Sports Psychology Revision

INDIVIDUAL ASPECTS OF SPORT PERFORMANCE:

PERSONALITY: ‘Personality is the sum total of an individual’s characteristics which make him or her unique’ (Hollander)

TRAIT APPROACH – Nature: Innate characteristics, enduring characteristics that individuals take to all situations. Eg. Eysenck’s Theory

SOCIAL LEARNING – Nuture: Behaviour is learned from significant others, parents, friends etc. Eg, Bandura

INTERACTIONIST APPROACH – A mixture of trait & social learning theory. B=f(pe), behaviour is a function of personality & environment.

Eysenck’s theory:

TRAIT THEORY

Type A & Type B Personalities:

Type A: Type B: Highly competitive Non-competitive Strong desire to succeed Unambitious Works fast Works more slowly Likes to control Does not enjoy control Prone to suffer stress Less prone to stress

Personality Measurement:

Interviews Questionnaires Observation

Extrovert – sociable, outgoing, lively

Introvert – unsociable, shy, nervous

Stable – calm, even-tempered, controlled, logical

Neurotic – anxious, moody, unpredictable

Can reveal the characteristics of an individual.Individuals may answer as they feel you want them to.They may not answer truthfully.Individuals may act differently if they know they are being observed.

ATTITUDES: ‘a mental state of readiness organised through experience that influences the response of an individual towards any object or situation with which it is related.’ (Moody, 1980)

Predispositions that can affect behaviour towards an attitude object.

Role-models affect attitudes, learning takes place by observing & imitating significant others. The process of interaction between individuals & groups is called socialisation.

PREJUDICE: Pre-judgement of a person, group or situation. Judgement based on small amounts of experience & inadequate information. Some judgements based on info that is incorrect but is passed on to reinforce

stereotypes & therefore prejudice.

COMPONENTS OF ATTITUDE: The Triadic Model:1. COGNITIVE: Belief component. Eg, you believe that fitness training is good for

you.2. AFFECTIVE: Emotional aspect. Feelings or emotional response towards an

attitude object. Eg. Training is enjoyable & I feel good when participating.3. BEHAVIOURAL: the way we behave towards an attitude object. Eg. Joining a

fitness club.

CHANGING ATTITUDES:1. Persuasive Communication:

Changing attitudes through the process of persuasion. The persuader needs to be significant & have high status. The message needs to be presented in a way that makes the recipient want to change attitude. The recipients needs to want to

FORMATION OF ATTITUDES

Friends Peers

Family

Teachers

CoachesPrejudice

PastExperiences

Media

change their attitude and the situation has to be right – attitudes are easier to change if others are present.

2. Cognitive Dissonance: The changing of one aspect of the triadic model. If a person holds 2 ideas that oppose & conflict with each other an element of

discomfort arises. This emotional discomfort is called dissonance.

Eg, you feel going to the gym us a waste of time but when the health benefits are pointed out, you realise how good it could be for you.

MOTIVATION: ‘Drive to succeed or persist with a task’

Links personality with competitiveness.

Atkinson and McClelland (1976)

NAF: Avoids challenges, often gives up, does not want feedback.NACH: Likes challenge, likes feedback, is not afraid of failure, has high task persistence.

People who have a greater need to succeed (high NACH) rise to challenges and adopt ‘approach behaviours’. People with a need to avoid failure (low NAF) avoid risk situations and this leads to ‘avoidance behaviours’.

We are judged against different types of goals. Mastery or task goals: associated with self-improvement Ego or ability goals: comparison against rivals Socially approved goals: seeking social reinforcement

The most competitive individuals may strive to satisfy each of the 3 outcomes.

GROUP DYNAMICS OF SPORT PERFORMANCE:

High NACH

High NAFLow NAF

Low NACH

TAF: tendency to avoid failure

TAS: tendency to approach success

GROUPS AND TEAMS: ‘Groups are those social aggregates that involve mutual awareness and the potential for interaction (McGrath)

A group will form a ‘bond’ if the following characteristics are in place: A collective identity A sense of shared purpose A clear structure of communication

Group Cohesion – the extent to which a group sticks together in pursuit of a common goal.

2 types of cohesion:

Within large groups sub-groups may emerge. These sub-groups may damage the formation & development of a cohesive team & the coach should assess the group dynamics and, if necessary, adopt measures to unify it.

Steiner’s Model:

Actual Productivity = Potential Productivity – losses due to faulty processes

AP = the team performance at a given time during the game or event & refers to the extent of successful interaction.PP = the maximum capability of the group when cohesiveness is strongest.FP = relates to the factors that can go wrong in team performance.

