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Zaichkowsky, L'eonard D., Ed.;Stress Management for Sport.American Alliance for Health,Recreation and Dance, Reston, VA. NationalAssociation for Sport and Physical Education.82129p.American Alliance for Health, Physical Educatioff,,Recreation and Dance, P. 0. Box 704, Waldorf, MD20601 (Stock'Number 245-26986, $8.95).Reports Descriptive (141) -- Viewpoints (120)

MF01 Plus.Postage. PC Wit'Available from EDRS.*Athletes; *Athletic Coaches; Biofeedback; CerebralDominance; *Competition; *Conditioning; Coping;Gymnastics; Higher Education; Hypnosis; *RelaxationTraining; Running; Secondary Education; *StressVariables; Swimming; Teaching Methods*Stress Management

SP 022 484

Sime, Wesley E., Ed.

Physical EduCation,

Included in this volume are papers on stressmanagement in athletics; eight of the ten papers are followed with a"Coach's Reaction": (1) "Competitive Athletic Stress Factors inAthletes and Coaches" (Walter Kroll); (2) "Mental Preparation forPeak Performance in Swimmers" (Eugene F. Gauron)--Coach's Reaction by

. SuziD'Annolfo; (3) "Cognitive Somatic Behavioral Interventions in ,

Gymriastics" (Kenneth Ravizza and Robert Rotella)--Coach's Reaction byHaves Kruger; (4) "Application of Stress Management in CompetitiveRunners" (Susan G. Zeigler)--Coach's Reaction by Edwin J. Stoch; (5)"-Biofeedback for Self-regulation of Competitive Stress" (Leonard D.Zaichkowsky)--Coach's Reaction by David Hemery; (6) "The Role ofHyphosis in Competitive Stress Management" (Veronica L.Eskriage)--Coach's Reaction by Betty R. Hammond; (7) "StressMaffagement for Professional and World-Class Competition" (Michael D.Margolies)--Coach's Reaction by Robert E. Neeves; (8) "Coaching-Strategies Based upOh Tension Research" (A. B. Frederick)--Coach'sReaction by Andrea B. Schmid; (9) "Hemispheric Dominance: Using theRight Brain in Sports" (Evelyn G. Hall)--Coach's Reaction by Joan A.Finn; and (10) "ComPetitive Stress Management Techniques inPerspective" (Wesley E. Sime). (CJ)

A

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AE116.

IL

MEM.

edited by

Dr. Leonard D. Zaichkowsky,Boston University

and

Dr. Wesley E. Sime,University of Nebraska-lincoln

Sponsored by thee

National Associationfor Sport andPhysical Education

"PERMISSION TO REPROCUCE THISMATERIAL IN mIC.ROFIC;IE ONLYHAS BEEN GRANTED BY-

k_ s j

TO THE EDUCATIONAL RE ;OURCESINFORMATION CENTER (E IIC)."

U.S PARTMENT OF EDUCATIONNATIç7AL INSTITUTE OF EqUCATION

EDUC TIONALRESOURCES INORMATIONCENTER 1E1110 'I

T1 document baS been ro moduced asI d hoot the person or oroanuabon

eteheabno ItKnot channeS twe been gbh enetoee

produclion (featly

Penfs of vmw of otomonsstatect m ths docu

m,n t do nut necessJely epteseit offrof PJJEpOSItfon or poffcy

4

Copyright © 1982

Q.The American Alliance

for Health, Physical Education,Recreation and Dance1900 Association DriveReston, Virginia 22091

Stock Number: 245-26986

3

,.

Purposes of the American AllianceFor Health, Physical Education,

Recreation and Dance

The American Alliance Is an educational organization, structured for the purposes of support-

ing, encouraging, and providing assistance to member groups and their personnel throughout the

nation d5 they seek to ininate, develop, and conduct programs in health, leisure, and movement-

relatedactivities for the enrichment of human life.All iance objectives include:1. -Professional growth and developmentto support, encourage, and provide guidance in the

development and conduct of programs in-health, leisure, and movement:related-activities-which------------arejzased (in the needs, interests, and inherent capacities of the individual in today's society.

2. Communicationto facilitate public and professional understanding and appreciation of

the importance and value of health, leisure, and movement-related activities as they contribute

toward human w_dl-being.3. Research--to encourage and facilitate research which will enrich the depth and scope of

health, leisure, and movement-related activities, and to disseminate the findings to the profession

and other interested and concerned publics.4. Standards and guidelinesto further the continuous development and evaluation of stan-

dards-within-I-FeProfession for personnel and programs in health, leisure, and movement-related

activities.5. Public affairsto coordinate and administer a planned program of professional, public, and

governmental relations that will improve education in areas of health, leisure, and movement-

related activities.6. To conduct such other activities as shall be approved by the Board of Governors and the

Alliance Assembly, provided that the Alliance shall not engage in any activity which would be

inconsistent with the status of an educdtional and charitable organization as defined in Section

501 to t3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 or any Successor provision thereto, and none of

the said purposes shall at any time be deemed or construed to be purposes other than the public

benefit purposes and objectives consistent with such educational and charitable status.

Article IllBylaws, Article Ill

4-

Table of Contents

Foreword vii

1.

Competitive Athletic Stress Facfors in Athletesand Coaches .

