Introduction to Psychology

Introduction to Psychology

It is a well-known fact that psychological preparation can have a huge bearing and is essential for an athletes performance levels. Having knowledge and applying psychological theories and strategies enable them to raise their performance.

So what is psychology?

Dr Norman Anderson, PhD (2011) says ‘Psychology is the science of the mind and behaviour.’Below is a short video, where Dr Anderson, gives a short and simple definition of psychology.

In the following blog; theories of psychology will be explained along with the affects made on performance. Also discussed will be strategies than can be used in order to combat stress and arousal in order to optimise performance.

Motivation

Kleinginna (1981) defines motivation as:

‘An internal state or condition (sometimes described as a need, desire, or want) that serves to activate or energize behaviour and give it direction.’

Motivation is considered by most as a very important psychological component in terms of improving performance and then being able to maintain those levels. Without the correct motivation levels, athletes will not be fully committed to performing at the highest levels, ,meaning they will begin to start missing training sessions; as well as not training will full intensity to those they do attend, which overall effects competition performance. Within motivation there’s intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.

Intrinsic motivation is the need for athletes to maintain high levels of performance for their own personal satisfaction, whereas extrinsic motivation is where they maintain those levels for outside rewards such as money and trophies.

Personality

Personality can be seen as a vital factor in terms of performance. Different personalities deal with motivation, arousal, stress, anxiety and goal-setting differently. Under the title personality are introvert, extrovert, stable and unstable labels. The image below provided by Psychology Today (2011) shows the divide between those labels.

This image shows the divide between introvert/extrovert and stable/unstable personality types. These indicates that no athlete is simply either one of the other, that the types are on a continuum and that the athletes will be a mixture. Attached to personality are the subheadings type A and type B.

In a sports setting, type A individuals tend to be more motivated and determined than type B to continue when sporting situations become unfavourable.

Type A

•         Tend to lack patience
•          Have a strong urge for competition
•       Always rush to complete
•          Happily multi-task when under time constraints
•       Lack tolerance towards others
•         Tend to experience higher levels of anxiety

Type B

•         Tend to be more tolerant towards others
•          More relaxed
•          More reflective
•          Experience lower levels of anxiety
•          Display higher levels of imagination and creativity

Aspiration

This is the athlete’s levels of ambition to succeed. Therefore when success is taken into account, aspirations are a hugely critical factor. Aspirations most of the time can heavily lead to anxiety and arousal. Although the two terms can be used interchangeably, they are not the same; they are seen and measured in different ways with different strategies and techniques for each.