Psychological Skills Training

What is it? Consistent practice of mental skills to enhance performance.

How is it used? Takes ideas from mainstream psychology and applies them to performance Creates an edge for those that practice them.

Consider How much time do you spend physically training for competition? How much time do you spend mentally training for competition?

Psychological factors account primarily for day-to-day fluctuations in performance.

Elite Athletes have: Higher confidence Greater self-regulation of arousal Better communication More positive thoughts and images More determination or commitment

Mental Toughness Mental resilience Ability to focus, cope with pressure, rebound from failure, and persist in the face of adversity

4 C’s of Mental Toughness Control- feel like you exert an influence on the situation Commitment-take an active role Challenge- change as an opportunity to grow, not a threat Confidence- sense of self-belief

Most useful PST topics

Confidence Building Creating a strong sense of belief in self

Attention or Concentration Focusing on the most important things

Goal-Setting (Commitment) Working toward what you really want

Imagery and Positive Self-Talk Think good thoughts, do good things

Arousal Regulation Not being overly excited or unexcited

Confidence

Definition of Self-Confidence Belief that you can successfully perform a desired behavior

Optimal Levels of Self-Confidence

Confidence is mainly the result of Expectations Of self From others Remember the self-fulfilling prophecy? Efficacy- the perceived ability to perform a task Comes mostly through achievements

Tips for Building Self-Confidence Act confidently (Fake it until you make it) Think confidently (Positive self-talk) Use imagery Set realistic goals Train for physical conditions of sport Mentally prepare Ensure performance accomplishments using simulation training

Simulation Training A way to practice coping with stressful situations in sport

Steps to Simulation Training Determine a specific weakness for your sport Psychological, not physical Example: In dance, losing confidence and falling out of turns. Example: In tennis, losing focus after “giving up” the first point. Come up with a way to practice being in that situation Practice

Concentration

Definition Where you place your attention

Differences Experts Novices Usually absorbed in the present High degree of control Being aware of internal environment (what you are doing) and external environment (what is happening) Make slower decisions Do not anticipate future events Cannot choose what to pay attention to Unable to search systematically for cues

Focus Exercises

Ways to Control Distractions Make a commitment before hand that you will stay positive no matter what. Write the commitment down and read it often.

Ways to Control Distractions Make a conscious effort to look for the advantages in everything

Ways to Control Distractions Remind yourself that you are in control of your own mind (internal distractions)

Ways to Control Distractions Remind yourself that you are in control of how you react to events (for external distractions)

Ways to Control Distractions Go into the big competitions expecting the conditions to be different. When they are different, you won’t be thrown off

Ways to Control Distractions Go into the big competitions expecting people (coaches, teammates, family members, etc.) to behave differently. When they do, you won’t be thrown off

Ways to Control Distractions Use simulation training to practice overcoming your biggest distractions.

Ways to Control Distractions For distractions that are difficult or impossible to simulate in practice, visualize them and how you will overcome them when they happen

Ways to Control Distractions Focus on doing everything that is within your control and letting go of everything that isn’t

Ways to Control Distractions Trust your training

Ways to Control Distractions Don’t think too much. Put your mind in the here and now and then let your body lead

Ways to Control Distractions Shift your attention from what is going on around you to your own performance (for external distractions)

Ways to Control Distractions Shift your focus from your thoughts to what is happening around you (for internal distractions)

Ways to Control Distractions Use a simple word, focal point, or image to bring your attention back to the here and now

Ways to Control Distractions Make a re-focus plan beforehand and stick to it when you become distracted Write out what your biggest distractions are. Write down what you will do to re-focus if/when each thing happens.

Power of Routines

Self-Talk What you say to yourself Can be positive, negative, or instructional Event  Positive Self-Talk  Positive Response Event  Negative Self-Talk  Negative Response

Rules for using Self-Talk Keep phrases short and specific Use first person and present tense Construct positive phrases Say your phrases with meaning and attention Speak kindly to self Repeat phrases often

Attentional Styles

External-narrow A person directs attention outward to a specific object in the environment Ex: golfers focusing on lining up a putt

External-Broad A person is attending to several things in the environment simultaneously Ex: football or hockey

Internal-narrow Person is focused on thoughts or feelings at a specific moment Ex: baseball player at bat thinking “I can’t miss” while not focusing on the environment

Internal-broad A person creates plans, strategies, or conceptualizes games Multiple feelings at once Ex: any sport, but takes practice

Attention Blindness Not recognizing something that is right in front of you

Flow

Flow A mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immerse in a feeling of energized focused Developed by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (positive psychologist) Other terms include: In the moment In the zone On a roll Wired in In the groove On fire In tune Centered Singularly focused

Components of Flow Intense and focused concentration (on the present moment) Merging of action and awareness A loss of reflective self-consciousness A sense of personal control or agency over the situation A distortion of temporal experience Subjective experience of time is altered Activity is intrinsically rewarding All together these comprise flow

Mechanism People can focus on about 126 bits of information per second Most taken up by simple daily tasks Conversation takes 40 bits (1/3 capacity) People generally decide what to focus on In flow, people lose awareness of everything but the task All the bits of information are used up

Conditions One must be involved in an activity with a clear set of goals and progress. Adds direction and structure to the task The task at hand must have clear and immediate feedback. Allows person to adjust from moment to moment to stay in the flow state One must have a good balance between the perceived challenges of the task at hand and his or her perceived skills.

