Introduction into psychological skill training (chapter 11) Flashcards
What does psychological skill traininf refer to?
The systematic and consistent practice of
mental or psychological skills for the purpose of enhancing performance, increasing enjoyment, or achieving greater selfsatisfaction.
What is mental toughness?
An athletes ability to focus, rebound from failure, cope with pressure, and persist in the face of adversity. It is a form of mental resilience.
What are some characteristics of mentally tough athletes?
- High sense of self-belief
- An unshakeable faith that they can control their own destiny.
- They can remain relatively unaffected by competition or adversity.
What is the four C model of mental toughness?
- Control-handling many things at once; remaining influential rather than controlled.
- Commitment-being deeply involved with pursuing goals despite difficulties.
- Challenge-perceiving potential threats as opportunities for personal growth and thriving in constantly changing environments.
- Confidence-maintaining self belief despite setbacks.
Why is PST important?
- Athletes feel that psychological factors primarily account for day-to-day fluctuations in performance.
- Traditionally, athletes spend little time training and practicing psychological skills.
What is ‘superior performance intelligence’?
- Knowing how to maximize your potential
- Knowing how to work with your environment
- Knowing how to deliver high performance.
Why are psychological skills neglected?
- Lack of knowledge and comfort with teaching metal skills.
- Misunderstanding about psychological skills
- Lack of time
What are the PST myths?
- Is for ‘problem’ athletes only
- Is for ‘elite’ athletes only
- Provides quick-fix solutions
- Is not useful
What are the keys to understanding PST?
- PST is a proven technique but users must be realistic in their expectations
- Psychological skills can be learned but must be practiced and integrated into a person’s daily routine.
How do successful athletes differ from less successful ones?
- They have higher self confidence.
- they have greater self-regulation of arousal.
- They have better communication
- They have more positive thoughts and images.
- They have more determination or commitment.
What do athletes and coaches identify as the most important PST topics?
- Arousal regulation.
- Imagery and mental preparation
- Confidence building
- Increased motivation and commitment
- Attention or concentration
- Self-talk
- Mental plans
- Imagery
How must PST be implemented?
It must be individualized, employed systematically over time, and multimodal (combining different psychological skills such as imagery, self-talk and goal setting).
What are the three phases of PST?
Educational phase
Acquisition phase
Practice phase
What is the Educational stage for PST?
- Psychological skills need to be taught and learned. Participants must recognize how important it is to acquire PST and how the skill affect performance.
- Increase awareness of mental skills.
What is the acquisition phase of PST?
- Focus on strategies and techniques
- Tailor training programs to meet individual needs.
- Provide general information to the group or team, but be specific when developing an individual’s PST program.
- Psychological skill should be learn and practiced
What is the practice phase of PST?
- Learning psychological skills should progress from practices and simulations to actual competitions.
- This phase focuses on automating skills though overlearning, integrating psychological skills, and simulating the skill you want to apply to actual competitions.
- Log books help athletes chart progress and provide feedback for improvement.
What is the ultimate goal of PST?
Self-regulation
What is self-regulation?
The ability to work towards one’s short and long-term goals by effectively monitoring and managing one’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.
What are the five stages of the self regulation model?
- Problem identification
- Commitment
- Execution
- Environmental management
- Generalization
Who should conduct PST?
Sport psychologist or a coach can providing they:
- Recognize their limits
- Recognize potential conflicts of interest.
When should you implement PST?
During the off season when there is more time
How long show PST last?
10-15 minutes a day, three to five days per week.
When is the best time in one’s career to engage in mental training?
Mental training should continue throughout an athlete’s sport participation.
How do you design a PST program?
- Discuss your approach
- Assess the athlete’s mental skills
- Determine which psychological skills to include
- Design a PST schedule
- Evaluate the program.
During the design of a PST you need to discuss your approach, what does this mean?
- Identify services to be provided.
- Explain the differences between educational and clinical sport psychology consultants.
- Discuss your approach
- Build trust and a good relationship with the client.
During the design of a PST you need to assess their metal skills, what does this mean?
- Assess strengths and weaknesses (either objectively or subjectively)
- Use psychological assessment techniques (performance profiling, oral interviews, psychological inventories)
- Consider the unique demands of the sport.
- Observe athletes competing and practicing
- Obtain the perspectives of other parties involved (coaches, athlete trainers).
During the design of a PST you need to determine which psychological skills to include, what does this mean?
- Its best to prioritize objectives and emphasize a few skill initially rather than superficially working on all the needed skills.
- You will need to look at the time available and how interested they are in receiving PST.
What does the mental skills model by Vealey suggest to be the most important skills?
- Foundation skills
- Performance skills
- Personal development skills
- Team skills
In the mental skills model by Vealey what do they mean by ‘foundation skills’?
They are interpersonal resources that are the basic mental skills necessary to achieve success. These skills include: Achievement drive -Self awareness. -Productive thinking -Self confidence.
In the mental skills model by Vealey what do they mean by ‘Performance skills’?
They are mental abilities critical to the execution of skills during sport performance. these skills include the following:
- Energy management.
- Attentional focus
- Perceptual-motor skills.
In the mental skills model by Vealey what do they mean by ‘Personal development skills’?
Mental skills that represent significant maturational markers of personal development allowing for high-levels of psychological functioning through clarity of self-concept, feelings of well-being and a sense of relatedness to other. These skills include:
- Identity achievement
- Interpersonal competence
In the mental skills model by Vealey what do they mean by ‘Team skills’?
Are collective quantities of the team that are instrumental to an effective team climate and overall team success. These skill include:
- Leadership
- Cohesion
- Team confidence.
During the design of a PST you need to Determine a schedule, what does this mean?
- Hold frequent shorter meeting rather than longer meetings infrequent ones.
- Hold informal as well as formal meetings.
- Whenever possible, begin PST before the season begins.
- Systematically schedule PST as part of daily pracitce.
- Maximize development by systematically periodization.
What does periodization mean and when can it be used?
Planned variation in key training variable: volume and intensity.
It can be used for training metal skills through the preparatory, competitive and peaking phases.
What are the common problems in implementing PST programs?
- Lack of conviction
- Lack of time
- Lack of sport knowledge
- Lack of follow up
During the design of a PST you need to Evaluate the program, what does this mean?
- Important but often overlooked
- There are ethical obligations in evaluating the effectiveness of the program.
- Use interview, written assessments and objective performance measures to evaluate.
What makes an effective sport psychology consultant?
- Accessible and could establish rapport with athletes
- Are flexible and knowledgeable enough to meet the needs of individuals
- Are likeable and something very concrete or practical to offer
- Conduct several follow-up sessions with athletes throughout the season.
- Are trustworthy and able to sit in with the team.
What makes an ineffective sport psychology consultant?
- Poor interpersonal skills
- Lack of sensitivity to the needs of induvidual athletes
- Lack specific psychological knowledge to apply to the sport setting
- Demonstrate inappropriate application of consulting skills at competitions
- Rely on a ‘the same’ approach when implementing psychological skills.
Give examples of ‘methods and technique’?
- Behavior modification
- cognitive theory and therapy
- Rational emotive therapy
- Goal setting
- Attentional control
- Progressive muscle relaxation
- Systematic desensitization
What does the theory of multiple intelligences suggest?
That the traditional I.Q. test is too limited. That intelligence covers a much broader range e.g.
- Word smart
- Number/reasoning smart
- Picture smart
- Body smart
- Music smart
- People smart
- Self smart
- Nature smart.
What is emotional intelligence?
The capacity to be aware of, control and express one’s emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically.
