Mental Skills and Strategies

Question 1

Psychological skills training (PST)

Answer 1

Is the regular practice of mental skills with the goal being able to improve physical skills.
Strong mental skills are crucial in developing mental toughness in a performer

Question 2

developing psychological skills

Answer 2

1. Education Phase
   Players are made aware of what psychological skills are and how they could benefit their performances by using them
2. Acquisition Phase
   Players determine what psychological skills would benefit them and when, why and how they would use them.
   Different players have different needs
3. Practice Phase
   The necessary mental skills are regularly practiced until the player can use them without conscious thought in a game.
   Application of mental skills becomes an automated response when needed.

Question 3

Optimal performance

Answer 3

Optimal performance is made of 4 components and a deficiency in any of the areas will decrease the ability of the athlete

Tactical Skills
Having the correct strategies and tactics given the strengths and weaknesses of the team.

Psychological Skills
Having the appropriate level of mental skills required to succeed in sport.

Physiological Preparation
Having developed the appropriate energy systems and physical attributes.

Technical Skills
Having the necessary physical skills to play at that level.

Question 4

Mental skills

Answer 4

Self-confidence
The belief that a performer has in their own ability to successfully perform a desired skill or behaviour.

Motivation
The direction and intensity of effort by a performer towards a given task.

Arousal
The degree of stimulation or alertness present in a performer about to perform a skilled task.

Concentration
The ability to focus on a task at hand whilst ignoring irrelevant cues or distractions.

Stress management
Stress occurs when there is an imbalance between the demands of the task and the ability level of the performer to respond in a situation where failure has consequences.

Question 5

Mental skill strategies

Answer 5

Goal setting
The process of deciding on something you want to achieve, planning the steps to follow that will help reach the goal, and then working towards achieving the goal.

Relaxation
An activity undertaken to reduce tension and the effects of physical and mental stress. It involves employing a relaxation activity to achieve the physical or mental benefits

Imagery
The mental recreation, using as many senses as possible, of a successful past performance or skill.

Performance routines
A ritual a performer follows to prepare for the execution of a task or skill.

Self-talk
Talking to/thinking to yourself positively before, during or after performance.

Question 6

Self-talk

Answer 6

Talking/thinking to yourself positively before, during or after the performance.

Whilst expecting to be successful won’t guarantee success, expecting to fail or experiencing negative thoughts can almost guarantee poor performance
Positive self-talk is used to avoid/readjust negative thought patterns, improving confidence and concentration

The aim is to enhance self-esteem, motivation, attentional focus and performance.

use positive cue words that are relevant and meaningful

use positive emotions to create a stronger self-belief

Question 7

Self-talk uses

Answer 7

Reinforcing skill learning
Used to remind athletes of performance cues/technique
e.g. left then right

Changing bad habits
Using a cue word to increase the likelihood of a correct response
E.g. follow through

Motivating the performer
The player encourages himself to maintain or lift the intensity of his performance.
e.g. come on

Focusing attention
A player uses keywords to help remain focused on the task at hand
e.g. on the ball

Building self-confidence
The player uses phrases/terms that reinforce self-belief
e.g. you got this

Question 8

Self-talk on SMACS

Answer 8

Self-talk and self confidence
The player uses phrases/terms that reinforce self-belief
e.g. keep going

Self-talk and motivation
Athletes can use self-talk to increase their motivation and performance.
phrases can help a player experiencing reduced motivation.
e.g. i have to work harder to be here

Self-talk and arousal
By using motivational phrases or terms, a performer can increase arousal levels
Using calming terms such as can help reduce arousal levels
e.g. dig in, relax

Self-talk and concentration
Athletes can use key phrases to help maintain their concentration, change their level of concentration, or focus on a particular aspect of their performance.
e.g. kick through the ball

Self-talk and stress
It can be used to reduce stress by helping the athlete feel as though they are good enough to meet the demands of the task
e.g. ive done this before

Question 9

relaxation

Answer 9

An activity undertaken to reduce tension and the effects of physical and mental stress. It involves employing a relaxation activity to achieve the physical or mental benefits

High levels of stress and tension have a negative impact on a performer.
Physically
it can affect the coordination
Mentally
it can result in poor decision making / missing cues.

Question 10

methods of personal relaxation

Answer 10

Progressive muscle relaxation
Reduces tension in the performer through sequentially contracting and relaxing muscle groups.

Breathing techniques
Slow deep breathing can help reduce muscle tension, heart rate/respiratory rate and calm nerves

Music
Music with mellow tunes can have a calming and relaxing effect on the performer.

Autogenic training
The athlete must focus on producing sensations of warmth and heaviness in specific body areas. takes time

Thought Stopping / Self-talk
A technique used by athletes to stop negative self-talk/self-doubt.

Massage
Sports massage can help the athlete relax physically and mentally.

Floatation tanks
Create an environment of minimal stimulation by reproducing weightlessness and removing sight and sound to reduce stress.

Meditation
Meditation involves focusing the mind on a particular thing for a certain period.

Question 11

matching hypothesis

Answer 11

Certain relaxation techniques are more appropriate than others, depending on the circumstances.
An athlete should use a relaxation technique relevant to the type of stress symptoms/signs they are displaying – physical or mental stress.

An athlete who is displaying physical signs of stress should use physical relaxation methods
Massage
Progressive muscle relaxation
Autogenic training
Controlled/centered breathing

Athletes showing signs of mental stress would benefit from using mental relaxation strategies
Meditation
Thought stopping
Music
Floatation tanks

Question 12

Relaxation on SMACS

Answer 12

Relaxation and self confidence
Mentally fresh athletes have an increased self-confidence in their ability to perform at their optimal level.

