2.2- Sports Psychology- Individual Differences Flashcards
Factors that affect sport performance?
Personality, sport type, attitude, motivation, prep, confidence
Personality (Hollander)
the sum total of behaviors, attitudes, beliefs, and values that are characteristic of an individual, which make humans unique.
Theories of Personality
Trait, social learning, interactionist
Trait Theory
A theory of personality that suggests we inherit personality from parental genes and behaviour is innate, enduring, consistent and stable
Equation for trait theory
Behaviour= function of personality
Theories within Trait theory
Personality Types
Narrow Band Theory
Narrow Band Theory (Girdano)
Two types of people:
Type A- impatient, intolerant, high levels of stress
Type B- relaxed, tolerant, lower personal stress
What is anxiety?
Unpleasant state of emotional arousal. Negative emotional state linked with fears and worries.
3 types of anxiety
State- felt in certain situations
Somatic-physical changes such as sweaty palms
Cognitive-emotional state, in brain
Personality types (Eysneck & Cattell)
suggested there are 4 personality types:
Extrovert + stable
Extrovert + neurotic
Introvert + stable
Introvert + neurotic
Personality types (Eysneck & Cattell)
suggested there are 4 personality types:
Extrovert + stable
Extrovert + neurotic
Introvert + stable
Introvert + neurotic
Extrovert
an outgoing person, confident, suited to team sports
Introvert
a shy person, quiet, prefers individuality
Stable
not easily changed, calm, consistent
Neurotic
an emotionally unstable person; inconsistent, flighty and changeable
Social Learning Theory of Personality
personality traits are not just inherited, they are also acquired through social learning. This occurs in environmental experiences and other influences
equation for social learning theory
B = f(E)
behaviour = function of the environment
drawback of social learning theory
does not take into account genetically inherited factors
Interactionist approach
developed by Hollander (1967)
Behaviour occurs from the influence of inherited traits and learned experiences
equation for interactionist approach
B= F (PxE) our behaviour is a function of both the person (personality) and the environment
3 levels that interact to form personality
psychological core -> Typical Response -> Role-related behaviour
Psychological core
-The most basic level of your personality.
-Includes your attitudes and values, interests and motives, and beliefs about yourself and your self worth
Typical response
The way one typically adjusts or responds to the environment and how the psychological core influences environment
Role-related behaviour
how you act based on what you perceive your social situation to be
Motivation
the internal mechanisms and external stimuli which arouse and direct our behaviour
What does motivation include?
Inner drive, external pressures and intensity of behaviour
Intrinsic Motivation
a desire to perform a behaviour effectively for its own sake- pride, enjoyment, muscular sensuousness
muscular sensuousness
the feeling of a movement
Extrinsic Motivation
a desire to perform a behavior to receive promised rewards or avoid threatened punishment- prize, trophy, money, pressure
Arousal
a physical and mental state of alertness and readiness. Can be both positive and negative
Physiological arousal
excitation of the body’s internal state- sweaty palms, increase in HR, breathing and temperature
Psychological arousal
affects emotions- anger, aggression, anxiety.
Drive Theory
As arousal increases so does performance
Drive theory drawbacks
Doesn’t take into account: over arousal, activity, personalities. ‘
Arousal and performance are not linear.
Drive Reduction Theory
the idea that a physiological need creates an aroused tension state (a drive) that motivates a person to satisfy the need. They master the skill, then lose the drive so must then set a new goal
Inverted U theory
arousal facilitates performance up to an optimal level, beyond which further increases in arousal are associated with reduced performance
Positives of Inverted U theory
accounts for both under and over arousal. Identifies a peak performance.
Drawbacks of Inverted U theory
No reasons given for arousal level.
Doesn’t take into account how to come back from over arousal
4 things that affect arousal
personality, movement type, skill level and phases of learning
somatic arousal
Relates to physiological state of the body eg. increased heart rate
cognitive arousal
Relates to the psychological state eg. Increase in anxiety
Catastrophe Theory
When increases in physiological arousal occur in the presence of cognitive anxiety, a sudden/extreme drop (rather than a gradual decline) in performance occurs.
How can performance be increased again according to Catastrophe Theory?
If cognitive arousal is lowered and composure regained, performance can be increased again
Anxiety
negative aspect of experiencing stress: caused by pressure from crowd or sports situation, threatens self esteem.
Competitive Anxiety
Associated with sport or competition.
concerns about body, performance, skills, injury. Worry or apprehension experiences before or during a competition
4 factors affecting anxiety
individual differences, trait or state anxiety, general or specific anxiety, the competition process
SCAT
Sport Competition Anxiety Test
Factors effecting the reliability of a test
-Amount of sleep
-Emotional state
-Test environment
-Athlete’s prior test knowledge
-People present
-Personality
-Environmental conditions
Zone of Optimal Functioning
point where an individual is performing at their best, optimal arousal
Other names for Zone of Optimal Functioning
IZOF, Optimal Level, Peak Flow
How do you achieve ZOF?