2 main faulty processes:

Co-ordination Losses:

Task Cohesion:

The way team members work with each other to successfully complete a task.

A group is given an overall team goal, which is accepted and valued by all tem members.

Task cohesion is most important in interactive games eg. Hockey

Social Cohesion:

Involves personal relationships within the group & relies on individuals enjoying social interaction.

The group leader would create opportunities for social development. An environment would be created where players could interact positively by relaxing & making friends.

Social cohesion is most important in co-active sports eg. Track & field

Occur because the operational effectiveness of the group as a unit cannot be sustained for the duration of a match. A break down in teamwork is regarded as a co-ordination loss & is termed the Ringlemann effect. Ringlemann stated that problems occur as the team numbers increase. (Tug of war)

Motivation Losses:Relate to an individual who suffers a reduction of motivation during performance causing the player to withdraw effort & ‘coast’ through a period of the game. Relaxation of effort is called social loafing. Those with low self-confidence or one who has suffered a negative experience will tend to be a loafer.

LEADERSHIP: ‘A leader is someone who can influence the behaviour of others towards a set goal’

Characteristics of a good leader: Good communication skills Highly developed perception skills Good at making decisions Empathy with team members Understand the need of others Experience Vision Ambition Determination

Selection of a leader:

Emergent Leader – already belongs to the group & selection to the position of authority is made formally or the role is assumed & readily accepted by the group.

Prescribed Leader – selected from outside the group & is known as an external appointment.

Styles of leadership:

Autocratic – makes all the decisions & is motivated to complete all the tasks as quickly & effectively as possible. Does not take into account the opinions & preferences of the group. Will not share responsibility & focuses on group performance & achieving goals.

Democratic – shares decisions with the group & is ready to share responsibility. Believes in consultation & is interested in developing meaningful inter-personal relationships with the team.

Laissez-faire – Stands aside and allows group to makes its own decisions. Can be self-implementing if leader is lacking confidence or motivation.

Trait Theory:Leaders are born with necessary skills to take charge.

Social Learning Theory:Believe all behaviours are learned & that learning comes through contact with strong environmental forces.

Interactionist Theory:Leadership is developed because of inherited abilities & learned skills.

Fielder suggested correct style of leadership depends on ‘favourableness’ of situation.

Highly favourable situation Highly unfavourable situationLeader’s position is strong Leader’s position is weakTask is simple with clear structure Task is complex with vague

StructureWarm group & leader relations Hostile group & leader relations

Fielder states that autocratic task-oriented leaders are more effective in both the most Favourable & least favourable situations. Democratic person-orientated leaders are More effective in moderately favourable situations.

Chellanduria’ Model of Sports Leadership: p.244

3 factors determine the behaviour adopted by the leader. Situational characteristics – environmental conditions Leader characteristics – include skill, personality & experience of the leader. Group member characteristics – factors relating to members would involve age,

gender, motivation etc.

3 types of leader behaviour that would be guided by the antecedents: Required behaviour – what ought to be done by the leader in certain situations Actual behaviour – what the leader chooses to do as the best course of action in

the given situation Preferred behaviour – what the group or athlete wants the leader to do

If all 3 of the leader’s behaviours are congruent, then member satisfaction & high group performance will result. Effective leadership has taken place if the actual leader behaviour has surpassed the situational demands and the style has met with the approval of the group.

MENTAL PREPARATION FOR SPORT PERFORMANCE:

COMMITMENT:

3 Lengths: long term, medium term, short term.

LT – strong motivational force, ultimate aim or dream.MT – gives opportunity for achievement on a monthly or annual basis.ST – provides feedback concerning progress towards the final destination.

2 types of goal:

Outcome Goals:(Ego/ability goals)

Externally controlled & concern winning or losing.

Process Goals:(Referred to as task/mastery goals)Relates to measurable results which relate directly to the performer.

Remember the SMARTER principle.

Specific to event or skillMeasurable targets ensure that progress can be compared with a standardAccepted by the coach and the performerRealistic goals should be set that are challenging but within reachTime limitations must be in placeExciting goals will inspire and reward the performerRecording progress provided feedback & motivation

SELF-CONFIDENCE:

Self-efficacy – Specific self-confidence. (Bandura)

State Sports Confidence – Specific confidence in certain things that you doTrait Sports Confidence – General confidence in all that you do.

Bandura’s Self-Efficacy theory:

Previous Accomplishments: consists of past experiences. Reinforcement of past attainments are the most powerful effects on self-efficacy as they are based on personal mastery experiences.