Dr. Walter Kroll 1

Mental Preparation for Peak Performance in2 Swimmers

Dr. Eugene F. Gauron 11

Coach's Reaction -

Dr. Suzi D'Annolfo 22

3.Cognitive Somatic Behavioral Interventions inGymnastics.Dr. Kenneth Ravi 'zza and Dr. Robert Rotella 25

Coach's ReactionHayes Kruger 36

Application of Stress Management in Competitive-Runners-

, Dr. Susan G. Ziegler 39

Goach'sReaction.-EdWin I. Stoch 52

Biofeedback for Self-regulation of CompetitiveStressDr. Leonard D. Zaichkowsky 55

Coach's ReactionDavid Hemery 65

6 The Role of Hypnosis in Competitve StressManagementV.

Veronica L. Eskridge 67

eaach's,Reac-rionDr. Betty R. Hammond 71

Stress Management for Professional andWorld-Class CompetitionMichael D. Margolies 73

Coach's ReactionDr. Robert E. Neeves 77

Coaching Strategies Based upon TensionResearchDr, A. B. Frederick 81,

Coach's ReactionDr. Andrea B. Schmid 95

1J

Hemispheric Dominance: Using the Right Brdi inSportsDr. Evelyn G. Hall 101

Coach's ReactionJoan A. Finn 113

Competitive Stress Management Techniques inPerspectiveDr. Wesley E. Sirne 117

About the Authors 124

SE

6

Foreword

Human stress has long been a topic of research and teaching for professional

physical and health educators as well as other professionals in the behavioral- and

health sciences. The enormous contributions of Hans Selye certainly sparked much of

the scholarly work in the 1950s, 60s, and 70swork which focused on the problemsassociated with defining stress and its related constructs, the effects of stress on

performance, methodological- problems associated with research:on stress,-ete. In-

recent years, however, professionals in clinical and educational psychology, and theallied health professions have refocused their efforts more in the direction of develop-

ing stress management techniques so that individuals under stress may better cope

with everyday life.This "clinical thrust" has likewise spread to the rather new specialized area of sport

psychology. Sport psychologists, teachers, coaches, and athletes have become in-

creasingly interested in enhancing performance by addressing the problems presented

by Competitive stress in ajhletics. To confront the negative effects of competitive stress

and to capitalize upon the positive effects, sport psychologists began to borrow

techniques developed by clinical psychologists for "clinical" populations, andadapted them to athletes who had rio psychopathologic symptoms.

Because of this recent research and clinical interest in stress management within

sport, the Sport Psychology Academy under the chairmanship of William F. Straub,____Ithaca_College,sponsor.ed_a_pw-ronventionsymp_o5ium entitled "The Coach/Sport

Psychologist Interface: New Directions in Stress Management." This book is a collec-

tion of papers which were p"resented by respected sport psychology researchers,

practitioners, and coaches at the pre-convention symposium held April 12th and 13th,

1981 in Boston, Massachusetts.The papers have been organized in a logical sequence todeal with the issues at hand.

Regarding format, a major review paper on a selected topic is presented first, followed

by a brief reaction from a coach. All of the papers except the introductijn by Walter

Kroll and the final synopsis by Wes Sime are followed by a coach's reaction.

The first paper in this book was authored by Dr. Walter Kroll and presented as the

Knute Rockne Memorial Address to the Sport Psychology Academy on April 12th,

1981. Dr. Kroll, who has written extensively in the sport psychology/motor behavior

'field, presents a scholarly overview of competitive stress which features a well-

researched description of: causative factors that elicit stress responses in athletes and

coaches; techniques of stress reduction.

vii

1,

The next three papers and reactions are concerned 'with applying §tress manage-ment techniques to specific sports. Dr. Gauron presented a thorough description of hismental preparation program for the Uniyersity of Iowa's swim team. In addition todetailing objectives and methodology, Dr. Gaurori presented a summary of evaluationdata. Dr. Ken Ravizza and Dr. Robert Rotella described a psychological trainingprogram for youth and college age_gymnasts of varying ability levels. The authorsdetailed their ae-point program which entails athlete interviews, the rationale behindself-control, the determination of anxiety level, cognitive-somatic behavioral interven-tion, and transfer of coping strategies. Dr. Susan Ziegler focused on cross-countryrunners as her athlete population in describing stress management techniques. Profes-

sor Ziegler described stress management models developed by Meichenbaum (stress-innoculation training) and by Smith (cognitive-affective stress management training)and related techniques. She also presented data from her own stress managementprogram on cardiovascular performance of cross-country runners.

The next twQRafieri present a state-of-the-art review of two "new" and perhaps

provocative techniques of stress management in sport. Dr. Leonard Zaichkowsky, whohas been an active researcher in the biofeedback field for several yea's, presents anoverview of biofeedback, its history, principles, and specific application to managing

competitive stress. The equally specialized technique of hypnosis is discussed by Dr.

Veronica Eskridge. Dr. Betty Hammond reacted to this paper ,by asking interesting

questions related to methodology as well as legal and ethical ramifications. It wasfollowed by Michael Margolies' description uf relaxation and imagery techniques he

used,.with elite world-class athletes to help them cope Will competitive stressarid to

improve performance.Dr. Bruce Frederick, a long time teacher and piactitioner of Jacobsonian relaxation

and highly respected gymnastics coach, reyiev;ed the research on stress and tension

control then abstracted twenty-six practical suggestions based upon this research. Dr

Andrea Smith, former international competitor and gymnastics coach reacted with a

number of personal experiences that lend empirical credibility.Dr..Evelyn Hall described what is known and not known about how relaation and

visual imagery relate to right brain function in sport. Aspeets of peak performance can

likely be attributed to shifts in hemispheric activity during performance.In the final paper, ''Competitive Stress Management Techniques in Perspective,"

Dr. Wesley Sime reviewed and synthesized all the papers and coaches' reactionspublished in this book. He also presented a model to be used by coaches in choosing

an appropriate method for selected athletes based upon specific characteristicsinherent-in-the coach, the athlete, and-the-sport.

To our knowledge, this bpok is the first published collection of papers which focuses

upon competitive stress management techniques. We are hopeful that trie papers_and

reactions will serve to spark further interest in the investigation of competitivestressparticularly rigorous evaluations of stress management programs. This book

would not have been possible v, ithout the foresight and dedication of Dr. WilliamStraub who served as Chairman of the Sport Psychology Acaderny in 1981. We wish to

thank Bill for his outstanding work in organizing this conference and for facilitating the

publication of this book.

