Sport Psychology An Introduction

History of North American Sport Psychology  1897: Norman Triplett studies social facilitation with cyclists.  Coleman Roberts Griffith: Father of North American sport psychology First sport psychology laboratory, University of Illinois, 1925 Psychology of Coaching (1926) Psychology and Athletics (1928) Hired by Wrigley family

History  1965: International Society for Sport Psychology (ISSP) founded in Rome.  1967: North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity (NASPSPA ) founded.  1985: APA approves the formation of the Division of Exercise and Sport Psychology (Division 47).  1986: The Association for the Advancement of Applied Sport Psychology (AAASP) holds first meeting.

Sport Psychology Today  Several college campuses have sport psychologists in their counseling centers or athletic departments.  Coaching education for youth and high school sports often includes mandatory sport psychology training.  Professional sports teams have sport psychologists on staff.  12 sport psychologists were credentialed to work with teams at the 2002 Winter Olympic Games.

Chapter 1 Motivation: The Need to Achieve By John F. Eliot

Motivation and Drive  Norman Triplett First formal experiment in sport motivation, 1889 Now referred to as social facilitation  Biological determinism Freud: Aggression, sex drive  Environmental determinism B.F. Skinner: Reinforcement theory

Motivation  The nature-nurture controversy  Drive theory (nature): the search for traits  Reinforcement theory (nurture)

Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation  Intrinsic motivation: Participation is inherently pleasurable. Make a list of the intrinsic factors that influence your choice of physical activities.  Extrinsic motivation: Participation is rewarded. Make a list of the extrinsic factors that influence your choice of physical activities.

Discussion Question  Can extrinsic rewards decrease an athlete’s intrinsic motivation?

Self-Efficacy  The belief or confidence that one will successfully perform a task.  High self-confidence is a judgment that one is capable of performing a task at an elevated level, with certainty, and repeatedly over time.  Self-efficacy increases motivation.

Goal Orientation  Task-mastery orientation: Focus on improvement relative to one’s own past performances.  Ego orientation: Focus on social comparisons and demonstrating superiority. (continued)

Goal Orientation (cont)  Motivational climate: The environmental factors that focus attention on either the task-mastery or ego aspects of sport participation.

Attributions  Internal vs. External “I lost focus on that interception.” “The ref made a bad call.”  Stable vs. Unstable “I am a poor leader.” “I made a bad decision then.”  Controllable vs. Uncontrollable “I need to calm down.” “I need to beat this team.”

Characteristics of Attributions Locus of causalityInternalEffort An injury ExternalField conditions Equipment StabilityStableYour talent UnstableWeather Luck Locus of controlControllableYour game plan Pregame meal UncontrollableReferees’ calls Opponents’ mistakes

Higher Performance Consciousness  Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi Study of artists Coined the term “flow”  The conditions of flow A challenging activity that requires skills The merging of action and awareness Clear goals and feedback Concentration on the task at hand Loss of self-consciousness Transformation of time

Motivation and Flow  The flow experience appears similar to being in the “zone.”  Experiencing flow is highly motivating.  To maximize flow, coaches and athletes should strive to create a balanced, present- oriented, focused performance environment.

Csikszentmihalyi’s Flow

Building Motivation  The role of the leader Know an athlete’s sources of internal motivation. Provide feedback and cues congruent with motivational orientation. Motivational strategies should foster – autonomy, – competence, and – connectedness.

Long-Term Motivational Strategies  Push the edge.  Experience success.  Change your thinking.  Get involved.  Praise others.  Vary training.  Put yourself first.  Find motivated peers.  Think positively.  Remember your dream.