in delivering quality learning programs for sport coaches, it is also important to consider who tutors are and how biographical factors influence their development toward expertise.
Does a stakeholder informed coaching intervention reduce head-to-head contacts in women’s rugby league?
British Journal of Sports Medicine2024
Concussion is the most prevalent injury, and poor tackle technique has been identified as the most important and modifiable risk factor in women’s rugby league.
A global survey exploring tackle training knowledge, attitudes and practices of women's rugby union coaches
International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching2024
The coaching and performance context in women's rugby is not well understood, despite growing popularity worldwide. The aim of this study was to describe the knowledge, attitudes and tackle training practices of women's rugby coaches in relation to tackle safety and performance. A globally distributed online survey exploring coaches’ knowledge, attitudes and practices towards tackling women's rugby was completed by 357 coaches (mean age 41 ± 0.6 years) from 58 countries.
The state of play for contact training and coaching in women's rugby
European Journal of Sport Science2024
This article aims to review and comment upon the current “state of play” for research around contact and tackle training in women's rugby, covering tackle injury risk, match contact demands, players' experiences of contact coaching and contact skill preparation. In women's rugby, the tackle is the most common match technical-physical contest, accounting for around two-thirds of all injuries and carrying the greatest injury burden.
Thinking again about the use of think aloud and stimulated recall methods in sport coaching
Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health2024
Understanding sport coaches’ thought processes in situ is a developing area within both research and applied practice. Research methods such as the Think Aloud protocol (TA) and Stimulated Recall (SR) interviewing have been used to gain qualitative insights into cognitive and behavioural aspects of coaching practice, offering value in moving beyond popular yet somewhat simplistic, traditionally decontextualised uses of standard interview-based methods.
