"Essential Processes for Attaining Peak Performance" addresses a topic of fundamental relevance to the field of sport and exercise psychology: expert athletic performance. Recent progress in Developmental Psychology, Social Psychology, and Biological Psychology, as well as contributions from areas such as expertise, rationality and creativity, and perfectionism are also addressed in this initial volume. Leading experts in the field were asked to provide manuscripts based on their theoretical approach and the results of their research. The contributions found in this volume reflect state of the art and controversial discussions on the topic of athletic expertise based on a particular theoretical point of view or empirical research. Chapters in this volume utilize more space than is possible in scientific journals. Additionally, the composition of the volume is designed to expose the reader to different perspectives and to allow the reader to consider a variety of subdomains within the topic of sport expertise. Thus, this volume contributes updated knowledge, a more holistic perspective on this body of knowledge, and a more comprehensive understanding of the topic of athletic expertise than is possible via journals or monographs authored by a single author.

Prof. Dr. Dieter Hackfort, Munich, Germany, is a Professor for sport and exercise psychology and currently Dean at the QESA (Quality Management, Education, and Social Affairs) Department of ASPIRE - the Academy for Sports Excellence in Doha, Qatar. Since 1996 he serves as the Co-Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology. Prof. Gershon Tenenbaum, Ph.D., Tallahassee, Florida, is a Professor of sport and exercise psychology at Florida State University, USA. He served as the President of the International Society of Sport Psychology (ISSP) between the years 1997-2001, and since 1996 to present, as the Co-Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology (IJSEP).