Flow In Sport Flashcards
What is flow?
An optimal psychological state that occurs when there is a balance between a person’s skills and the perceived challenges of a situation
It is described as an autotelic experience
In terms of the model of flow, when is flow experienced?
When the challenge is high but the skills are high also
What are the dimensions of flow?
1) Challenge-skill balance
2) action-awareness merging
3) clear goals
4) unambiguous feedback
5) sense of control
6) concentration
7) loss of self-consciousness
8) time transformation - goes fast
9) autotelic experience - enjoyed it
What is an autotelic personality?
Someone who does things for their own sake - better equipped to experience flow
What did Jackson (1998) find when looking at the autotelic personality?
Certain characteristics were linked to this personality
-intrinsic motivation, high perceived ability, low competitive trait anxiety, high task orientation
What did Jackson (1995) find when looking at experiences of flow?
She found that elite athletes generally don’t experience flow very often, could be because they are emphasizing the extrinsic rewards at that level
What did Jackson et al (2001) find when looking at whether flow was good for performance/ can it predict performance?
Yes, we should promote flow and it can predict performance
Positive results when looking at orienteering (errors made) cycling (finishing position) and surfing (subjective ratings)
What factors may prevent/disrupt flow?
Not optimal environmental conditions Not optimal physical preparation Problems with your teammates Inappropriate focus Self doubt Lacking motivation to perform
How to achieve flow?
Maintain a balance between skills and goals
Achieve optimal arousal
Focus on lag points
Create a pre-performance plan
Achieve optimal prep
Experience optimal environment conditions
