Lecture 27: Sport Psychology & Rehabilitation

Question 1

How can the sport psychologist aid an injured athlete?

Answer 1

Build rapport 
Discover impact of injury 
Provide social support 
Teach general coping strategies 
Teach how to cope with setbacks 
Learn from injured athlete 
Educate about the injury

Question 2

What is the role of sport psychology with teammates and coaches, when an athlete is injured? ?

Answer 2

Reduce ‘no pain - no gain’ mentality
Keep athlete integrated in the team
Educate teammates how to react to an injured player

Question 3

What did Heil detail as the goals of sport psychology in the rehabilitation process?

Answer 3

Emotional equilibrium 
Facilitate 
Self-efficacy 
Coping strategies 
Mental readiness

Question 4

What did Levleva and Orlick identify as the role of psychological techniques in the rate of recovery to an injury?

Answer 4

Goal setting = much quicker rate of recover

Self-talk & imagery = still a quick rate of recovery

Question 5

What did Brewer outline as the rehabilitation demands on an athlete?

Answer 5

ICING
Medical compliance
Home exercises 
Clinical compliance 
Restricting physical activity

Question 6

Name and describe the two types of adherence predictor that Brewer outlined.

Answer 6

Personal

Motivation 
Task orientation 
Ego orientation 
Trait anxiety 
Tough mindedness 
Pain tolerance

Question 7

What are the three psychological theories behind adherence to an injury rehabilitation programme?

Answer 7

Motivationally-Based Personal Model (based on own inherent self-belief)

Cognitive Appraisal Model (personal & situational)

Protection Motivation Model (threat of injury)

Question 8

What are the current measures of adherence to rehabilitation?

Answer 8

Attendance
Practitioner Observation
Home Exercise Completion
Healing Rate

Question 9

What did Weiner identify as the three types of attribution to recovery rate in a rehabilitation programme?

Answer 9

Locus of causality (Internal & External)
Stability (Stable & Unstable)
Controllability (Controllable & Uncontrollable)

Question 10

What did Laubach et al. observe about athletes who perceived themselves as recovering rapidly?

Answer 10

Attributions were:

External
Stable
Controllable

Question 11

What did Laubach et al. observe about athletes who the practitioner perceived as recovering rapidly?

Answer 11

Attribution were:

Internal
Controllable

Question 12

Describe Morrey’s U-Shaped response to injury.

Answer 12

Athlete has high negative emotions (frustration) when injury first occurs
These feelings become less negative during the rehabilitation process
As a return to sport looms, athletes develop progressively more negative emotions (nervousness)

Question 13

Describe the role of the Self-Determination Theory in athlete return to sport following injury.

Answer 13

Autonomy
Competence
Relatedness

When fulfilled they increase the likelihood of a successful return to sport

Question 14

What did Ardern et al. highlight as the benefits of the self-determination theory and return to sport?

Answer 14

When autonomy is fulfilled there is increased intrinsic motivation and positive perceptions of a return to sport

When competence and relatedness are fulfilled there are also increased positive perceptions of a return to sport

Question 15

What issues, linked to each dimension of the self-determination theory, can negatively effect an athlete’s return to sport?

Answer 15

Autonomy (external and self-induced pressures to return)

Competence (lack of self-belief in ability upon return; re-injury)

Relatedness (social isolation and loss of social identity)

Question 16

Give an example of an intervention strategy that would be used to tackle autonomy issues linked with injury rehabilitation and return to sport.

Answer 16

Address re-injury anxieties

Modelling: successful return stories of athletes
Imagery: image without anxieties
Relaxation

Build confidence in abilities

Education
Strength Tests
Attainable Goals

Reduce self-presentational concerns

Reframe cognitions (more intrinsic)
Fulfill relatedness and competence needs
Goal setting

Question 17

Give examples of intervention strategies that can be used to improve athlete competence when returning from injury.

Answer 17

Removing athlete pressures (suggesting to coach that athlete shouldn’t play)

Improve autonomy (give athlete choice in their rehabilitation)

Question 18

Give examples of intervention strategies that can be utilised to improve athlete relatedness when returning from injury.

Answer 18

Social support

Social identity (keep athlete integrated in the team; pursuing of non-sport activities)

Question 19

What were the key findings in Hemmings and Povey’s research on what the key techniques were for physiotherapists?

Answer 19

Understanding individual motivation was identified as the second most key skill, yet no physiotheraptists reported doing it

Highlighted that not enough physios had access to an SPC and didn’t want to ‘over-step’ boundaries

Question 20

What were the results of Heaney’s sport physiotherapist intervention programme?

Answer 20

Increased referral of athlete’s to SPC’s

Maintained 6 months after