Chapter 14 - The Mental Side of Human Performance Flashcards
what is the chinese and greek civilizations history of sport psychology? (quotation)
“healthy mind in a healthy body”
when was the first sport psychology research done? what was researched?
1800s - the effects of audience on cyclist performance
what has been recognized and grown over the past 3 decades?
sport psychology discipline
what are the 2 reasons sport psychology has recently developed and grown?
1) expansion of scientific knowledge and emergence of different branches
2) increased media attention
personality
pattern of characteristic thoughts, feelings, and behaviours that distinguish one person from another and persist over time and situations
what 4 questions can the study of personality in sport psychology help us answer?
1) do athletes possess different personality characteristics than non-athletes?
2) do winners possess different personality profiles than losers?
3) does personality determine sport preference, or does a particular sport mould our personality accordingly?
4) can personality be changed, or does it remain relatively fixed throughout involvement in sport
compared to non-athletes, athletes are more…?
stable, extroverted, competitive, dominant, self-confident, achievement-oriented, psychologically well-adjusted, conservative with respect to political views, authoritarian, persistent, display higher levels of self-esteem
true or false: [about athletes vs non-athletes] although differences are known to exist, a clear pattern of differences has yet to emerge
true
personality traits
psychological characteristics of the athlete which remain relatively stable over time
personality states
“right now kind of feelings” which are situation-specific
state-trait controversy
disagreement of the relative merits of studying states versus traits
interactional theory
the best state-trait approach, which considers personality traits and states, as well as situation-specific factors
true or false: it is possible to distinguish between successful and unsuccessful athletes using personality traits
FALSE: it is NOT yet possible to distinguish between successful and unsuccessful athletes using personality traits
it is possible to distinguish between the elite athletes and the less skilled in terms of _______
mood states
mood states of elite athletes vs. lesser skilled athletes are lower in what 5 categories?
1) tension
2) depression
3) anger
4) fatigue
5) confusion
mood states of elite athletes vs. lesser skilled athletes are higher in what category?
vigor
iceberg profile
mood state profile that resembles an iceberg
are personality differences due to the athletic experience or do certain personality traits cause the individual to go out for sports (gravitational hypothesis)?
evidence tends to support the gravitational hypothesis, however, participation in sports can also enhance personality development
are athletes or non-athletes more extroverted, independent, self confident and less anxious?
athletes
true or false: elite athletes can be distinguished from lesser skilled athletes however winners and losers cannot be distinguished
true
how are elite athletes distinguished from lesser skilled athletes?
iceberg profile
true or false: sports can enhance personality traits, and personality traits can enhance sport
true
arousal
physiological state of readiness and psychological activation
what part of the nervous system does arousal involve?
autonomic nervous system
arousal is the bodys way of preparing us for what?
“fight or flight”
stress
non specific response of the body to any demand made upon it, unemotional bodily response to some type of stressor
true or false: stress can be only bad
FALSE: stress can be good or bad, depending upon the individuals personal interpretation
______ is positive stress (e.g., winning a lottery)
eustress
_____ is negative stress (e.g., receiving a failing grade on a midterm test)
distress
what are the 2 components of state anxiety?
1) cognitive state anxiety
2) somatic state anxiety
cognitive state anxiety
- psychological component
- caused by fear of failure
- result of worrying
- “I am afraid I am going to lose”
somatic state anxiety
- physical component
- perception of physiological responses
- “i feel nervous before a major contest” sweaty palms, dry mouth, upset stomach
as competition approaches there are _______ changes in cognitive and somatic state anxiety
temporal changes
the relationship between somatic anxiety and performance takes the form of an inverted __
U
the relationship between cognitive anxiety and athletic performance has been shown to be ______ and _______
linear and negative
increases in somatic anxiety are associated with improved athletic performance up to a certain optimal level; therefore, athletes should attempt to increase their somatic anxiety up to an optimal level by doing what?
“psyching up”
true or false: the lower the level of cognitive state anxiety, the better the athlete will perform
true
list 12 symptoms of distress
1) cold, clammy hands
2) cotton mouth
3) unable to concentrate
4) desire to urinate often
5) diarrhea
6) feeling of fatigue
7) Increased heart rate
8) faster breathing
9) trembling hands
10) tense muscles
11) nausea
12) voice distortion
what are 3 relaxation interventions to lower cognitive state anxiety?
