Personality TIPS Make sure you learn the specific

Personality TIPS! ¡ ¡ ¡ Make sure you learn the specific definition of personality! Have awareness of the links between personality and sports performance. It is important to understand the NATURE (trait) V NURTURE (social learning) and interactionist perspectives of behaviour. Learn the strengths and weaknesses of each perspective. Be aware of the problems associated with the use of personality profiling in sport.

Personality “The sum total of an individuals characteristics which make him unique” (Hollander). “Personality is the more or less stable and enduring organisation of a persons character, temperament, intellect and physique which determines the unique adjustment to the environment” (Eysenck).

Personality Types TRAITS INTROVERT Shy, timid, reserved, aloof, self sufficient EXTROVERT Adventurous, confident, Sociable, Group dependent, enthusiastic NARROW BAND APPROACH, GIRDANO, 1990 TYPE ‘A’ Highly competitive, Strong desire to succeed, Works fast, likes to control, Prone to suffer stress TYPE ‘B’ Non-competitive, Unambitious, Works more slowly, Does not enjoy control Less prone to stress

NATURE Personality Theories Trait Theory “People are born with established personality characteristics” Inherited at birth. ¡ Stable ¡ Enduring ¡ consistent in all situations. BEHAVIOUR = FUNCTION OF PERSONALITY +ve = Can be easily measured through questionnaires -ve = Does not take into account environmental influences. It is not a true indicator of behaviour. CATTELL (1965) identified 16 personality traits INTROVERT & EXTROVERT ¡ V’s NURTURE Social Learning Theory (Bandura) “All behaviour is learned through interaction with the environment” BEHAVIOUR = FUNCTION OF ENVIRONMENT -ve = Does not consider inherited behaviour (traits) Interactionist Theory “Behaviour occurs from the interaction between inherited traits and learned experiences” BEHAVIOUR = FUNCTION OF PERSONALITY × ENVIRNOMENT

Personality Theories Concentric Ring Theory (Hollander 1967) Role Related Behaviour – Surface of personality Typical Response – Your usual response in most situations The Psychological Core – The ‘real you’ The boundary line of each layer gets wider as you get closer to the centre of the model which shows that each layer is harder to enter. As you move closer to the centre, your ‘real’ personality begins to surface

Personality Theories Psychodynamic Theory (Freud, 1933) ID Basic Instinct (no conscious control) EGO Conscious link with reality SUPER EGO Moral Arm (social conscience) ****THINK OF AGGRESSION AS AN EXAMPLE!**** ID, EGO & SUPER EGO interact to produce individual patterns of behaviour in sport. Personality is formed from the conflict of SEEKING, RELEASING and INHIBITING behaviour.

Personality Theories Eysenck’s Personality Types Personality traits run across 2 continuums: INTROVERT: unsociable, shy & nervous NEUROTIC (UNSTABLE) EXTROVERT: sociable, outgoing & lively INTROVERT EXTROVERT STABLE: calm, eventempered, controlled 7 logical UNSTABLE: anxious, moody, unpredictable & illogical

Personality Testing Methods of Testing 1) Observation 2) Psychometric methods: self report questionnaires (16 personality factor questionnaire designed by CATTELL) Problems 1) Questionnaires, observations and self-reports are not reliable as people can fix answers. 2) SCEPTICAL APPROACH: Evidence is too general – personality alone can not predict behaviour. 3) CREDULOUS APPROACH: Although there is a link between personality research and performance in sport, there is lack of evidence to support this.

Attitudes TIPS! ¡ ¡ ¡ Make sure you understand how attitudes are formed and influenced. You need to be able to explain how attitudes can be changed. Try to understand the links between attitude and behaviour in sport.

ATTITUDE OBJECTS The people, subject or situation towards which an attitude is directed.

What is an ATTITUDE? ATTITUDES – A learned behavioural predisposition. (linked with personality) UNSTABLE LEARNED DIRECTED TOWARDS ATTITUDE OBJECTS CAN BE CHANGED/ CONTROLLED ENDURING EMOTIONAL & BEHAVIOURAL RESPONSE

Formation of Attitudes COACHES/ TEACHERS PARENTS FRIENDS/ PEERS PAST EXPERIENCES PREJUDICE ATTITUDES MEDIA Attitudes are mainly formed through experiences. Socialisation: The process of mixing and relating to other people.

