Psychological Skills (C.5)

Hello SEHS students! Welcome to the section that helps bridge the gap between physical potential and actual peak performance. This chapter, Psychological Skills, is incredibly practical. We've looked at the science of the body (A) and movement (B), and now we focus on the powerful science of the mind (C).

Think of psychological skills as the mental tools athletes use to control their thoughts, feelings, and focus. Just like you practice your jump shot or your sprint start, you must practice these mental skills to perform consistently under pressure. Mastering these techniques is often the difference between a good athlete and a great champion!

Don't worry if this seems tricky at first; we use these skills every day in school and life—we're just formalizing them for sport.

1. Goal Setting: Mapping Your Success

Goal setting is the process of establishing an aim or objective that you want to achieve. In sports psychology, it provides direction and helps maintain motivation over time.

Why Do Athletes Need Goals?
  • They increase focus and attention.
  • They help athletes persist when facing setbacks (resilience).
  • They regulate the intensity of effort.
Types of Goals

For maximum effectiveness, goals are usually categorized into three types:

  1. Outcome Goals: Focus on the result of an event (winning a medal, beating an opponent). Example: Winning the district soccer tournament.
  2. Performance Goals: Focus on achieving standards independent of others (improving your personal best time, achieving a specific passing percentage). Example: Reducing my 100m sprint time by 0.2 seconds.
  3. Process Goals: Focus on the actions or behaviors required to execute a performance (e.g., maintaining a low centre of gravity, keeping eyes on the ball). Example: Executing the proper breathing pattern during the final 50m of the race.

Key takeaway: While outcome goals are exciting, performance and process goals are the most controllable and effective for motivation and anxiety reduction.

The S.M.A.R.T.E.R. Principles of Goal Setting (HL Extension)

To ensure goals are effective, they must follow the S.M.A.R.T.E.R. criteria. This is a crucial memory aid!

  • Specific: Clearly define what you want to achieve. (Not: "Get fitter." But: "Increase maximal V02 by 5%.")
  • Measurable: Quantifiable so you can track progress. (If you can't measure it, how do you know you succeeded?)
  • Achievable (or Action-Oriented): Realistic given your resources and abilities.
  • Relevant (or Realistic): Important to you and aligned with the team's objectives.
  • Time-bound: Set a specific deadline.
  • Evaluate: Regularly assess progress against the goal. This helps you adjust if needed.
  • Review (or Reward): Adapt the plan or celebrate success once the deadline is reached.

Quick Review: For any goal, ask: Is it clear? Can I track it? Can I actually do it? When must it be done?

2. Imagery and Mental Rehearsal

Imagery (also known as visualization or mental rehearsal) involves creating or recreating an experience in your mind. It uses all the senses—sight, sound, smell, touch, and kinetic (feelings of movement)—to make the mental practice as realistic as possible.

The Two Perspectives of Imagery

The perspective an athlete uses is vital and impacts how the skill is learned or rehearsed.

  1. Internal Imagery (First Person):
    • The athlete imagines the execution of a skill from their own perspective (as if they are inside their body).
    • Focuses on the *feel* of the movement (kinesthetic sense).
    • Analogy: It’s like looking through your own eyes while performing the action.
  2. External Imagery (Third Person):
    • The athlete views themselves performing the skill from an outside perspective, as if watching a video or a coach watching the performance.
    • Focuses on technique and pattern observation.
    • Analogy: It’s like watching your best performance on a TV screen.
Functions of Imagery
  • Skill learning and rehearsal: Practicing complex skills without risk of injury (e.g., divers practicing a new twist).
  • Arousal Regulation: Imaging a relaxing scene to calm pre-competition nerves.
  • Confidence building: Mentally rehearsing successful past performances.

Did you know? Research suggests that mental practice alone can lead to significant physical improvements, often nearly matching the gains seen from actual physical practice, especially in early stages of learning!

Key takeaway: Imagery is not just daydreaming; it’s focused, sensory-rich mental practice used to improve technical execution and emotional control.

3. Self-Talk: Controlling Your Inner Voice

Self-talk is the inner dialogue or statements that people make to themselves. It can be conscious or unconscious, and it significantly influences confidence, emotion, and performance.

