The State of
the Exercise Physiology Profession
Tommy
Boone, PhD, MPH, FASEP, EPC
Professor
and Chair
Director,
Exercise Physiology Laboratories
Department
of Exercise Physiolgoy
College of St. Scholastica
Duluth, MN 55811
“We must give our own
story to the world.” – Carter G. Woodson
Part I: Introduction
This is an article I really
don’t want to write. I decided to do so because I believe it is necessary
on behalf of the emerging exercise physiology profession. In short,
I am disappointed and concerned that many exercise physiologists are not
members of the American Society of Exercise Physiologists (ASEP).
Obviously, there are a number of reasons for their “wait and see” thinking.
But, time is critical and membership is important in fulfilling the ASEP
effort in licensure and other professional issues.
While I certainly don’t claim
to have the answers, I have raised a number of question in various articles
I've written. No one is forcing me to continue this work. The
pressure is all mine and, in fact, my wife continues to inform me that
my pay check comes from St. Scholastica and not ASEP! Yet, at times,
her comments have helped immensely in shaping my ASEP thinking. I
am especially grateful for her frank opinions and comments.
Change Takes Time!
What I have learned is that
change takes time, but without persistent, even time won’t allow for change.
The conditions for change are courage, risk, and loyalty to a noble idea
of making circumstances better for all exercise physiologists. I
have learned that regardless of having a professional organization, with
a vision, goals and objectives, and, yes, even a Code of Ethics, many exercise
physiologists nevertheless are not moved to act. So I have been shocked
and even saddened by the state of the profession today, especially since
so many of our young professionals are not able to locate a job with respect
and a salary to support a family.
For decades, exercise physiologists
have prided themselves that their work is a discipline of researchers,
not a profession of professionals, and that no one, not even the most admired
exercise physiology researchers, were part of a profession. The discipline
of researchers established the bounds of the behavior other exercise physiologists
are apparently willing to permit, and the laboratory work from which data
collection and publishing occurs has set the standards for the PhD exercise
physiologist. After all, in many ways, the center of the exercise
physiologists’ existence has always been research. Presently, the
one "most likely" way to become recognized is to publish research articles,
and not in just any journal but in the “big” journals. Publishing
is important. I publish my research. Teaching, service, and
research are important and expected behaviors for all college teachers.
Important Questions
There isn't any question
of the importance of doing research and publishing the work. Rather,
the issue in this article is the lack of equal emphasis on other dimensions
of professional development. As an example, please consider the following
concerns:
-
Why is it that an exercise physiologist
who works at teaching and developing educational opportunities isn’t recognized
as an educator?
-
Why isn't teaching by itself
considered important and on the same level as publishing?
-
Why aren't exercise physiologists
at the college level discussing issues that relate to teaching?
-
Why aren't we analyzing the
different instructional formats and methods we use at the undergraduate
level?
-
Why isn't there any discussion
at the national meetings about different aspects of preparing exercise
physiologists, undergraduate through doctorate?
-
Why do those who teach PhD students
spend so little time, if any, in teaching professionalism?
-
Why aren't our students engaged
in discussions that deal with the employment market outlook and career
options?
-
Why is it that the importance
of networking, resume design, interview preparation, and specific information
about career service centers receive so little attention?
The Research Issue
Instead, the question is
“How many publications do you have?” “How many grants do you have?”
or "How many classes do you have to teach?" This approach to
who is an exercise physiologist and what is exercise physiology is still
as much a part of what we do today as it was decades ago. However,
the difference is that this thinking by itself is not productive.
While it may have helped motivate us to do research and publish our results,
today, it is an unfortunate continuation of misplaced thinking. What
we need, however, are more curriculum directors and fewer laboratory directors!
We need fewer students with incomplete resumes and interviewing skills.
We need more college professors interested in helping a student's chances
of gaining employment upon graduation.
From what I have learned
during the past 10 years, the doctorate prepared person is not willing
to entertain other responsibilities given the tremendous emphasis on research.
However important it is to do research, there are other reasons for the
academic position, including the exchange of ideas and views about professionalism
and the dissemination of information that leads to better and more effecive
teaching. Until professionalism assumes an importance less than secondary,
critical thinking skills and synthesis of information important to professional
development will be slow. Hence, our brief history supports the notion
that only the person with the doctorate can be an exercise physiologist.
The academically prepared exercise physiologist without the doctorate is
something new the field.