Dr. Leonard D.-ZaichkowskyandDr. Wesley E. Sime

viii

a

Competitive Athletic Stress Factorsin Athletes and Coaches*

Walter Kroll, Ph.D.Department of Exercise Science,

University of Massachusetts - -

The stress associated with athletic competi-tion is hardly invisible. Even the most casualobserver can sense the high pitched nervoustension exhibited by both coach and athlete,before, during, and after competition. For theathlete arid coach (he experience of-competi-tive stress becomes a routine event, an unde-sirable experience that must be suffered forthe glory of competition. Too often the com-petitive stress becomes more, rather than less,troublesome. So troublesome, in fact, that thestress affects performance, contributes toemotional unhappin.ss, and is even respon-sible for the athlete quitting c.ompetition en-tirely. Nearly all of the Japanese athletes re-turning from the 1960 Rome Olympics, for

example, reported that stress detrimentally af-fected their performance) The cumulativestress effects are apparent in the findjng thatabout-50-percent_of_nationally_ranked swirrh_!Tiers ,ia_1.9h8Jiacinuit swimming by 1972.The overwhelming reawn gic6--1 by Theswimmers who quit was the pressure created

by an inability to perform up to expectations.2Athletes are consistently reported as having

lower anxiety levels than non-athletes, andolder, more experienced Althletes have loweranxiety levels than younger, less experiencedathletes. Such results have been interpreted tomean that athletes learn to control and reduce.*,

Isnute Roane Memundl Address, Sport PsychologyAcademy cif the National Association of Sport and Physi-eal.'Education, AAHPERD Convention, Boston, Mas-sachusetts, April 12, 1981.

anxiety. But the results could also be inter-'preted as meanios that athletes with higheranxiety levels are driven out of athletics,either by their ir ybility to tolerate high anxietysituations or because of elimination fromcompetition due 10 'inferior performance.Whatever the correct interpretation, it is clear

-that low anxiety is a)) important contributor tosuccessful athletic performance while highanxiety levels are detrimental both to perfor:mance and emotional well-being.

Before addressing the issue of psychologi-cal anxiety, however, it may be a good idea tomake a comment or two about stress. Whenworking with the performance capabilities ofhuman beings one should not consider onlypsychological stress factors since phj;siologi-cal stress factors are also essential consid-erations. Quite often, consideration of psy-chologicatanxiety_is done with such a narrowfocus that recognition of physiological stressfactors -is overlooked. Indeed, one of thpmajor contributions to be made in the study ofstress in athletics is to consider the "total"picture of stress: physiological and psYcho-logical stress factors as an entity, since eithersource, individually or in combination, actupon actual performance.

As seen in Table 1, both psychological andphysiological sources can contribute to thetotal amount of stress present. Furthermore,the same effects upon performance can occurfrom either psychological or physiologicalsources. In essence, equivalent effects upon

performance cap be produced by physiologi-cal or psychological sou'rces.pigh Actiolog-.icalanxiety could affect performance detri-1mentally but ,so could' physical fatigue or in-fection. Thus,..although this presentation ad-dresses athletic stress in the psychologicalcontext, it should be recognized reffectsupon performance couid just as e ly beCaused by physiological facetors,

tablet. Physiologkr and psychologicalcontributor stress.'

Stress

, Ps c ola icaI

a xietyuilt

angel,despondency

Physiological

dietfatigue

infectioninadequate rest

Anxiety InventoriesAt the present time considerable disagree-

!tent exists-over-the definition of anxiety-andseveral different theoretical approaches to thestudy of anxiety are competing for more wide-spread recognition and acceptance. Com-parison of competing theories of anxiety ismade difficult since proponents of differenttheories tend to restrict experimental andtheoretical work to their own theory aridmostly ignore competing theories.4 Withoutbecoming entangled in a debate about whichis the-best theory, one can reasonably adoptan operational system forwarded by Spiel-berger with which to consider the phenome-non of anxiety in the athletk cobtext. As de-picted in Diagram 1, the impencglin Athleticcompetition represents the stress stimulus, in-dividual athletes may perceive the, stressstimulus elements in athletic competition dif-ferently depending upon such factors as priorexperiences, age, sex, intelligence., motiva-tion, and in addition, the effect of both thestress stimulus properties and the individualperception of the stress stimulus elements pre-surried to be the cause of an emotional re-sponse which is lypically designated as ananxiety state.

It is important to note that most anxietyscales seek to monitor the intensity of anxietysigns and symptoms present in the emotionlii.

2

/

AthletiC Competition

(Stre4 timulus)

PERCEPTION OF THREATENING ASPEGgI.

'KNO\NN UNKNOWN

(Fear) (Neurotic)

EMOI IONAL 'REACTION

(State Anxiety)

Competitive stress paradigm.

' resp.a stage.,The ca of such an emo-tional nse, wh' must urely lie withinthe stress e perception of )the stress elements by an individual,remains fair y well unstudied by con-tempo-rary spori psychologists. At best, Ifie- kind ofstres's prese ted in laboratdry studies may bemanipulawhO th variation in the stress stimulus

and the investigators predictt d

means. . .

Whether the signs and symptoms be soma-tit. complaints or behavioral aberrations, anx-iety kales areprimarily designed for the as-,sessment of thq consequences of the emo-tional response to stress stimuli. Thig obser4a-tion applies equally well to both trait and stateanxiety scales. Since most anxiety scales con- 41-tain items pertaining to the end result of thestress stimulus and its perception by subjects,the nature of the stress stimulus and the natureof the perception of the stress stimulus bysubjects, escapes definition. In effect, littleattempt has been made to identify the causa-tive factors responsible for pre-competitive .

anxiety. As a result we are faced with theclassification of athletic competition as anunknown fear composite.

There is value in considering the specificfactors which contrib'ute to the'athlete's-pre-competitive anxiety level. Rather than as-sessment of the intensity level of the Anxiety,assessment of the causes is important becauseit can help guide attempts to reduce the un-wanted anxiety. A novel research strategy was

4?

tadoptecl to seek such information. athleteswere.asked what they were thinking about,concerned about, apprehensive about, %kor-ilecf abdut, or fearful about, athletes wereinterviewed in locker rooms, on the sidelines,

-1 in their homes, or anywhere they could belocated on the day of competition; an inven-tory of 125 items' resulted containing stressitems most frequergly cited by athletes.

Caugative Factor.5?.01CompetitiveStress

Why are athletes troubled by .pre-cor.opetitive amtiety? Examination of indi-vidca-items suggested that certain' items ap-peared to be related in terms of a sommoncausative factor. Subsequent analysis of item.inter-correlatiori matrices, condation of anitem with its proposed sub-scale, and factoranalysis results suggesjed some categories of

icausative factors. Eveh-withour the benefit of---statistical-analysisTsome-ofthe:-esulting-item--

clusters hint at thebreticalq'acceptable con-structs capable or-qualifying as anxiety-producing'factorsip ijth,letic competition. Theitems, however; come from athletes and notfrom theory or computer printouts.

Somatic Complaints

It is not surprising that athletes report beingconcerned .2bout physi.!al -manifestations ofanxietysintb somatic sensations are an inher-ent featureof the emotional response to stressstimuli. Most dt. theitems appearingpn a list ofsomatic complaint§ are familiar ones and ap-pear-in-one-fornror-a nother-On-many-anxietyscales with the gossible exception o the item"yawning too much." One physiological ex-ptanation for yawning..suggests that it is amechanism for increasing the supply of oxy-gen to the vital org5ns, particulilly the brain.Since worry and apprehension are presuma-bly capable of creating an oxygen deficiency,the ippearance of yawning on an anxietyscal& is not too surgrising even if it was unex-gected./The Somatic Complaint scale (see Table 2)

-A high for a4 athlete groups but a particular/ concern fof younOr athletes whg assoc:ate

their somatic, problems with wearnessesand

3

4

deficiencies to the point of hiding their soma-tic symptoms. A coach can tremendously helpyounger athletes just by talking about thepre-game jitters and the kind of somatic'sy mp-toms they can produce. Identification and ac-

,,knowledgement of the stress or unknown fearcan reduce anxiety.

Fear.of Failure

Atkinson theorized that the motivation setknown a-s fear of failure constituted the"source of the conscious experience of anx-iety," ffncl the amount of anxiety induced inany situation would IN,proportiohate,to the

inttnsity of the fear of failure present/ Such afear of;failure construct seems represented bythe items of lètting teammatesAown, perform-ing up to the level of ability,4thipg, and livingup to the cdach's expectalions (see Table 3).brie can alsaidAntify items with, suggestivesimilarity, to the constwct of possible em-

-

Table 2. Somatic complaints.

tightness in-neckupset stomaciinervousne§sawareness of heartbeaturge to u,rinaterioging'in the ears

Aawoing too muchtremblingthrowing u,pgeneral body sweatingsoremustles

Table Fear of failure.

making a foolisblnistakeletting teammates,down

....performing up to the level of abilitylosing

puitting the teamw pressure to win

poor work-outsmind going blankmaking a critical mistakechoking upfalling for a sucker playcriticism by coacbimproving upon the last performancevalue of athletid"psychological preparednessliving up to the coach's expectationspresence of (nerds/relatives among spectators

e

.$

bdrassment which Sarason has shown to belinked to anxiety.6 Items such as making afoolish mistake, falling for a sucker play, atldchoking appear lo align themselves with apossible embarassment construct.

Feelings of inadequacy

The feelings of inadequacy 'list (see Table4)con(ains items similar to those found on thefear of failure list which also suggest the Sara:son cohstruct of possible embarassment.However, the items on the feelings of inade-quacyTtst seem to describe a construct slightlydifferent from one of possible embarlsment.The items on the feelings of inadequacy listcharacterize an attitude of "soniething isWrong with me," or as has sometimes beenstiggested, an attitude of self-depreciation, ahdpersonal malcontent!

Loss of Control

The items on. the loss OFcontrol (see

Table 5) suggesia Strikingsimilarity to Rotter'sconcept of external locus of control in whichforces beyond one's own-control are opera-tive and the individual has no control overevents taking place.° The individual charac-terized by an external loCus of control is morelikely to feel that desirable outcomes areprimarily determined by good luck rather thanby hard work.

Guilt

The items appearing on the guilt list (seejable_6)_suggest_prob1em.s_of_mcma1ityaggression. As i; known, of course, guilt can

r-- contribute to heightened anxiety and it wouldappear that guilt is one of the causes of anxietyin the pfe-competitive situation. (The item,"my sex_life," by the way, is actually a puri-

.flea vedon of scime of the terms suggested bythe-:athletes studied.)

The Guilt scale has proven to be inextrica-bly Involved with aggression and sportsman-ship. Consider some basic information aboutaggression, an Vempt will be made to illus-trate, how aggression can produce guilt, raiseanxiety, and detrimentally affect perfor-mance.

4

Table 4. F 1gs of inadequacy.

getting tiredlack of sirefeeling weakphysical appearancepoor fit of equipmentcoach ignoring subjectnot enough restinability to psych-uprunning.out of gasbeing afraidremembering instructionsfeargoing stale.

* genera: restlessnessbiting fingernails

p unable to concentrate,feeling silly

physical condition

Table 5. Loss of control.

jinxbehavior of spectatorsequipment failureconduct of opponentsunfair officialsboisterous spectatorspoor officialsbad lucktemperatureweatherpeople asking questionsbeing outcoached

ttaclor spectator turn-outcondition of playing surface

. noisy locker roombeing injured

f.

Table 6. Guilt.

hurting an opponentmak;ng an opponent look foolishplaying dirtynot bng mean enoughswearing too muchsportsmanshiplosing tempersex lifespectator's booing

Aggression

There are at least two basic kinds of aggres-sion, reactive and instrumental, which aretypically differentiated by the presence or ab-senc.e of emodonhate. Regardless of the kindof aggression expressed, guilt is an Liescapa-ble product. Guilt, in turn, produces

heightened anxiety, projection, and dis-placement (see Table 7).

Aggression is commonly described as theintent or the initiation of an attack on another

with the goal of doing harm, either physical or

psychological. All athletic competition, then,by definition is aggression. If I win, you lose

and I have done you harm. Winning alwaysinvolves doing injury to others, either physical

or psychological.Why do spectators "get mad" at their team?

coach? players?Why do coaches get angry with officials?

Assume your parent is a champion tennisplayer who has taught and coached yousince early childhood. At the age of 18 youenter a national amateur tournament andsee that your opponent in the championship

finals is your parent.What "feelings" do you have?What difference does a son or a daughter

make in this example?What difference ,would beating your father make as far asyour feelings? Would a daughter and a

5

if

son have the same feelings against thefather or the mother as an opponent?

Although losing has been talked aboutmore than winning when it comes to undesir-

able psychological consequences, winningtoo much can also have some undesira6leconsequences. The more reactive aggression

that is present in the consistent winner the

more undesirable the consequences. There

was an in-depth interview with an outstand-ing professional tennis player: the player was

always trained to hate the opponent. At theage of 22 years, having won more than 500tennis matches and having earned more than

1.3 million clollars the player was unhappyand Stopped playing tennis. "Maybe I waswinning too much." The player was ChrisEvert. \

The point is reasonably clear. If an athleteviews the opponent as an enemy to be hated

and despised, :he guilt of winning is evengreater than when the aggression is instru-mental. Conflict with the ethical code of anathlete, sportmanship, also enters the picture.If an athlete is coached to be aggressive in areactive set and the athlete also doesn't be-

lieve in hurting an opponent because of ethi-cal codes, the guilt is even more heightened.

Table 7. Categories of aggression.

Aggression

Reactive instrumental

anger calm

hate goal-oriented

Guilt

anxietyprojectiondisplacement

Stress Factors in CoachingThere are stress factors in coaching which

are just as obvious as the stress factors ob-served in athletes. it is known that the heart

rate of coaches is considerably elevated dur-ing contests. Gazes and his associates, forexample, reported that the mean heartrate offootball and basketball coaches to be 132

3

during contests compared to a reshng heartrate of 68/70 per minute.9 Some heart rateswere up to 150 during the pre-game period,and one coach had a mean heart rate of 166throughout a contest reaching a peak of 188per minute. The use of tranquilizers, towelchewing, and boisterous antics of coaches arecommon observations."

We recently have undertaken an investiga-tion of stress factors in coaches modelled afterthe research strategy utilized to identify causa-tive factors of stress in athletes. Ninety-three

male high school coaches have been inter-viewed and asked to relate what circum-stances caused them concern, worry, ap-prehension, and emotional turmoil in relationto their coaching responsibilities. By intent,stress factors related to the time of actualcompetition were not assessed. In addition,some coaches (N = 42) were subsequentlyquestioned about educational values andpractices in athletics.

Mmost 800 usable items resulted whichwere sorted on a logical and arbitrary basis

6

into homogeneous categories. These homo-geneous categories could represent majorcausative factors of stress in coaches. As seenin Table 8, the two most frequently CitedLategories involved interpersonal relationswith the athlete, outdistancing categories re-flecting technical expertise (incorrect strat-egy, being outcoached). Being unappreciatedby uthletes, administration, and the publicalso reflects the interpersonal category. Thesestress factor categories compare very wellwith reasons cited for quitting the coachingprofession where poor player/coach relation-ships and inability to motivate players arecited about four times more often than lack oftech n ical expertise."

But more important than these categorieswas the insight gained as a result of thesecondpart of the study in which follow-up inter-views were conducted with more specificquestioning about edocational values and,practices. Every one of the 93 coaches agreedthat the emphasis, or the pressure, or thepresent-day value system forced them tomake decisions and to do things that caused 'them uneasiness and concern. Two of thepossible causes for the stress categories willbe presented: a professionalized attitude to-ward play; a conscience orientation conflict.

Table 8. Competitive stress factors in coaching.

Stress Factors in Coaching

Category

disrespectfrom players

not beingable toreach players

incorrect -

strategybeing

outcoachedunappre-

ciated by:players,adminis-tration,public

apprehensionbeforecontests

Frequency

42.8%

20.7%

9.0%

4.0%

3.0%

14.0%6.5%

100%

ProfeSsional N'ersus Play Orientations

In 1969 Webb argued that attitudes towardplay are not stable, but typically demonstratea progressive change from an initial playorientation to a professional orientation as re-flected by the relative value placed upon atriad of concepts. success (victory), skill (per-formance); fairness (equity)." A play orienta-tion values fairness and skill over successwhile a professionalized attitude toward playvalues success over skill and fairness. Anumber of studies have shown that participa-tion in organized athletics is acsociated with ahigher incidence of professional orienta-tion."'"J5

Many of the conflicts coaches reportedcould be linked to thesprofessional versus playorientation concept. Coaches are charac-terized by a professional Orientation valuingsuccess and skill over fairness. In agreementwith Albinson who found only one coach outof 117 volunteer ice hockey coaches to valuefairness over success and skill," not a singlecoach out of our 93 valued fairness first.Athletes do not seem to have as strong a pro-fessional orientation. Loy has shown forcollege-age subjects that only 41% of malevarsity athletes and 19.1% of female varsityathletes could be classified as hav ing a profes-sional orientation (Webb scale scores of 4, 5,and 6)."

There are numerous examples of the con-flicts professionally-oriented coaches experi-ence with less dominant professionally-oriented athletes, administrators, and parents.Sortie of the conflicts reported by coachesreflect their orientation and include situationssuch as: required practice on weekends, re-quired practice on school holidays and v aca-tion periods; athletes not missing practice orcontests because of outside commitments(music lessons, family vacatiors, club out-ings, hobbies, employment).

Coaches view disagreements with theirstrong professional ized orientation as indicat-ing lack of commitment from athletes. Schooladministrators and parents who resist thecoach's legitimate expectations of dedicationfrom athletes are typically dismissed as naive,against excellence, or as troublemakers. Such

7

conflicts seem fray !table between the coachand the athlete, school administrator, andparent because of the two different value sys-tems in operation. Although we did not in-clude female coaches, it was quite evidentthat female coaches had more such problemswith their athletes than the male coaches. Ifwe suppose that women coaches can also becharacterized by a professional orientation,"one would expect them to have more conflictssince females are less professionally-orientedttian males from the sixth grade on. With moreplay-oriented athletes on their squads, theprofessionally-oriented female coach wouldencounter more conflict situations.

Conscience Orientation ConflictsIn 1975 a paper on the Psyciiology of

Sportsmanship proposed that a model of con-science orientation could be applied to ethi-cal and moral aspects of conduct in ath-letics.'' The approach was modelled after thatof McCord and Clemes and proposed thatethical decisions in atHetic situations couldbe characterized by either d Normativist or anIntegratist conscience orientation. Nor-mativists hold that moral soundness must bejuaged by the action itself. Integratists holdthat the moral soundness of an action must bebased upon the result of the action. The differ-ence is great and apparently influences bothcoach and athlete a great deal.

Imagine two universes. One universe iscomposed of actions conducive to winning.The other universe is corriposed of ethical andmoral principles which may be below normalconsciousness but which can be assessed.There are some sport practices which areconducive to a success strategy (winning)which du not conflict with any prescriptionsfor conduct guided by ethical and moralcodes. Fouling in basketball, for example, isunethical and at the same time not usuallyconsidered conducive to a success strategy.Players attempt diligently to avoid fouling out,do not start a fight at the opening jump ball,and do not run out and kick the official as theyare introduced. Such actions which are pre-scribed by an ethical strategy for conduct,then, are not in conflict with a success strat-egy.

However, for some actions there is a con-flict, Le., an action conducive to a successstrategy is in conflict with conduct prescribed

_ by an ethical-moral code. Intentionally foul-

ing the player going in for the game-winninglay-up shot is a sound success strategy, but

seemingly violates the ethical code prescrip-

tion which calls for playing according to the

rules and a prescription against intentional

fouling. But the intentional foul cannot beunethical because it is necessary for success.

The Norrrdativist who evaluates the inten-

tional foul in this case would judge the moral

soundness based upon the action itself and

conclude that the intentional foul was unethi-

cal. The Integratist, however, sees nothing, or

very little, wrong, in an intentional foul if it

contributes to achievement of the goal of suc-

cess. The Integratist would no; intentionallyfoul unless it was beneficial to a success strat-

egy. The Normativist would never intention-ally foul simply because it is against the rules

The Integratist conscience orientation, ofcourse, has many elements in it suggestive of

the win-at-any-cost syndrome.Unfortunately, neither coaches or athletes

customarily evaluate sport practices on a

good-bad moral basis, only on a sciccess-

strategy basis. Such conduct is without a con-

scious conscience orientation. When a sport

practice is subjected to moral evaluation,

judged by its appropriateness on a mealbasis, a revelation often occurs in bothcoaches and athletes. A sport practice is sud-

denly seen as contrary to the conscience

orientation.Many of the concerns our coaches ex-

pressed could be viewed as conscience orien-

tation 'conflicts. A coach figures out ways in

which conditioning or skill practice can be

conducted before the official start of the sea-

son. It has to be done because others are, or

may, be doing it; this is an Integratistrationale. The coach is forced to overlookimproper behavior by the star player, behav-

ior which would be reprimanded in otherplayers less important to the success of the

team. Such compromises with the unseenuniverse of ethical and moral values trouble

coaches, often subconsciously.Their conduct

is not immediately guided by a conscious

8

conscience, but the conscience is still therq

and active. The coach is merely uncomfort4

able or troubled by many decisions to expel

- dite success, but the troubled coach is award,

of being troubled, just not aware of why he

troubled.Coaches are able to tolerate some practice

in the gray area by invoking an Integratisticonscience orientation. But even the moreldominant Integratist who also has a profes1

sionalized orientation toward play eventually-

agonizes over the many decisions and actions',

that conflict with a Normativist conscience,

orientation.

Reducing Competitive StressThere are as many remedies available in the

drug store as there are ailments in humans

Television commercials even educate usabout ailments we never knew existed, and

then convInce us we h.ve the ailment. There

is an axiom in medicine: if there is more than

one cure, there is no good cure. The same is

likely to apply to the remedies proposed to

reduce precompetitive stress in athletes. It

should be noted from the list of stress-reducing techniques that most of the remedies

are for the symptoms of precompetitive stress

(see Table 9) and not remedies for the causes

of precompetitive stress.

Table 9. Stress reduction technique:.

relaxationdetachmentself-understandingmental rehearsalauxiliary egoover-learningskill emphasissystematic schedules

Individual rituals

ValuesBeyond these "fix-it" remedies which

primarily focus upon the result of stress rather

than the_causes, there is another considera-

tion, a consideration that suggests that we

need to re-think, and re-establish, the inherent

values in competitive athletics. This paper ha5

presented both data and arguments suggest-

ing that the major contributors to competitiveathletic stress include:1. Aggression, arid the emphasis upon win-

ning which seems to be a catalyst for thecoaching of, and acceptance by, athletesof a reactive aggression set which viewsthe opponent as an enemy to be hated.

