Chapter 8

Imagery:Inner Theater Becomes Reality

By Shane Murphy

Imagery Widely Used in Sport

90% of athletes reported using imagery in their sport.

94% of coaches reported using imagery in their sport.

20% used imagery every day.

40% used it 3 to 5 times a week.(Jowdy et al., 1989)

Why Do Athletes Use Imagery?

80% to prepare for competition

48% to deal with errors in technique

44% to learn new skills

40% for relaxation

(Jowdy et al., 1989)

Is Imagery Effective?

97% of athletes said that imagery enhances performance.

100% of coaches said that imagery enhances performance.

(Jowdy et al., 1989)

Types of Imagery

A diver preparing to dive imagines a successful dive she has practiced countless times.• Closed• Rehearsal• Confidence• Focus

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Types of Imagery (cont)

A sailor imagines an upcoming race and strategizes responses to several situations.

• Planning• Fluid or open

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Types of Imagery (cont)

A skater wakes up at 4:30 A.M. and imagines being in the Olympics one day.

• Future possibility• Motivational

Basic Concepts

Imagery implies visual, a picture (e.g., visualization). But imagery can involve all the senses, known as

imagery modalities:• Visual• Auditory• Tactile• Olfactory• Taste• Kinesthetic

Vivid images may be related to using multiple modalities.

Imagery Perspective

Described by Michael Mahoney in 1977. Internal imagery involves imagining as if you are

there. External imagery is watching yourself perform. Lew Hardy suggests that imagery perspective

and modality are separate constructs. Kinesthetic imagery, surprisingly, can be

experienced in both internal and external modes.

Imagery Ability

Vividness

Controllability

Can athletes be taught to have more vivid, controllable imagery?

Imagery and Performance

Is imagery a mental process? It involves the brain, nervous system, and body. So it is physical as well.

A better description is that imagery is a cognitive process.

Where does this cognitive process take place?

Imagery and the Brain

The image of starting a motor movement activates• premotor cortex as the action is prepared, • prefontal cortex as the action is initiated, and• cerebellum during control of ordered movement

sequences. Studied via brain imaging techniques such as

PET (positron emission tomography) scans and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

Uses of Imagery in Training and Competition

Mental Rehearsal

Distinction of mental and physical is outdated.

Cognitive science: Physical action is partly mental; mental actions are physical.

Functional equivalence: The same neural networks used in visual processing are used in visual imagery.

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Mental Rehearsal (cont)

Motor skills may be governed by specific neural networks in the brain: templates.

Imagery and Motivation

Effects of motivation.

Alan Paivio (1985): Imagery serves a motivational role as well as a cognitive one.

Imagery of far-off goals brings them closer.

Positive images may serve as secondary reinforcers of effort and persistence.

Imagery and Confidence

Bandura’s theory of self-efficacy: Vicarious experience is an important source of self-efficacy.

A variety of cognitive-behavioral therapies have been developed to change behavior through imagery, including systematic desensitization, flooding, coping imagery, implosion, and covert modeling.

Imagery and Attention

Mental practice may facilitate the development of an appropriate attentional set (Feltz & Landers, 1983).

Mental practice may help athletes focus on relevant aspects of performance and reduce attention to irrelevant or distracting cues.

Can imagery facilitate automaticity of skilled performance, perhaps by strengthening the motor template?

Emotional Effects of Imagery

In research, imagery reliably produces emotional changes.

Ambiguous effects on performance:• Increases in anger did not

result in improvement of strength task.

• Imagery reduced anxiety but did not improve performance.

Association Effects of Imagery

Imagery produces more associations than other cognitive processes.

Akhter Ahsen’s triple code model:• Image: sensory experience• Somatic: physiological responses• Meaning: personal

The unique meaning that each image holds for an individual makes imagery more difficult to study.

Imagery and Improved Performance Learning new skills Retaining skills over time Preperformance rituals Developing strategies and

plans Reducing competitive anxiety Psyching up Stress management Enhancing confidence Enhancing motivation Improving concentration Rehabbing from injury Building teamwork

Improving Imagery

Using all the senses Using emotions Adding response

propositions(versus stimulus propositions)

Peter Lang’s bioinformationaltheory: the emotional component

Imagery Assessment

Sport Imagery Questionnaire (SIQ)• Craig Hall and colleagues (1998)• 27 items yielding 5 scales:

– Motivation-specific imagery– Motivation-general (mastery) imagery– Motivation-general (arousal) imagery– Cognitive-specific imagery– Cognitive-general imagery

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Imagery Assessment (cont)

Multidimensional Mental Imagery Scale (MMIS)• Dianne Vella-Brodrick (1999)• 21 items yielding three scales:

– General factors– Sensory skills– Controllability

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Test of Performance Strategies (TOPS) • Thomas et al. (1999) • Competition and practice subscales• Imagery is one of the 8 subscales in both• Imagery log (figure 8.1)

Imagery Assessment (cont)

Potential Problems With Imagery

Research by Budney & Woolfolk (1990): 35% of athletes and 25% of coaches reported examples of using imagery that hurt performance.

Typical problems include• anxiety,• distractibility,• lack of imagery control, and• overconfidence.