Arousal regulation

chapter 13

why regulate arousal

• pressure to perform increased in sport

• athletes who don’t effectively cope with stress may have decreases in performance as well as mental & physical distress

• athletes need to be able to regulate arousal to stay focused & in control

self awareness of arousal

• increase your awareness of your psychological states before you can control your thoughts & feelings

• employ arousal regulation (reduction, maintenance, induction) strategies

• how individuals cope with anxiety > How much anxiety experienced

• elite athletes perceive anxiety as facilitative rather than debilitative

• ppl who see their anxiety perform better & cope more effectively

anxiety reducing techniques

1. somatic anxiety reduction

2. cognitive anxiety reduction

3. multimodal anxiety reduction packages

Somatic anxiety reduction techniques

1. progressive relaxation

2. breath control

3. biofeedback

progressive relaxation

learn to feel the tension in your muscles and then to let go of the tension

breath control

• when under pressure & tense, your breathing is short, shallow & irregular

• when you’re calm, confident & in control your breathing is smooth deep & rhythmic

biofeedback

this helps you become more aware of your autonomic nervous system & learn to control your physiological & autonomic responses by receiving physiological feedback not normally available

cognitive anxiety reduction techniques

1. relaxation response

2. autogenic training

3. systematic desensitization

relaxation response

teaches individuals to quiet the mind, concentrate, & reduce muscle tension by applying the elements of meditation

autogenic training

focuses on producing 2 physical sensations - warmth & heaviness- to produce a relaxed state

systematic desensitization

aims to reduce anxiety responses to stimuli by training to have a response antagonistic to anxiety at the same time of the anxiety-provoking stimuli

multimodal anxiety reduction techniques

1. cognitive-affective stress management training (SMT)

2. stress inoculation training (SIT)

cognitive-affective stress management training

teaches a person specific integrated coping responses using relaxation & cognitive components to control emotional arousal

stress inoculation training

an individual is exposed to & learns to cope with stress (via productive thoughts, mental images, & self-statements) in increasing amounts, thereby enhancing their immunity to stress

5 phases of stress management training

1. pretreatment phases - assess skills & deficits

2. treatment rationale phase

3. skill acquisition - training in muscular relaxation, cognitive restructuring & self-instruction

4. skill rehearsal

5. post training evaluation

Pressure training

specific strategies designed to create & expose athletes to pressure in practice so they are better able to cope with pressure in actual competition

• demands of training

• consequences of training

effectiveness of anxiety reduction techniques

• programs are effective in reducing anxiety & increase performance, though performance improvements are less consistent

• multimodal approaches are most effective for performance enhancement

The matching hypothesis

• anxiety management technique should be matched to a particular problem

• predictions:

  • cognitive anxiety treated with mental relaxation

  • somatic anxiety treated with physical relaxation

  • unsure what type of anxiety treaded with multimodal technique

Matching hypothesis & social support

to produce maximum anxiety reduction, the specific types of social support should be matched to the specific anxiety problem experienced

Coping

is a process of constantly changing cognitive & behavioural efforts to manage specific external or internal demands or conflicts appraised as taxing or exceeding one’s resources

Coping Categories

1. problem-focused coping

2. emotion-focused coping

Problem-focused coping

• efforts to alter or manage problems that are causing stress

  • time management, problem solving

• use this form of coping when stressful situations can be changed

Emotion-focused coping

• regulating the emotional responses to the problem that causes the stress

  • relaxation, meditation

• use this form of coping when situations can’t be changed

coping techniques used by athletes

• thought control

• task focus/narrowing

• rational thinking & self-talk

• positive focus & orientation

• social support

• precompetitive mental prep & anxiety management

• time management

• training hard & smart

coping strategies used by coaches

• structuring & planning

• psychological skills

• support

• distraction

• experience & learning

• maintaining positive coach athlete relationship

coping in sport

• no single coping strategy that is effective in all situations

• athletes must learn diverse set of problem & emotion focused coping strategies to use in different situations for different stress sources

• gender, age, & puberty status can influence the type of coping strategy employed & its perceived effectiveness

• coping appears to be situation specific

• great individual differences in coping strategies & each athlete has to find what works best for them in specific situations

Resiliency

• revolve around the core concepts of adversity & adaptation

• Participants need to effectively bounce back from adversity

• research reveals:

  • the use of variety of coping strategies

  • mental toughness & person resources are keys to successful coping

  • social support seen as critical to successful coping

  • coping can be unpleasant but positive outcomes like gaining perspective can result

Resiliency training

can improve not only personal resilience but can also enhance mental health & subjective well-being & reduce anxiety & increase performance

sport team resilient characteristics

1. group structure

2. mastery approaches

3. social capital

4. collective efficacy

group structure

positive group norms & values, clearly defining communication channels

mastery approaches

effective behavioural responses, effectively managing change

social capital

social support, strong group identity

collective efficacy

group cohesion, positive communication after failure

tips to build resilience

• develop a core set of beliefs that nothing can shake

• try to find meaning in whatever stressful event has happened

• try to maintain a positive outlook

• take cues from someone who is especially resilient

• don’t run from things that scare you; face them

• reach out for support

• learn new things

• don’t dwell on the past

on-site relaxation tips

• smile when you feel tension coming on

• have fun

• set up stressful situations in practice

• slow down, take your time

• stay focused on the present

• come prepared with a good game plan

signs of underarousal

• moving slowly, not getting set

• mind wandering, being easily distracted

• lack of concern about how one will perform

• lack of anticipation/enthusiasm

• heavy feeling in legs, no bounce

Arousal-inducing techniques

• goal to get athletes at an optimal level of arousal

• pep talks & motivational speeches can overarousal athletes

• if arousal is raised it should be done in a deliberate fashion with awareness if optimal arousal states

Examples of Arousal-inducing techniques

• increased breathing rate

• act energized

• use mood words & positive statements

• yell/shout

• listen to music

• use energizing imagery

• complete a pre-competition workout

Guideline for successful pep talk

• give them a plan

• make them believe they can win

• don’t lie

• be yourself

• use humour