2. Fear of failure, the subconscious fear thatties losing to shame and embarassmentrather than disappointment.

3. Professionalized attitude toward playwhich inclines an individual to value fair-ness as less important than performance

and success.4. Conscience orientation in Which the suc-

cess goal compels coaches to make deci-

sions about acceptable conduct which areoften in conflict with the individual'snon-conscious conscience orientation.

These global clusters of causative factors ofcompetitive stress have one thing in common:the disgrace of losing. It may not be the highvalue placed upon winning that is the primarysource of competitive stress, but the stigmaattached to lOsing. The public and the massmedia contribute to the problem by definingsuccess in narrower and narrower terms whiledefining losing in broader and broader terms.In swimming, for example, winning theNCAA finals or an Olympic gold medal is notreally a victory unless a record, is broken.Sport commentators will be asking the win-ner, "Do you think you failed to break therecord because.. . .?" A collegiate basketballcoach is faulted by the media for having beenin the NCAA finals four times without winningthe championship. Such a fixation upon mak-ing success more and more exclusive mayeventually find that only the undefeated, un-tied, national and world champion with a re-cord breaking performance can claim suc-cess. All others will be losers.

The positive outcomes of the loser must be

given more attention. Competition provides astandard of excellence against which one canJudge personal skill, mastery, progress, andachievement. Losing can reinforce the com-mitment to hard work, and demonstrate howmuch moreperformance excellence can stillbe achieved. Isn't it more important to getbetter than to be the best? Is any athlete so bad

9

that the athlete shouldn't even try? No one cando more than compete, and if the perfor-mance isn't perfect, the effort can be. If theeffort was 100 percent, the success was 100percint. Are such notions the whinings of a

loser?John Wooden was a reasonably successful

basketball coach and said:

When the game is over, I want your headup. And I only know one way for yourhead to be upand that is for you toknow that you did your best. This meansthe best you can do. That's the best; noone can do more. You make that effortand your head will be held high.

And what about Knute Rockne? In a lettersent to Coleman Griffith at the University ofIllinois in 1924 Rockne said:

I do try to pick men, who like the game offootball and who get a lot of fun out ofplaying it.

I try to make our boys take the gameless seriously than, I presume, someothers do, and we try to make the spirit ofthe game one of exhilaration and wenever allow hatred to enter into it, nomatter against who we are playing.

In his book, Coachingthe Way of the

Winner, Rockne said:

I believe a lot of our alumni, much morethan our student body, are taking thegame of football a little bit too seriously."

Winning the game is not important, al-though interesting.

But losing ha3 another potential value thatwinning does not, a value which is importantand self-evident, but seldom acknowledged.The literature of self-disclosure21." showsthat the degree of friendship can be assessedby how much we disclose about ourselves toothers. It is when we reveal ou r deficiencies toone another that we develop the strongestbonds of friendship. Thus, the person whoknows the most about your inadequacies andfoolish fears is probably your closest and mosttrusted friend.

Losing is that kind of experience. In losingwe disclose to each other our inadequacies,our failure to achieve a goal to which we had

committed ourselves, and that is a very per-sonal self-disclosure.

FOOTNOTES

'Naruse, G. "Hypnotic Treatment of Stage Fright ,inChampion Athletes." Psychologia: an International Jour-nal of Psychology in the Orient, 1964,7: 199-205.

2McCafferty, W. "Stress and Age Group Competition."Swimming Technique, 1973, pp. 54-5.

'Layman, E. M. "Theories and Research on Aggressionin Relation to Mntor Learning and Performance." In Psy-chology of Motor Learning, edited by L. Smith. Chicago:Athletic Institute, 1970 or 74, pp. 327-42.

'Spielberger, C. D. "Current Trends in Theory and Re-search on Anxiety." In Anxiety: Current Trends in Theoryand Research. New York: Acadmic Press, 1972, pp.3-19.

'Atkinson, J. W. "The Mainspring of Achievement-oriented Activity." In Motivation and Achievement,edited by J. W. Atkinson and J. 0. Raynor. New York:Wiley, 1974, pp. 13-41.

4Sarason, I. G. "Empirical Findings and TheoreticalProblems in the Use of Anxiety Scales. PsychologicalBulletin 57: 403-15.

'Sarason, I. G., 1960, pp. 403-15.'Boner, J. B. "Generalized Expectancies for Internal

versus External Control of Reinforcement. PsychologicalMonographs 80.

'Gazes, P. C.; Sovell, B. F.; and Dellastatious, J. W."Continuous Radioelectrocardiographic Monitoring ofFootball and Basketball Coaches during Games.'' Ameri-can Heart Journal, 78: 509-12.

'oKolbenschelag, M. "Tranquilizers, Towel Chewing,Tantrums: All are Part of Coach Stress.' Physician andSportsmedicine: 4: 97-101.

"Lackey, D. "Why Do High School Coaches Quit?10HPER 48: 22-3.

"Webb, H. "Professiomalization of Attitudes towardPlay among Adolescents." In Aspects of ContemporarySport Sociology. Chicago: Athletic Institute, 1969, PP.161-87.

''Mantd, R. C., and VanderVelden, L. "The Relation-ship between the Professionalization of Attitude towardPlay of Preadolescent Boys and Participation in Orga-nized Sport. Paper preknted at the 3rd InternationalSymposium on the Sociology of Spon, Waterloo, Ontario,Canada, August 22-28,1971.

"Petrie, B. "Achievement Orientations in the Motiva-tions of Canadian University Students toward PhysicalActivity," Journal of the Canadian Association of Health,Physical Education and Recreation 37: 7-13.

"Loy, J. "The Professionalization of Attitudes towardPlay as a Function of Selected Social Identities and Levelof Sport Participation." Paper presented at InternationalSeminar on Play in Physical Education and Sport, TelAviv, Israel, March 31April 3,1975.

