Mental fortitude training seminar (year 2)

Question 1

definitions of resilience and thriving?

Answer 1

Resilience is the ability to maintain relatively stable,
healthy levels of psychological and physical functioning
following an adverse event (cf. Bonanno, 2004);

Thriving represents a sustained high level of functioning and performance that is not necessarily
dependent on the occurrence of adversity (cf. Carver,
1998).

Question 2

Resilience as a process?

Answer 2

Individuals use
a range of coping strategies to deal with a combination of unpleasant emotions, and mental struggles.

Positive adaptation occurs gradually over time, often requiring
numerous shifts of thought.

Adaptation will vary contextually and temporally

Question 3

Resilience Model: Parts of it?

Answer 3

Resilient
Reintegration

Homeostatic
reintegration

Reintegration
with Loss

Dysfunctional
Reintegration

Question 4

Resilience Model: What is Resilient

Reintegration?

Answer 4

Adversity leads
to a new, higher
level of homeostasis

Question 5

Resilience Model: What is Homeostatic

reintegration?

Answer 5

Adversity leads 
to remaining in 
their comfort 
zones, in an 
effort to ‘‘just 
get past’’ the 
disruption

Question 6

Resilience Model: What is Reintegration

with Loss?

Answer 6

Adversity leads
to a new, lower
level of
homeostasis

Question 7

Resilience Model: What is Dysfunctional

Reintegration?

Answer 7

Adversity leads 
to people 
resorting to 
destructive 
behaviours such 
as substance 
abuse

Question 8

What are proactive factors?

Answer 8

individual factors, which cause positive adaptation to adversity are referred to as
protective factors

Question 9

Examples of Protective factors?

Answer 9

Positive and Proactive
Personality

Experience and Learning

Sense of Control

Flexibility and Adaptability

Balance and Perspective

Perceived Social Support

Question 10

Resilience in Sport
[Olympic Champions]
(Sarkar & Fletcher,
2012) model: Psychological factors and what do they effect?

Answer 10

Positive personality

Motivation

Focus

Perceived social support

Confidence

Challenge appraisal and meta-cognitions

Question 11

Resilience in Sport
[Olympic Champions]
(Sarkar & Fletcher,
2012) model: what leads to challenge and appraisal and meta-cognitions and what does that then lead to?

Answer 11

Stressors leads to challenge appraisal and meta-cognitions

challenge appraisal and meta-cognitions leads to facilitative response that then leads to optimal sport performance.

Question 12

Resilience in sport: SARKAR AND FLETCHER (2012): Positive personality and motivation?

Answer 12

Positive Personality:
Openness to new 
experiences, 
conscientiousness, 
innovative, extraverted, 
emotionally stable, 
optimistic, and proactive

Motivation:
Multiple motives for competing at the highest 
level. As their careers 
progressed, motives 
remained relatively 
mastery orientated, 
alongside ego goals

Athletes actively chose to
engage with challenging

Question 13

Resilience in sport: SARKAR AND FLETCHER (2012): Confidence?

Answer 13

Various sources of 
confidence - including 
preparation, experience, 
self-awareness, 
visualization, and support

Internally driven / sources

Robust self confidence

Question 14

Resilience in sport: SARKAR AND FLETCHER (2012): Focus?

Answer 14

Focus on themselves, -
not be distracted by others,

Process focus rather than the outcomes of events,

Ability to switch their sport focus on and off to

Question 15

Resilience in sport: SARKAR AND FLETCHER (2012): Social support

Answer 15

High quality social
support available,
including support from family, coaches, teammates and support staff

Question 16

How to developing psychological resilience?(FLETCHER & SARKAR, 2016)

Answer 16

Facilitative environment and personal qualities lead to challenge mindset which leads to sustained success as a unit.

Question 17

What makes up personal qualities?

Answer 17

Personal characteristics, psychological skills and desirable outcomes.

Examples of personal Characteristics:

• Outgoing and seek attention from others (extraverted)
• Thorough and concerned about doing things correctly (conscientious)
• High personal standards (perfectionist)

Question 18

Examples of personal Characteristics:

Answer 18

• Outgoing and seek attention from others (extraverted)
• Thorough and concerned about doing things correctly (conscientious)
• High personal standards (perfectionist)
• Belief in oneself and one’s ability (self-confident)

Question 19

Examples of Psychological skills:

Answer 19

•An awareness of oneself, others, and the environment (self-awareness, social awareness)

•Direct thoughts and mental images (self-talk, imagery, mental rehearsal,
visualization)

• Direct attention appropriately (attentional control)
• Regulate arousal levels (relaxation, activation, arousal control)

Question 20

Examples of Desirable outcomes?

Answer 20

• Optimally motivated (self-determined, intrinsically motivated)
• Regulate thoughts, mental images, and emotions (executive functioning, cognitive control, emotional regulation/control)
• Maintain attention on what matters (concentration, focus, control)

•Attain, maintain and regain confidence in oneself and others (confidence,
self-efficacy)

Question 21

What are Facilitative environments and examples?

Answer 21

We refer to a setting or context that fosters the development of psychological resilience as a facilitative environment.

Stagnant environment (challenge is low and support is low)

Comfortable environment (challenge low and support is high)

Facilitative environment (challenge high and support high)

Unrelenting environment (challenge high and support low)

Question 22

What is a challenge mindset?

Answer 22

how individuals react to stressors and adversity, rather than the environmental events themselves.

made up of 2 things: negative thinking patterns and thought regulation strategies.

Question 23

What is the process of regulating thoughts?

Answer 23

Stop: Stop negative thoughts by simply thinking “stop!” or similar thoughts such as “don’t
go there”

Verbalize: Expose negativity by telling someone about your thinking. Ensure that this person will help you confront any irrationality and replace with more positive thoughts.

Park: ‘Park’ any negative thoughts by writing them down or drawing pictures of what they represent, and either disposing of them or putting them aside in an envelope to be confronted later.

Confront: challenge any irrationality by asking questions (“have I got all the information?”, “is
there another way to view this situation?”, “is there anything positive I can take from this situation?”, “what is the worst thing that could happen?”, “if I had a month
to live, how important would this be?”).

Replace: Once negative thoughts are eliminated, minimized or parked, you need to replace
them with positive thoughts and images.

Question 24

Examples of types of negative thinking?

Answer 24

“End of the world”:
thinking
Catastrophizing by blowing things out of proportion

It’s all the same” thinking: Overgeneralizing by applying your own thoughts, feelings and attitudes
across all people and situations

Second guessing”
thinking:
Making assumptions about what others are thinking and with negative
repercussions for yourself

“It can’t be done” thinking Looking: into the future and predicting a negative outcome: