Christopher Mesagno
Senior Lecturer, Sport & Exercise Psychology, Institute for Health & Sport (IHES), Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia · Australia
Editorial leadership for Journal of Human Psychology ISSN 2644-1101
Research interests
- Choking Under Pressure Performance Anxiety Self-Presentation & Fear Of Negative Evaluation Attentional Control & Concentration Pre-Performance Routines Coping Skills Training Mindfulness & Resilience Social Media & Sport Performance Exercise & Mental Health Sport Participation & Motivation Collective Team Collapse Ageing & Physical Activity Emergency Nursing Wellbeing
Biography
Dr. Christopher Mesagno is a sport and exercise psychologist renowned for pioneering research on choking under pressure and performance anxiety in sport. Trained in psychology (BS, University of Florida) and exercise & sport science (MS, University of Florida), he completed his PhD at Victoria University, where he now serves as a Senior Lecturer and Research Fellow within the Institute for Health & Sport. Dr. Mesagno has authored 60+ research articles and chapters spanning anxiety, attention, coping, and concentration, and he has developed theory-matched interventions that help highly anxious and “choking-susceptible” athletes perform at their best. His work has shaped contemporary definitions and models of choking, bridged lab and field settings, and advanced methods—from pre-performance routines to attentional control strategies—to reduce pressure-induced performance failure.
Beyond performance, his recent program of research connects pressure failures with mental health consequences for athletes, advocating evidence-based support after performance setbacks. Dr. Mesagno’s collaborations also extend to sport participation, emergency nursing, and organisational wellbeing, reflecting a translational focus on resilience and health across high-stress contexts. He supervises HDR students, coordinates honours and postgraduate programs, and regularly consults with teams and individual athletes across sports. His contributions have been recognised with invited keynotes and fellowships in applied sport psychology communities.
Selected publications
- Choking interventions in sports: A systematic review 2017 cited 112×
- Video-based training to improve perceptual-cognitive decision-making performance of Australian football umpires 2017 cited 40×
- Irrational beliefs and choking under pressure: A preliminary investigation 2020 cited 32×
- Imagery training for reactive agility: Performance improvements for decision time but not overall reactive agility 2019 cited 26×
- Buffering the Fear of COVID-19: Social Connectedness Mediates the Relationship between Fear of COVID-19 and Psychological Wellbeing 2022 cited 24×
- Understanding Fear after an Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury: A Qualitative Thematic Analysis Using the Common-Sense Model 2023 cited 23×
Ranked by citation impact (Crossref) where available, newest otherwise · verified via ORCID.
Considering JHP for your work?
This journal is guided by Christopher Mesagno (Senior Lecturer, Sport & Exercise Psychology, Institute for Health & Sport (IHES), Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia) and a peer-review board of practising researchers. Open access, author-retained copyright (CC BY), and a clear editorial process.