sport psychology essay exam chapters 12-14-17

Even though the “mental game” is important to all sports, many athletes are never exposed to Psychological Skills Training? Why not? 

• Lack of knowledge- many coaches do not understand how to teach or practice psychological skills. The implicit assumption is athletes know how to concentrate but are just not doing it. They don't know that relaxation and concentration must be practiced. Instead researchers can develop hands on, concrete examples and exercises, develop more mental skills training resources, particularly in audio and video formats, actively involving coaches in mental skills coach education programs 

• Misunderstandings about psychological skills- it is assumed all elite athletes have mental toughness as part of their personality. However they have hours of practice to refine these skills. They have to work really hard to be physically and mentally tough 

• Lack of time- coaches often say there isn't enough practice time. They value practicing skills physically over concentration skills. 

You have been hired to implement Psychological Skills training for a collegiate team next year. Choose a specific sport team to focus on to answer the following: 1) How would you determine which skills to include in your training? 2) When would you begin implementing the training and why?

• Psychological skills can be learned, but they must be practiced over time and integrated into a person’s daily training regimen 

• Best to implement during the off season when there is more time to learn a new skill and athletes are not so focused on winning 

• How many weeks of practice or preseason are available, how much practice time will be devoted weekly to PST, how interested are the athletes in receiving PST, will there still be time to practice mental skills after the competitive season begins

• Foundation skills- achievement drive, self awareness, productive thinking, self confidence 

• Performance skills- energy management, attentional focus, perceptual-motor skills 

• Personal development skills- identity achievement, interpersonal competence 

• Team skills- leadership, cohesion, team confidence 

Kyle is a talented, high school pole-vaulter who is training for a state competition but is struggling with nerves, self-confidence, and maintaining motivation . Give specific examples of how Kyle could use imagery to: 1) Control his nerves;  2)Build Confidence; 3) Improve Concentration; and 4) Enhance Motivation.   Make sure to give specific examples that Kyle could use for each of these issues.  Then, give Kyle 2 pieces of advice on when to use imagery techniques.

• Control nerves- Imagery can be used to create higher levels of arousal if an athlete feels too uptight and anxious. Imagery can also be used for relaxation if an athlete is anxious and too wound up. Imagery can be used to reduce anxiety if the player sees it as a bad thing or it can be used to pump up the anxiety if an athlete is feeling unenergetic and unmotivated. It can be used to create a positive effect and enjoyment.  

• Build confidence- Imagine taking control and maintaining confidence even when your confidence is down after a call or when the crowd is booing. Imagine yourself being confident, doing the skill correctly, imagine everyone cheering for you. Imagining yourself succeeding gives you confidence that you can succeed for the next competition 

• Improve Concentration- By visualizing what you want to do and how you want to react in certain situations, you can prevent your mind from wandering. You can imagine yourself in a situation in which you often lose concentration (like missing a shot) and then imagine yourself remaining composed and focused for the next shot

• Enhance motivation- Imagery can help build motivation to participate. You can imagine yourself succeeding, winning the game, becoming healthier, improving your physical appearance. 

• Kyle should use imagery if he is feeling nervous to calm his nerves and get back into a good headspace. He can use it for relaxation purposes 

• Kyle should use imagery to enhance motivation if he is feeling unmotivated. He should imagine playing well during his game and winning.

Imagine that you have been asked to implement an imagery training program for Kyle using the PETTLEP program. Describe each of the components that make up the acronym in as much detail as you can. 

• Physical- the athlete should imagine having the correct stance, wearing similar clothes worn in competition, holding any objects used (like the pole) 

• Specifics of environment- imagine the environment of where the competition will be held and what it will be like (stadium, courts, loud fans) 

• Type- imagery of completing the tasks/skills that will be used during the competition and doing them correctly and well 

• Timing- imagery of completing the task in real time  

• Learning content- imagery should reflect the learning stage of the athlete- changes occur as the athlete gets more advanced- like a player imagining themselves running- then running with the pole- then running, eyes up, holding the pole, jumping  

• Emotion- emotions felt during competition should be included during imagery   

• Perspective- athletes should imagine themselves from an internal or external point of view. Internal (through athletes own eyes) external (from another persons perspective)   

Did reading this chapter convince you that imagery is effective or did it make you feel that it is too much work for not enough “pay off”?  Support your answer with 5 pieces of evidence from the chapter that you found to be the most compelling argument for or against the use of imagery for sport performance. 