Relaxation and motivation
Over-motivated athletes can use relaxation techniques to try to control their thoughts and focus on their performance, rather than thinking about possible outcomes of their performance

Relaxation and arousal
The athlete should use the most appropriate relaxation method to try and reduce their arousal levels
e.g. an over-aroused player could use meditation to reduce arousal before a game, but this technique is not appropriate during a game of basketball

Relaxation and concentration
Using relaxation techniques during the performance helps the performer maintain concentration on all relevant cues which improves performance.

Relaxation and stress
Relaxation strategies are used to reduce the impact of the physical effects of stress
before the event
meditate/use imagery
During an event
imagery/controlled breathing

Question 13

performance routines

Answer 13

A ritual a performer follows to prepare for the execution of a task or skill.

Performance routines assist with the performer’s focus, concentration and arousal level.
Routines decrease the chances of the performer being affected by internal or external distractors.

Question 14

Performance routines on SMACS

Answer 14

Performance routines and self confidence
they can increase self-confidence as the athlete can relate to past successes with the routine and see/feel future successes, making them feel more in control and confident

Performance routines and motivation
An athlete’s motivation and desire to perform well can be heightened by their game day routine

Performance routines and arousal
they can be used to decrease arousal levels.
e.g. listening to calming music while visualising a calm, peaceful scene / meditating before the game.
they can be used to increase arousal levels
e.g. the All Black Haka

Performance routines and concentration
they can help the athlete to focus on relevant cues in the environment and ignore irrelevant cues that would detract from performance.

Performance routines and stress
they reduce the stress response as they give the belief that they are in full control and this reduces the physical effects of the stress response from occurring.

Question 15

Goal setting

Answer 15

The process of deciding on something you want to achieve, planning the steps to follow that will help reach the goal, and then working towards achieving the goal.

Goal setting occurs when athletes set down clear targets, priorities and expectations
Athletes are more committed when they have a goal that must be set for both training and competitions

Question 16

types of goals

Answer 16

Outcome goals
performance goals
process goals
short term goals
long term goals

Question 17

outcome goals

Answer 17

focuses on end results, times, finishing place, ranking or medals
Often difficult to achieve as can be linked to the achievement of others
e.g. win a marathon in NY

Question 18

performance goals

Answer 18

is independent of other competitors so can be used to compare past and present performance
Excellent for improving performance as athlete has control over the behaviour. Goals must be realistic for self confidence to improve
e.g. get ft% from 70 to 80

Question 19

process goals

Answer 19

Actions that athletes
must perform during a
competition to achieve a performance goal
Effective at improving
performance levels because they positively influence other factors such as self-efficacy & confidence
e.g. run a set play off an inbound

Question 20

short term goals

Answer 20

help you attain long-term goals
they are the stepping stones to help you maintain focus on the long-term goal by setting achievable short-term targets

Question 21

long term goals

Answer 21

are achieved by attaining short-term goals and over a long period

Question 22

SMARTER

Answer 22

Specific
Measurable
Action-oriented
Realistic
Timed
Exciting
Reviewed

Question 23

Goal setting on SMACS

Answer 23

Goal setting and self confidence
Realistic but challenging goals will increase the athlete’s self-confidence as the goals are achieved.
Unrealistic goals that cannot be achieved result in decreased self-confidence as the athlete experiences repeated failure when trying to reach them.

Goal setting and motivation
Too easily achieved or unrealistic goals will decrease the performer’s motivation, resulting in less than optimal performance.
Effective goals will increase the performer’s motivation, resulting in improved performance.

Goal setting and arousal
Setting goals can increase and help maintain an optimal level of arousal, resulting in improved performance.
Goals can be set before, during and after a game
Having a realistic goal to strive for increases the arousal and performance levels of the athlete.

Goal setting and concentration
A golfer who has set goals for their putting will concentrate harder on this aspect of their performance during a game. If they had a particular fault in their putting technique, they would concentrate on their process goals to overcome this fault

Goal setting and stress
Realistic but challenging goals can positively promote stress and improve performance.
If a performer has set realistic goals that she believes are achievable within a specified time frame, a degree of stress is placed on her to achieve these goals, leading to improved performance.

Question 24

Imagery

Answer 24

The mental recreation, using as many senses as possible, of a successful past performance or skill

Effective imagery involves much more than simply seeing how a performance should be executed as it calls on as many senses as possible during the rehearsal stage:
visual
what you can see

kinaesthetic
allow us to feel our body as it moves through different actions

auditory
are used to monitor the way your playing environment sounds

tactile
allows you to take in how your equipment feels

Question 25

types of imagery

Answer 25

internal
where you imagine what you would see if you were performing the skill

external
where you watch your performance from the view of an external observer

Question 26

Imagery on SMACS

Answer 26

Imagery and self confidence
An athlete can increase their self-confidence by creating a mental picture of themselves performing the skill perfectly and achieving the desired outcome.

Imagery and motivation
it can be used to motivate an athlete to strive for ongoing improvement.
e.g. A state cricketer could use imagery to picture themself opening the batting for Australia

Imagery and arousal
Arousal can be increased by creating an image of an aggressive or successful performance and decreased by creating a more relaxed image in the athlete’s mind.

Imagery and concentration
Athletes use imagery to focus on a particular skill, an aspect of a skill or a specific game scenario
e.g. follow through on a ft

Imagery and stress
An athlete can use imagery to reduce stress by creating a mental picture of themselves performing the skill perfectly with the desired outcome.