Factors impacting on performance

Question 1

What are some mental factors?

Answer 1

concentration
decision-making
problem solving
anxiety
somatic anxiety
mental toughness

Question 2

What are some emotional factors?

Answer 2

anger
criticism
confidence
resilience

Question 3

What are some social factors?

Answer 3

communication
team dynamics
etiquette
crowd influence

Question 4

What are some physical factors related to fitness?

Answer 4

agility
cardio-respiratory endurance
flexibility
power

Question 5

What are some physical factors related to skill?

Answer 5

reaction time
accuracy
consistency
rhythm

Question 6

What are some physical factors related to tactics?

Answer 6

delay
penetration
width

Question 7

What is concentration?

Answer 7

Concentration is the ability to focus all of your attention on something important whilst also blocking out any irrelevant stimuli.

Question 8

How can concentration impact performance in basketball? (example answer)

Answer 8

You need to concentrate when playing half-court man-to-man defence in basketball. This means you will be able to focus on tracking and marking your opponent whilst not getting distracted by the movements of others around you. This leads to you staying tight to your opponent and intercepting passes that are made to them.

Question 9

What is decision-making?

Answer 9

Decision-making refers to the choices you make during a performance.

Question 10

What is the decision you make often guided by?

Answer 10

When performing in any activity, you will often face situations where you must select what to do from several different options. The decision you make is often guided by your awareness of what is going on around you.

Question 11

How can decision-making impact performance in badminton? (example answer)

Answer 11

You are at the front of the net in a badminton rally. Whilst noticing your opponent is at the back of the court and the large space at the front, you decide to play a smash. Snap the wrist on contact and hit a powerful smash into space to win the rally.

Question 12

What is problem solving?

Answer 12

Problem solving refers to the ability to work out what is going on around you. This allows you to make sense of the situation you are in and can inform what you do next.

Question 13

How can problem solving impact performance in golf? (example answer)

Answer 13

You need to be able to use problem solving when facing a tricky putt in golf. This means you need to work out the lay of the land, for example if the green slopes slightly to the right, you aim your putt slightly to the left of the hole. This leads to your putt being on the correct line and going in the hole.

Question 14

What is anxiety?

Answer 14

Anxiety refers to a state of inner turmoil and worry that can have very negative consequences for performance if not controlled.

Question 15

What are the two types of anxiety?

Answer 15

Anxiety can manifest itself cognitively or somatically:

-cognitive anxiety refers to the negative thoughts and doubts someone may experience.

-somatic anxiety relates to the physiological symptoms brought on by high pressure moments

Question 16

How can anxiety impact performance in tennis? (example answer)

Answer 16

Anxiety could have a very negative impact on you before a final in tennis. This means you could become so worried that you will lose that you cannot control the spiraling negative thoughts in your head. This could lead to you starting the game very poorly by making basic mistakes and losing easy points.

Question 17

What are the psychological impacts of somatic anxiety?

Answer 17

Some of the physiological impacts anxiety can have include:

-muscle tension
-shakes
-sweaty palms

Question 18

What is muscle tension?

Answer 18

Muscle tension impacts the fluidity of limb movement.

Question 19

How can anxiety impact performance in rugby? (example answer)

Answer 19

Anxiety can have a negative impact on you when you are about to take a penalty kick in rugby to give your side the lead. This means your muscles could tense up and the movements of your kicking leg could be slow and rigid. This could lead to your kick lacking power, not reaching the posts, and missing.

Question 20

What is mental toughness?

Answer 20

Being mentally tough involves continuing to persevere through the more difficult times in performance. It is about not giving up even though you are struggling and seeing a task through to the end.

Question 21

How can mental toughness impact performance in a marathon? (example answer)

Answer 21

You need to be mentally tough when you hit the wall near the end of a marathon. This means you need to keep pushing through and continue going even though your body is in pain and your mind is telling you to stop. This leads to you continuing in the event and completing it to achieve your targeted time.

Question 22

What is the impact of anger on performance?

Answer 22

A number of different things can cause a performer to get angry in sport. If a performer cannot control their anger, it can often lead to negative consequences for both them and the overall performance.

Question 23

What are examples of anger in sport?

Answer 23

-at self for mistakes
-at officials for bad decisions
-at opponents for a foul tackle
-at opponents for being better
-at a poor scoreline
-at teammates for their errors

Question 24

In what ways does anger impact people?

Answer 24

Anger impacts people in different ways. For example, anger at oneself for making basic mistakes and anger at opponents for a bad tackle can impact the performer differently.

