(Press-News.org) Back in high school, on the soccer field, poised to take a crucial penalty kick, "I always had a lot of thoughts going on in my head; I think most people do" says sports psychologist Antonis Hatzigeorgiadis. "I was setting the ball and planning my shot; I was the captain and never missed those types of shots; then I had that thought striking me that it was not going to be good. I knew I was going to miss," he recalls, "and I did miss." Even then, he could see that his mind had a big effect on his body.
From these unhappy experiences evolved Hatzigeorgiadis' interest in the psychology of sport - the link between one's thoughts and performance, and specifically in "self-talk"— the mental strategy that aims to improve performance through the use of self-addressed cues (words or small phrases), which trigger appropriate responses and action, mostly by focusing attention and psyching-up.
"We know this strategy works, and it works in sports," says Hatzigeorgiadis. But what makes it work better, and in what situations? To find out, Hatzigeorgiadis and his colleagues at the Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences at the University of Thessaly, Nikos Zourbanos, Evangelos Galanis, and Yiannis Theodorakis conducted a meta-analysis of 32 sport psychological studies on the subject with a total of 62 measured effects. Their findings will be published in an upcoming issue of Perspectives on Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
As expected, the analysis revealed that self-talk improves sport performance.
But the researchers teased out more - different self-talk cues work differently in different situations. For tasks requiring fine skills or for improving technique "instructional self-talk", such as a technical instruction ("elbow-up" which Hatzigeorgiadis coaches beginner freestyle swimmers to say) is more effective than 'motivational self-talk' (e.g., "give it all"), which seems to be more effective in tasks requiring strength or endurance, boosting confidence and psyching-up for competition. Thus, we should carefully design the self-talk athletes use according to needs.
Some other findings are that self-talk has a greater effect on tasks involving fine skills (such as sinking a golf ball) rather than gross skills (e.g., cycling); probably because self-talk is a technique which mostly improves concentration. Self-talk is more effective for novel tasks rather than well-learned tasks; because it is easier to improve at the early steps of learning. Nevertheless, both beginners and experienced athletes can benefit, especially when they practice the self-talk technique.
Most important, says Hatzigeorgiadis, is that athletes train to self-talk—they prepare their scripts and use them consistently in training under varying conditions to better prepare themselves for competition.
The main goals behind self-talk—like other techniques such as visualization to "rehearse" a performance or meditation to improve focus and relaxation—are twofold, says Hatzigeorgiadis: "to enhance your potential; and to perform during competition in terms of your ability and not less."
The meta-analysis can help sports psychologists and athletes refine their training. But the strategy has implications beyond the playing field. "The mind guides action. If we succeed in regulating our thoughts, then this will help our behavior," says Hatzigeorgiadis.
"The goal of being prepared is to do the best you can do."
###
For more information about this study, please contact: Antonis Hatzigeorgiadis, at ahatzi@pe.uth.gr.
Perspectives on Psychological Science is ranked among the top 10 general psychology journals for impact by the Institute for Scientific Information. It publishes an eclectic mix of thought-provoking articles on the latest important advances in psychology. For a copy of the article "Self-talk and sport performance: A meta-analysis" and access to other Perspectives on Psychological Science research findings, please contact Divya Menon at 202-293-9300 or dmenon@psychologicalscience.org.
END
Five billion years from now, our Milky Way galaxy will collide with the Andromeda galaxy. This will mark a moment of both destruction and creation. The galaxies will lose their separate identities as they merge into one. At the same time, cosmic clouds of gas and dust will smash together, triggering the birth of new stars.
To understand our past and imagine our future, we must understand what happens when galaxies collide. But since galaxy collisions take place over millions to billions of years, we can't watch a single collision from start to finish. Instead, we must ...
