Are you interested in researching women’s experiences in martial arts and combat sports? Are you looking for a funded PhD opportunity? Then look no further!

The Open University and British Taekwondo have partnered to provide a fully funded PhD studentship to research women’s experiences of working with coaches in Taekwondo and dealing with injuries. This project aims to provide recommendations that enhance coach understanding and increase women’s retention in British Taekwondo clubs.

This opportunity is open for applications until 7th January 2025, and you can find more information here: https://www.oocdtp.ac.uk/open-cda-owton-british-taekwondo

Women are often excluded from martial arts and combat sports research, and women’s experiences in martial arts clubs can be challenging. Understanding how gender dynamics influence women’s experiences can inform how we address these inequalities. Promoting positive experiences can widen participation and help to ensure women have equal access to the health and psychological benefits associated with Taekwondo.

This PhD is intended to contribute to the research and knowledge base in these and similar areas. The candidate will have the opportunity to shape the project in line with their own experience, research interests and reflections. Two research questions that could be explored are:

  1. What are women’s experiences of the coach-athlete relationship in martial arts?
  1. What are women’s psychosocial injury experiences in martial arts?

Together, these research questions explore the crucial role of a coach in fostering an environment conducive to an athlete’s holistic growth and healing – physically, mentally, and emotionally – while considering the gender dynamics and the distinctive subculture of martial arts and combat sports.

The candidate will be co-supervised between The Open University and British Taekwondo. British Taekwondo will provide access to participants for studies through our extensive membership, as well as membership and retention statistics from our own interventions. We will incorporate educational outcomes from this project into our coaching training programme, and embed any interventions proven by this project into our organisation.

Find out more and apply here by 7th January 2025: https://www.oocdtp.ac.uk/open-cda-owton-british-taekwondo