When the physical breaks down, try a little A.S.P.

It isn't that tough to get a lot of help from Applied Sport Psychology

Over the past 30 years, technology has produced more information on sport science than it had done in the previous century. In fact, the supply of information appears to be doubling every five years!

Paralleling this phenomenal growth has been the proliferation of books, journals, tapes, and similar outlets for the dissemination of knowledge on the kinesiology/sport subdisciplines.

In the field of Applied Sport Psychology (ASP) are such publications as the Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, the Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, and the Sport Psychologist, which regularly publish information directly related to the teaching of mental skills designed to improve performance.

The downside on this astonishing promulgation of knowledge is that it is probably utilized by no more than one percent of the individuals in the kinesiology and coaching fields (Figone, 1997).

What accounts for the neglect of these massive resources at every level of sport? Consider the following scenario:

"Jim is batting .350, yet seems unable to score runners from second or third. He is hitting just .185 with runners in scoring position. Jim's coach is aware of this breakdown, but refuses to address the issue. He simply tells Jim, "Just hang in there; you'll start driving them in."

Many coaches believe that performance breakdowns can be rectified by increasing the athletes' practice time - work harder on the shortcomings. They remain perplexed by the fluctuations in skill execution, and the possibility that success or failure can be produced by a combination of physical skills (strength, speed, balance, coordination) and mental skills (concentration, confidence, arousal management}.

Since physical abilities remain relatively stable, it is likely that the psychological factors account more for the fluctuations in day-to-day performance (Weinberg & Gould, 1995).

Why do coaches neglect Psychological Skill Training (PST)?

Basically, because many coaches do not understand how to teach and practice it. Exhortations such as "just relax" or "concentrate" or "Get with it mentally" assume that the player already possesses the ability to concentrate, relax, play confidently, and so on.

Just as basketball coaches would never try to improve shooting efficiency without thousands of repetitions in shooting drills, coaches cannot hope to improve their players' confidence and consistency without systematic practice.

Coaches are not to be faulted for this state of affairs. Many have not been exposed to or limited in their exposure to PST. Those who venture into the PST literature often find themselves intimidated or irritated by the unfamiliar nomenclature or "jargon."

Too much of the professional literature is composed by experts for other experts (or editorial boards) rather than for the coaches who have the most need for it.

Despite the fact that the disseminators of ASP would like to believe that their interventions are becoming more widely applied, the empirical evidence shows that the overwhelming majority of coaches are simply not applying PST (Stewart, 1993).

Many coaches harbor the misconception that champions are born rather than made. They believe that athletes like Bill Russell, Wayne Gretzky, and Steffi Graff are born with superior physical and mental skills. While it's true that such skills vary within any athletical group, almost every champion performer will acknowledge that he had to spend countless hours honing his physical and psychological skills.

Bill Russell, perhaps the greatest defensive player of all time, bristles at the thought that his superlative ability to physically and mentally intimidate his opponents and maintain his coolness and concentration despite distractions, were innate.

All of it, he maintains, was the product of countless hours of integrating his psychological and physical skills.

Perhaps the coaches' most frequent reason for not implementing PST is the lack of time. Coaches will often attribute losing to such non-physical factors as "We didn't seem ready mentally" or "We couldn't seem to concentrate" or "We just weren't up for the game" or "Our opponents just wanted it more."

Upon returning to practice after such defeats, these coaches will often practice longer on the physical part of the game, believing that the mental skills responsible for the loss will take care of themselves.

Fortunately, PST requires just a fraction of the practice time and, once mastered, can be practiced by the athlete off the field in their free time.

The implementation of such skills as goal-setting, imagery, arousal regulation, concentration, and mental preparation can be effectively taught and applied by coaches who have the desire to work at it.

REFERENCES

* A.J. Figone: Why Don't Practitioners Use Research? Explanations and Selected Implications. A paper presented at the 64th Annual California Association for HPERD, Los Angeles, 1997

* B. Russell & T. Branch: Second Wind: The Memoirs of an Opinionated Man. New York, Random House, 1979

* C. Stewart: "Coaching Behavior: The Way You Were, or The Way You Wished You Were," Physical Educator, 1993

* R.S. Weinberg & D. Gould: Foundations of Sport and Exercise Psychology. Champaign, IL, Human Kinetics, 1995