1. SBU SPORT PSYCHOLOGY SERVICES 2015 AND BEYOND Jack Bowman Ph
SBU SPORT PSYCHOLOGY SERVICES 2015 AND BEYOND Jack Bowman Ph.D Clinical Sport Psychologist

2. Goal of Sport Psychology Program
Instill life long skills that promote physical, emotional, and moral development in our athletes

3. Kangaroo hide Skates SB Graduate Faculty Member since 1981
Psychology of Sport and Performance
Five Appointments as Sport Psychology Consultant
To SB Athletic Department
Assistant Professor of Psychiatry - SB University Hospital for 15 years
Member of the first SBUH Sports Medicine Team

4. Half the lies they are telling about me Aren’t True

5. SBU Sport Psychology Services
Student Athletes
Coaches
Staff

6. SBU Sport Psychology Services
Individual counseling sessions
Group counseling sessions
Sport performance workshops
Staff training

7. Performing at your Best Under Pressure
ENERGIZED, FOCUSED, and CONFIDENT
Harness Positive Energy by transforming Pre-Event Anxiety into Pre-Event Empowerment
Create a Mental Plan to sharpen their Focus and strengthen their ability to Re-Focus when facing adversity
Build Confidence by drawing from the WELL of their best performances

9. ARMY vs NAVY On the fields of friendly strife
are born the seeds of valor
General Douglas McArthur

10. Psychological Skills are transferable across situations

11. WIN the BATTLE of FOCUS vs DISTRACTION The more critical the moment
The more important it is to
WIN the BATTLE of
FOCUS vs DISTRACTION

13. John J. Bowman, Ph.D. Mind Plus Muscle Institute
TRAIN THE MIND – PROTECT THE BODY Psychological Antecedents to Athletic Injury and the role of Mental Training in Prevention
John J. Bowman, Ph.D.
Mind Plus Muscle Institute

14. Injury Prevention Studies
Over 25 million people are injured each year in sport and exercise.
Physical factors are the primary causes of injury, but psychological factors also contribute significantly.
Finch (2010) found 11% of studies on sport injury prevention considered psychological factors.

15. Overview Psychological research in injury prevention
How injuries happen—psychological antecedents
Explaining the stress–injury relationship
Mental Training with “At Risk” athletes
Effective components of Mental Training
Athletic injury prevention plan

16. Risk Factors and Interventions
Early studies identify risk profiles
Later studies demonstrate effective interventions

17. How Injuries Happen: Psychological Antecedents
Profile #1: Major life stress Low levels of social support Poor coping skills Profile:2 Low self esteem Pessimistic Low hardiness High trait anxiety

18. The most frequently mentioned causal
mechanisms between stress and injury are
attentional deficits and increased arousal
produced by stress.
Andersen & Williams, 1988

19. Explaining the Stress–Injury Relationship
Attentional disruption: Stress disrupts an athlete’s attention by reducing peripheral attention and causing distraction and task-irrelevant thoughts.
Increased muscle tension: High stress can cause muscle tension and coordination interference as well as generalized fatigue, muscle inefficiency, reduced flexibility, and motor coordination problems.

20. Injury Prevention in Sweden Helping Soccer Players at Risk (2005)
Pool of 132 male and 103 female players from 12 elite teams
Screening – Sport Anxiety Scale, Life Event Scale and Athletic Coping Skills Intervention
32 high injury risk players identified
Randomly assigned to treatment and control groups

21. Helping Soccer Players at Risk : Intervention
6 to 8 sessions over a 19 week season
Training in 6 Mental Skills
Goal Setting
Somatic & Cognitive Relaxation
Stress Management
Self Confidence Training
Identifying Critical Incidents
Focusing Skills

22. Helping Soccer Players at Risk : Results
10 of 13 players in Treatment Group were injury free
13 of 16 players in Control Group incurred injury
Results were statistically significant

23. Athletic Injury Prevention Plan
Encourage Athletes to focus on what they are doing WELL to build Confidence and reduce Anxiety
Identify athletes with high risk profiles and refer for counseling
Conduct Mental Training with teams to improve performance and reduce training and competitive stress

24. My Well From______ To______ Awesome Performance Great Practice
Feeling Happy
Feeling Confident/Determined
Good Rest & Nutrition

25. “The ultimate value of research dealing
with psychological risk factors is the
potential for using knowledge to reduce
the tragedy and expense caused by
avoidable injuries.”
J.M. Williams (2001)

26. Take Aways
Be mindful of the additional psychological tools athletes will have in their skill set
Referral criterion for Individual Counseling:
Poor Compliance Roadblocks Withdrawal
All referrals and scheduling go through
Elizabeth Zanolli

27. you.stonybrook.edu/sport psych