Goal Setting

SMART Goals

S- Specific Need to have a definite end Non-example: Be a better at basketball Example: Have 75% accuracy when shooting free-throws S- Specific

M- Measurable Need to have a way to tell if progress has been made Non-example: I want to be a better student Example: I want to improve my GPA by .2 points M- Measurable

A- Action-based Need to use action words to describe Non-example: I want to be happier. Example: I want to think about five more positive things a day. A- Action-based

R- Realistic Need to be able to be reached Non-example: I want to earn $1 million by Christmas Example: I want to earn $500 working a seasonal job by Christmas R- Realistic

T- Timely Goals should be achievable in a reasonable amount of time Non-example: I want to be a millionaire some day. Example: I want to save up enough money for my first year of college by the end of the school year. T- Timely

Types of Goals

Outcome A goal based on the end result Example: I want to beat the other team Example: I want to run the race the fastest Outcome

Performance A goal based on personal achievement Example: I want to run a personal best time. Example: I want to score a goal. Performance

Process A goal that helps reach another goal Example: I want to exercise every day this week to condition for soccer. Process

Time Frames

Short-term Goals that can be accomplished in a few hours or days Example: Earning an “A” on a test. Short-term

Intermediate-term Goals that can be accomplished in one to six months Example: Achieving a 4.0 for the semester Intermediate-term

Long-term Goals that are accomplished in six or more months Example: Graduating from high school Long-term

What kind of Goal?

Being able to do triple turns by your next dance performance Intermediate-term

Be on time to your next class. Short-term

Learn how to fly an airplane Long-term

Passing all your classes at mid-terms Intermediate-term

Repainting a house Intermediate-term

Save the money to take a family vacation to DisneyWorld Long-term

Prepare a rough draft of a 10-page research paper. Intermediate-term

Become a professional athlete Long-term

Beat a stage or level on a video game. Short-term

Read a book over the weekend Short-term

Read 15 books this year Long-term

Graduating from college with a degree in nuclear engineering Long-term

Do your homework for tomorrow Short-term

Make 10 free throws in a row before leaving practice Short-term

Save $20 a week until Hanukkah Intermediate-term

Imagery

What is it? Form of simulation Uses all the senses to create a picture of what you want to happen

Uses of Imagery Improves concentration Enhance motivation Build confidence Control emotions Acquire, practice, and correct sport skills Acquire and practice strategy Prepare for competition Cope with pain and adversity Solve problems

When to use it? Before and after practice Before and after competition During the off-season During breaks in action During personal time When recovering from injury Basically, all the time

Keys to Imagery Vividness Controllability Uses all the senses The image does what you want it to

Theories of Stress/Arousal

Drive Theory The more anxious people become, the better they perform Social facilitation is a type of drive theory People do tasks to their ability level when they have an audience Not supported by research

Inverted-U Hypothesis Medium arousal/anxiety is best If there is little arousal, the person is too relaxed and does not perform the best that he/she can If there is too much arousal, performance is compromised

Individual Zones of Optimal Functioning Everyone has their own best level of arousal/anxiety For some it is low, some it is medium, some it is high Includes other emotions as well: determination, pleasantness, laziness Good support in research literature

Multidimensional Anxiety Theory There is a difference between cognitive anxiety (worry) and somatic anxiety (physical reactions) Cognitive anxiety is negatively related to performance Somatic anxiety is related to performance in an inverted-u pattern Best is little cognitive anxiety and moderate somatic anxiety

Catastrophe Model Physiological arousal is related to performance in an inverted-u pattern only when the athlete has low cognitive state anxiety Cognitive anxiety above the optimal level compromises performance at a steep declining rate (hence “catastrophe”)

Reversal Theory Performance depends on a person’s interpretation of his or her arousal level Ex. If a person has low anxiety, he might think he is bored and perform poorly. Another person in the same situation might think he is relaxed and perform well. Athletes quickly change their interpretations about their levels of arousal People perform best when they have positive feelings

Anxiety Direction and Intensity View Performance is affected by how people interpret their anxiety symptoms. Trait anxiety and self-esteem influence stress Perception of control also determines whether anxiety is facilitative or debilitative

Arousal Regulation

Types of Arousal Somatic (Physical) Cognitive (Mental) Multimodal (Both)

Somatic Anxiety Reduction Progressive Muscle Relaxation- feel tension in muscles in order to release it Breath control- when you are calm your breathing is smooth. When you are under pressure, your breathing is irregular Biofeedback- learning how to control your nervous system by receiving physiological feedback not normally available

Cognitive Anxiety Reduction Relaxation Response- quiet the mind, concentrate, reduce muscle tension using meditation Autogenic training- exercises designed to produce warmth and heaviness to produce a relaxed state

Multimodal Anxiety Reduction Cognitive-affective stress management (SMT) Teaches specific integrated coping responses using relaxation and cognitive components to control emotional arousal Stress Inoculation Training (SIT)- Exposed to stress in order to learn how to cope with is (via productive thoughts, mental images, and self-statements) Increase immunity to stress

Hypnosis Altered state of consciousness that results in an unusually relaxed state and increased response to suggestions designed to alter perceptions, feelings, thoughts, and actions

Coping Strategies Problem-Focused Emotion-Focused Information gathering Routines Goal setting Time management skills Problem-soling Increasing effort Self-talk Meditation Relaxation Wishful thinking Reappraisal Behavioral withdrawal

General Coping Strategies for Sport Focus on task Self-talk Be positive Social support Mentally prepare Time management Train hard and smart

What about underarousal? It’s just as bad to have underarousal Goal is optimal level Tips: Increase breathing rate Act energized Use positive statements Listen to music Use energizing imagery Complete a pre-competition workout