Types of Self-Talk
  1. Positive (Motivational) Self-Talk:
    • Focuses on confidence, effort, and motivation.
    • Examples: "I can do this," "Keep pushing hard," "I trained for this moment."
  2. Negative (Destructive) Self-Talk:
    • Focuses on mistakes, doubt, and poor outcomes.
    • This increases anxiety and reduces self-efficacy.
    • Examples: "Don't mess up," "I always fail at this," "I'm too tired."
Functions of Self-Talk

Self-talk serves two primary functions in athletic performance:

  • Instructional Self-Talk: Used to focus on technical cues and strategy. Example: "Bend the knees," "Follow through," "Watch the seams on the ball."
  • Motivational Self-Talk: Used to increase effort, persistence, and confidence. Example: "Attack the basket," "Stay strong," "One more rep!"

Stopping Negative Self-Talk

It is important for athletes to recognize and stop negative self-talk (often called thought stopping).

The simple process involves:

  1. Awareness: Recognizing that a negative thought has entered the mind.
  2. Interruption: Using a physical cue (like snapping a rubber band) or a mental cue (shouting "STOP!" internally).
  3. Reframing: Immediately replacing the negative thought with a positive or instructional statement.

Common Mistake to Avoid: Telling yourself "Don't drop the ball" is instructional but framed negatively. The brain often ignores the "Don't." A better, positive instruction would be "Focus on catching."

Key takeaway: Self-talk must be instructional for technique and positive for motivation.

4. Arousal Regulation and Relaxation Techniques

Arousal is the general state of readiness of an individual (physical and psychological). If arousal is too high (often leading to anxiety), performance suffers. Arousal regulation refers to the methods used to decrease excess anxiety or to increase motivation and focus when necessary.

Techniques to Lower Arousal (Relaxation)

These techniques are crucial for athletes suffering from excessive pre-competition anxiety or muscle tension.

  1. Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR):
    • A systematic technique where athletes tense specific muscle groups maximally, hold the tension for a few seconds, and then consciously release the tension completely.
    • This helps athletes identify the difference between tension and relaxation, enabling them to relax specific muscles on demand.
  2. Breathing Control:
    • Slow, deep, rhythmic breathing from the diaphragm (belly breathing) is the simplest and quickest way to calm the nervous system.
    • Shallow, rapid chest breaths are associated with stress, while controlled deep breaths activate the parasympathetic nervous system (the ‘rest and digest’ system).
    • Tip: Focus on making the exhale twice as long as the inhale (e.g., inhale for 4, exhale for 8).
  3. Meditation/Mindfulness:
    • Focusing attention on a single thought, sound, or object, or simply observing thoughts without judgment.
    • This helps clear the mind and reduces cognitive anxiety (worry).
Techniques to Raise Arousal (Activation)

Sometimes athletes are too lethargic or lack intensity (low arousal). Techniques to activate focus include:

  • Listening to fast-tempo, motivational music.
  • Quick, sharp self-talk (e.g., "GET UP!").
  • Using high-energy imagery (e.g., imagining a predator chasing prey).

Key takeaway: Relaxation techniques are mental skills that need to be practiced daily, not just when anxiety hits during competition.

5. Pre-Performance Routines (PPRs)

A Pre-Performance Routine (PPR) is a sequence of task-relevant thoughts and actions that an athlete engages in systematically prior to performing a specific skill.

The Purpose of PPRs

PPRs are used primarily for closed skills (skills performed in a predictable environment), such as penalty shots, golf swings, or tennis serves.

  • Focus and Concentration: They shift the focus from irrelevant, outcome-related worries to the specific task at hand (process focus).
  • Consistency: They standardize the execution of the skill, making the athlete feel familiar and in control regardless of the pressure.
  • Arousal Control: They prevent sudden shifts in arousal caused by external distractions.
Example: A Golfer's Putting Routine

A structured routine might look like this (always the same steps, always the same order):

  1. Analyze the distance and slope (15 seconds).
  2. Take two deep, controlled breaths (Arousal Regulation).
  3. Visualize the ball rolling into the hole (Imagery).
  4. Say the instructional self-talk cue: "Smooth stroke" (Self-Talk).
  5. Address the ball and hit.

The routine should be task-specific and consistently applied, ensuring that the mental state and physical setup are identical every time.

Key takeaway: PPRs are standardized, sequential actions and thoughts that enhance focus and consistency, especially under pressure.


Summary of Psychological Skills (C.5)

These psychological skills are synergistic—they work best when used together!

  • Goal Setting provides the map (direction).
  • Imagery mentally rehearses the journey and builds confidence.
  • Self-Talk keeps the athlete motivated and focused on technique.
  • Arousal Regulation ensures the mind and body are in the optimal state of readiness.
  • PPRs package these skills together for immediate, high-pressure execution.

If you can explain these five concepts, categorize their functions, and provide real-world examples, you have mastered this chapter! Keep practicing your mental game!