Question 25

How can anger at oneself for a mistake impact performance in football? (example answer)

Answer 25

Anger at self for poor miss in football. Take all anger out on the next shot and hit it as hard as possible. Lose accuracy and miss again.

Question 26

How can anger at an opponent for a poor tackle impact performance in football? (example answer)

Answer 26

Anger at the opponent for a poor tackle in football. Next time the opponent has the ball, you lunge in and tackle them late for revenge. Receive a yellow card and play the rest of the game under the threat of being sent off for a second offence.

Question 27

What is the impact of criticism on performance?

Answer 27

Another situation that can cause anger is when someone criticises you. Some coaches do this deliberately as part of their man-management techniques; they know certain individuals respond better to criticism because it actually motivates them to prove their coach wrong.

Question 28

How can anger from criticism impact performance in tennis?

Answer 28

You may get really angry when your coach criticises you for mistakes during your performance in tennis. This means that you can channel your frustrations into proving your coach wrong and giving your all in remaining points to stop the coach from criticising you again. This leads to you chasing down every shot your opponent plays on court which makes you harder to beat.

Question 29

What is the impact of confidence on performance?

Answer 29

This factor refers to self-belief. It considers:

-how much belief you have in your own abilities
-the impact this belief can have on your performance

Amongst other impacts, confidence mainly determines:

-amount of risks taken: Do you try more complex skills? Do you play safely?
-carrying out skills and movements with conviction: Do you fully commit to a decision once you’ve made it? Do you hesitate during the point of action?

Question 30

How can confidence impact performance in rugby? (example answer)

Answer 30

Being confident may help you when driving forward with the ball in rugby. This means that you may take the risk of throwing in a dummy pass to deceive your oncoming opponent rather than playing a pass to a teammate. This leads to your opponent buying the dummy and you exploiting the space they leave to break their defensive line and gain metres for your team.

Question 31

How can confidence impact performance in handball?

Answer 31

Being confident could help you when taking a penalty in handball. This means you would have full belief in your ability to score and will not be indecisive on where you will place the ball. This leads to you fully committing to the shot and it being thrown accurately and powerfully into the corner of the goal.

Question 32

What is the impact of resilience on performance?

Answer 32

This factor refers to how you bounce back after a mistake.

It is different from mental toughness as resilience is about the reaction after an error has occurred.

Some athletes bounce back from mistakes and continue unfazed. However, others go hiding in case they make the same mistake again. This has an impact on the overall performance.

Question 33

How can resilience impact performance in basketball? (example answer)

Answer 33

Resilience can help you recover if you miss an open lay-up playing basketball. Your resilience means you forget about the miss and continue to make supporting runs in fast breaks. Keep getting into scoring positions and score in future attempts.

Question 34

How can resilience hinder performance in tennis? (example answer)

Answer 34

A lack of resilience could hinder your performance after missing an easy backhand in tennis. This means you keep dwelling on the miss and avoid playing any more backhands in future rallies. This leads to you running around the ball to attempt forehands instead, being off balance and making more unforced errors.

Question 35

What categories can social factors be divided into?

Answer 35

Social factors can be divided into three different categories:

-those that are performed with others in our team eg communication and team dynamics.
-those that are performed against the opposition eg etiquette.
-those that are performed in different environments eg crowd influence.

Question 36

What is the impact of communication on performance?

Answer 36

This factor looks at how you interact with your teammates. It can be used in many different situations, such as:

-when you are in space and your teammate has possession.
-when a ball is about to land in the space between you and your teammate.
-when your teammate has the ball in lots of space.
-when you are trying to organise your team’s zonal defence.
-when your teammate has the ball and is unaware of the opponent behind them.

In all these situations you would use verbal communication.

Question 37

How can verbal communication impact performance in volleyball? (example answer)

Answer 37

Communication could help you when the ball is about to land between you and your teammate in volleyball. This means you shout your name loudly to alert your teammate that you will take shot on. This leads to clarity and your teammate moving out of the way for you to have time and space to execute an accurate dig.

Question 38

How can non-verbal communication impact performance in basketball? (example answer)

Answer 38

Non-verbal communication could help you when your teammate has possession but you have an opponent, with their back to you between you and the basketball. This means you could let your teammate see the direction you want the ball played into by pointing. As your marker cannot see you point, this means they are not being aware of your intention and this allows your teammate to play a penetrating pass for you to attack the key.

Question 39

What is the impact of team dynamics on performance?

Answer 39

This factor refers to the team chemistry: How well you get on with your teammates.

