Overview
Background
Associate Professor Carl Woods is a theoretical skill acquisition scientist, studying human-environment interactions at the intersection of sport science, ecological psychology and social anthropology. In addition to his appointment at the University of Queensland, he is the Learning Design Lead at the Queensland Academy of Sport, and Learning Design National Discipline Lead for Australian Athletics.
Carl has a unique blend of theoretical and applied experiences, having held research leadership positions within the Institute for Health and Sport at Victoria University, while coordinating coaching science, skill acquisition, and innovation within the Australian Football League.
Given these diverse experiences, his research spans three major themes: 1) theoretical advancements to the field of sport science; 2) exploring ways of fostering human-environment interactions through the promotion of ecologically literate behaviour; 3) addressing practical challenges in sport related to performance preparation, practice task design, and coach education.
Availability
- Associate Professor Carl Woods is:
- Available for supervision
Fields of research
Research interests
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Sport science
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Ecological psychology
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Ecological literacy
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Exploratory movement
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Environmental design
Research impacts
Despite his primary theoretical interest, Carl has strong industry links and prides himself on producing theoretically rich research that tangibly translates to practice and policy change at both local and global scales. Examples include coach education reform within Football Victoria and the integration of contemporized principles of practice related to Learning Design and Skill Acquisition within the Queensland Academy of Sport and Australian Athletics. Beyond this industry engagement and impact, Carl’s research is globally integrated into undergraduate and postgraduate sport and exercise science degrees, showing considerable disciplinary thought leadership while shaping the emerging generation of Learning Design and Skill Acquisition Scientists across the globe.
Works
Search Professor Carl Woods’s works on UQ eSpace
2025
Journal Article
On the reflections of an international Rugby Union coach faring their way along
McKay, Jim, Renshaw, Ian, Davids, Keith and Woods, Carl T. (2025). On the reflections of an international Rugby Union coach faring their way along. International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching 17479541251387612. doi: 10.1177/17479541251387612
2025
Journal Article
On the topic of education in a corresponsive sport science
Woods, Carl T., Richard, Véronique, Camiré, Martin and van der Kamp, John (2025). On the topic of education in a corresponsive sport science. Sport, Education and Society, 1-13. doi: 10.1080/13573322.2025.2564247
2025
Journal Article
The effectiveness of linear and nonlinear pedagogical approaches in team-invasion ball sports: a systematic review
Bromilow, Liam, Milne, Nikki, Woods, Carl T., Dowsett, Caroline K. and Keogh, Justin W. L. (2025). The effectiveness of linear and nonlinear pedagogical approaches in team-invasion ball sports: a systematic review. Sports Medicine - Open, 11 (1) 90, 1-16. doi: 10.1186/s40798-025-00893-y
2025
Journal Article
Continuing the conversation: charting a course for a situated approach to coach education in Australian football
Selimi, Erch, Lascu, Alex and Woods, Carl T. (2025). Continuing the conversation: charting a course for a situated approach to coach education in Australian football. Sport, Education and Society, ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print), 1-19. doi: 10.1080/13573322.2025.2483798
2025
Journal Article
The development and content of movement quality assessments in athletic populations: a systematic review and multilevel meta-analysis
Wijekulasuriya, Gyan A., Woods, Carl T., Kittel, Aden and Larkin, Paul (2025). The development and content of movement quality assessments in athletic populations: a systematic review and multilevel meta-analysis. Sports Medicine-Open, 11 (1) 7, 7. doi: 10.1186/s40798-025-00813-0
2025
Journal Article
Enskilment into the coaching landscape: towards a situated approach to coach education in Australian football
Selimi, Erch and Woods, Carl T. (2025). Enskilment into the coaching landscape: towards a situated approach to coach education in Australian football. Sport, Education and Society, 30 (4), 413-426. doi: 10.1080/13573322.2024.2318396
2025
Journal Article