Triadic Model of Attitudes This is known as the information component This is known as the emotional component This concerns how a person intends to behave towards an attitude object

Cognitive Dissonance Theory (Festinger) If a person hold two ideas that oppose and conflict with each other an element of discomfort arises. Emotional conflict is called DISSONANCE.

Cognitive Dissonance Theory (Festinger) To reduce this feeling of dissonance, the impact of one of the conflicting ideas could be lessened and therefore an attitude would change. Updating knowledge or providing a person with new information can change the cognitive component. Providing a person with new and positive experiences can modify the affective component. If a skill is simplified or if some form of guidance is used to make execution easier, the behavioural component of attitude can be changed. Remember METHODS OF GUIDANCE from AS SKILL

Persuasive Communication Theory You need to be aware of most effective way of persuading someone to change their attitude. Would these people persuade you or would they just cause you stress?

Persuasive Communication Theory 1. The Persuader Significant other with high status 3. The recipients Easy to changed an attitude if the recipient really wishes to be changed 2. The Message Positive to initiate the change 4. The situation The presence of other persuaders PERSUASIVE COMMUNICATION the person must - pay attention - understand - accept - retain the message being given the coach must - be expert - be trustworthy the message must - be clear - be unambiguous - be balanced between pros and cons

TASK………… You are a GCSE PE pupil. How could persuasive communication change your negative attitude towards cross country?

ANSWER………… 1. A significant other, e. g. teacher/captain persuades you that cross country has excellent fitness benefits for a GCSE PE pupil. The teacher explains that they can chose cross country as one of their 4 sports. 2. The teacher tells you it will improve your practical grade if you opt for cross country. 3. You understand that this could improve your overall practical grade so you begin to realise the benefits of taking part. 4. Other pupils in your GCSE class share positive experiences of cross country with you and actively encourage you to take part.

TASK………… How could a physical education teacher change the negative attitude that a pupil may have towards swimming?

ANSWER…. . • Educate the pupil about the benefits of swimming • Use cognitive dissonance theory • Persuasive communication from a significant other, e. g. teacher • Set achievable goals to ensure pupil achieves success and experiences enjoyment. • Offer rewards, e. g. praise, trophies. • Familiarise with role models from within the sport of swimming. • Use floats to make execution of some strokes easier. • Attribution retraining.

To conclude………. Attitudes are generally poor predictors of behaviour. • • Social and situational factors influence actual behaviour very strongly. • “Behavioural intention is the strongest predictor of behaviour (Fishbein, 1974). ”

Achievement Motivation TIPS! You need to understand the meaning of the term ‘achievement motivation’. ¡ Make sure you know the characteristics of the different personality types – TAS and TAF. ¡ You need to be aware of the links between personality and the motive to achieve. ¡ It is important to make links between TAS and TAF and ‘attributions’ for success and failure. ¡

Achievement Motivation is a concept developed by sports psychologists to link PERSONALITY and COMPETITIVENESS. The major issue centres on the extent to which an INDIVIDUAL IS MOTIVATED TO ATTAIN SUCCESS. Success in sport is measured against some type of COMPETITIVE GOAL.

Types of Goals According to BIDDLE, there are several types of goal against which success can be judged: • MASTERY or TASK GOALS: Associated with selfimprovement, e. g. trying to achieve a PB in athletics (the same as PROCESS GOALS). • EGO or ABILITY GOALS: Involve a comparison against ones rivals, e. g. beating everyone else to win the club tennis tournament (the same as OUTCOME GOALS) • SOCIALLY APPROVED GOALS: Involves seeking social reinforcement as a measure of success, e. g. winning to earn approval from parents or coaches. THINK BACK TO GOALS FROM AS SKILL!

Atkinson & Mc. Clelland (1976) – Interactionist View In any challenging situation, everyone will have both a ‘need to achieve’ and a ‘need to avoid failure’. Whichever feeling is stronger will determine whether the task is accepted or declined. Competitive orientation is generated through personality and situational factors

Personality Factors A = TAS someone with a high need to achieve will probably have a low need to avoid failure and will choose difficult or demanding tasks which are more risky, e. g. the hard route up a rock face B = TAF someone with a high need to avoid failure will probably have a low need to achieve and will choose tasks which are less risky and more easily achieved, e. g. the easy route up the rock face TAS = Tendency to APPROACH success TAF = Tendency to AVOID failure

Situational Factors A = If the probability of success low (competing against the world champion) you will strive very hard to win (incentive high). You will be highly chuffed if you win. B = If the probability of success high (competing in local club match) you don’t need to try as hard to win (incentive low and expect to win easily). It is not so pleasing if you win.