Vicarious Experiences: Consist of what has been observed by others performing a similar activity or skill. Use of a model or demonstration of the required behaviour reduces worry & develops confidence.

Verbal Persuasion: Involves convincing the athlete he has the ability to perform the skill in question. Positive self-talk.

Emotional Control: Refers to the evaluation the performer makes of a physiological state. Those lacking in self-efficacy may see increased arousal as apprehension & nervousness instead of a positive physiological preparation for action.

Vealey’s Sport Specific Model of Sport Confidence: p.251

The model predicts that trait confidence & competitive orientation both influence & are influenced by subjective outcomes.

Vealey’s conclusion is that success in one sport transfers confidence to other sports and sporting situations.

CONCENTRATION:

Involves focusing attention onto the relevant environmental cues maintaining attentional focus until the skill has been completed.

Arousal is linked to concentration. When arousal is low, the perceptual field widens taking in too much information for information processing system to deal with.

Selective attention is not in operation & concentration on relevant information is difficult.

Information overload occurs & decision-making is impeded causing mistakes in performance.

As arousal increases, the perceptual field adjusts to the ideal width enabling the performer to focus on the most relevant information. Selective attention is fully operational allowing selective attention to occur.

Attentional Styles:

Broad – demands the performer to attend to many sensory cuesNarrow – requires focus onto one cuesExternal – relates to focus as being outward & directed onto an object Internal – refers to an inward focus onto thoughts or feelings

In activities where the environment changes, it may be necessary to use all 4 styles when appropriate.

EMOTIONAL CONTROL:

Activation – the state of physiological preparedness, which is directly associated with the degree of arousal.

External

Internal

NarrowBroad

4 factors affect the ‘shift’ in arousal: Personality – Extroverts perform best at high arousal, introverts at low. Task Type – Simple tasks have a high margin of error & are best performed at

high arousal. Complex tasks are often more perceptual & have less room for error. These are best performed at low arousal.

Stage of learning – Autonomous stage would find high arousal aids performance, whereas cognitive & associative would have a greater need to concentrate therefore would need low arousal.

Experience – Highly experienced player would find that performance increases at high arousal.

Individual Zone of optimal Functioning: Hanin – p.256

Top athletes have different ZOF. Optimal level of arousal does not always occur at the mid point of the arousal continuum.

Optimal level of arousal is not a single point but a band width. Teachers and coaches need to be aware of their performer’s ZOF and work towards this.

Characteristics of being in the zone:Performance appears effortless & automatic with athlete feeling in full control; attention & concentration is focused; the execution of the skill brings enjoyment & satisfaction.

Anxiety:

State anxiety – Fluctuates in response to a given situation. Leaned behavioural response that can be controlled & manipulated to facilitate optimal performance.

Trait anxiety – genetically inherited, indelible characteristic of personality. Permanent & relatively stable.

‘Anxiety occurs when there is a substantial inbalance between the individual’s perception of their ability & their perception of the demands & importance of the situation.’

2 responses to anxiety:

Somatic Response - Physiological changes to body eg. Sweating, increased HR tension, increased respiration rate, resulting in impaired movement.

Anxiety Perception of ability to cope – I am not as good as my opponent

Perception of situational demands – I must win my leg of relay if my team is to have the chance to win

Perception of the importance of the situation – the result of the competition hinges on this one relay race

Cognitive Response - Psychological responses eg.doubts & negative thoughts, apprehension. Attentional changes occur which affect info processing system.

Ways of controlling anxiety:

Cognitive: Imagery Thought stopping Positive talk Rational thinking

Somatic: Progressive Muscular Relaxation Biofeedback

Peak Flow Experience in Sport: p.259

Flow state is attained when the performer has a balanced perception of the demands of the situation & his/her ability to cope.

When this happens the athlete assumes control over all internal & environmental variables & a time of great happiness & self-fulfilment is experienced.

SOCIAL FACILITAION AND AUDIENCE EFFECTS:

Social Facilitation – positive effect of an audience

Excitement,Happiness

Anxiety,Anger

Relaxation,Drowsiness

Boredom,Fatigue

High somatic arousal

High cognitive arousalLow cognitive anxiety

Low somatic anxiety

Social Inhibition – negative effects of an audience

Immediate effect of an audience is to: Increase the arousal level of a performer Increases speed of performance Releases energy Arouses competitive drive

Zajonc’s Theory: p.264

Zajonc believed that the ‘mere presence’ of others is sufficient to increase arousal. He used drive theory to link the relationship between arousal and performance. However, the quality of the performance depends on how well the skill has been learned.