There is no copy and paste, but there is resonation and inhabitation: integrating a contemporary player development framework in football from a complexity sciences perspective
O'Sullivan, Mark, Vaughan, James, Woods, Carl T. and Davids, Keith (2025). There is no copy and paste, but there is resonation and inhabitation: integrating a contemporary player development framework in football from a complexity sciences perspective . Journal of Sports Sciences, 43 (1), 99-108. doi: 10.1080/02640414.2023.2288979
2024
Journal Article
A flag for our time: in correspondence with van der Kamp
Woods, Carl T. (2024). A flag for our time: in correspondence with van der Kamp. Sports Medicine, 54 (9), 2243-2245. doi: 10.1007/s40279-024-02049-6
2024
Journal Article
Conceptualizing the environment in a time of ecological collapse
Withagen, Rob, van der Kamp, John and Woods, Carl T. (2024). Conceptualizing the environment in a time of ecological collapse. Ecological Psychology, 37 (2), 83-92. doi: 10.1080/10407413.2024.2397764
2024
Journal Article
On finding one's way: a comment on Bock et al. (2024)
Woods, Carl T., Araujo, Duarte and Davids, Keith (2024). On finding one's way: a comment on Bock et al. (2024). Psychological Research, 88 (7), 2172-2179. doi: 10.1007/s00426-024-02011-1
2024
Journal Article
On a corresponsive sport science
Woods, Carl T., Araújo, Duarte and Davids, Keith (2024). On a corresponsive sport science. Sports Medicine, 54 (5), 1071-1084. doi: 10.1007/s40279-023-01981-3
2024
Journal Article
On making one's way through chess
Brigante, Gustavo G. and Woods, Carl T. (2024). On making one's way through chess. Sport, Education and Society, 30 (5), 635-648. doi: 10.1080/13573322.2024.2346141
2024
Journal Article
Sport scientists in-becoming: from fulfilling one's potential to finding our way along
Woods, Carl T. T. and Davids, Keith (2024). Sport scientists in-becoming: from fulfilling one's potential to finding our way along. Sport Education and Society, 29 (4), 481-495. doi: 10.1080/13573322.2022.2163231
2024
Journal Article
On ecological literacy through implicated participation
Woods, Carl T., Davids, Keith and Araújo, Duarte (2024). On ecological literacy through implicated participation. New Ideas in Psychology, 73 101079, 101079. doi: 10.1016/j.newideapsych.2024.101079
2024
Journal Article
Relationships between physical fitness characteristics, technical skill attributes, and sports injury in female Australian football players
Farley, Jessica B., O'Hara, Miranda, Keogh, Justin W. L., Woods, Carl T., Rathbone, Evelyne and Milne, Nikki (2024). Relationships between physical fitness characteristics, technical skill attributes, and sports injury in female Australian football players. PLoS One, 19 (2) e0298267, e0298267. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0298267
2024
Journal Article
Development of a sports technology quality framework
Robertson, S., Zendler, J., De Mey, K., Haycraft, J., Ash, G. I., Brockett, C., Seshadri, D., Woods, C., Kober, L., Aughey, R. and Rogowski, J. (2024). Development of a sports technology quality framework. Journal of Sports Sciences, 41 (22), 1983-1993. doi: 10.1080/02640414.2024.2308435
2024
Journal Article
Not just to know more, but to also know better: how data analysis-synthesis can be woven into sport science practiced as an art of inquiry
Sullivan, Mark O., Vaughan, James and Woods, Carl T. (2024). Not just to know more, but to also know better: how data analysis-synthesis can be woven into sport science practiced as an art of inquiry. Sport, Education and Society, 29 (9), 1114-1132. doi: 10.1080/13573322.2023.2261970
2024
Journal Article
On the wisdom of not-knowing: reflections of an Olympic Canoe Slalom coach
Morris, Craig E., Davids, Keith and Woods, Carl T. (2024). On the wisdom of not-knowing: reflections of an Olympic Canoe Slalom coach. Sport, Education and Society, 29 (4), 385-396. doi: 10.1080/13573322.2022.2140135
2023
Journal Article
Wayfinding through boundaries of knowing: professional development of academic sport scientists and what we could learn from an ethos of amateurism
Woods, Carl T., Araújo, Duarte, McKeown, Ian and Davids, Keith (2023). Wayfinding through boundaries of knowing: professional development of academic sport scientists and what we could learn from an ethos of amateurism. Sport, Education and Society, 28 (7), 785-796. doi: 10.1080/13573322.2022.2071861
2023
Journal Article
Thinking through making and doing: sport science as an art of inquiry
Woods, Carl T. and Davids, Keith (2023). Thinking through making and doing: sport science as an art of inquiry. Sport, Education and Society, 28 (5), 579-593. doi: 10.1080/13573322.2022.2054792
Supervision
Availability
- Associate Professor Carl Woods is:
- Available for supervision
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Media
Enquiries
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