Sport Psychology For Coaches

by Burton, Damon

• ISBN13: 9780736039864
• ISBN10: 0736039864
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-01-17
• Publisher: Human Kinetics

Summary

We marvel at the steely nerves, acute concentration, and flawless execution exhibited on the 18th green, at the free-throw line, in the starting blocks, and on the balance beam. While state-of-the-art training regimens have extended athletes'physical boundaries, more and more coaches are realizing the importance of sport psychology in taking athletic performance to new levels. Tomorrow's record-breaking accomplishments will not be the result of athletes'training harder physically, but of athletes'training smarter mentally.Sport Psychology for Coachesprovides information that coaches need to help athletes build mental toughness and achieve excellencein sport and in life. As a coach, you'll gain a big-picture perspective on the mental side of sport by examining how athletes act, think, and feel when they practice and compete. You'll learn to use such mental tools as goal setting, imagery, relaxation, energization, and self-talk to help your athletes build mental training programs. You'll also see how assisting your athletes in developing mental skills such as motivation, energy management, focus, stress management, and self-confidence leads to increased enjoyment, improved life skills, and enhanced performance. And you'll discover how to put it all together into mental plans and mental skills training programs that allow your athletes to attain and maintain a mind-set that fosters peak performance.The easy-to-follow format of the text includes learning objectives that introduce each chapter, sidebars illustrating sport-specific applications of key concepts and principles, chapter summaries organized by content and sequence, key terms, chapter review questions, a comprehensive glossary, and other useful resources to help readers implement mental training programs for athletes.Written primarily for high school coaches, Sport Psychology for Coachesis a practical, easy-to-use resource reflecting the two authors'combined 45 years of teaching, coaching, researching, and consulting experience. It reflects principles that are not only consistent with the latest theory and research, but have stood the test of time and worked for coaches and athletes in all sports at all levels. You'll come away from Sport Psychology for Coacheswith a greater understanding and appreciation for sport psychology and the practical knowledge you need to put it to work for you and your athletes.Sport Psychology for Coachesserves as the text for the American Sport Education Program Silver Level course, Sport Psychology for Coaches.

Author Biography

Damon Burton is a professor of sport psychology at the University of Idaho and has taught undergraduate and graduate applied sport psychology courses since 1983.

Table of Contents

ASEP Silver Level Series Preface

Preface

Acknowledgments

Creating a Solid Foundation

Coaching Philosophy

Developing a Positive Coaching Philosophy

Understanding Competition and Using It Constructively

Communication

What Is Communication?

Sending Effective Messages

Attentive Listening

Conflicts and Confrontations

Introduction to Mental Skills Training

Psychological Factors and Performance Excellence

Does MST Work?

The MST Approach

Roadblocks and Myths Surrounding MST

Developing MST

Developing Mental Training Tools

Goal Setting

What Are Goals and Why Use Them?

Characteristics of Effective Goals

Making Goals Work: The Goal Implementation Process

Developing Athletes' Goal-Setting Skills

Imagery

What Is Imagery?

Factors Influencing the Effectiveness of Imagery

Using Imagery Effectively

Developing an Imagery Training Program

Relaxation and Energization

What Is Relaxation?

Relaxation Strategies

What Is Energization?

Energization Strategies

Developing Athletes' Relaxation and Energization Skills

Self-Talk

What Is Self-Talk?

How Self-Talk Works

Positive Versus Negative Thinking

Optimizing Self-Talk

Developing Athletes' Smart-Talk Skills

Enhancing Mental Skills

Motivation

What Is Motivation?

Athletes' Needs and Intrinsic Motivation

Impact of Rewards

Handling Success and Failure

Creating a Mastery-Oriented Motivational Atmosphere

Energy Management

Understanding Energy Management

How Does Arousal Affect Performance?

Why Underarousal and Overarousal Impair Performance

Determining Optimal Energy Zones

Mental Side of Arousal

Developing Athletes' Energy Management Skills

Attention

Understanding Attention

Attentional Capacity

Selective Attention

Sustaining Focus: Concentration

Implementing an Attentional Skills Program

Stress Management

Understanding Stress

Stress Management

Developing Athletes' Stress Management Skills

Self-Confidence

Understanding Self-Confidence

Conceptualizing Self-Confidence

Boosting Self-Confidence

Developing Team Confidence

Developing and Maintaining Self-Confidence During Competition

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: Confidence Booster or Deflator?

Developing Athletes' Self-Confidence

Final Thoughts: Developing Ultimate Confidence

Integrating Mental Training Tools and Skills

Mental Plans

Understanding Mental Plans

Types of Mental Plans

Role of Triggers, Releases, and Cue Words

Developing Mental Plans

Developing Athletes' Mental Toughness Skills

Mental Skills Training Programs

Getting Started

Components of Effective MST Programs

Implementing a Basic MST Program

Answers to Review Questions

Relaxation and Energization Scripts

Test of Performance Strategies

Glossary

References and Resources

Index

About the Authors

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