Lectures sport psychology
Lecture 1
Sport psychology = the effect of psychological factors on sport-related behaviour, performance and
wellbeing and it’s antecedents and consequences on a cognitive, affective and behavioural level.
Sport psychology stems from physical sciences, biological sciences and social sciences.
Three fields of sport-psychology:
Psycho-physiological e.g. The heartrate of bio-feedback on athletes performance
Social-physiological e.g. Effect of coaching styles
Cognitive-behavioural e.g. Mental skills effect performance
Three perspectives:
1. Individualistic approach (person)
2. Situational approach (environment)
3. Interactionist approach (person x environment)
- The interactionist approach is the contemporary approach (see the x-model)
A brief history of sport psychology
1898, triplett: research within social performance. E.g. How can high arousal influence
performance. The more arousal, the higher the performance.
1965, zajonc: social facilitation. The complexity of the task mediates the effect of arousal on
performance.
1960’s, ogilvie: knowledge is used to make athletes better. He is an applied psychologists. For
certain types of sports, certain personalities are needed.
1965: international society of sport psychology was founded. Conferences were organized, so
researchers could share their knowledge.
1990: first dutch foundation.
What do sport psychologists do?
Sport psychologists work at the research field, at the practice field as consultants and as teachers at
the educational field.
Peak performance
Peak performance = a state of exceptional functioning
Which skills are needed for peak performance? e.g. Automatized skills, cope with pressure,
attentional focus. Environmental factors & psychological skills.
Environmental factors
- Coach-effectiveness
- Team-members
- Parents
- Opportunities
Psychological skills contribute to an athlete’s performance in addition to individual factors
and environmental factors. This mental part is necessary to obtain peak performance in
addition to talent and deliberate practice.
- Goal setting
- Attentional focus
- Imagery
- Relaxation
,Other outcomes: youth sport
Youth sport is different from adult sport. In youth sports it’s more important to focus on enjoyment
and development than on performance. Sport is seen here as a part of character-building and a way
to acquire useful life skills (such as goal-setting, attentional focus, imagery, relaxation etc.)
Individual differences
- Motivation
- Self-efficacy
Environmental factors
- Coach-effectiveness
- Team-members
- Parents
- Opportunities
Practice vs theory
There’s a big difference in practice and theory at the sport psychology domain that has to do with
internal and external validity. It is hard to set up research designs that have high external and
internal validity at the same time.
Applied practitioners don’t use internal valid methods.
Researchers develop ideas that are too much isolated from the real word, no external validity
(not useable).
X-model i
The picture above is a picture of the x-model. As you see there are antecedents and consequences to
sport behavior and overall effects of both environmental and personal factors.
X-model
In the picture above the x-model is explained in another way. The arrows indicate that the
model includes feedback loops. These feedback loops are seen at multiple time axes (short-
term, immediate, long-term).
,Box 1: sport situation
Task-demands: the name often says it all, e.g. Hand-ball/ foot-ball / high jump / discus
throwing
Task-circumstances: more change within the task-circumstances, e.g. Football (grass, ball,
referee, opponent, weather), speed skating (skate, inside-outside, humidity)
Task-conditions: more stable, but can change over time, e.g. Rules of the game, time
regulations, pay/rewards, substitutes, labour contract
Task-relations: e.g. Team or solo, relation coach-athlete, relation colleagues/competitors,
communication
Box 2: person/athlete
Box 2 stands for the psychophysiological state of the athlete and is divided into stable/habitual
characteristics and momentaneous/variable characteristics.
Stable characteristics are features of an athlete that generally stay the same over time. For
example: length, weight, speed, strength but also persistence, mental toughness, need for
achievement and goal orientation.
Momentaneous characteristics are features of the athlete based on his current state. For
example: state anxiety, injury or fatigue.
Actual vs required
Actual characteristics
- What are actual ksao’s (knowledge, skills, ability, other) of this player?
- What are actual characteristics of this sport team?
Required characteristics
- What are required ksao’s of this player?
- What are required characteristics of this sport team?
Sport psychology tries to find explanations which can bridge the gap between actual characteristics
and required characteristics.
Box 3: sport behaviour
Motivation = willingness to spend effort
- However, motivation is a process
Action theory = sport behavior ordered hierarchically-sequentially by means of analysing
- E.g. Sifan hassan starts slow in the back of the pack which gives her rest, that way see
wins.
Movement behaviour
- Perception – selection – action first perceiving the situation, then selecting a plan
and then acting on it.
