The Psychology of Sports Performance: A Comprehensive Guide

Posted on Aug 24, 2024 in Psychology and Sociology

Mia Hamm

The most important attribute a soccer player must have is mental toughness. Before you can win, you must have the will to prepare to win.

Sport Psychology

The scientific study of people and their behaviors in sport and exercise contexts and the practical application of that knowledge.

3-Ring Model

  • Physical: Endurance, muscular strength, conditioning, speed, agility, ability to heal.
  • Psychological: Mental toughness, ability to tolerate, confidence, attitude, imagery, ability to function as part of a team, emotion management.
  • Environmental: Family, friends, spirituality, coaches, teammates, system of systems.

Loehr Model

  • Green (High Positive): Everything is a go.
  • Red (High Negative): Can perform here but better to get over to green.
  • Gold (Low Positive): Must get your energy level up.
  • Black (Low Negative): Meaning get out of there fast, anyway you can.

Strategies for Lowering Arousal (Move from Red to Green)

  • Take control of your breathing.
  • Take control of your eyes.

Strategies for Increasing Arousal

  • Increase breathing and keep moving.
  • Take control of your eyes.

Signs of Over Arousal

  • Unclear thinking
  • Difficulty focusing

Signs of Under Arousal

  • Low patience
  • Poor concentration

Inner Game of Tennis

  • Main Points and Themes:
    • Focus your mind to overcome nervousness, self-doubt, and distractions.
    • Find the state of relaxed concentration that allows you to play at your best.
    • Build skills by smart practice, then put it all together in match play.
  • The Outer Game: Played against the obstacles presented by an external opponent, played for one or more external prizes.
  • The Inner Game: Played against mental and emotional obstacles for the reward or knowledge and expression of one’s true potential.
  • The Key to Performance: Lies in improving the relationship between the two.
    • Self 1: The conscious ego-mind; likes to tell Self 2 what to do, always looking for approval and wanting to avoid disapproval (the teller).
    • Self 2: Represents a person’s natural capabilities (the doer).
  • The Big Challenge: Self 1 does not trust Self 2.

What Does It Mean to Be in the Zone?

  • You were not criticizing or congratulating yourself.
  • You were not thinking about technique.
  • You were not in the past or the future.
  • You were not worried about results or what other people thought.
  • In other words, Self 1 was out of the picture!

How Do We Quiet Self 1?

Must take our judgmental glasses off, whether they are dark or rose-colored.

Tips

  1. Tip 1: Get a video or simply watch someone successfully performing the desired action(s).
  2. Tip 2: Too many verbal instructions, given from either inside or outside, interfere with one’s natural ability.
  3. Tip 3: Focus on the breathing.
  4. Tip 4: The secret to winning any game lies in not trying too hard.
  5. Tip 5: A true competitor exploits her or his opponent’s weaknesses.

Confidence

The belief that you can successfully perform a desired behavior.

-Henry Ford: If you think you can, you are right. And if you think you can’t, you are right.

Expectations

A great deal of research supports the notion that people who expect to do well actually do perform well.

The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

Expecting something to happen actually helps cause it to happen. Ex. Roger Bannister 1954 breaks the four-minute mile barrier.

Confidence Tips

  • Act as if.
  • Fake it until you make it.

Attitude

A hypothetical construct that represents an individual’s like or dislike for an item.

Why Bother?

Attitudes drive our behaviors.

-Bad News Bears, so what? We are in control of our attitudes.

Appraisal Theory

Our appraisal of a situation causes an emotional, or affective, response that is going to be based on that appraisal.

Motivation

What is motivation? Impetus to begin or persist at a task or toward a goal. Direction and intensity of purpose.

What Kinds of Motivation Are There?

  • Intrinsic (Internal): Motivated because it feels good or for internalized reasons. Ex.
  • Extrinsic (External): Motivated for rewards or by someone else pushing.
  • Positive: Desire/drive to build or create something good or self-rewarding.
  • Negative: Desire to avoid, breakdown, or destroy.
  • Process Oriented: Motivated by the experience, good or bad.
  • Product Oriented: Motivated by the outcome, good or bad.
  • Motive to Approach Success: High achievers who seek out challenging achievement situations without worrying about possible failures.
  • Motive to Avoid Failure: Low achievers who worry about failure a great deal and avoid achievement situations.

How Does the Motivated Person Behave?

  • Choice: Motivation shows in the choices people make: to play, to practice, to set goals, to train in the offseason.
  • Effort: How intensely do you train, compete, and strive to reach goals?
  • Persistence: How long do you persist, even in the face of adversity and obstacles?

Based on Research in the Field…What Do We Know for Certain About Motivation?