Warm up
Mentally prepare
Be confident and focused
Effortless movements
Cue Utilisation
The ability to process information is directly linked to the level of arousal
-Athlete is focused on relevant cues
-Selective attention happens effectively
cognitive training to achieve ZOF
Visualisation, Imagery, Self Talk
Visualisation
Going through a performance to see how the performance will look.
creates mental pictures and allows confidence in the situation
Imagery
using key words to see and imagine how the game will go
Helps relaxation and directs focus
Feel what will happen
Increase enthusiasm
Self Talk
a person’s internal dialogue, positive statements
Recall previous experiences and use affirmations
Attitudes
learned predispositions to respond to a person, object, or idea in a favorable or unfavorable way
attitude object
The object, person, place, or idea an individual explicitly or implicitly directs his or her attitude toward.
Describe attitudes
Unstable, directed, learned, can be changed, enduring response
How are attitudes formed?
Learning, experiences, peers, family, media
Socialisation
The process of mixing and relating to other people
Triadic model of attitudes
- Cognitive Component (Beliefs)
- Affective Component (Emotions/Feelings)
- Behavioural Component (Behaviour)
Remember as CAB
Persuasive communication theory
changing the attitude of the performer using persuasion
- The persuader- so with high status
- The message- positive to initiate change
3.The recipients- easier to change attitudes of recipient wants to
- The situation- presence of other persuaders
What must the person do in Persuasive communication theory?
Pay attention, understand, accept, retain the message
What must the coach do in persuasive communication theory?
Be an expert and be trustworthy
What must the message be in persuasive communication theory?
Clear, unambiguous, balanced
Measurements of attitudes
1.Likert Scale: a multiple-item questionnaire (this is the most commonly used and the most valid way to gather information)
- Interviews
- Observations
- Thirsting Scale
Who came up with cognitive dissonance theory?
Festinger (1957)
What is Cognitive Dissonance theory?
the theory that we act to reduce the discomfort we feel when two of our thoughts are inconsistent (oppose and conflict each other) by lessening the impact of one of those conflicting ideas
What is the aim of cognitive dissonance theory?
to change attitudes.
How do we carry out cognitive dissonance theory?
Cognitive- update knowledge or give new info
Affective- provide new and positive experiences
Behavioural- simplify a skill or use guidance to make execution easier and change behaviour.
Why does aggression occur in sport?
Performance levels dipped, a team is losing, opponent is annoying you, referee may be making inconsistent decisions
Aggression
any physical or verbal behaviour intended to hurt or harm outside the rules of a sport
Assertion
behaviour that doesn’t intent to harm. Shows power while being within the rules of the sport. Forceful, robust play.
instinct theory of aggression
a theory that describes aggression as innate biological drive and a natural response
Negatives of the instinct theory
Aggression isnt always spontaneous and can be learned
Different cultures behave differently
too simplistic
frustration-aggression hypothesis
the extent to which people feel frustrated predicts the likelihood that they will act aggressively. There is a drive towards a goal which is blocked by an obstacle causing the frustration. Controlled aggression= success & catharsis
Uncontrolled aggression=punishment
catharsis
a release of emotional tension
Negatives of frustration aggression hypothesis
frustration does not always lead to aggression
too simplistic
Aggression cue hypothesis
Frustration leads to increased arousal which can lead to a greater likelihood of aggression if an aggressive cue is present
Negative of aggressive cue hypothesis
doesn’t take into account social or trait factors
Observational/Social learning theory
Albert Bandura - learn by observing others
4 stages: attention -> retention-> motor reproduction -> motivation
Solutions to aggression
Control arousal
Avoid situations that initiate aggressive responses
Remove aggressive player from situation
reinforce non-aggressive acts
Show non-aggressive role models
Punish aggressive behaviour
Increase peer pressure to not be aggressive
Highlight responsibility
Social Facilitation
improved performance on simple or well-learned tasks in the presence of others
Social Inhibition
a decrease in performance in front of a crowd
Who came up with drive theory of social facilitation?
Zajonc (1965)
Who came up with evaluation apprehension theory?
Cottrell (1968)
drive theory of social facilitation
Suggests that the mere presence of others increases arousal (drive) and arousal increases the dominant (most likely) response, causing people to do better on tasks they find easy and worse on tasks they find difficult
evaluation apprehension theory
a theory that the presence of others will produce social facilitation effects only when those others are seen as potential evaluators or are judging
home field advantage
Gaining an advantage in a sporting event from being in familiar surroundings, with the majority of the spectators supporting you.
Effects of personality
High anxiety perform less well on presence of others (type a) compared to those who are type b. Extroverts perform better with an audience
Level of experience?
Experienced athlete, arousal levels high, perform at best. Novice on the other hand perform best when optimum point is lower.
Goal setting
the process of working toward something you want to accomplish
why do we use goal setting?
Increases motivation and confidence, alleviates anxiety by controlling anxiety
how is goal setting useful?
Directs attention to a certain thing. This regulates and sustains effort which then motivates.
SMART goals
Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Recorded, Time Phased
Specific
clearly defined or identified
Measurable
Able to be measured, quantifiable
Achievable
a goal that can be reached
Recorded
able to be documented and analysed
Time Phased
Each goal must have a fixed deadline for evaluation
Outcome goals
directed towards an end activity e.g. wanting to win a rugby match
Performance goals
directed towards the individual’s end performance e.g. setting a PB
Process Goals
used to improve skill and often related to technique e.g. improve throw in technique in football
