Sports Psychology the mental management of your gifts 1 study of psych and mental factors in a game 2 3 explains why people behave certain ways in sports settings 4 includes parents players coaches fans cultures etc Who needs Sports Psychology 1 people who cant concentrate 2 people that lack confidence to overcome pressure situations 3 someone who wants to enhance performance and mental toughness Extra thinking during sports hinders performance and success The act should be automatic with little thinking involved ex field goal kickers Strive for excellance in sport not perfection Dwelling on negatives hinders success Always have positive energy Brian Killmeed wrote the book The Games Do Count In it he credits sports for the fundamentals that allow a person to be successful and explains how sports saves people The way you behave is your signature What do Sports Psychologists Do a teach b work with coaches c work with athletes History of Sports Psych Born in the 1920 s w Coach Newt Rockny of Notre Dame who was the 1st person to use psychological tools with his team Pep talks Coleman Griffin from the Univ of Illinois is the FATHER of it He taught the 1st course and worked with the Cubs Sports Psych went through a drought until the 1960 s due to the World Wars and depression In 1960 there was a REBIRTH of APPLIED SPORT PSYCH This began in a conference in Rome on how to handle problem athletes 1968 North American Society of Sport Psych grew at a conference in D C 1970 s Sport Psych classes began being taught everywhere ex mental imagery positive self talk 1980 s all about enhancing performance and the exercise addiction people working out through injuries 1990 s the practice REALLY EXPLODES and PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY became popular This studies what benefits exercise has on the brain It was hard to earn a living in APPLIED SPORT PSYCH Elite Athletes in the past they use to only condition in season but now athletes train year round to gain a competitive edge most injuries in sports occur when kids are tired and not well conditioned although over training can lead to injury ex Raphael Nadal flexibility is very important to being an elite athlete karate is good for this 4 Aspects Needed to be an Athlete 1 Skill coordination RT agility mobility speed 2 Fitness involves flexibility 3 Physique physical have a physical endowment ex height weight vision muscle 4 Psychological MOST IMP Includes mental toughness and the mind body connection A person can have all the talent in the world but not succeed w o this 2 Categories of Mental Psychological Skills 1 Needs individuals w high achievement need sport for aggression and to affiliate with a team for friend support 2 Personality Factors self confidence emotional stability dealing w anxiety calmness being able to focus and block out external factors coachability Todd Marinovich 1st test tube athlete He was the 1st athlete engineered He went to USC and was drafted by Oakland to play QB His NFL career was ended by drug addictions He had all the talent in the world but lacked the mental side Len Bias another example of an athlete that didn t mentally manage his gifts Individual Differences in Athletes 1 Heredity 1 individual diff in people developing who they are These are the genetics that come from parents Ex height muscle fibers vision 2 Geographical location the 2 individual diff Metropolitan areas offer better opportunity 3 Socioeconomic status some sports cost a lot of money to play ex tennis 35 75 000 4 Lifestyle diet and exercise at an early age can play a vital role in development 5 Birth Order the 1st child is usually the experiment Jerry Kenyon social psych at Univ of Wisconsin Developed test to see why people participate in sport He came up with 6 reasons Test on p 2 10 of course packet A Health and Fitness allows you to live longer stimulates brain activity B Social this is the main reason why girls do this C Vertigo love the thrill and element of risk D Aescetic appreciate how the body moves E Cartharsis release stress and tension F Acetic competitive reasons ATTITUDE successful athletes know it is a CHOICE and they stay positive very important to maximizing potential is a choice you have the power to choose how you respond to things and how you spend your day based on PAST experiences stored info Positive past experiences positive attitude allows you to respond to certain situations based on your past Causes responses effects your success in life effects mental state more calm or relaxed better performance don t let people make you angry negativity and worrying hinders perf Comes from is based on a parents obnoxious parents obnoxious kids b past experience c indiv diff d hometown living conditions e political background Performance Enhancers 1 surround yourself with positive people 2 avoid complainers 3 have a positive attitude 4 pursue excellance NOT perfection Scott Peck wrote The Road Less Traveled Talks about how life is filled with problems MASLOW HIERARCHY OF NEEDS Abraham Maslow what affects human behavior is a motivational theory everything in life matters studies the progression on an individual from physical needs all the way to self actualization at the top the majority of needs at each stage must be met to move onto the next we all want to belong or be part of a group Basic Needs Physiological food water shelter Safety and Security stability protection structure freedom from anxiety chaos Psychological Needs love affection love needs are crucial from friends and family self esteem Self Esteem respect for ourselves This is EARNED self worth status is not given It allows you to start developing confidence you cant teach feeling good When parents set clear rules and limits in terms of social life kids have more self esteem More freedom lower self esteem Self Actualization fulfillment reaching the max potential of what you are capable of doing Similar to peak performance Not everyone reaches this stage and it is not about 2 qualities needed for sport are both critical to self fulfillment in sports 1 self confidence 2 emotional stability When you FAIL and learn to bounce back you are learning life long COPING skills and independence Best gift to give your kids are skills that they need to live independently Motor memory based on practice of past experiences over and over Destructive effects on kids keeps them from reaching psych maturity a moving too much b underplaying importance of neighborhoods c keeping children in only 1