1) Progressive Muscular Relaxation (PMR)
2) Positive Imagery
3) Positive Self-talk
how long does Progressive Muscular Relaxation (PMR) take?
takes time initially, but with practice can be completed in a matter of minutes
when is PMR especially valuable?
the night before
what are the 4 steeps to PMR?
1) lie or sit in a comfortable position
2) inhale and tense a specific muscle group for approximately 5 seconds
3) exhale and release the tension from the muscles, concentrating on the feeling of relaxation
4) repeated for a number of muscle groups
what does positive imagery require to be effective?
practice
what are the 2 steps to positive imagery?
1) close eyes and picture yourself performing well in the specific anxiety-causing performance environment
2) imagine the positive feelings associated with this successful imagery
what is positive self talk?
reassuring oneself with positive thoughts and statements
what is an example of positive self talk?
“Im a good free throw shooter” vs. “What will the coach think of me if i blow this shot?”
________ determines the reasons for an athletes behaviour
motivation
motivation
the direction, energy and intensity of behaviour
what is motivation synonymous with?
inspiration, enthusiasm, or the will to win
achievement motivation
athletes predisposition to approach or avoid a competitive situation
what concept does achievement motivation include?
concept of desire, or desire to excel
true or false: achievement motivation is not an innate drive, but is likely learned in the sporting environment
true
the original McClelland-Atkinson Model suggests that the achievement motivation is a function of what 2 things?
1) the motive to achieve success
2) the fear of failure
the motive to achieve success
an athletes intrinsic motivation to engage in an exciting activity
the fear of failure
a psychological construct associated with cognitive state anxiety
achievement motivation = _____________ - __________
achievement motivation = intrinsic motivation - cognitive state anxiety
True or false: McClelland-Atkinson model of achievement motivation could predict athletic success
FALSE: McClelland-Atkinson model of achievement motivation could NOT predict athletic success
what was added to the original model of McClelland-Atkinson model of achievement so that it could predict athletic success?
extrinsic motivation
what does the modified McClelland-Atkinson model of achievement motivation acknowledge?
acknowledges that factors external to the athlete may influence individual’s overall motivation
what 3 factors affect achievement motivation?
1) self confidence
2) self efficacy
3) goal setting
self-confidence
a discriminating factor between individuals high and low in achievement motivation
how is self confidence similar to the motive to achieve success?
the confident athlete has a high motive to succeed and a high expectation for success
what is self efficacy based on?
bandura’s model
self efficacy
individual’s belief that he or she is capable of succeeding at a particular task
why is self-efficacy used in sport psychology?
because the sporting environment represents a very specific situation
true or false: self efficacy is situation specific self confidence
true
what are 4 ways self efficacy can be enhanced?
1) successful performance
2) vicarious experience
3) verbal persuasion
4) emotional arousal
what is the most important factor in improving self-efficacy? why?
successful performance because it raises expectations for future successes; while failure lowers these expectations
what are the 3 steps to get the best successful performance results?
1) break down skill learning into small steps to insure success early
2) practice, practice, practice
3) highlighting successes and downplaying setbacks
vicarious experience
demonstrating repeated success through participatory modelling (i.e., the subject first observes a model perform a task)
what are the 3 steps to get the best results from vicarious experience
1) employ participatory modelling before the athlete attempts the skill on his/her own
2) utilize only models who are technically correct in their execution
3) ensure successful execution by the athlete in the early stages of learning
verbal persuasion
constant provision of encouragement, as well as specific skill instructions
what are the 3 steps for best results in verbal persuasion?
1) provide specific rather than general feedback
2) have the athlete repeat your instructions back to you before beginning
3) focus on the positive aspects of the athletes performance
emotional arousal
an optimal level of arousal is required to develop self-efficacy
true or false: too much or too little arousal will impact negatively on the development of self-efficacy
true
what are the 3 steps to get the best results from emotional arousal
1) in the early stages of learning, keep things relaxed
2) get to know athletes one-on-one. some will need more arousal, while others less
3) help athletes recognize when they need to “psych-up or calm-down”
what are 7 goal setting strategies for maximum motivation?