Using action theory to analyse sport behaviour
Sport behaviour, skills, can be ordered hierarchically – sequentially
Football = defensive actions, transition, offensive actions
- Offensive actions = dribbling, passing, shooting
Shooting = position support leg, assess speed of bal, control body posture,
kicking
Kicking = …
, Box 4: sport outcomes
Performance (= result of box 3 according to standard)
- Objective: e.g. Height, time, distance, scored goals
- Subjective: execution (jury, gymnastics, boxing)
- Combination: ski jumping
Result (= translation of performance in points)
- Gain result
- What’s the score? Win, loose, season table
With the same performance, the result may differ, e.g. Depending on performance of others
Box 5: person/ athlete outcomes
Person changes him/herself:
- Positive: e.g. Game pleasure, competence/self-efficacy
- Negative: e.g. Fatigue, injury, depression
Such changes may be temporary or permanent.
X-model: feedback loops and time axis
Examples of feedback loops:
Physical feedback loop is the principle of supercompensation. After training very hard,
athletes feel tired (box 5). The body is able to adjust and after the training (post-raining), the
body becomes stronger (box 2).
Physiological feedback loop. An athlete is satisfied with his sport outcomes (box 5), which will
increase his need for achievement which leads to more effort (box 3).
Lecture 2: motor learning
Motor control can be learned and can be affected after brain damage.
Control of motor actions: the degrees of freedom problem (nikolai bernstein)
The degrees of freedom problem = the many degrees of freedom of the motor system need to be
reduced such that effective control is possible.
Degrees of freedom
The human body counts over 100 joints, over 750 muscles and over 10.000 motor units. These are all
degrees of freedom. It’s a problem to control all the degrees of freedom of your body.
The solution of the degrees of freedom problem according to bernstein
Motor learning (control of the many degrees of freedom) proceeds in 3 stages:
1. First stage. Most rigid solution of the degrees of freedom problem. Some degrees of freedom
are temporarily ‘frozen’; not involved in active control or degrees of freedom are coupled.
2. Second stage. An increasing number of degrees of freedom are actively involved in control
3. Third stage. Forces related to the movement are exploited/incorporated in control (e.g.
Muscle force, friction, elastic forces) and execution of the movement
in the beginning of starting a new sport, people freeze parts of their degrees of freedom to pay
attention to other parts (which looks stiff). When they get better, they’ll start to use more part of
their body and therefore reach a higher stage.
Lecture 1
Sport psychology = the effect of psychological factors on sport-related behaviour, performance and
wellbeing and it’s antecedents and consequences on a cognitive, affective and behavioural level.
Sport psychology stems from physical sciences, biological sciences and social sciences.
Three fields of sport-psychology:
Psycho-physiological e.g. The heartrate of bio-feedback on athletes performance
Social-physiological e.g. Effect of coaching styles
Cognitive-behavioural e.g. Mental skills effect performance
Three perspectives:
1. Individualistic approach (person)
2. Situational approach (environment)
3. Interactionist approach (person x environment)
- The interactionist approach is the contemporary approach (see the x-model)
A brief history of sport psychology
1898, triplett: research within social performance. E.g. How can high arousal influence
performance. The more arousal, the higher the performance.
1965, zajonc: social facilitation. The complexity of the task mediates the effect of arousal on
performance.
1960’s, ogilvie: knowledge is used to make athletes better. He is an applied psychologists. For
certain types of sports, certain personalities are needed.
1965: international society of sport psychology was founded. Conferences were organized, so
researchers could share their knowledge.
1990: first dutch foundation.
What do sport psychologists do?
Sport psychologists work at the research field, at the practice field as consultants and as teachers at
the educational field.
Peak performance
Peak performance = a state of exceptional functioning
Which skills are needed for peak performance? e.g. Automatized skills, cope with pressure,
attentional focus. Environmental factors & psychological skills.
Environmental factors
- Coach-effectiveness
- Team-members
- Parents
- Opportunities
Psychological skills contribute to an athlete’s performance in addition to individual factors
and environmental factors. This mental part is necessary to obtain peak performance in
addition to talent and deliberate practice.
- Goal setting
- Attentional focus
- Imagery
- Relaxation
,Other outcomes: youth sport
Youth sport is different from adult sport. In youth sports it’s more important to focus on enjoyment
and development than on performance. Sport is seen here as a part of character-building and a way
to acquire useful life skills (such as goal-setting, attentional focus, imagery, relaxation etc.)
Individual differences
- Motivation
- Self-efficacy
Environmental factors
- Coach-effectiveness
- Team-members
- Parents
- Opportunities
Practice vs theory
There’s a big difference in practice and theory at the sport psychology domain that has to do with
internal and external validity. It is hard to set up research designs that have high external and
internal validity at the same time.