What can the coach do? IMPROVE NEED AND MOTIVE TO ACHIEVE (Nach) • Increase positive reinforcement hence increasing pride and satisfaction • Ensure that goals are achievable • Ensure that at least some situations guarantee success and subsequently gradually increase task difficulty in line with progress • Ensure that tasks are challenging • Ensure that the probability of success is good • Ensure that the incentive value of the success is high (is the race worth winning? )

What can the coach do? REDUCE TENDENCY AND MOTIVE TO AVOID FAILURE (Na. F) • Reduce punishment hence lowering the chance of performer worrying about failure • Focus negative feedback on effort rather than ability. This avoids the performer tending to believe that causes of failure are internal (due to lack of ability for example) and reduces the risk of learned helplessness. • Avoid situations where defeat / failure is inevitable (such as performing against a much superior opponent) if this is not possible alter the criteria for success (you will have succeeded if you only lose by 2 goals).

Group Dynamics TIPS! ¡ ¡ ¡ ¡ Be able to define the terms ‘group’ and ‘team’. You need to understand Steiner’s model of group performance. Be able to explain the Ringlemann effect and social loafing and how they damage the cohesiveness of a team. Learn the factors affecting the cohesiveness of a group and how any breakdowns can be prevented. Learn the characteristics of an effective leader. Describe emergent and prescribed leaders. You need to be able to understand the different perspectives on and theories of leadership.

Groups “Groups are those social aggregates that involve mutual awareness and the potential for interaction” (Mc. Grath) A collective identity GROUPS (Carron) A sense of shared purpose A clear structure for communication

Group Cohesion “The extent to which a group sticks together in pursuit of a common goal. ” TASK COHESION The way team members work together to successfully complete a task, e. g. a football team sets Out to win by adopting attacking Tactics at home & away matches Vital in INTERACTIVE Sports, e. g. hockey SOCIAL COHESION The personal relationships within a group which relies on individuals enjoying social interaction, e. g. strong Bond developed whilst on tour. Vital in CO-ACTIVE sports, e. g. track and field

Group Dynamics “The social processes operating within the group between individual members. ” SUB GROUPS Small groups contained within the whole group TO ACHIEVE COHESION • Break down cliques and sub groups • Separate pairs • Integrate isolates GROUP DYNAMIC SOCIOGRAM The best way of illustrating the group dynamics of a team. Team sports rely on units within the team Working closely together

Steiner’s Model ACTUAL = POTENTIAL - LOSSES DUE TO PRODUCTIVITY FAULTY PROCESSES (AP) (PP) (FP) The team performance at any given time (due to successful interaction) The maximum capability of the group when cohesiveness is strongest Factors that go wrong in team performance which impede/ prevent group cohesion e. g. coordination losses & motivational losses GROUP COHESION IS THE FORCE THAT BINDS A GROUP TOGETHER, HELPING TO PREVENT FAULTY PROCESSES.

Faulty Processes Co-ordination Losses Motivation Losses o These occur when the ‘operational effectiveness’ of the group cannot be sustained for the whole match. o This may occur if the task is too difficult. o Planned strategies/tactics may go wrong due to positional error or bad timing, e. g. Line out in rugby. A co-ordination loss that leads to a breakdown in team work is called the RINGLEMANN EFFECT. Problems with team co-ordination are more likely to increase as the number of team members increase. o Also an individual might suffer loss of motivation causing them to withdraw effort and coast through that part of the game. A motivation loss that leads to a reduction in effort is called SOCIAL LOAFING. This is called when an individuals efforts go unnoticed or when someone feels like the others on their team are not trying hard enough. People with low SC tend to be loafers.

