Sport & performance psychology
1. What is sport psychology?
Sport psychology = scientific study of people and their behaviours in sport context and the pratical
application of that knowledge
2 objectives:
• Understand how psychological factors affect one’s performance
• Understand how participating in sport affects one’s psychological development and well-
being
=> understanding the mutual influence of participation in a performance environment and
psychological factors
Getting insight in:
• Situation
• Thoughts
• Feelings
• Behaviour
History of sport psychology
Sport & performance psychology as a separate discipline?
PERIOD 1: early years (1895-1920)
• North America
• Norman Triplett: cyclist experiment
• Beginning of exploring psychological aspects of sport and motor learning
PERIOD 2: The Griffith era (1921-1938)
• Characterized by the development of sport laboratories in Germany, Japan, Russia, Usa
• Increased psychological testing: concentration, personality, reaction times, aggression
• Father of American sport psychology: Coleman Griffith
o Research, articles, books, consulting
PERIOD 3: Preparation of the future (1939-1965)
• Academic discipline of exercise and sport science
o Franklin Henry:
▪ Scientific research on psychological aspects
▪ Responsible for the scientific development
o Limited applied work:
▪ Dorothy Yates, consulting & intervention research!
o First World Congress of Sport Psychology: 1965
,PERIOD 4: The establishment of Academic sport psychology (1966-1977)
• Sport psychology became separate component within sport science
• Applied sport psychology consultants emerge
• 2 groups of practitioners:
o Kinesiology department that focuses on performance enhancement and enjoyment
in sport
o Psychologists working with athletes with psychological problems
PERIOD 5: Multidisciplinary science and practice in sport and exercise psychology (1978-2000)
• Growth: research & application
• More accepted and respected by the public
• 1979: Journal of Sport Psychology
• 1985: First sport psychologist in US Olympic Committee
• 1986: Association for the Advancement of Applied Sport Psychology (AAASP)
• 2 groups together
PERIOD 6: Contemporary sport and exercise psychology (2000-…)
• Growth continues
• Journal of Sport and Exercise is developed and published in Europe
CHALLANGES:
• Need for:
o Interdisciplinary curriculum
o Profession: minimum qualifications, education, experiences
FUTURE DIRECTION:
• Performance aspect is unique for sport psychology
• Performance psychology
• Training in: performance excellence, mental health counselling, consulting psychology and
performance specific
Understanding your athletes: personality and sport
Since 60’s and 70’s: thousands of articles on aspects of sport personality
Is there a relationship between personality and sport performance? Yes, there is, but it is far from
perfect
--> E.g. long-distance runners exhibit introverted personalities, but a long – distance runner needs
not to be introverted to be successful
4. Implications for practice
Both situations and traits motivate
• Know what athletes motivate
o Multiple motives; motives can change over time
• Environment is easier to change
o E.g., different exercises, another opponent
,Emphasize task goals
• Reinforce effort, good technique, skill development instead of result
• Focus on task goals
How do you find out what the motives of your group are?
• Ask them
• Listen to them
• Check their reaction
--> motives can change
Monitor and alter attributional feedback
• Pay attention to the feedback you give
Listen to their athletes
• Correct incorrect attribution e.g. I got lucky --> no you trained very well this week
Determine when competitive goals are appropriate
• When compete and compare with others, and when self-referenced focus
Enhancing feeling of control and competence
• Adjust task difficulty: step by step
• Reinforcement each step
5. Flow
Special form of instinct motivation: flow
• Csikszentmihalyi = positive, mental state in which athlete achieve their best performance
• Getting into the zone
• Essential elements:
o Balance of skill and challenge
o Complete absorption in the activity
o Clear goals
o Merging of action and awareness
o Loss of self-consciousness
o Total concentration on the task
o Sense of control
o Transformation of time
o Effortless movements
Micro flow
= flow is not only important in sports, but also in daily life
--> everybody has every day little things that bring joy into his life (smalls things that helps you,
brings joy, motivates you during the day)
• e.g. cup of coffee in the morning gives me a good feeling and motivates me, listening to
music that motivates you
, 2. Motivation
Definition
Motivation is the direction and intensity of one’s effort
• Direction: the way an athlete is attracted to or avoids a situation
• Intensity: the effort an athlete puts in a certain situation
Relationship between direction and intensity?
• Athletes who seldom miss practice and arrive early, will typically expend more effort
• Athletes complain about the weather and the condition of the field, often show less effort
→Relationship between direction and intensity
Views of motivation
What motivates athletes?
Trait - centered view:
• Motivation as a personality characteristic, a trait, which is rather stable over time
• Focus on athlete’s goals, expectations, needs,…
Situation – centered view:
• Motivation is determined by the situation
Interactional view:
Athlete X situation
(x = motivation)
Achievement motivation & competitiveness:
Achievement motivation = efforts to master a task, to achieve goals, to perform better than others,
the strive for success, to persist
Competitiveness = achievement behaviour in competitive situations
• Social evaluation is present
Not only focus on final result, but the whole process (behaviour, thoughts, feelings)
1. What is sport psychology?
Sport psychology = scientific study of people and their behaviours in sport context and the pratical
application of that knowledge
2 objectives:
• Understand how psychological factors affect one’s performance
• Understand how participating in sport affects one’s psychological development and well-
being
=> understanding the mutual influence of participation in a performance environment and
psychological factors
Getting insight in:
• Situation
• Thoughts
• Feelings
• Behaviour
History of sport psychology
Sport & performance psychology as a separate discipline?