Team dynamics can be of a high level or low level:

-High levels of team dynamics: When a team gets on well, you will find yourself within a positive environment where there is lots of encouragement and support.
-Low levels of team dynamics: When a team does not get on well, there could be a lot of friction and criticism which has negative consequences for performance.

Question 40

How can team dynamics impact performance in golf? (example answer)

Answer 40

High levels of team dynamics could help you after you miss an easy putt to win the hole in a golf fourball. This means that even though you failed to win the hole, your teammate really encouraged and supported you because you get on so well together. This leads to your morale staying high and you switching your full focus to the next hole.

Question 41

How can low team dynamics impact performance in handball? (example answer)

Answer 41

Low team dynamics could hinder your performance in handball when a teammate you do not get on with is in a good scoring position. This means that even though you have possession and spot them, you deliberately decide against passing to them because you do not get on with them and do not want them getting the glory. This leads to you shooting from a difficult angle and missing. This causes argument with your teammate breaking out on court.

Question 42

What is the impact of etiquette on performance?

Answer 42

This factor refers to the level of sportsmanship a performer demonstrates.

By being sporting, the performer is following the unwritten rules of the game. They are showing acts of respect towards the opposition through choice, not because they have to.

Question 43

How can etiquette impact performance in tennis? (example answer)

Answer 43

Demonstrating etiquette could aid your performance in tennis when your opponent’s shot is incorrectly called out. This means you could admit to the umpire that it was actually in, despite knowing that you will lose the point. This leads to the umpire over-turning their decision and the respect between you and your opponent growing.

Question 44

What is the impact of crowd influence on performance?

Answer 44

The impact a crowd can make, particularly in elite level sport, is huge:

-A very supportive crowd can positively effect a performer.
-A hostile and critical crowd one can have numerous negative implications for performance.

Question 45

How can crowd influence impact performance in football? (example answer)

Answer 45

A very hostile crowd can have a negative influence on your performance when you are the away side in football. This means that by being whistled and booed every time you touch the ball, you start to focus on the crowd rather than where you are passing the ball. This could lead to you under hitting the pass and it being intercepted by the opposition.

Question 46

What is the impact of agility on performance?

Answer 46

This factor refers to your ability to change direction and falls under the fitness category.

The quicker and more controlled you are when changing direction, the better your agility. Agility is needed for a range of different sporting situations such as:

-when trying to lose your opponent to get into space for a corner in football.
-when at the net in tennis and your opponent attempts to lob you.
-when you are moving one way as a goalkeeper in handball and the line player shoots in the opposite corner.

Question 47

How can agility impact performance in handball? (example answer)

Answer 47

Agility could help you when you are a goalkeeper in handball. This means that when you are moving one way and the opposition hits a shot in the opposite direction, you can quickly change direction and dive in the direction of the shot. This leads to you saving the shot and your team staying in the lead.

Question 48

What is the impact of CRE on performance?

Answer 48

This factor relates to how long you can perform without tiring.

It mainly refers to the ability of the heart (cardio) and lungs (respiratory) to continuously supply oxygenated blood to the working muscles.

The longer these muscles are supplied with blood rich in oxygen, the longer they keep the threat of
lactic acid at bay and therefore the longer you can perform for.

Your CRE levels can have multiple different impacts on your performance in a range of sports.

Question 49

What should you do when answering questions on CRE?

Answer 49

You must link your answers to the last moments of a performance. This is ultimately when your CRE makes its biggest impact as this is when it is being most tested.

Question 50

How can CRE impact performance in badminton? (example answer)

Answer 50

Low levels of CRE could negatively impact your performance in the last set of your badminton match. This means that with your body tiring, you do not have the energy to chase down a drop shot from your opponent. This leads to you losing the rally and falling behind.

Question 51

What is the impact of flexibility on performance?

Answer 51

This factor looks at the range of motion at each joint throughout the body. The greater the range of motion, the better your flexibility.

This can help increase the following:

-your reach
-the power you can generate.

Question 52

How can flexibility impact performance in golf? (example answer)

Answer 52

High levels of flexibility in the shoulder joints can really help you when driving in golf. This means you can take the club back further and generate more momentum on the downswing due to the club covering a greater number of degrees. This leads to your drive covering a great distance and putting you close to the green.

Question 53

What is the impact of power on performance?

Answer 53

This factor looks at explosive movements.

This combination of speed and strength produces a forceful movement quickly. This can help you in numerous different sports.

Question 54

How can power impact performance in volleyball? (example answer)

Answer 54

Being able to generate a lot of power can help you when performing a spike in volleyball. This means you will be able to explosively jump up and gain a lot of height in your jump to help you meet the ball at a great height. This leads to you spiking the ball whilst above the net and generating a lot of power as it travels down to the ground and you winning the rally.

