Inside an Athlete’s Mind
If we watch enough of a sport, we can all ballpark an athlete’s physical or technical skills. We all know what a great shot looks like in soccer (it goes into the goal!), a beautiful jumper in basketball or a perfect drive down the fairway. However, there is a nebulous area in sport that truly separates the good from the great — the player that breaks the ceiling or ebbs away. The mental strength that only the great possess can be considered the defining factor in sports psychology.
The more individualistic the sport, the greater the mental pressure. Even the most elite technical tennis player or boxer can have a mental chink exploited to devastating effect. It is important for an athlete to return to some base arousal state when in a high pressure situation — here, they can have greater control of both their mental and physical states. The best example of this can be seen in tennis. There is a reason why Roger Federer is considered by many to be the best of all time — you won’t find a cooler customer on the court. Federer can control his arousal so as not to shift himself out of his comfort zone. “I have learned to be even more patient,” said Federer, when asked about his evolving play-style. Federer knows that excess emotion can drastically decrease his chance of winning.
An important question to ask is do we know what facets are crucial when judging an athlete’s mental question? Moreover, do we have the tools that can give valid and reliable findings? One key characteristic measured is the concept of mental toughness — a strong self belief that cannot be knocked in hard times. This controversial term, however, has not been found to have too much of an effect on performance. Some of the more common techniques used include goal setting. Here, an athlete will converse with a psychologist and make a gradient of goals they hope to achieve. They start with very specific, short term goals that even develop into more overall, long term hopes. Research through test groups has shown this to be an important aspect of performance improvement. A just as effective technique used is imagery. Here, an athlete is asked to imagine a scenario, they need to hole a 12-foot putt to win a major, for example. Through multiple sensory stimulation and mental preparation the brain becomes used to these high pressure scenarios. Therefore, when this takes place in real life an athlete is already at ease.
There are a vast number of techniques used by sports psychologists. While we all face high-pressure decisions in our lives, athletes are burdened by the eyes and hopes of millions. Therefore, it is no surprise that millions of dollars are spent on this aspect of psychological testing.
