Edson Filho
Associate Professor
Dr. Filho is an Associate Professor of Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology in the Wheelock College of Education and Human Development. He studies flow-feeling, the zones of optimal functioning, and high-performing teams. Dr. Filho is also interested in developing applied interventions for well-being and performance optimization for athletes and performers across domains.
Dr. Filho has edited three books and authored over 100 peer-reviewed manuscripts and book chapters. He is a Certified Mental Performance Consultant by the Association for Applied Sport Psychology and an Established Supervisor and Established Practitioner registered with the International Society of Sport Psychology. In addition, Dr. Filho is a Chartered Sport and Exercise Psychologist registered in the United Kingdom.
Dr. Filho’s work has been funded by the Association for Applied Sport Psychology, Union of European Football Associations, and the National Collegiate Athletic Association, and been featured in several media outlets including USA Today, Scientific American, and The Boston Globe.
Recent News
- Unlocking Flow Through Mental Practices
- Scholarly Accomplishments April 2025
- Max Performance
- The High Stakes of Performance
- 2024 BU Wheelock Forum Photo Gallery
- How Do Elite Athletes and Performers Keep Their Cool?
- Sport Psychology Team Says “Grazie, Italia!”
- Book by Edson Filho Added to Olympic World Library
- The Science of Excellence
- Getting Into the Zone
In the Media
- My Fitness Tracker Was Making Me Anxious, So I Quit
- In the Zone: Edson Filho Studies the Science of Flow
- The Patriots Went from Worst to First. Can Businesses and Organizations Turn Around Too?
- Here’s How Much Practice You Need to Become the Best in the World
- BU Fans Rally Around Men’s Hockey as Frozen Four Arrives
- Simone Biles Saved 630 Lives by Turning Mental Health Battle Into Gymnastics Weapon
- How Simone Biles Kicked Down the Door for Team USA Olympians to Discuss Mental Health
- Tom Brady’s Greatest Legacy Might Be Leadership, Not Super Bowls
Education
PhD, Sport Psychology, Florida State University
MS, Sports Training, University Federal of Minas Gerais
BS, Physical Education, University Federal of Minas Gerais
Courses
CE 650: Counseling Skills and Techniques for Sport and Exercise Psychology
DS 700: Advanced Seminar in Sport and Exercise Psychology
Selected Publications
Filho, E., & Whitehead, A. (2025). Searching for flow: A performance optimization intervention with a professional dart thrower. Case Studies in Sport and Performance Psychology, 9, 93–99.
Filho, E., & Bigliassi, M. (2024). Sport and exercise psychophysiology: From theory to practice. Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 18(4), 417–421.
Filho, E. (2023). Shared and Complementary Zones of Optimal Functioning (SZOF and CZOF): Theoretical summary and guidelines for practice. Journal of Sport Psychology in Action, 14(3), 131–144.
Filho, E., Piasecki, P., & Groen, M. (2023). Performance Recovery and Optimization for Teams (PRO-TEAMS): A psychological skills training program to enhance team functioning. Journal of Sport Psychology in Action, 14(4), 212–226.
Filho, E., Husselman, T., Zugic, L., Penna., E., & Taneva, N. (2022). Performance gains in an open skill video-game task: The role of neural efficiency and neural proficiency. Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback, 47(3), 239–251.
Filho, E., Rettig, J., Gaspar, P., & Bagni, G. (2022). Development and initial validation of the Team Mental Models Instrument (TMMI): A psychometric tool to measure shared and complementary mental models in sports. Psychology of Sport & Exercise, 61, Article 102198.
Filho, E. (2019). Team Dynamics Theory: Nomological network among cohesion, team mental models, coordination, and collective efficacy. Sport Sciences for Health, 15(1), 1–20.