Kweku’s Korner
By Tiffany Taylor, LCSW BCD
Tiffany Taylor, LCSW BCD
For the past eight years, I’ve spent countless hours on the sidelines, not as a clinician or scholar, but as a sports mom. I’ve watched my child wrestle with anxiety before a big game, carry the weight of expectations, and navigate the highs and lows of performing under pressure. I’ve also seen teammates and other young athletes struggle with deeper battles around identity, sexuality, and belonging. These behind-the-scenes moments rarely make the highlight reel, yet they profoundly shape how young athletes show up for themselves and their teams.
To put it in sports terms: This isn’t the warmup, it’s the main event. Our athletes need more than drills, playbooks, and pep talks. They need care circles and environments that see every part of who they are, not just the competitor, and nurture them holistically: mind, body, and spirit. The real question is, how do we create such an ecosystem?
The answer started to take shape for me after attending the Alliance of Social Workers in Sports (ASWIS) 11th Annual Conference and meeting with Dr. Kweku Amoasi. Our conversations revealed a truth hiding in plain sight: bridging the gap between sport psychology and sport social work isn’t just a good idea, it’s the missing piece. It’s the connective tissue that can transform how we support athletes, not just as competitors, but as whole human beings navigating pressure, identity, purpose, and healing.
Sport psychology traditionally focuses on sharpening the individual athlete’s mindset, resilience, focus, and mental toughness. Sport social work widens the lens to include trauma, family dynamics, race, reproductive health, body image, culture, and other systemic influences that shape an athlete’s experience. The key questions shift from how they perform to what they’re carrying and why they might be struggling.
Magic happens when both worlds work together. Picture a locker room where performance coaches and social workers collaborate to build emotionally safe environments, or a team huddle where conversations about anxiety naturally include racism, gender expectations, or the pressures of being a first-generation student. The “mental game” becomes about more than winning; it becomes about wellness, inclusion, and growth.
We need this shift now. Simone Biles brought global attention to this conversation during the Olympics when she prioritized her mental well-being over competition, reminding us that even elite athletes need systems that support their whole selves.
The same is true at the grassroots level, for young athletes in schools, parks, and community fields. Bridging sport psychology and sport social work isn’t just a professional goal. It’s a generational duty to raise athletes who know that asking for help is not a weakness, but one of the strongest plays they can make.