After 17 years of researching traumatic stress with war-afflicted populations (veterans and civilians) and job stress in the medical profession, Teresa McIntyre, a research professor in the department of psychology and the Texas Institute for Evaluation, Measurement and Statistics (TIMES), at the University of Houston (UH), decided to study another high risk occupation, middle school teachers in seventh and eighth grade.
"Teaching is a highly stressful occupation," McIntyre said. "Teacher stress affects various aspects of teacher health and may influence how effective ...
Typhoon Songda was east of the Philippines when the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite had an early evening view on May 25, 2011 at 0903 UTC (05:03 EDT) and saw good organization within the storm and heavy rainfall. Songda has intensified into a major typhoon as it tracks parallel to the east coast of the northern Philippines, spawning warnings.
Both TRMM's Microwave Imager (TMI) and Precipitation Radar (PR) instruments were used to provide the rainfall analysis. TRMM's TMI had the best coverage of rainfall with Songda and showed well organized bands ...
Dr. William Mason, Medical Director, and Dr. Kenneth Bozeman, Newton hearing doctors, invite patients to visit Enhanced Auditory Resources' (E.A.R.) educational website to view and listen to informative videos on hearing loss and hearing aids. The helpful videos included on the practice's state-of-the-art website include an educational video on hearing and an interview with Dr. Mason.
The first video provides information on various topics regarding, hearing loss and hearing aids. Topics include how you hear, hearing loss, diagnosis, treatment and technology, and additional ...
DSKA Tools, which is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, is proud to be celebrating over 25 years in the heavy equipment and diesel engine field. DSKA Tools, run by the Quinn family, is a prominent tool and equipment reseller.
DSKA Tools provides quality tools for professional mechanics, both diesel and automotive. Furthermore, it is an authorized reseller of Genius Hand Tools, SK Tools, and Grey Pneumatic; which are some of the best tools in the business. "We don't just peddle tools and equipment. We actually use the products we sell," says Darren Quinn, principal ...
VIDEO:
A totally blind subject makes her way up a corridor. The system uses Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) software to build maps of the environment and identify a safe path...
Click here for more information.
For the visually impaired, navigating city streets or neighborhoods has constant challenges. And most such people still must rely on a very rudimentary technology—a simple cane—to help them make their way through a complex world.
A group of University ...
Roughly 19 percent of young adults may have high blood pressure, according to an analysis of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), which is supported by the National Institutes of Health.
The researchers took blood pressure readings of more than 14,000 men and women between 24 and 32 years of age who were enrolled in the long-running study.
The analysis was conducted by Kathleen Mullan Harris, Ph.D., principal investigator of the study, and colleagues at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The study's first author was Quynh ...
If you have suffered a personal injury in the Atlanta area, you will probably need to find a qualified Georgia personal injury attorney. You may be entitled to receive compensation for your injuries, but it can be difficult to collect the compensation you deserve. If the other party denied fault or the insurance only offered you a portion of the money to which you are entitled, an experienced lawyer can help you protect your rights.
Beginning Your Search
As you are searching for an Atlanta personal injury lawyer, carefully investigate and speak with several personal ...
MONTREAL, March 26, 2011 – Recalling painful memories while under the influence of the drug metyrapone reduces the brain's ability to re-record the negative emotions associated with them, according to University of Montreal researchers at the Centre for Studies on Human Stress of Louis-H. Lafontaine Hospital. The team's study challenges the theory that memories cannot be modified once they are stored in the brain. "Metyrapone is a drug that significantly decreases the levels of cortisol, a stress hormone that is involved in memory recall," explained lead author Marie-France ...
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has found a rare class of oddball stars called blue stragglers in the hub of our Milky Way, the first detected within our galaxy's bulge.
Blue stragglers are so named because they seemingly lag behind in the aging process, appearing younger than the population from which they formed. While they have been detected in many distant star clusters, and among nearby stars, they never have been seen inside the core of our galaxy.
It is not clear how blue stragglers form. A common theory is that they emerge from binary pairs. As the more massive ...