Applied practitioners don’t use internal valid methods.
Researchers develop ideas that are too much isolated from the real word, no external validity
(not useable).
X-model i
The picture above is a picture of the x-model. As you see there are antecedents and consequences to
sport behavior and overall effects of both environmental and personal factors.
X-model
In the picture above the x-model is explained in another way. The arrows indicate that the
model includes feedback loops. These feedback loops are seen at multiple time axes (short-
term, immediate, long-term).
,Box 1: sport situation
Task-demands: the name often says it all, e.g. Hand-ball/ foot-ball / high jump / discus
throwing
Task-circumstances: more change within the task-circumstances, e.g. Football (grass, ball,
referee, opponent, weather), speed skating (skate, inside-outside, humidity)
Task-conditions: more stable, but can change over time, e.g. Rules of the game, time
regulations, pay/rewards, substitutes, labour contract
Task-relations: e.g. Team or solo, relation coach-athlete, relation colleagues/competitors,
communication
Box 2: person/athlete
Box 2 stands for the psychophysiological state of the athlete and is divided into stable/habitual
characteristics and momentaneous/variable characteristics.
Stable characteristics are features of an athlete that generally stay the same over time. For
example: length, weight, speed, strength but also persistence, mental toughness, need for
achievement and goal orientation.
Momentaneous characteristics are features of the athlete based on his current state. For
example: state anxiety, injury or fatigue.
Actual vs required
Actual characteristics
- What are actual ksao’s (knowledge, skills, ability, other) of this player?
- What are actual characteristics of this sport team?
Required characteristics
- What are required ksao’s of this player?
- What are required characteristics of this sport team?
Sport psychology tries to find explanations which can bridge the gap between actual characteristics
and required characteristics.
Box 3: sport behaviour
Motivation = willingness to spend effort
- However, motivation is a process
Action theory = sport behavior ordered hierarchically-sequentially by means of analysing
- E.g. Sifan hassan starts slow in the back of the pack which gives her rest, that way see
wins.
Movement behaviour
- Perception – selection – action first perceiving the situation, then selecting a plan
and then acting on it.
Using action theory to analyse sport behaviour
Sport behaviour, skills, can be ordered hierarchically – sequentially
Football = defensive actions, transition, offensive actions
- Offensive actions = dribbling, passing, shooting
Shooting = position support leg, assess speed of bal, control body posture,
kicking
Kicking = …
, Box 4: sport outcomes
Performance (= result of box 3 according to standard)
- Objective: e.g. Height, time, distance, scored goals
- Subjective: execution (jury, gymnastics, boxing)
- Combination: ski jumping
Result (= translation of performance in points)
- Gain result
- What’s the score? Win, loose, season table
With the same performance, the result may differ, e.g. Depending on performance of others
Box 5: person/ athlete outcomes
Person changes him/herself:
- Positive: e.g. Game pleasure, competence/self-efficacy
- Negative: e.g. Fatigue, injury, depression
Such changes may be temporary or permanent.
X-model: feedback loops and time axis
Examples of feedback loops:
Physical feedback loop is the principle of supercompensation. After training very hard,
athletes feel tired (box 5). The body is able to adjust and after the training (post-raining), the
body becomes stronger (box 2).
Physiological feedback loop. An athlete is satisfied with his sport outcomes (box 5), which will
increase his need for achievement which leads to more effort (box 3).
Lecture 2: motor learning
Motor control can be learned and can be affected after brain damage.
Control of motor actions: the degrees of freedom problem (nikolai bernstein)
The degrees of freedom problem = the many degrees of freedom of the motor system need to be
reduced such that effective control is possible.
Degrees of freedom
The human body counts over 100 joints, over 750 muscles and over 10.000 motor units. These are all
degrees of freedom. It’s a problem to control all the degrees of freedom of your body.
The solution of the degrees of freedom problem according to bernstein
Motor learning (control of the many degrees of freedom) proceeds in 3 stages:
1. First stage. Most rigid solution of the degrees of freedom problem. Some degrees of freedom
are temporarily ‘frozen’; not involved in active control or degrees of freedom are coupled.
2. Second stage. An increasing number of degrees of freedom are actively involved in control
3. Third stage. Forces related to the movement are exploited/incorporated in control (e.g.
Muscle force, friction, elastic forces) and execution of the movement
in the beginning of starting a new sport, people freeze parts of their degrees of freedom to pay
attention to other parts (which looks stiff). When they get better, they’ll start to use more part of
their body and therefore reach a higher stage.