Group Locomotion “ The process that explains the reasons why the group has formed. It symbolises the activity of the team. ” For locomotion to be efficient there must be a LEADER to ensure the coordination of the team. ****Don’t always assume that good players make good leaders! Make sure you know the characteristics of a good leader****

Leadership Understand the needs of others Good communication skills Ambition Think of Woody from Toy Story! Determination What makes a good Leader? Highly developed perception skills Experience Vision Good at making decisions Empathy with team members

Selection of a Leader EMERGENT LEADERS: Already belongs to the group & selection is made formally, e. g. by vote or interview. PRECRIBED LEADERS: Selected from outside of the group and is known as an external appointment.

Leadership Theories IS A LEADER BORN OR MADE? o TRAIT APPROACH: Leaders are born with the skills necessary to take charge……however, although certain traits may be helpful in leadership, they are not essential, so this theory is NOT A GOOD PREDICTOR OF BEHAVIOUR. o SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY: The skills of leadership can be acquired by copying others and then developed through experiences. Copying successful role models is called ‘vicarious reinforcement. ’ This DOES NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE TRAIT PERSPECTIVE. o INTERACTIONIST THEORY: Leaders emerge because of inherited abilities (traits) and learned skills. Interactionist theory gives a MORE REALISTIC EXPLANATION OF HUMAN BEHAVIOURS IN SPORT.

Styles of Leadership Autocratic Leaders (task orientated): • Tend to make all decisions • Motivated to complete a task as quickly and effectively as possible • Authoritarian style – they do not take into account the groups opinions • Does not share responsibility • Effective when quick decisions need to be made Democratic Leaders (social/personal orientated): • Shares decisions and responsibilities with group • Interested in developing interpersonal relationships within the team • Effective in coactive sports Laisser-faire Leaders: • Leader stands aside and allows the group to make their own decisions • Members of this type of group tend to be aggressive towards one another when mistakes occurred and they gave up easily.

Fiedler’s Contingency Model According to Fiedler, the correct style of leadership to adopt depends on the ‘favourableness’ of the situation. Highly favourable situation Highly unfavourable situation Leaders position is strong Leaders position is weak Task is simple with clear structure Task is complex with vague structure Warm group and leader relations Hostile group and leader relations AUTOCRATIC LEADERS are more effective in both the MOST FAVOURABLE and the LEAST FVOURABLE situations. DEMOCRATIC LEADERS are more effective in MODERATELY FAVOURABLE situations.

Multidimensional Model of Sports Leadership

Multidimensional Model of Sports Leadership CHELLANDURIA believed that the effectiveness of the group could be judged on: 1. The degree of success accomplished during a task 2. The extent to which the group experienced satisfaction while being led to the goal. SITUATIONAL, LEADER AND GROUP MEMBER CHARACTERISCS interact to determine the behaviour adopted by the leader (these are ANTECEDENTS) REQUIRED, ACTUAL AND PREFERRED BEHAVIOUR are 3 types of leader behaviour that would be guided by these antecedents. If all three of the leader behaviours are CONGRUENT (coincide exactly) then members will be highly satisfied and produce high group performance. Effective leadership has taken place if the ACTUAL BEHAVIOUR HAS SURPASSED THE SITUATIONAL DEMANDS AND THE STYLE HAS MET WITH THE APPROVAL OF THE GROUP.

Mental Preparation TIPS! ¡ ¡ ¡ You need to understand the meaning and links between commitment, selfconfidence, concentration and control of emotion. Be able to explain each term in the context of mental preparation for sport performance. You must be able to identify and explain the relevant theories associated with each term.

Mental Preparation 4 C’ s

Concentration LINKED WITH AROUSAL! “A state of mind in which attention is directed towards a specific aim or activity. ” “Mistakes in top level sport happen not because technique is suspect, but because of attentional errors” (MARTENS) When AROUSAL IS LOW the PERCEPTUAL FIELD WIDENS and an excessive number of environmental cues enter into the information processing system. SELECTIVE ATTENTION IS NOT in operation and CONCENTRATION ON RELEVANT INFORMATION IS DIFFICULT. *****INFORMATION OVERLOAD OCCURS ***** LOW AROUSAL PERCEPTUAL FIELD WIDENS LIMITED SELECTIVE ATTENTION = LACK OF CONCENTRATION

