1 / 21

Integrating and Implementing a Psychological Skills Training Program

Chapter 20. Integrating and Implementing a Psychological Skills Training Program. Bob Weinberg & Jean Williams. Chapter Overview. Are PST programs effective Who will benefit Who should conduct When to implement When practice and how much time How set-up a PST program

calandra-nicoli
Download Presentation

Integrating and Implementing a Psychological Skills Training Program

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Chapter 20 Integrating and Implementing a Psychological Skills Training Program Bob Weinberg & Jean Williams

  2. Chapter Overview • Are PST programs effective • Who will benefit • Who should conduct • When to implement • When practice and how much time • How set-up a PST program • Practical pointers for teaching mental skills • Ethical considerations • Potential problem areas

  3. Research on Psychological Skills Training (PST)Programs • Of 45 studies on PST programs, 85% found positive performance effects • Even stronger effects in more recent studies • Athletes from Olympic level down report that mental training and discipline play a huge part in their success • No ready-made solutions on how coaches and sport psychologists (SP) can integrate and implement a PST program

  4. Who Will Benefit From PST • Some think PST only applicable to elite athletes • Most ideal time for initially implementing PST may be with beginning sport participants • Young athletes may need adjustments such as: • fewer goals • shorter training sessions • simpler verbal instruction • turning the exercises into games

  5. Who Should Conduct PST Programs • Ideal if planned, implemented, and supervised by a qualified consulting SP • rarely feasible except perhaps at higher levels of competition • Also coach’s responsibility to provide PST and to reinforce optimal psychological states • Coach or coaching staff should attend most or all of initial group training sessions when SP conducted • Tells athletes it’s important • SP can’t be at all training sessions and competitions • Fewer content misunderstandings

  6. Organizational Empowerment Model • Team SP trains one or more qualified individuals within the sport organization to provide PST • Works well when SP rarely able to be present • SP continues to supervise the trainee(s)

  7. When Implement a PST Program • Best time is during the off season or preseason • Least desirable time is after the competitive season has started • Continue PST as long as athlete competes

  8. How Much Time Spend on PST Program • If first formal exposure, 3-6 months common • Team and individual session length varies with what being practiced and how well learned • New mental skills often need 15-30 minute intervals 3-5 times per week • Fewer, longer sessions if SP cannot be present • Start with group sessions, later supplement with individual sessions • As soon as possible, integrate PST with physical skills practice • Mental skills should have a performance specific focus

  9. Setting Up a PST Program: Use of Self-Regulation is Key Self regulation - the process by which people manage their own behaviors that are directed toward specific goals Six specific phases: 1. Problem identification 2. Commitment to change 3. Develop specific plans 4. Set goals 5. Initiate actions 6. Goal attainment Long term goal is generalization - maintain behavior change over time and across different situations

  10. Setting Up Program: Do’s and Don’t of Your Approach • Discuss what sport psychology is and how it benefits the athlete as well as the person • Educate on your approach and what do and don’t do • E.g., clinical vs. educational approach • Emphasize that PST does not mean something psychologically wrong with them • No different than staying after practice to work on an important skill

  11. Setting Up Program: Emphasize the Importance of Mental Training • Have athletes decide what percentage of their game is mental • Discuss with athletes the benefits mental training has had on some of the world’s top athletes • E.g., 90% of U.S. Olympic athletes regularly used some sort of mental preparation and training

  12. Setting Up Program: Assess Psychological Strengths and Weaknesses • Assess with interviews, written psychological inventories, and behavioral observations • Performance profiling is another excellent approach • Need good working knowledge of the sport • Provide written feedback to athlete on psychological strengths and weaknesses • Conclude with skill and intervention program suggestions • Tailor to athlete and specific demands of sport • Critical that athlete accept the needs assessment • Recognize that factors outside the psychological realm influence performance (e.g., physiological conditioning, biomechanics, strategy, equipment)

  13. Determine Skills to Include and How to Sequence Them • When limited time or commitment, emphasize only a few skills rather than superficially working on many • No definitive answers as to what skills to include or how to sequence • Focus first on selecting the skills (qualities to be obtained) and then choose the methods (procedures and techniques employed to develop the skills) • Four basic psychological skills training methods • goal setting – physical relaxation • imagery – thought control • Distinguish among foundation, performance, and facilitative skills (see Table 20-3)

  14. Evaluation of Program Effectiveness • Provides consultants and coaches with information needed to modify their programs • Allows consumers to give their input • Only way to objectively judge whether the program achieved its goals

  15. Evaluation of Effectiveness (cont.) • Asses the strengths and weaknesses of the content and delivery of sessions, especially team sessions • E.g., did sessions accomplish objective(s), what techniques worked best, were athletes’ responsive • Continuous process, but also need a formal, total evaluation at the end of PST program • include team and individual discussions as well as written evaluations by the athletes and coaches • Sample athlete questions: • How often did you actually practice the skills? • What exercises were most helpful? • What suggestions do you have to make the program better in the future?

  16. Practical Pointers for Teaching Mental Skills • Provide theWhat, Why, When, and Howof training • Beginning of each session, outline for athletes the purpose, content, and approximate length of the session • Stress Personal Responsibility. Peak performance is not mysterious; it is a product of the body and mind, both of which can be controlled.

  17. Practical Pointers for Teaching Mental Skills (cont.) • Be Flexible and Individualized. Introduce and practice a variety of techniques. Do not force everyone into a fixed pattern. Provide handouts and cassette recordings of exercises. • Use Goal Setting and Journal Assignments. Individualizes the teaching. Beneficial for athletes to record successful strategies. • Pre-competition and Competition Plans. Goal is to consistently create at competition time the ideal performance state typically associated with peak performance. These plans help athletes arrange their internal and external worlds so they are in full control.

  18. Practical Pointers for Teaching Mental Skills (cont.) • Stress Application to Other Life Pursuits. Skills learned are applicable to life in general as well as athletics, and the benefits last after competitive years. • Practice It Before Teaching It. Excellent way to increase one’s ability to teach it and answer questions others may have about it. • Teach by Example. Good coaches and sport psychology consultants teach and lead by example.

  19. Practical Pointers for Teaching Mental Skills (cont.) • Observe Practices and Competitions Whenever Possible. Best to see in person, also helps gain trust and shows athletes that SP cares. • Emphasize Strengths as Competition Nears. Not time to be critical. Goal is to build confidence of athletes. • Monitor Your Behavior. Increases effectiveness in working with athletes - may even ask someone else to observe and evaluate SPs behavior.

  20. Ethical Considerations for the Coach and SP Consultant • Conflicts with confidentiality • Conflicts between personal values and professional ethics • Conflicts with dual relationships • Conflicts with self-presentation or advertising Researchers identified four classifications of behaviors that were difficult ethical situations: Sport psychology organizations have modified APA ethical standards to provide ethical guidance to SPs in their work.

  21. Potential Problem Areas SP consultant needs awareness of these potential problem areas and should be ready to deal with them if necessary: • Overcoming player reluctance about participating in PST • Lack of time spent with individual athletes in a team setting • Gaining trust of the athletes • Making sure athletes systemically practice their skills • Lack of knowledge about the specific sport • Maintaining contact with athletes throughout competitive season • Getting full cooperation from coach staff/organization

More Related