Our ‘learned behaviours’ tend to be our dominant responses. A dominant response is the behaviour most likely to occur when we are pressured to respond. As arousal increases we are more likely to see our dominant responses. If you’re at the autonomous stage of learning, your dominant response is most likely to be the correct action but if you’re at the associative phase of learning you are more likely to show incorrect response.

Homefield Advantage:

Large supportive crowds are said to help the home team. Most evident in indoor sports.

Proximity Effect:

Crowds that are close to the action eg. basketball/ice hockey are said to increase audience influence.

Ways to combat social inhibition:

Practice selective attention to cut out awareness of others Cognitive visualisation such as imagery/mental rehearsal Ensure essential skills are over-learned & grooved to ensure dominant r3esponse

is successful Introduce evaluative practices Simulated crowd noises Raise athlete’s awareness of ZOF Incorporate stress management into training Appropriate use of attribution to raise confidence

AGGRESSION:

‘Any behaviour that is intended to harm another individual by physical or verbal means.’

Differences between aggression & assertion.

Aggression – intent to harm

Assertion – within the rules

3 types of aggression:

Hostile (or reactive) Aggression: Prime motive is the intent to harm or injury. Outside the rules of the game. Involves anger.

Instrumental (or channelled) Aggression: Within the rules and although prime motive is successful execution of skill, there is still intent to harm. Anger is not evident.

Assertive behaviour: Does not attempt to harm & is within rules & spirit of the game. Described as ‘non-hostile self-protective mastery behaviour.’

Causes of Aggression:

Nature of the game (contact/non-contact) Wide division between scores Previous experiences could cause grudges or scores to settle Frustration caused by poor form, opposition & referee’s decisions Hostile crowds Venue – home or away Excessively high arousal levels Extrinsic rewards

Theories of Aggression:

Instinct Theory – Trait Perspective: Aggression is genetically inherit.

Social Learning Theory – Social Learning Perspective: Aggression is nurtured through environmental forces. It is learned by watching & copying role models & becomes more acceptable if reinforced.

Frustration Aggression Hypothesis - Interactionist Approach: Frustration develops when goal-directed behaviour is blocked. If aggressive act is successful, frustration is released & aggressor feels good & learns that violent strategies are successful. If aggression fails & results in punishment, further frustration is generated.

Aggressive Cue Hypothesis (Berkowitz) – Interactionist Approach: Frustration leads to an increase in arousal which sometimes will result in aggression. Aggressive cues such as bats or sticks will trigger aggression if arousal is high. The best players have the ability to control frustration and arousal.

Ways of reducing aggressive tendencies:

Positively reinforce non-aggressive behaviour & negatively reinforce aggressive behaviour

Punish aggressive players Violent players should be withdrawn from aggressive situations Misinterpretation can lead to aggression therefore changing athlete’s perception of

the situation, aggression will be avoided Stress performance rather than outcome Emphasise non-aggressive role-models Attribute successful performance to skilfulness Use cognitive strategies such as rational thinking, self-talk & imagery Implement stress management techniques Lower arousal levels

ATTRIBUTION THEORY:

Weiner’s Model:

Internal – factors within control of the individualExternal – factors out of performer’s controlStable – permanent Unstable – temporary & changeable

Coach should look to attribute defeat to external factors to sustain confidence to take away responsibility of players. This maintains self-esteem, sustains motivation & restores pride & confidence.

Wins should be attributed to internal factors to increase confidence & endorse a ‘win’ expectation.

People who are low achievers (TAF) attribute losing to internal factors. This takes away confidence & reduces expectation of future success. Learned helplessness develops & avoidance behaviour shows. These also attribute winning to external factors.

Ability Task difficulty

Effort Luck

Internal External

Stable

Unstable

Locus of causality

Stability

Those with TAS attribute success to internal factors & therefore seek more difficult challenges, while failure is attributed to external factors. Therefore, performer is more persistent in the face of failure & develops mastery orientation (strong motive to succeed).

Attribution Retraining:

Athlete needs to have control over the situation. Athlete has control over internal unstable factors. The coach needs to get the performer to attribute a lack of success to internal unstable factors so the athlete has control over the situation & provided the possibility of working through success. This will help to prevent learned helplessness.

Some other internal, unstable factors include: Concentration Commitment Control of arousal (somatic & cognitive) Confidence Attitude Attention Mental preparation Physical preparation

Revision Tips:

Look at the marks awarded to the question & make that many points in your answer.

Read through the questions before starting to answer The first question is always a definition so learn them The 2nd is usually explaining a theory The 3rd is usually ways of increasing or reducing something You can always use goal-setting as a way of fixing something