  • No one can give it to us.
  • Very individualistic; no two people are motivated by exactly the same thing.
  • Certain types are stronger…work better.

Key Points to Attitude and Motivation

  • We control our attitude.
  • There are many different kinds of motivation. Although many different kinds work, the strongest motivation is congruent with what we are honestly most passionate about.
  • Different for everyone.
  • Although it may seem very basic and easy, it takes commitment and work.

Alcohol

  • Social Norming: 69.2% of college students report that they used alcohol at least once within the previous 30 days. 82.2% within the past year. Most college students who do drink, do responsibly.

What Does the Research Say?

  • Death: 1,700 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 die each year from alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle crashes.
  • Injury: 599,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are unintentionally injured under the influence of alcohol.
  • Assault: More than 696,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking.
  • Sexual Abuse: More than 93,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are victims of alcohol-related sexual assault or date rape.
  • Unsafe Sex: 400,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 had unprotected sex and more than 100,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 report having been too intoxicated to know if they consented to having sex.
  • Academic Problems: About 25 percent of college students report academic consequences of their drinking including missing class, falling behind, doing poorly on exams or papers, and receiving lower grades overall.
  • Health Problems/Suicide Attempts: More than 150,000 students develop an alcohol-related health problem and between 1.2 and 1.5 percent of students indicate that they tried to commit suicide within the past year due to drinking or drug use.
  • Drunk Driving: 2.1 million students between the ages of 18 and 24 drove under the influence of alcohol last year.
  • Police Involvement: About 5 percent of 4-year college students are involved with the police or campus security as a result of their drinking, and an estimated 110,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are arrested for an alcohol-related violation such as public drunkenness or driving under the influence.
  • Alcohol Abuse and Dependence: 31 percent of college students met criteria for a diagnosis of alcohol abuse and 6 percent for a diagnosis of alcohol dependence in the past 12 months, according to questionnaire-based self-reports about their drinking.

Binge Drinking

Five or more drinks in a row for men, four for women. 44% of college students had engaged in binge drinking in the previous two weeks (51% men, 40% women).

Other Interesting Research

  • Games, themed parties increase drinking levels and BAC.
  • One in four college students meet criteria for dependence.

Athletes and Alcohol

  • Athletes more likely to binge drink than other college students.
  • 81% of athletes had used alcohol in the previous 12 months, a decrease from 89% in 1989. Figures of usage for non-athletes about 70%.
  • Athletes tend to drink in seasonal cycles (Jones, 1990).
  • Alcohol consumption appears to have a causative effect in sports-related injury, with an injury incidence of 54.8% in drinkers compared to 23.5% in non-drinkers (p < .005).
  • The more individuals are athletically involved, the greater the incidence of problem drinking (heavy drinking, frequency of intoxication, alcohol-related problems).
  • Highest level of alcohol-related consequences was reported by student-athletes with high levels of both coping and conformity motives.

Alcohol Management Strategies

  • Limit the number of drinks consumed.
  • Use self-productive strategies.
  • Limit money spent on alcohol.
  • Drink with friends.
  • Pour your own drinks.
  • Develop low-risk attitudes.

Goal Setting

What is a goal? A desired result that a person or a system envisions, plans, and commits to achieve; a personal or organizational desired end-point in some sort of assumed development. It is the object of a person’s ambition or effort; an aim or desired result, or a level of performance or proficiency.

Games with nets: Football, soccer, hockey, basketball, lacrosse, water polo, etc.

In sports, goals are good. What does the research say? In multiple contexts, in multiple situations and environments, research has shown that goal setting works, is effective, and works well.

Types of Goals

  • Outcome: Result-oriented; rely on your performance as well as the performance of your opponent(s).
  • Performance: Focus is on achieving standards or performance objectives independently of other competitors.
  • Process: Focus on the actions an individual must engage in during performance to execute or perform well.

What is SMART and What Are Examples of Each?

SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound. It is a framework for setting goals that are more likely to be achieved.

  • Specific: Goals should be clear and well-defined. Example: “I want to improve my free throw percentage.”
  • Measurable: Goals should be quantifiable so that progress can be tracked. Example: “I want to increase my free throw percentage from 70% to 80%.”
  • Attainable: Goals should be challenging but achievable. Example: “I want to increase my free throw percentage by practicing for 30 minutes each day.”
  • Relevant: Goals should be aligned with your overall objectives. Example: “Improving my free throw percentage will help my team win more games.”
  • Time-bound: Goals should have a deadline. Example: “I want to increase my free throw percentage to 80% by the end of the season.”

What Are the Five Suggestions for Goal Setting?

  1. Set SMART goals.
  2. Write down your goals.
  3. Share your goals with others.
  4. Break down large goals into smaller goals.
  5. Review and revise your goals regularly.