Lesson 23
AROUSAL ENERGIZING STRATEGIES
In the previous lecture 📖 we discussed strategies that athletes 🏃♀️ use to relax 😌 and reduce anxiety 😰 and arousal ⚡ associated with the stress response 😤. In this lecture, we are discussing arousal energizing strategies ⚡🔥 needed to obtain peak performance 🏆.
People have been looking to the sport psychologist 🧠 to learn how to maintain optimal levels of arousal ⚡ in athletes 🏃♂️. The typical approach has been to "psych up" 🗣️ the athletes through various kinds of pep talks 💬 and activation techniques 🔋. There is, of course, a proper time ⏰ to get athletes excited 😃 and aroused ⚡, but often these techniques are applied at the wrong time ❌.
Generally, some athletes 🏃♀️ have only an intermediate level of skill ⚽, and the extra arousal ⚡ serves only to induce unforced errors ❌. Increasing arousal ⚡ affects each athlete differently 👤. In most cases, intervention procedures 🛠️ are best applied on an individual basis 👥; each athlete should be treated differently 🔄. Some will need a pep talk 💬, but others may need an entirely different form of intervention 🧠.
The indiscriminate use ❌ of relaxation 😌 or arousal energizing strategies ⚡ has prompted sport psychologists 🧠 to promote a closer match 🔄 between precompetitive affect 😰 and psychological adjustment 🧘♂️. This practice has come to be referred to as the matching hypothesis 🎯. In the matching hypothesis 🎯, care is taken ✅ to make sure that the intervention selected 🛠️ to relax 😌 or energize ⚡ the athlete 🏃♂️ is matched to the specific symptoms 😰.
Two major strategies ⚡😌 to relax 😌 or energize ⚡ are:
- Team energizing strategies 🏅👥
- Individual energizing strategies 🏃♂️💪
Team energizing strategies 🏅👥 are those strategies that deal with the team 🏟️ as a whole and are generally orchestrated by the coach 👩🏫. They include such things as:
- Team goal setting 🎯
- Pep talks 💬
- Bulletin boards 📝
- Publicity 📢
- News coverage 📰
- Fan support 📣
- Coach-athlete-parents interaction 👩🏫🤝👨👩👧👦
- Pre-competition workout 🏋️♂️
- Post-competition conference 🗣️
Individual self-energizing strategies 🏃♂️💪 are those strategies that the individual uses to induce immediate activation ⚡ and alertness 👀. From the perspective of the individual, these techniques are also referred to as individual psyching-up strategies 🧠💥.
1. Team Energizing Strategies 🏅👥
As a coach 👩🏫 prepares for the season 📆, she recognizes the need to set into motion 🔄 a number of initiatives 🛠️ designed to keep the team 🏟️ focused 🎯 and energized ⚡. There are a total of nine team energizing strategies 🏅; five will be discussed in this lecture 📖 and the remaining in the next lecture 📖.
I. Team Goal Setting 🎯
We emphasized the notion that goal setting 🎯 was a theory of motivation 💡 and a way to energize ⚡ teams 🏅. The coach 👩🏫 should provide leadership 🗝️ in this process 🔄, but the athletes 🏃♂️ must be equal partners 🤝 in deciding what they want to accomplish 🏆 as a team 🏟️ and as individuals 👤 during the current competitive season 📆.
The coach 👩🏫 then lays out a plan 📋 whereby the goals 🎯 set by the team 🏟️ can be accomplished ✅. While outcome goals 🏆 must be addressed 📝, the main focus 👀 should be upon process ⚙️ and performance goals 🏅 that give the team 🏟️ a chance to succeed 🥇. Goals 🎯 are then monitored 👀 on a regular basis ⏰ so that progress 📈 can be determined ✅.
II. Pep Talks 💬
A pep talk 💬 by a psychologist 🧠 or a respected team member 👤 is the most common method ✅ used to increase the activation level ⚡ of athletes 🏃♂️. Like any verbal communication 🗣️, it can be either effective ✅ or ineffective ❌.
Perhaps the most important element 🗝️ of a pep talk 💬 is an emphasis on the ingredient lacking ⚠️ in the team 🏟️. If the team 🏅 is lacking in motivation 🔥, the pep talk 💬 should be targeted 🎯 at that.
III. Bulletin Boards 📝
In many ways, messages 📝 on a bulletin board 🖼️ are identical ✅ to those in a pep talk 💬, but they are visually 👀 rather than verbally 🗣️ conveyed. Poster-board displays 🖼️ should be placed where team members 🏃♀️ cannot miss them ❌.
Ideal places 🏟️ include locker rooms 🚪 and confined training areas 🏋️♂️. Bulletin boards 📝 should always convey positive ✅, motivating 💪 thoughts 💭 and ideas 💡. Catchy phrases 📝 such as "when the going gets tough, the tough get going" 💪🔥 can be effective ✅. Athletes 🏃♂️ remember 🧠 these simple phrases 📝 and will repeat 🔁 them later ⏰ when they need reinforcement 💡. Other messages 📝 might include personal challenges 🏆 to members of the team 🏟️.
IV. Fan Support 📣
Fans 👥 tell athletes 🏃♂️ that what they are doing ⚽🏀 is important ✅ to people 👨👩👧👦 other than themselves. A full session 🏟️ of basketball 🏀, football ⚽, or tennis 🎾 can burn out 🔥 many players 🏃♂️. Those responsible 👤 for promoting 📢 the team 🏅 must do all they can ✅ to get people 👥 to support 🏆 the team 🏟️ by coming to watch 👀 them.
V. Coach, Athlete, and Parent Interaction 👩🏫🤝👨👩👧👦
The interaction 🔄 between an athlete's 🏃♂️ parents 👨👩👧👦, the athlete 🏃♂️, and the coach 👩🏫 is an often-overlooked ⚠️ source of motivation 🔥. Coaches 👩🏫 are often wary ⚠️ about over-involved and demanding parents 👨👩👧👦.
However, often the opposite occurs 🔄, and parents 👨👩👧👦 are excluded ❌ from active involvement 🏋️♀️ in motivating 🔥 an athlete 🏃♂️. Parents 👨👩👧👦 provide tremendous support 💖 for an athlete's 🏃♂️ involvement that sometimes goes completely unnoticed 👀.
References 📚
Cox, H. Richard. (2002). Sport Psychology: Concepts and Applications. (Fifth Edition). New York: McGraw-Hill Companies 🏢
Lavallec. D., Kremer, J., Moran, A., & Williams. M. (2004). Sports Psychology: Contemporary Themes. New York: Palgrave Macmillan Publishers 📖