Academic Development
Why the academic exercise
physiologists have not taken the lead in developing the profession is hard
to understand. They are the professionals who troubleshoot the academic
programs. They are (or should be) responsible for the development
of academic programs in exercise physiology. They represent the academic
program, and are frequently responsible for persuading students to get
involved with the department. There is a problem with this thinking,
however. While it might appear that we are putting the interests
of the students ahead of our own, in actuality, it isn’t a matter of altruism.
Very likely, it is about the college professor keeping his/her job.
There must be students to fill the classes or there is little reason to
have college professors. Having the opportunity to engage in research
means having a department with students that is accepted by the administration.
Satisfying students then set the stage for doing what the academic exercise
physiologists believe is important, that is, doing research. The
opportunity to practice exercise physiology comes only after the department
courses are filled with students.
In my way of thinking, students
don’t attend college so that academic exercise physiologists can do research.
It is just the opposite. Academic exercise physiologists are hired
to serve students. It is their responsibility to educate and to help
students understand the issues and concerns surrounding the academic major.
But, in fact, too many times, college teachers have been willing to look
the other way, or even plan in advance their defense when asked questions
by stating the importance of not just the PhD degree but the post-doctorate
experience to locate “the” job.
Everyone Can Teach, Right?
All of us have heard the
statement, “When I retire, I’m going to teach”? Most people,
including many would-be teachers don’t understand the work that goes into
teaching, especially the responsibility of aiding and helping others realize
their dreams. Teaching is not a given, and it certainly isn’t simple.
Not everyone can teach or has the motivation, time, and desire it takes
to learn how to teach or to even care for their students.
When I was a young PhD I
didn’t understand that to be an excellent teacher required work, a lot
of it. I was like most of my colleagues confident that I could
teach and that anyone hired to teach could do so. I respected my
colleagues and believed that they could teach, too. To my surprise,
I learned that many of them were not interested in teaching and, frankly,
some were really bad teachers. Discovering this point resulted in
a certain thinking that questioned the ethics of hiring college teachers
without the demonstrated skills and observations require to document confidence
and ability as a teacher. Yet most administrators trust that anyone
with the PhD can teach, which raises the point “let the student beware”.
The "Wait and See" Attitude
All of this is again to
argue that change is a very slow process. Change is literally the
act of “hitting your head against the wall” time after time when it doesn’t
make sense that otherwise nothing seems to be changing. But, this
is true of all professions. Take law, as an example, the American
Bar Association. An African-American lawyer was not allowed membership
until 1954. According to Linowitz and Mayer (1), women were not allowed
to attend Harvard Law School until 1950, or to the Washington and Lee School
of Law until 1972. Most people would have thought that the profession
of Law understood the importance of fair play earlier than other professions.
What is unchangeable is changeable,
but only with time. I understand this point. What I don’t accept,
and I have allowed time for a change in thinking, is the view that a few
of my colleagues and friends have taken the “wait and see” approach to
ASEP. The question, it seems, is the philosophy from which ASEP is
based a legitimate take on the profession? Is this willy-nilly "slow
to come to a decision" of a few exercise physiologists worth the time of
the ASEP thinker? The short answer is "yes" because all exercise
physiologists should be responsible to each other and the emerging profession.
Not surprisingly, it would also be in the best interest of all exercise
physiologists if the leaders in exercise physiology, those who have written
texts and have presented at professional meetings, they know who they are,
would join ASEP. They have no reason to scoff at the notion that
other exercise physiologists have a right to their own professional thinking.
The Chase vs. The Calling
In reforming exercise physiology,
it is time to stop the “sports medicine chase” and bring all practitioners
together under one professional organization and scope of practice.
The relationship between organization and practice should be obvious, although
it might be difficult to know which should come first. Similarly,
Linoowitz and Mayer (1) point out that “like the ministry, law is a calling”
or, is it that a calling is a ministry that permits a contribution to society.
Is exercise physiology a calling? For those of us who understand
the joy and passion non-PhD exercise physiologists profess with their work,
it isn’t too hard to believe that it must be a calling. We hear far
too little of these professionals, and far too much of the doctorate prepared.
Time has come for exercise
physiologists to answer the questions who are we, where do we wish to end
up, and how are we going to get there? We can stay lost, or we can
choose to find our way. We simply can’t continue to deny the argument
that ASEP is right and, perhaps, for now, less is more (in organization
membership) when it comes to defining our profession. I have said
it before, “we should not be in the business of training technicians, but
rather educating professions.”
Can we really exist as technicians?
The short answer is "no" even if we wanted to. We are more and have
been more for a long time, but the sad fact is that we appear to have little
desire to break from the sports medicine chase. However, if we don’t,
the chase will leave us some distance from our goals. It will also
hinder achieving our mark of professionalism. Judge it as you will,
but unless we shun the chase we will not realize the devotion to our own
skills, body of knowledge, and canons to make the right decisions and to
take responsibility for them.