Cue Utilisation Theory This theory predicts ‘THE SELECTION OF THE MOST RELEVANT ENVIRONMENTAL DATA AT THE OPTIMAL AROUSAL LEVEL’. As arousal increases the perceptual field will adjust to the ideal width enabling the performer to focus on the most relevant cues/information. Selective attention is fully operational and the potential to concentrate is maximised. OPTIMAL AROUSAL PERCEPTUAL FIELD AT IDEAL WIDTH SELECTIVE ATTENTIONS IN OPERATION = CONCENTRATION IS MAXIMISED! Beyond this optimal threshold (over aroused), the perceptual focus narrows excessively and the relevant cues may be missed. The athlete appears highly agitated and panics. This condition is known as HYPER-VIGILANCE or PANIC. HIGH AROUSAL PERCEPTUAL FIELD NARROWS RELEVANT CUES MISSED = HYPER-VIGILANCE & PANIC

NIDEFFER’S ATTENTIONAL STYLES All players have a preferred attentional style. To improve performance it is necessary to operate successfully in all styles. EXTERNAL BROAD INTERNAL Think of the difference between a C & GA in Netball NIDEFFER’S ATTENTIONAL STYLES BROAD - a player concentrates on the whole game - all players’ positions and movements - open skills NARROW - the player concentrates on one aspect of the game - the goalkeeper NARROW - closed skills INTERNAL - the player decides to concentrate on his own technique EXTERNAL -the player focuses on the position of his opposite number

Emotional Control AROUSAL, ANXIETY, STRESS and ACTIVATION all relate to MOTIVATION. Arousal will improve performance up to an optimal point, however this optimal threshold changes or ‘shifts’ for every individual and different situation. Task Type Personality -Extroverts perform best when arousal is high (seek stimulation of RAS) - Introverts perform best at low arousal (sensitive RAS system) - Simple/ Gross skills are performed better in high arousal, e. g. shot put - Complex/ fine skills are performed better in low arousal, e. g. spin bowling in cricket Stage of Learning Experience -Autonomous stage perform better in high arousal - Experienced performer is best in high arousal - Cognitive/ associative phase perform better in low arousal - Novice performer is best in low arousal

Individual Zone of Optimal Functioning (Hanin) Athlete A (low ZOF) Athlete B (moderate ZOF) Athlete C (high ZOF) In zone Out of zone (best performance) Out of zone In zone (best performance) Increasing Arousal An athlete will enter the zone when arousal is at an optimum level and the situation matches the athlete’s strongest attentional style.

Individual Zone of Optimal Functioning (Hanin) Different people perform better under different (arousal) conditions: Personality Task Type Low Zone of INTROVERT Functioning (low arousal) SIMPLE/ GROSS SKILLS, E. G. SHOT PUT COGNITIVE/ ASSOCIATIVE PHASE NOVICE PERFORMERS COMPLEX/ FINE SKILLS, E. G. SPIN BOWLING AUTONOMOUS EXPERIENCED PERFORMER High Zone of Functioning (high arousal) EXTROVERT Stage of Learning Experience

Individual Zone of Optimal Functioning (Hanin)……… Teachers and coaches should guide the performer towards their personal ‘optimal threshold’ or ‘individual zone of optimal functioning’. THE ATHLETE FEELS IN FULL CONTROL EXECUTION OF THE SKILL BRINGS ENJOYMENT AND SATISFACTION EFFORTLESS PERFORMANCE IN THE ZONE! ATTENTION AND CONCENTRATION OF THE PERFORMER IS FOCUSED

Anxiety TRAIT ANXIETY: Genetically inherited. These people appear to be anxious at all times. This tends to be permanent and relatively stable. STATE ANXIETY: This fluctuates in response to a given situation and is associated with arousal. It is a learned behavioural response, but can be controlled and manipulated to facilitate optimal performance. (SPIELBERGER) SOMATIC (physical) RESPONSE: Follows the inverted U hypothesis and refers to physiological changes. Somatic responses include excesses muscular tension, heart and respiration rates, resulting in impaired movement. This condition will not allow the performer to enter a ‘peak flow’ state. COGNITIVE (psychological) RESPONSE: Reflects increasing worry about performance. They could become increasingly apprehensive and develop doubts and negative thoughts. Attentional changes occur which negatively impact on the information processing system. If the athlete experiences worry, he or she will not attain a ‘peak flow’ state.