1) set goals that are observable, measurable and achievable
2) set realistic, yet challenging goals
3) set positive goals, not negative goals (such as don’t lose)
4) coaches and teachers should negotiate goals for their athletes or students, not mandate them
5) set short-term as well as long-term goals
6) set goals for your practices, as well as your actual competitions
7) set goals related to the athletes performance or technical execution, not contest outcome (win vs. lose)
what type of approach to motivation is the attribution theory?
attribution theory is a cognitive approach to motivation
what does attribution theory assume?
that people strive to explain, understand and predict events based upon their own perceptions
true or false: what the athlete believes has nothing to do with future motivation
FALSE: what the athlete believes to be true is important for future motivation
what are the 2 ways outcomes can be attributed?
1) internally - to the person (personal force)
2) externally - to the environment (environmental force)
what are internal outcomes composed of?
ability and effort
what are external outcomes composed of?
task difficulty and luck
stable attributions
relatively unchanging from one day to the next (ability and task difficulty)
unstable attributions
vary markedly from time to time (effort and luck)
what do the internal attributions of locus of control include?
attributes perceived as controllable (ability and effort)
what do the external attributions of locus of control include?
perceptions perceived to be outside the athlete’s control (task of difficulty and luck)
what should the athlete be encouraged to focus on before competition? what should the athlete be encouraged not to focus on before competition? why?
should be encouraged to focus on effort, not ability. both effort and ability are within athletes control, but effort is unstable from game to game
why must athletes focus on preparing strategies that be effective against task difficulty (e.g. an opposing team) vs luck?
because both luck and task difficulty are beyond athletes control, but task difficulty is stable and predictable
true or false: after a victory, an athlete is going to feel more pride if he/she believes that the win was a result of an effort or ability rather than an opponent’s poor ability or a lucky call from the referee
true
how are different emotions experienced?
with different causal attributions and outcomes
after a success, how does an athlete attribute the success internally? externally?
internally, they typically respond with pride, confidence and satisfaction
externally, they will likely feel gratitude and thankfulness
causal attributions –> future expectation –> ______
motivation
what tends to happen whenever an outcome is different than what was expected based on past experience?
the athlete tends to endorse an unstable attribution (e.g., effort or luck)
what happens when an outcome is as expected, based on past performances?
a stable attribution (e.g., ability or task difficulty) is endorsed
why is it beneficial to ascribe failures to unstable causes?
it does not imply repeated failure
what are the 3 implications to predicting future expectations from present attributions?
1) athletes should attribute a failure to unstable and internal cause; i.e., lack of effort
2) this suggests that more effort can change the next outcome from failure to success
3) it teaches the athlete to accept responsibility for the results
what does future expectancy depend on?
depends on stability of the attributions
what 2 things to promotion self efficacy and motivation for future performance depend on?
depends on both expectancy and locus of control
athletes who succeed should be encouraged to attribute the success to both stable and internal factors. why?
a stable attribution will improve the athlete’s expectancy for future success and an internal attribution will enhance the athlete’s self-confidence
what are 4 attributional training strategies learning to improved self-efficacy in future events?
1) record and classify attributions after performances
2) after each outcome make attributions that will lead to promotion of self-efficacy
3) provide an attributional training program for athletes who consistently utilize undesirable attributions
4) for best results, combine planned goal-setting with attributional training
spectator effect
an important social-psychological effect on athletic performance
spectator effect influences athlete’s performance through? (2 answers)
1) social facilitation - enhancement of performance due to presence of others
2) Rivalry - a desire to beat the other opponent
Social facilitation can be further broken down into what 2 effects?
1) Audience effects - a situation involving the mere presence of other individuals in the same room or area
2) Coaction effects - other people are present, but are performing the same task
true or false: spectator effect divides into rivalry and social facilitation. social facilitation then divides into audience effects and coaction effects
true
what happens if the athlete perceives the audience to be important and/or knowledgeable?
then drive level is increased
what happens if the athlete perceives the audience t be unimportant and/or not knowledgeable?
then drive level is decreased
what is the mot popular explanation for home advantage?
the presence of supportive audience
what research has been established following audience characteristics leading to a greater home advantage?
- large
- supportive
- close to the playing arena (i.e., high intimacy and density)