PERIOD 1: early years (1895-1920)
• North America
• Norman Triplett: cyclist experiment
• Beginning of exploring psychological aspects of sport and motor learning
PERIOD 2: The Griffith era (1921-1938)
• Characterized by the development of sport laboratories in Germany, Japan, Russia, Usa
• Increased psychological testing: concentration, personality, reaction times, aggression
• Father of American sport psychology: Coleman Griffith
o Research, articles, books, consulting
PERIOD 3: Preparation of the future (1939-1965)
• Academic discipline of exercise and sport science
o Franklin Henry:
▪ Scientific research on psychological aspects
▪ Responsible for the scientific development
o Limited applied work:
▪ Dorothy Yates, consulting & intervention research!
o First World Congress of Sport Psychology: 1965
,PERIOD 4: The establishment of Academic sport psychology (1966-1977)
• Sport psychology became separate component within sport science
• Applied sport psychology consultants emerge
• 2 groups of practitioners:
o Kinesiology department that focuses on performance enhancement and enjoyment
in sport
o Psychologists working with athletes with psychological problems
PERIOD 5: Multidisciplinary science and practice in sport and exercise psychology (1978-2000)
• Growth: research & application
• More accepted and respected by the public
• 1979: Journal of Sport Psychology
• 1985: First sport psychologist in US Olympic Committee
• 1986: Association for the Advancement of Applied Sport Psychology (AAASP)
• 2 groups together
PERIOD 6: Contemporary sport and exercise psychology (2000-…)
• Growth continues
• Journal of Sport and Exercise is developed and published in Europe
CHALLANGES:
• Need for:
o Interdisciplinary curriculum
o Profession: minimum qualifications, education, experiences
FUTURE DIRECTION:
• Performance aspect is unique for sport psychology
• Performance psychology
• Training in: performance excellence, mental health counselling, consulting psychology and
performance specific
Understanding your athletes: personality and sport
Since 60’s and 70’s: thousands of articles on aspects of sport personality
Is there a relationship between personality and sport performance? Yes, there is, but it is far from
perfect
--> E.g. long-distance runners exhibit introverted personalities, but a long – distance runner needs
not to be introverted to be successful
4. Implications for practice
Both situations and traits motivate
• Know what athletes motivate
o Multiple motives; motives can change over time
• Environment is easier to change
o E.g., different exercises, another opponent
,Emphasize task goals
• Reinforce effort, good technique, skill development instead of result
• Focus on task goals
How do you find out what the motives of your group are?
• Ask them
• Listen to them
• Check their reaction
--> motives can change
Monitor and alter attributional feedback
• Pay attention to the feedback you give
Listen to their athletes
• Correct incorrect attribution e.g. I got lucky --> no you trained very well this week
Determine when competitive goals are appropriate
• When compete and compare with others, and when self-referenced focus
Enhancing feeling of control and competence
• Adjust task difficulty: step by step
• Reinforcement each step
5. Flow
Special form of instinct motivation: flow
• Csikszentmihalyi = positive, mental state in which athlete achieve their best performance
• Getting into the zone
• Essential elements:
o Balance of skill and challenge
o Complete absorption in the activity
o Clear goals
o Merging of action and awareness
o Loss of self-consciousness
o Total concentration on the task
o Sense of control
o Transformation of time
o Effortless movements
Micro flow
= flow is not only important in sports, but also in daily life
--> everybody has every day little things that bring joy into his life (smalls things that helps you,
brings joy, motivates you during the day)
• e.g. cup of coffee in the morning gives me a good feeling and motivates me, listening to
music that motivates you
, 2. Motivation
Definition
Motivation is the direction and intensity of one’s effort
• Direction: the way an athlete is attracted to or avoids a situation
• Intensity: the effort an athlete puts in a certain situation
Relationship between direction and intensity?
• Athletes who seldom miss practice and arrive early, will typically expend more effort
• Athletes complain about the weather and the condition of the field, often show less effort
→Relationship between direction and intensity
Views of motivation
What motivates athletes?
Trait - centered view:
• Motivation as a personality characteristic, a trait, which is rather stable over time
• Focus on athlete’s goals, expectations, needs,…
Situation – centered view:
• Motivation is determined by the situation
Interactional view:
Athlete X situation
(x = motivation)
Achievement motivation & competitiveness:
Achievement motivation = efforts to master a task, to achieve goals, to perform better than others,
the strive for success, to persist
Competitiveness = achievement behaviour in competitive situations
• Social evaluation is present
Not only focus on final result, but the whole process (behaviour, thoughts, feelings)
