Post on 21-Jan-2016
A2 Psychology of Sport Concentration
Booklet 4 Skills
Working as a team
Complete green group tasks
Working as an individual
Complete yellow individual tasks
Lesson objectives
By the end of the lesson you should be able to
• To understand the definition of concentration
• To understand selective attention and perception
• To understand the attentional styles• To understand how to apply practical
examples to theory
Buzz words • Concentration
• Broad• Narrow• Internal• External
• Two dimensions• Nideffer
• Cue utilisation
CONCENTRATION
• Martens – mistakes occur in top level sport due to attentional errors.
• Focusing attention onto the relevant environmental cues and maintaining focus until the skill has been completed.
CONCENTRATION
CONCENTRATION
EXTERNALFACTORS
e.g. StimulusIntensity
INTERNALFACTORS
e.g. Cognitionand emotionalCondition of
arousal
AROUSAL
“This can be considered as the level of excitement or activation generated in the
central nervous system.”
LOW AROUSALLETHARGIC, SLEEP
LIKE STATE.
ALERT STATESAND FRENETIC
BEHAVIOURHIGH AROUSAL
POOR PERFORMANCE
Poor performance is due to either under arousal or over arousal.
PERCEPTUAL FIELD
Your perceptual field is your attentional focus.
LOW AROUSAL INCREASE IN PERCEPTUAL
FIELD
SELECTIVE
ATTENTION IS NOT IN OPERATION.
INFORMATION OVERLOAD, WHICH IMPEDES
DECISION MAKING.
INCREASE IN AROUSAL
PERCEPTUAL FIELD ADJUSTS TO THE IDEAL WIDTH.
SELECTIVE ATTENTION IS FULLY OPERATIONAL.
ABILITY TO CONCENTRATE IS MAXIMISED.
NOTE! The theory, which predicts the selection of the most relevant environmental data at the optimal arousal
level, is termed “cue utilisation hypothesis”.
BEYOND THE OPTIMAL THRESHOLD PERCEPTUAL FOCUS
NARROWS
RELEVANT CUE MAY
BE MISSED.
E.G. ATHLETE COULD
BE HIGHLY AGITATED
& PANIC.
KNOWN AS HYPERVIGILANCE
OR PANIC
The Inverted ‘U’ Hypothesis
OPTIMAL OR THRESHOLD OF
AROUSAL
ATTENTIONAL STYLES
• It is important to look at the width of attention.
• This needs to change in response to varying situations in sport.
• Width of attention relates to the number of environmental cues that require the performer’s attention.
ATTENTIONAL STYLES
• Four attentional styles can be identified from this:
1. Broad/external.
2. External/narrow.
3. Narrow/internal.
4. Internal/broad.
CONCENTRATION AND ATTENTIONAL STYLES
NIDEFFER’S ATTENTIONAL STYLES
BROAD• a player concentrates on the whole
game – all players’ positions and
movements– open skills
NARROW• the player concentrates on one aspect
of the game– the goalkeeper– closed skills
INTERNAL• the player decides to concentrate on his
own technique
EXTERNAL• the player focuses on the position of his
opposite number
Therefore, in an activity where the environment changes (e.g. in an interactive game that has open and closed skills) it may be necessary to use all 4 styles when appropriate.
All performers have a preferred or strongest attentional style.
An expert performer needs to be competent in all 4 styles.
CONCENTRATION
CONCENTRATION• a state of mind in which attention is
directed towards a specific aim or activity
• attentional focus• control of attention towards a task
CUE UTILISATION• cues can be used by the sportsperson
– to direct attention – to trigger appropriate arousal
responses– to enable attentional focus at a
relevant moment• sometimes, narrowing of attentional
focus by an aroused player– will cause lack of awareness of
broader play issues
USE OF COGNITIVE TECHNIQUES TO ASSIST CONCENTRATION
• imagery• mental rehearsal• relaxation• can be used to direct the
sportsperson’s mind towards a specific task
• these techniques can be thought to manage the stress of the situation
• to manage anxiety in a productive way