Partnership of Exercise
Physiologists
We desperately need a partnership
of exercise physiologists. Our strength and luster depend on our
ability to partner with each other under the compelling beliefs ASEP members.
Naturally, I believe ASEP is the way and the beginning of a personal relationship
among exercise physiologists that isn’t possible in an organization representing
multi-groups of professionals. Professionalism requires an exercise
physiologist to face up to the truth that sports medicine is not exercise
physiology. Indeed, it doesn’t take even a first-year college education
to understand this point. In the end, professionals have to stand
responsible for their negative attitudes, actions, and comments that reflect
on others. We are all partners in our attempt to discern the unique
applications of what we do and how we may extend our entrepreneurial healthcare
thinking to the public sector. .
This brings me to the point
of saying that while some exercise physiologists may continue with sports
medicine for years to come, it isn’t in everyone’s best interest if they
continue to share the sports medicine antagonisms towards ASEP. Where
is the respect due to the ASEP exercise physiologists who believe that
the right course for them is ASEP? What does it mean when non-ASEP
exercise physiologists advance the argument that certain members of ASEP
have demonstrated less than professional behavior (by either creating or
associating with ASEP). While there are a litany of other questions,
it comes down to the business of fair play. No one or group has exclusive
contract on how to think or what to think. It just doesn’t stack
up well for the lack of cooperation between professionals. Without
the right shift towards increased shared responsibility for the emerging
profession and without a strategic plan to promote exercise physiology,
negotiating the future of exercise physiology becomes increasingly complex.
Another interesting point
is that in the absence of independent thought, exercise physiologists are
likely to continue uninformed about professional issues with measurable
negative results in just a few years. Many problems in exercise physiology
stem from the idea that exercise physiology is defined by the doctorate
degree and the non-PhD exercise physiologists are defined as clinical exercise
physiologists (CEPs). I have written about this point several times
earlier in the PEPonline
journal. Regarding this point, just to avoid any misunderstanding,
it isn’t that I have a problem with CEPs. Not at all. The problem
is that if too many people think cardiac rehabilitation is the only job
market for exercise physiologists, then an enormous opportunity for professional
development and entrepreneurial businesses will fall to the side undeveloped.
Hence, specialization is not the problem either and, in fact, it is unavoidable.
What we can avoid to a large extent is a too narrow definition of what
exercise physiologists can do in the public sector. The interested
reader may want to review the ASEP Scope of Practice for career options
in the field.
Though exercise physiologists
may insist that they aren’t influencing their profession when they embrace
the goals and objectives of organizational development other than ASEP,
the move from ASEP to "whatever organization it may be” results in a certain
loss of collective strength, power, and autonomy. If you are a sports
medicine advocate, and the organization is rewarding you for committee
work and so forth, and you attend their meetings every year, and you are
involved in decision making process, and have an investment in decisions
that are made, then you are going to look for contrary arguments to ASEP.
It is inconceivable that the interests of ASEP members will be looked out
for and reasonable, therefore, to conclude that you recommend the transactions
(such as certifications) that run counter to ASEP. I don’t think
this view misses the mark too far. Exercise physiology professionalism
presumes that in professional matters the exercise physiologist’s best
interest is supported and targeted to benefit all exercise physiologists.
To Fantasize
The final part of this brief
essay is to “fantasize” about exercise physiologists as responsible professionals
who once again, as years earlier, step forward with the dignity, independence,
and willingness to sacrifice personal position and reward for pride in
their profession. Academic exercise physiologists, in particular,
should be eager to stand up before the Internet community and assert the
rights of all exercise physiologists to their personal dreams. To
fantasize, such that only exercise physiologists can do for the profession
of exercise physiology, that we must come together, even as we disagree,
and confront professionally with respect our desire to sustain and empower
all exercise physiologists. If we don’t, we are to blame for our
biases and too common beliefs. If we do resolve the obvious differences
in thinking, it will be uncommonly helpful for all exercise physiologists.
The end result is in our hands, as is inevitably the case in all matters
like this one.
Part II: Congratulations!
You have completed the first
section of this article. I’ve shared with you what I think, and you
now understand a little bit about me. You’re learned that I don’t
have a lot of respect for academic exercise physiologists who don’t support
ASEP. Why? Because “what I want” is simply what is proper
and correct for our students. When they aren’t supported, it bothers
me and yet no one seems surprised let alone asking questions about it.
As a matter of fact, it is clear to me that essentially no PhD exercise
physiologist has anything to say about the subject of professionalism.
