Attention and Concentration

What is attention

attention = concentration

mental effort placed on sensory events or thoughts

for peak performance, performers must

focus on relevant cues and eliminate distractions

automatically process or execute movements

be absorbed in the present

be mentally relaxed with a high degree of focus and control

have extraordinary awareness of the body and the environment

attentional demands in sport

selective attention

shifting attention

maintaining attention

situation awareness

selective attention

focusing on relevant cuess

shifting attention

switch focus between cues

maintaining attention

appropriate attention over time

situation awareness

sizing up a situation (game sense)

three attentional components

attentional selectivity

attentional capacity

attentional alertness

attentional selectivity

focusing on relevant cues while ignoring or screening out others

errors in selectivity

focus is on too many cues (relevant and irrelevant)

focus is on irrelevant cues

focus is on too few relevant cues

attentional capacity

how much information can be processed

control processing

automatic processing

control processing

movements are consciously controlled

• less skill/experience

• have to focus on many relevant cues to produce movement

• limited capacity

  • attention is easily overloaded

automatic processing

movements are automatic

• more skill/experience

• requires focus on fewer relevant cues

some attentional capacity is freed for other tasks

attentional alertness

how broad is your focus

• increases in arousal narrow the attentional field because of a systematic reduction in the range of cue utilization

• perceptual narrowing

types of attentional focus

width

directionality

width

broad v narrow

the number of elements one attends to at a given time

narrow

attending to one or two cues

broad

attending to numerous cues at one time

directionality

internal v external

indicates if focal cues are within or outside of the body

internal

attending to thoughts, feelings and or physiological and kinesthetic cues

external

attending to things and events in the environment

Nideffer’s Attentional styles

more complex and rapidly changing situations demand more externally focused attention

increased needs for analysis and planning require more internally focused attention

*sometimes attentional style can hurt performance

Nideffer’s four basic types of attention

broad-external BE

broad-internal BI

narrow external NE

narrow internal NI

attention and concentration in sport must be

adjustable

nideffer’s attentional errors

broad-external

• forget to think, stimulus overload/ too involved with env

broad-internal

• over analysis, thinks about too many things at once

narrow-external

• errors of under inclusion - cannot adjust to changing environment

narrow-internal

• chokers- focus on self-defeating thoughts

internal distractions

• attentional to past & future events

• over-analysis of body mechanics

• fatigue

• choking under pressure

external distractions

visual distractions

auditory distractions

gamesmanship

choking

when a performer shows conscious step-by-step execution of skills and a breakdown of automated movement patterns

conditions leading to choking

important competition

critical plays in a competition

evaluation by coaches, peers, and parents

attentional changes

internal focus

narrow focus

reduced flexibility

performance impairment

timing and coordination breakdown

muscle tightness and fatigue

rushing

inability to attend to task-relevant cues

physical changes

increased muscle tension

increased breathing rate

racing heart rate

attentional problem

overanalyzing body mechanics

• once a skill is learned well, an overemphasis on body mechanics is detrimental to performance

conscious processing hypothesis

choking occurs when skilled performers focus too much of their conscious attention to the task much as they would if they were a novice at the task

• performance decrease only with increased focus on several task relevant cues

Principles of effective concentration

• a focused state of mind requires deliberate mental effort and intentionality

• although skilled athletes can divide their attention between two or more concurrent actions, they can focus consciously on only one thought at a time

• during peak performance states, athletes minds are so focused that there is no difference between what they are thinking and what they are doing

• athletes tend to lose their concentration when they pay attention to events and experiences that are in the future, in the past, out of their control, or otherwise irrelevant to the task

• excessive anxiety can undermine optimal performance by having performers focus on inappropriate cues and focus too much on conscious (as opposed to automatic) control of movement

identify relevant cues

knowing where to focus is the first step in the right direction

determines appropriate attentional style

association

attending to bodily functions and feelings (HR, breathing, muscle tension)

dissociations

attending to (non negative) irrelevant cues and tuning out

focal cues expert performers

association is generally correlated with faster running performances

dissociation can decrease fatigue and monotony

less skilled performers

association can impair performance

dissociation tend to lead to better performances

recognize distractors

internal distractors

external distractors

internal distractors

attending to past events

attending to future events

choking under pressure

overanalyzing body mechanics

fatigue

inadequate motivation

external distracters

visual- scoreboard, spectators, opponents movements

auditory - crown noise, airplanes, announcements

gamesmanship- taunting, compliments, physical/verbal intimidation

strategies for improving concentration

integrate distractions into practice

practice eye control - focus on cues that keep you optimally aroused and confident

overlearn skills- free up central processing space

using effective cue words

cue words trigger a productive focus

instructional - directs attention to the present and process

• focus

• clear the mechanism

• claw, rise, ride

motivational - directs attention to the positive

• speed

routines/competition plans

variations

• pre-competition routines - before a competition

• pre-performance routines - before a skill

• refocus routines - after a mistake

purpose

• prepare to excel by preparing to concentrate

• focus on the right things at the right time

• control the controllables

• helps stay in present

routine for tennis serve

determine positioning and foot placement

decide on service grip and ball

adjust racket grip and ball

take a deep breath

bounce the ball for rhythm

see and feel the perfect serve

focus on the ball toss and serve to the spot

extended pre-competition plans

night before

morning of

arrival at competition

warm up

open time

competition start

monitor yourself

systematic observations of practices and competitions

helps direct attention to relevant cues

ex positive monitoring sheet

quality practice checklist

concentration exercises

learning to shift attention

learning to maintain focus

searching for relevant cues

rehearsing game concentration (imagery)

distracting training

“park” thoughts

learning to shift attention

pay attention to what you hear

• focus in identify each sound

become aware of body sensations

• chair, limbs, floor - focus and concentrate on each sensation

open eyes and look at the screen

• increase the width of your attention to encompass as much of the picture as possible

• narrow your attention to a single object on the screen only

• slowly expand your attention again

learning to maintain focus

pick an object on which to focus (pen, phone, ect.)

get a good sense of the objects feel, weight, texture, colour

put the object down and practice focusing on it for as long as possible

practice focusing on an object with distractions

searching for relevant cues

concentration grid exercise

• goal 1 = to mark off as many numbers as possible (in sequential order ) within 1 minute

distraction control exercise

• goal 2 = to mark off as many numbers as possible within 1 minute - with distractions