Anxiety ‘Anxiety occurs when there is a substantial imbalance between the individual’s perception of their ability and their perception of the demands and importance of the situation. ’ (MARTENS) Perception of the situational Demands. e. g. I must win my leg of the relay if my team is to have the chance of winning. ANXIETY Perception of ability to cope. e. g. I am not as good as my opponent Perception of the importance of the situation. e. g. The result of this competition hinges on this relay race.

Anxiety Management COGNITIVE METHODS SOMATIC METHODS IMAGERY THOUGHT STOPPING POSITIVE TALK RATIONAL THINKING PROGRESSIVE MUSCULAR RELAXTATION BIOFEEDBACK

PEAK FLOW: Optimal experience that facilitates best performance and is intrinsically valuable. (Csikzentmimalyi) Ø Peak flow occurs when somatic anxiety has reached an appropriate threshold and cognitive anxiety is low. High somatic arousal Low cognitive Arousal anxiety Excitement, happiness Anxiety, anger High cognitive Arousal Relaxation, Drowsiness Boredom fatigue anxiety Low somatic arousal During these rare moments in sport, the athlete assumes control over all internal and environmental variables and a time of greatest happiness and selffulfilment is experienced. Ø flow state is attained when the performer has a balanced perception of the demands of the situation and his/her ability to cope. Ø a high incentive value is to be gained from a challenge that is both realistic and attainable. ØThe focus of attention and concentration is maximised. Ø there is a self-confident belief that nothing could go wrong. Ø the situation suits the athlete’s strongest attentional style.

Competitive Effects on Sport Performance TIPS! ¡ ¡ ¡ ¡ You need to be able to recognise the difference between aggression, assertion and channelled aggression. You need to understand the main theories of aggression. Be able to describe how aggressive tendencies can be limited. Understand the difference between social facilitation and social inhibition. Describe the major theories of social facilitation and be able to link them to arousal. Try to understand the homefield advantage phenomenon. Be able to suggest strategies to combat social inhibition.

Aggression “Any behaviour that is intended to harm another individual by physical or verbal means. ” (BULL) “Any form of behaviour directed toward the goal of harming or injuring another human being who is motivated to avoid such treatment. ” (BARON) HOSTILE (OR REACTIVE) AGGRESSION Main aim is to harm and inflict injury. Aggressive actions are outside the rules of the game ‘Hostile destructiveness’ (PARENS) Hostile aggression involves anger. This type of aggression needs to be eliminated from sport! INSTRUMENTAL (OR CHANNELLED) AGGRESSION Actions within the rules of the game. Although PRIME motive is the successful execution of the skill, there is still the intention to harm. Anger is not evident. Present in many sporting situations. ASSERTIVE BEHAVIOUR No intention to harm. Strictly within the rules and spirit of the game. Robust, but functional play. Primarily focused on completing the skill successfully. ‘Non-hostile selfprotective mastery behaviour’ (PARENS, 1987)

Antecedents of Aggression HOSTILE CROWDS NATURE OF THE GAME WIDE DIVISION BETWEEN SCORES FRUSTRATION CAUSED BY POOR PERFORMANCE, OPPOSITION OR REFS DECISIONS. AGGRESSION PREVIOUSLY DEVELOPED GRUDGES OR SCORES TO SETTLE VENUE…AWAY TEAM HIGH AROUSAL LEVELS EXTRINSIC REWARDS

Theories of Aggression INSTINCT THEORY (TRAIT PERSPECTIVE) - Proposed by FRUED but developed but LORENZ in 1966. - ‘Aggression is genetically inherited and that trait of violence lies within everyone due to a basic instinct to dominate. ’ - ‘Death instinct’ (FREUD) - ‘Aggressive energy is constantly building up and needs to be released’ (LORENZ) FRUSTRATION AGGRESSION HYPOTHESIS – INTERACTIONIST PERSPECTIVE - Proposed by DOLLARD. - ‘Frustration develops when goal-directed behaviour or NACH is blocked. ’ -It is instinctive to fulfil the need to release frustration. - Instinct theory – aggression is the goal. - Aggression = successful = catharsis - Aggression = unsuccessful = more frustration SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY - Proposed by BANDURA, 1966 but developed by LEAKEY. - Aggression is not biologically based but is nurtured through environmental forces. - Learned by watching and copying role models and it becomes an excepted mode of behaviour if reinforced. AGGRESSION CUE HYPOTHESIS (BERKOWITZ, 1969) – INTERACTIONIST PERSPECTIVE - Builds upon DOLLARD’S work. -Frustration leads to an increase in arousal which, in some situations will result in aggression. -Cues = baseball bats, violent acts being witnessed, nature of the game will trigger aggression if arousal is high. -Best players have the ability/temperament to control frustration and arousal.