• Psychoneuromuscular theory- imagery facilitates the learning of motor skills because of the nature of the neuromuscular activity patterns activated during imaging- muscles learn to move a certain way 

• Symbolic learning theory- imagery may function as a coding system to help people understand and acquire movement patterns- athletes learn what they need to do to be successful and perform the skill  

• Bioinformational theory- explanation for the effects of imagery. Simulus propositions- statements that describe specific stimulus features. Response propositions- statements that describe the athletes response to the scenario and are designed to produce physiological activity. Meaning propositions- explain hope the response to the stimulus is interrupted by the individual   

• Attention arousal set theory- imagery functions as sat that assists in achieving optimal arousal level- screen task relevant cues and non task relevant cues  

• PETTLEP program- focuses on the physical, environment, type of task, timing, learning content, emotion, perspective 

How would you define “choking”? Discuss the specifics of WHY and WHEN choking tends

to occur and then suggest with as much detail as you can, three possible ways to mitigate the chance of choking.

• Choking is an athletes poor performance under pressure

• Choking most occurs when an athlete is under a lot of pressure, especially in an important competition. An example is if a basketball player has to make a free throw to win the game and everyone is watching and counting on them.  

•  Work toward a sport-life balance 

• Identify sources of pressure unique to the sport and then normalize the pressure by reframing pressure as a privilege- the pressure is a challenge not a threat 

• Emphasize an external task focused approach to performance through a focus on process goals rather than detailed technique goals 

Marcy is a competitive downhill skier and has been told that self-talk can both enhance

and impair performance. 1) Explain to Marcy the following types of self-talk: Positive, Instructional, Negative, Organic, Goal-directed, and Strategic. Give an example of each of these that might be used by Marcy in competition. (i.e. For each type of self-talk, give an example of what she might be saying to herself). Then suggest how she might use a thought-stopping strategy AND Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy techniques to enhance her performance through modifying her self-talk.

• Positive- motivational self talk typically focuses on increasing energy, effort, and positive attitude. “Keep your eyes forward, the race isn’t over yet” 

• Instructional- helps focus on the technical or task related aspects of the performance in order to improve execution “Bend your knees” 

• Negative- critical and self demeaning gets in the way of a person reaching their goals- counterproductive and anxiety producing “I am so bad at skiing”   

• Organic- spontaneous self talk- unintended non instrumental statements that come to mind at the moment- athlete’s psychological process before the event. “I made a big mistake, I suck” 

• Goal directed- rational response to spontaneous process- including emotions, thoughts and self talk- self regulation and improvement  

• Strategic- predetermined self talk plans that can be used to trigger responses serving instructional and motivational functions “Breathe and slow down”  

• Thought stopping strategy- involves concentrating on the undesired thought briefly and then using a cue or trigger like snapping your fingers to stop and clear any thoughts “stop”  

• Rational emotive behavior therapy- proposes that is individuals beliefs (self talk) about adversity that determine whether their emotional and behavioral reactions are adaptive or maladaptive behaviors (avoidance) whereas rational beliefs lead to functional emotions (optimism) and adaptive behaviors (approach) “Why me” to “I can do this” 

Cal, a college basketball player, just shot an airball (a shot where the ball does not even

come close to going through the hoop). The crowd is yelling “AIRBALL! AIRBALL!” When this happens, Cal has a difficult time keeping his focus. His coach yells,“Cal! Quit shooting air balls and get your head in the game!” Given that Cal is having problems focusing, will the coach’s words be helpful? Why or why not? What 3 things would you advise Cal to do to improve his concentration?

• I dont think his coach yelling at him would help. It could stress him out further especially when he is already making mistakes and having a hard game. The added stress could make him choke even more. 

• Use cue words- used to trigger a particular response and are really a form of self talk. They can be instructional (follow through) or motivational (strong, move, relax). The cue words should be simple and let them automatically trigger the desired response. Are useful when you are trying to vary or change a movement pattern.

• Use non judgemental thinking- learn to look at your actions nonjudgmentally. Instead of criticizing his actions and making a bad shot, he can look at what he is doing that is resulting in a bad shot, how can he change his movements to make the shot and avoid airballs. 

• Establish a routine- a sequence of task-relevant thoughts and actions which an athlete engages in systematically prior to his or her performance of a specific sports skill. Especially during breaks it is easy for the mind to wander and get anxious. Instead he can have a routine to sit down, take a breath, and imagine what he wants to do for the next shot.