Northern Illinois University
Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education
College of Education

Todd A. Gilson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean of Research, Resources and Innovation
Professor

Department

Kinesiology and Physical Education

Research Interests

• Effective leadership in high-expectancy conditions.
• Relationship of confidence and performance.
• Motivation within achievement contexts.
• Athletic experiences.

Education

• Ph.D. Michigan State University, Sport and Exercise Psychology
• M.S. Oregon State University, Human Performance
• B.S. Ohio Northern University, Sport Management

Selected Publications

• Chow, G. M., Bird, M. D., Soendergaard, S., and Gilson, T. A. (in press). Alcohol consumption literacy, alcohol confrontation efficacy, and the educational and training needs of coaches to manage student-athlete alcohol misuse. Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology.
• Sur, M. H., Kim, S. Y., Zittel, L., and Gilson, T. A. (2021). Parental self-efficacy and practices in physical activity of young children with and without disabilities. Journal of Child and Family Studies 30, 1567-1576 (2021). 
• Stults-Kolehmainen, M.A., Blacutt, M., Fogelman, N., Gilson, T.A., Stanforth, P.R., Divin, A.L., Bartholomew, J.B., Filgueiras, A., McKee, P.C., Ash, G.I., Ciccolo, J.T., Brotnow, L.D., Williamson, S.L., and Sinha, R. (2021). Measurement of motivation states for physical activity and sedentary behavior: Development and validation of the CRAVE scale. Frontiers in Psychology, 12.
• Stults-Kolehmainen, M. A., Blacutt, M., Bartholomew, J. B., Gilson, T. A., Ash, G. I., McKee, P. C., and Sinha, R. (2020). Motivation states for physical activity and sedentary behavior: Desire, urge, wanting and craving. Frontiers in Psychology, 11.
• Gilson, T. A. (2020). Building confidence from the ground up: Sources and strategies. In S. Rawat, O. Boe, and A. Piotrowski (Eds.). Military psychology response to post pandemic reconstruction. (pp. 801-825). Rawat Publications.

Peer-Review Articles

• Guillén, F., Feltz, D. L., Gilson, T. A., and Dithurbide, L. (2019). Psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the referee self-efficacy scale (REFS). Journal of Sport Psychology, 28, 15-24.
• Chow, G. M., and Gilson, T. A. (2018). Inventories: Using objective measures. In J. Taylor (Ed.). Assessment in sport psychology consulting (pp. 83-99). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
• Mead, J., Gilson, T. A., and Henning, M. B. (2017). An ethnographic person-centered study of leadership development in high school basketball team captains. Journal for the Study of Sports and Athletes in Education, 11, 216-241.
• Lochbaum, M., Jean-Noel, J., Pinar, C., and Gilson, T. A. (2017). A meta-analytic review of Elliot’s (1999) Hierarchical Model of Approach and Avoidance Motivation in the sport, physical activity, and physical education literature. Journal of Sport and Health Science, 6, 68-80.
• Gilson, T. A., Dix, M. A., and Lochbaum, M. (2017). ‘Drive on:’ The relationship between psychological variables and effective squad leadership. Military Psychology, 29, 58-67.

Courses Taught

• KNPE 310 - Psychological Aspects of Sport and Exercise
• KNPE 393 - Social Aspects of Sport
• KNPE 399 - Mental Toughness for Sport and Exercise
• KNPE 582 - Psychology of Sport and Exercise
• KNPE 583 - Psychology of Coaching
• KNPE 586 - Sport: Culture and Society