Methods to eliminate aggression Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Punish aggressive play. Withdraw violent players from the situation. Stress performance rather than the outcome. Emphasise non-aggressive role models. Make use of cognitive strategies to prevent aggressive play. Positively reinforce non-aggressive behaviour and negatively reinforce aggressive behaviour. Change athletes perceptions of the situation. Implement stress management techniques. Lower arousal levels

Social Facilitation/Inhibition SOCIAL FACILITATION: The presence of an audience positively increases arousal levels and performance is enhanced. SOCIAL INHIBITION: A negative effect on performance is experienced due to the attendance of an audience. TRIPLETT (1898) – ZAJONC 1 st Sport Psych Experiment: - The ‘mere’ presence of others is sufficient to increase the arousal level of the performer. The presence of others… -Arouses competitive drive - Releases energy - Increases the speed of performance -This uses ‘drive theory’ to predict the effect of others on performance. - As arousal increases (as would happen when spectators are present), there is a greater likelihood of the dominant response occurring. COTTRELL’S EVALUATION APPREHENSION - In some circumstances the audience can have a calming effect. - Increases in arousal were only present when the performer perceived that the audience was assessing performance.

Social Facilitation/Inhibition Homefield Advantage: Distraction/ Conflict Theory (Barron, 1986) Strategies to Combat Social Inhibition: -Large supportive home crowds have a positive effect on performance. -Individuals can only attend to a limited amount of environmental cues. - Practice selective attention. - Most evident in indoor sports such as basketball. - Spectators demand the same attention as other players, resulting in more competition for attentional space. - Crowd gets close to the action, increasing audience influence. This is called the ‘proximity effect. ’ - Complex actions would therefore be impaired in front of large crowds. - Use imagery, mental rehearsal to block out audience effects. - Ensure essential skills are overlearned and grooved. - introduce evaluative others into practice. - Raise athletes’ awareness of the zone of optimal functioning. - Incorporate stress management into training. - Appropriate use of attribution

Attribution Theory TIPS! You should be able to identify the reasons for success and failure in sport. ¡ You need to understand ‘Weiner’s Attribution Model’ and be able to relate it to specific sporting situations. ¡ Learn the definitions of ‘mastery orientation’ and ‘learned helplessness’. ¡

Attribution Theory Attribution theory looks at the common reasons coaches and players give for their success or failure in sport. Weiner’s Attribution Model LOCUS OF CAUSALITY is the performance outcome caused by - INTERNAL factors under the control of the performer ability / effort - EXTERNAL factors beyond the control of the performer task difficulty / luck STABILITY is the performance outcome caused by - STABLE factors fixed factors which don’t change with time ability / task difficulty - UNSTABLE factors which can vary with time effort / luck

Attribution Theory HIGH ACHIEVERS attribute success to internal factors and attribute failure to external factors HIGH ACHIEVER LOW ACHIEVERS attribute success to external factors and attribute failure to internal factors LOW ACHIEVER motivation? high motive to achieve success low motive to avoid failure focuses on pride on success low motive to achieve success high motive to avoid failure focuses on shame and worry about failure attributions ascribes success to stable internal and controllable factors ascribes failure to unstable external uncontrollable factors ascribes success to unstable external uncontrollable factors ascribes failure to stable internal controllable factors goals adopted task choice adopts task oriented goals seeks challenging tasks and competitive situations performance performs well in front of evaluative audiences adopts outcome oriented goals avoids challenge, seeks very difficult or very easy tasks / competition performs badly in front of evaluative audiences

Attribution Retraining The athlete has little control over ability, luck or task difficulty but has complete control over EFFORT. Effort is internal and unstable and can be changed by the performer. The coach changes the usual external attributions for failure into internal, unstable controllable factors. Attributing a lack of success to internal and unstable factors will help to prevent learned helplessness. LEARNED HELPLESSNESS A belief acquired over time that one has no control over events and that failure is inevitable. A feeling of ‘hopelessness. ’