Question 55

What is the impact of reaction time on performance?

Answer 55

This factor looks at the body’s ability to react to stimuli. The quicker someone’s body reacts, the better their performance.

Below are a few sporting situations in which fast reaction time is required:

-reacting to the starter’s gun in the 100 metre sprint.
-reacting to a rebound in netball.

Question 56

How can reaction time impact performance in a 100m race? (example answer)

Answer 56

Poor reaction time could hinder your performance in a 100m race. This means if you respond slowly to the starter’s gunshot, you will come out the blocks slowly and fall behind. This leads to you having to play catch up from the start, limiting your chances of claiming a top three finish.

Question 57

What is the impact of accuracy on performance?

Answer 57

This factor looks at control of movement in a particular direction, or at a particular target.

Accuracy has its biggest impact in goal/point scoring situations. If a shot is accurate and correctly hits its intended target, the outcome is the greatest with points being added to the board.

Question 58

How can accuracy impact performance in hockey? (example answer)

Answer 58

Accuracy can really help your performance when taking a penalty in hockey. This means if you are aiming for the top left hand corner, you can hit it precisely into this corner of the goal. This leads to your shot being out of the reach of the goalkeeper and you scoring.

Question 59

What is the impact of consistency on performance?

Answer 59

This factor looks at your ability to execute skills successfully over a period of time.

Bringing a high level of consistency to performance will allow for high standards to be achieved throughout a performance. However, if you have a bad day, skill performance can be inconsistent and can lead to simple mistakes occurring.

Question 60

How can consistency impact performance in netball? (example answer)

Answer 60

Lacking consistency in your shooting can hinder your performance as a goal attack in netball. This means that although you will score some of your shots, a lot of your shots will also miss. This could lead to your teammates losing trust in you and they will look to pass to the goal shooter instead, which reduces your impact in the game.

Question 61

What is the impact of rhythm on performance?

Answer 61

This factor is concerned with the regularity with which a pattern of movements is performed. The more regular and consistent these patterns are performed, the better the rhythm of the performer.

Question 62

How can rhythm impact performance in the 100m hurdles? (example answer)

Answer 62

Having good rhythm can help you when performing in the 100m hurdles. This means you can maintain your stride pattern throughout the race and take off on the same foot at each hurdle. This can lead to you clearing each hurdle with control as you race towards the finish line.

Question 63

What is the impact of delay on performance?

Answer 63

This factor is concerned with performer(s) slowing down the pace of a performance in order to wait for support from others.

It is mainly used in invasion games such as basketball, handball, and football. Delaying the play can be used in both offensive and defensive situations and is often influenced by being aware of what is around you.

Question 64

How can delay impact performance in handball?

Answer 64

Using the tactic of delay could really help when you are outnumbered by the opposition in a fast break in handball. This means you sit deep and stay between the two opponents rather than close down the ball carrier in order to slow their fast break down. This leads to the ball carrier taking their time to decide what to do which enables your teammates to get back and stop the fast break.

Question 65

What is the impact of penetration on performance?

Answer 65

This factor looks at how you can break through opposition defensive lines. It is, again, mainly limited to team invasion games.

Question 66

How can penetration impact performance in football? (example answer)

Answer 66

Penetration is a key tactic that can really help you when you have possession and are trying to break down a deep defence. This means you can play a forward pass between two defensive players to your teammate who is running behind the opponent’s full back. This leads to your teammate receiving the pass behind the opposition defence and being through on goal.

Question 67

What is the impact of width on performance?

Answer 67

This factor is concerned with stretching the field or court when you have possession of the ball. It applies mainly to invasion games.

Question 68

How can width impact performance in basketball?

Answer 68

Using width in attack can really help your team when up against a man to man defense in basketball. This means by having your forwards out wide against each touchline, it encourages the opposition defence to spread out more to mark them. This leads to more space being created around the key for the point guard to create more scoring opportunities.

Question 69

How can mental factors interact with emotional factors?

Answer 69

Primary mental factor: decision-making

Secondary emotional factor: anger

Making the incorrect decision on where to play your shot during a tennis rally can lead to you getting angry. This means that by wrongly deciding to play the shot to your opponent’s strong forehand, you could lose the rally and get frustrated with yourself for making a poor shot selection. This then leads to you smashing your racket in frustration and being warned about your conduct by the umpire.

Question 70

How can mental factors interact with social factors?