If there is one person who can prove me wrong, then why not publish the
ideas in PEPonline?
Have you heard that PEPonline
is the only journal, print copy or otherwise,
where an exercise physiologists can write about professionalism?
Well, if you haven’t, try publishing your non-research professionalism
manuscript in the Journal of Applied Physiology! Okay, try
publishing it in one of the several Sports Medicine journals, or
why not the popular sports medicine publication,
Medicine and Science
in Sports and Exercise! What good are these journals if they
don’t provide an opportunity to discuss matters of professionalism?
If you should know the answer, please write about it, and why not publish
your thoughts in PEPonline?
One of the things I learned
some years ago is that the quality of any group of professionals is consistent
with the quality of their professional thinking and publishing. It’s
therefore important to be able to write about professionalism and about
strategies that might more precisely elevate exercise physiologists to
a higher level within the public sector. Hence, the main point of
this essay is that successful people aren’t necessarily professionals!
Excellence in doing research is hardly the power necessary to model professional
thinking. To be a complete professional, the exercise physiologist
must reach out to his/her students. Sounds simple, but apparently
rather difficult to do. Right? Why? Because there are so few
PhD exercise physiologists who are willing to take control of their profession
by initiating contact and membership with ASEP; an organization designed
to certify the bachelor-prepared exercise physiologist.
What Do We Want?
Still, the key to all of
this is knowing what we want. We must be clear about what we want.
So, what do we want? Very simply, we want to be recognized as professionals.
All exercise physiologists, from bachelor through the doctorate, should
be given the same respect (regardless of pay or status). What do
we want? We want to professionalize exercise physiology and, very
importantly, when we focus with serious intent, we learn that standing
together increases our chances of realizing our goals. Thus, it is
true, the saying that “winning starts with beginning”. We
must begin the shift from yesterday’s thinking to today’s thinking.
We need to create our future by working to realize our goals. Clear
thinking with the intent to do good is very powerful.
Think about the people you
want to associate with and the places you expect to do so. Without
trying too hard, if your dream is to be recognized as a professional, ASEP
is within your grasp. Let your mind roam for a moment, and consider
the benefits of joining ASEP. Who are the members? Where do
they come from? Think about it. They are exercise physiologists
throughout the United States and from around the world. They are
the program director of the cardiac rehab program in your community, the
professor at your college, or the business-minded fitness and healthcare
promotion specialist with his/her own company. There are other members
doing all kinds of exercise physiology jobs within the community.
They have made the journey to commit to professionalism through ASEP.
They understand why it’s important to have an empowering vision of the
future. They have a plan to achieve that which is created in their
minds.
Speak With Conviction
Where there is a vision,
the people flourish. When people are convinced of the need for professionalism,
then it is just a matter of time before everyone is convinced of the same
thinking. So, when you speak to others about ASEP, speak with complete
conviction. The end result is your thinking will help shape the state
of the exercise physiology profession. Take a second to think about
it. Your thinking and your actions will help others model after your
behavior. This gives you the power to redirect the thinking of others
and to change their feelings about ASEP’s communication with exercise physiologists
via the ASEP website.
Isn’t it interesting that
you have the power to influence the future of exercise physiology?
Every step, every conversation, and every intersection in your work
there is the opportunity to inform, to organize your thoughts and actions,
to structure your communication, and do whatever is logical and right to
elevate exercise physiology to professional status. Nothing is
impossible, especially when you are driven to look for what is instinctively
logical and right.
Well, what do you think?
The underlying theme of the first half of this essay was crucial to understanding
the reluctance to change. The lack of intellectual flexibility is
numbing, especially its regularity. It is called groupthink, which
is in essence an elegant redirect of all reasoning aligned to dispute any
sort of discriminatory practice toward the group. It is the group’s
power to keep individual members down and intellectually deprived from
a richer perspective. It is the wrong impulse designed to stop a
new way of looking at things.
The world is full of groupthinkers!
But, the one thing we’ve got to do as ASEP members is communicate and nurture
the new image of exercise physiology. With this in mind, when each
of us expect change, then it is just a matter of time that the mind makes
its happen. There is hope for all exercise physiologists. The
power of ASEP can only increase. Together we’ve come a long way,
but remember that:
“Determination and
perseverance move the world; thinking that someone else will do it for
you is a sure way to fail.” -- Marva Collins
References
Linowitz, S.M. & Mayer,
M. (1994).
The Betrayed Profession. New York, NY: Charles Scribner’s
Sons.
Copyright
©1997-2000 American Society of Exercise Physiologists. All Rights
Reserved.
ASEP
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