Emotional Control (4 th C)

For this section you need to be able to define 5 words. Motivation – A psychological drive to achieve a need or goal. Divided into 2 dimensions; Intensity of Behaviour and Direction of Behaviour. Arousal – This is the intensity of behaviour. Ranges on a continuum from deep sleep to highly agitated behaviour (hyper vigilance). Arousal has 2 forms, physiological (somatic arousal) and psychological (cognitive arousal). Anxiety – This is an emotional state closely linked to cognitive arousal and is characterised by feelings of worry, apprehension and psychological tension. Stress – This is an environmental stimuli like conflict, competition or stress that triggers arousal. Activation - Describes a state of physiological preparedness, which is directly associated with the degree of arousal – for example fight or flight.

Stress Arousal can be triggered by certain stimuli from the environment. These are called stressors. Some sporting examples of stressors are: Noticing that a scout is watching your performance. Performing a move that caused injury last time. Competing in a match with a famous personality. A referee who makes a bad decision against you. A player on the opposition who is trying to wind you up.

4 Factors effect where a performers’ ‘optimal point’ is. Personality – Extroverts perform best when arousal level is high and vice versa for Introverts. This is related to the reticular activation system (RAS). Task type – Simple tasks such as shot putting tend to be gross, habitual and have a wide margin for error. These skills are best performed in conditions of high arousal. Stage of learning – The athlete at the expert of autonomous stage of learning would find that high arousal would enhance performance. Experience – The highly experienced veteran player would find that performance improves when arousal is high.

Arousal Performance Low High Low High Introvert Extrovert Personality

Arousal Performance Low High Low High Complex fine, IP tasks Simple, gross, strength/endurance tasks Task Type

Arousal Performance Low High Low High Associative Stage of learning Autonomous Stage of Learning Stage of Learning

Arousal Performance Low High Low High Novice Expert Experience

Hanin’s INDIVIDUAL ZONE OF OPTIMAL FUNCTIONING (IZOF) Athlete B (Moderate ZOF) Out of Zone Athlete A (Low ZOF) Athlete C (High ZOF) Out of Zone In Zone (best performance) In Zone (best performance) In Zone (best performance) Increasing Arousal Hanin found that top athletes have an individual zone of optimal arousal in which best performance occurs. Outside of this zone, poor performance occurs.

Arousal Performance Low High Low High IZOF (HANIN) This theory differs from the inverted U because: a) The optimal level of arousal does not always coincide with the mid point of the arousal continuum but varies in accordance with the individual and the situation. b)The optimal level of arousal is not a single point but a ‘band width’.

Characteristics of being ‘In the Zone’: Performance appears effortless and automatic with the athlete feeling in full control. The attention and concentration of the performer is focused. The execution of the skill brings enjoyment and satisfaction. Jonny Wilkinson ‘in the zone’

Anxiety Spielberger identified 2 sources of anxiety. Some people appear to be anxious at all times in everything they undertake. This is recognised as ‘trait’ anxiety and is genetically inherited. The second source is ‘state’ anxiety, which fluctuates in response to a given situation and is associated with arousal. Trait Anxiety Trait Anxiety is measured using the Sports Competitive Anxiety Test (SCAT) Have a go at the test here: State anxiety is measured using the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (CSAI-2). SCAT

Martens Martens states: ‘ Anxiety occurs when there is a substantial imbalance between the individual’s perception of their ability and their perception of the demands and importance of the situation’.

Anxiety Perception of situational demands I must win my leg of the relay if my team is to have a chance to win Perception of ability to cope I am not as good as my opponent Perception of the importance of the Situation The result of the competition hinges on this one relay race.

There are 2 types of response that are triggered by anxiety. Somatic response. This follows the pattern of the inverted U and refers to physiological change: muscular tension increased heart and respiration rates butterflies sweating Cognitive response. This reflects increasing worry about performance. If this remains unchecked the athlete will develop negative thoughts / worry doubts aprehension. If either of these responses gets out of control then the performer cannot achieve a ‘peak flow’ state.

Anxiety management to improve performance Cognitive methods: Imagery – Using imagery to place yourself in a calm peaceful place can help to reduce both cognitive and somatic responses. Mental rehearsal can also be used to imagine a previous good performance which can improve confidence and reduce anxiety. Thought stopping - This involves substituting negative thoughts with positive one’s. Positive talk – This involves the athletes telling themselves that they can do something successfully. Popular phrases include “I can do this” or “I am better than my opponent”. This is particularly used by top cricket batsmen and tennis players. Rational thinking – This involves focusing inwardly into the internal / narrow style of attention and evaluating the situation and its possible consequences logically.

Somatic Methods: Progressive muscular relaxation - After tensing a muscle it goes into a deep state of relaxation. This technique involves working from head to toe tensing each muscle group in turn. The major drawback of this technique is that it is very time consuming. Biofeedback – By receiving physiological feedback about your body it is possible to control certain aspects of anxiety. Example include: Electrocardiograph (EC) Galvanic skin response

Peak Flow Experience (Csikzentmimalyi) High Somatic Arousal Low Somatic Arousal Low Cognitive Arousal High Cognitive Arousal Excitement, happiness Anxiety, anger Relaxation, drowsinessBoredom, fatigue = Peak Flow

Peak flow is described as an optimal experience that facilitates best performance and is intrinsically rewarding. Peak flow occurs when somatic arousal has reached an appropriate threshold and cognitive arousal is low. Flow state is attained when the performer has a balanced perception of the demands of the situation and his / her ability to cope. There is a self confident belief that nothing can go wrong.

‘ During these rare moments in sport, the athlete assumes control over all internal and environmental variables and a time of great happiness and self fulfilment is experienced ’. Brain Lara – 400 Not Out