Answer 70

Primary mental factor: motivation

Secondary social factor: team dynamics

Having low levels of motivation to win could negatively impact your team’s dynamics when the opposition are starting a fast break against your side in basketball. Not having great levels of desire to win means that you do not try your hardest to chase back. This leaves your team lacking in support and you concede a basket on the fast break. This leads to your team turning on you and falling out with you on court for your lack of effort.

Question 71

How can mental factors interact with physical facotrs?

Answer 71

Primary mental factor: anxiety

Secondary physical factor: accuracy

Controlling your somatic anxieties can help boost your accuracy when taking a match-defining penalty kick in rugby. This means that your body will stay relaxed and your kicking leg is free from muscular tension. This causes it to swing freely and your shot is accurate. This leads to your shot going between the posts and your team taking the lead.

Question 72

How can emotional factors interact with mental factors?

Answer 72

Primary emotional factor: resilience

Secondary mental factor: motivation

Being resilient could lead to a motivation boost after missing a spike in volleyball. This means that, instead of focusing on the miss, you have an increased desire to make up for it by helping your team get back into the game. This can lead to you giving your full effort when attempting to block future opposition spikes and preventing them from increasing their lead.

Question 73

How can emotional factors interact with social factors?

Answer 73

Primary emotional factor: anger

Secondary social factor: etiquette

Failing to control your anger, can lead to you displaying poor etiquette when losing a football match. This means your anger can lead to you putting in a bad tackle on an opponent, which the referee misses. Your anger leads you to show no sporting behaviour by continuing to play on, even though you know your opponent may be hurt. This can then lead to a decrease in respect between the two sides and your opponents getting angry at your lack of sporting behaviour.

Question 74

How can mental factors interact with physical factors?

Answer 74

Primary emotional factor: confidence

Secondary physical factor: penetration

Being fully confident in your abilities can lead to you attempting a risky pass that penetrates a defence during a fast break in handball. By having full belief in yourself, you will take a risk and play a more difficult pass to initiate the fast break, by passing forwards between two opposition players to an on-running teammate. This leads to your teammate getting in behind the opposition defence and having a clear run and shot at goal.

Question 75

How can social factors interact with mental factors?

Answer 75

Primary social factor: communication

Secondary mental factor: decision-making

Using your communication skills can really help your teammate’s decision making skills when in possession in football. By calling loudly for the ball when in space, you alert your teammate to your position on the pitch. This helps simplify what they should do with the ball. This leads to them deciding to play the pass to you in order to maintain possession for your team.

Question 76

How can social factors interact with emotional factors?

Answer 76

Primary social factor: team dynamics

Secondary emotional factor: fear

Poor team dynamics can cause your levels of fear to go out of control if you miss scoring opportunities as a goal shoot in netball. This means your teammates could criticise you for your miss, making you fearful of missing more shots later in the game as you do not want to be criticised again. This could lead to you no longer looking to get into shooting positions in the shooting circle, making it harder for your teammates to create scoring opportunities.

Question 77

How can social factors interact with physical factors?

Answer 77

Primary social factor: communication

Secondary physical factor: strengths and weaknesses

Communication could help remind you of the tactical plan of exploiting an opponent’s weakness when playing as a full back in football. This means that when you are faced up by an attacker, your teammates could shout to you to show the attacker onto their weaker foot. This could then lead to you making the attacker uncomfortable on their weaker side and them giving away possession.

Question 78

How can physical factors interact with mental factors?

Answer 78

Primary physical factor: CRE

Secondary mental factor: mental toughness

Having low CRE levels can result in you needing to draw on your mental toughness to get through the final miles of a marathon. This means that as your body starts to tire and your muscles begin to ache, you need to show your mental toughness to get through these painful moments. This leads to you pushing through the pain barrier and not giving up as you finish the race to achieve your goal.

Question 79

How can physical factors interact with emotional factors?

Answer 79

Primary physical factor: accuracy

Secondary emotional factor: anger

A lack of accuracy when putting can cause you to get angry as you make your way to the next tee in golf. This means that after hitting a five-yard putt wide of the hole, you get annoyed at yourself for missing an easy putt. This leads to you taking all of your frustration out on your next drive and as a result, your technique is wrong and the ball goes out of bounds.

Question 80

How can physical factors interact with social factors?

Answer 80

Primary physical factor: speed

Secondary social factor: team dynamics

Using your speed to cover for your playing partner can lead to your team dynamics growing in badminton. With your partner out of position from returning a previous shot in the rally, you use your speed to cover them by reaching the opponents’ next shot, in the space your partner left. This leads to your team dynamics growing as your partner appreciates your support and the bond between you grows.