"Albinson, J. G. "Professionalized Attitudes of Volun-teer Coaches toward Playing a Game." International Re-view otSpon.Sociology-2: 77-87.

"Loy, J., 1975."Kroll, W. "Psychological Scaling of AIAW Code of

Ethics for Coaches." Research Quarterly 48: 233."Kroll, W. "Psychology of Sportsmanship." Paper pre-

sented at Sports PsyChology meeting, National Associa-tion for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) Friday,March 14,1975, Atlantic City, New Jersey.

10

"Rockne, K. Coaching: the Way of the Winner. NewYork: Devin-Adair, 1925.

"Jourard, S. M., and Lasakow, P. "Some Factors inSelf-Disclosure." Journal of Abnormal and Social Psy-chology 56: 91-8.

"Chelune, G. J. Self-Disclosure. San Francisco:Jossey-Bass, 1979.

REFERENCE

Rockne, K. The Autobiography of Knute K. Rockne,Indianapolis, IN: Bobbs-Merrill, 1930.

Mental Preparation forPeak Performance in Swimmers

Eugene F. Gauron, Ph.D.Department of Psychiatry,

University of Iowa

Beginning in the fall of 1979, a mental train-ing program was initiated with the Universityof Iowa varsity men's swimming team. The

first contact and invitation came from the

coach, who discoyered that a comparableprogram had been developed the previousyear with the University of California-Berkeley men's swimming team. The fact thatthe Cal-Berkeley team won the NCAA champ-

ionship that year was probably instrumentalin the coach's decision to have a'similar pro-

gram for his team. This paper describes thedesign, development and results of this pro-gram.

I experienced a variety of difficulties in de-

signing this year-long training program for

athletes. The first difficulty encountered was apersonal lackof training and knowledge in thearea. Years of working in therapy with psychi-atric patients somehow did not seem relevant.

To combat this, I frequented the library andread everything I could find that would be

helpful. A second difficulty involved findingothers who have already been there, so tospeak, and who would be willing to share

their knowledge with me. To my dismay, Idiscovered that the people I found who hadbeen active with athletes were relativelyclosed-mouthed about what they were doing.What finally concluded was that I was on myown, that no one was going to help me, andthat what lay ahead was both a challenge anda large creative venture.

A third difficulty that I encountered was my

N\

11

relative unfamiliarity with the sport of swim-ming, with the day-to-day details of what aswimmer goes through in training, and-withthe limited information about the individualswho comprised the team. I am now embar-

rassed to admit that I had seen no more thantwo swim meets in my tenure at Iowa. I foundmyself faced with what I considered to be aproblem of community entry. I was the out-sider attempting to make a place for-myselfand attempting to make a contribution whennobody was exactly sure what I had to offer.My solustion to- this dilemma involvedscheduling- interviews with each of theswimmers at the beginning of the season,partly to familiarize myself with them, paitlyto familiarize myself with the program, and

partly to find out from them what contributionthey thought I could make. I was able togradually formulate some basic assumpt;onswhich later became the foundation of theproject.

Basic Assumptions Underlying theUse of Psychology with Athletes

1. Every human being possesses consider-able unrealized potential. One of my favoritequotations is from Herbert Otto to the effect

that the average human being realizes nomore than 5%,to 10% of his/her potential. Theimplication of this assumption is that all of us,including athletes, are capable of doing muchmore than we have previously done.

2. Every human being hmas himself)herself in a variety of ways. Many of theselimits are beyond awareness. These may belimits through attitudes, thought processes,previous experiences, habits, routines, or be-lief systems. Each person has been pro-grammed in a certain way by significantothers ancl by significant life experiences. Thisprogramming leads to a particular self-concept and to notions about W hat one canand cannot do. A further implication of thisassumption is that we fiave a tendency to getin our own way, which makes it more difficultto tap into the potential that is there.

1...Athletes are sravingAtdatheir_vety_best_If they are falling short in some respect, it isbecause they are lacking some necessaryskills. If they knew how to do better, theywould. There are two imphcations of this as-sumption. The first and very necessary one isthat athletes and people in general are com-mitted to the pursuit of excellence. If pre-sented with a path which presents to them areasonable likelihood of attaining excellence,they will pursue it. There also is an indicationof the possible role or function of the sportpsychologist, that hisiher task with a team is tohelp people _develop or explore their un-tapped potential byteaching them psycholog-ical skills which they maY be-lacking or byoffenng options or alternative ways to achieve _

their goals.4. People don't really know how to go

about releasing their potential, but it is possi-ble for them to learn and ultimately they haveto do it for them.5e/ve5. People must be re-sponsible for themselves and learn to managetheir own lives. I view the sport psychologistbasically as an educator or re-educator teach-ing psychological skills which will lead toenhanced performance. The athlete who hasbeen exposed to these psychological skills isresponsible to make the application to thecompetitive situation and to develop his/herown mental approach to the sport.

5. The mind affects the body in both nega-tive and positive ways. The field ofpsychosomatic medicine has known aboutthe interaction between the mind and bodyfor years. It is now well accepted lhat,emo-tional factors contribute to a wide range of

12

physical ailments and diseases. But until re-cently, we have neglected the opposite side ofthe cointhe positive effects of the mind onthe body. For a long time, we even lacked aname for this influence. Recently the termsholistic health and holistic medidne havebeen coined. The basic concept underlyingholistic medicine or holistic health is that thedevelopment of the whole person must beconsidered at all times. I see the discipline ofsport psychology as Moving along hand inhand with holistic health.

6. What go- es on inside the head is criticalto performance. One's thoughts do Matter.Wezreiivilat-weAhink-we-arer We are-able todo w4t we think we are able to do. Webecome what we think we will become. Weare not able to do what we think we are notable to do. This is the art of positive thinking.So much then becomes a question of rightthinking and right attitude or one's mentaloutlook or mental perspective. What I thinkand what I feel about myself and about myown abilities determine what I am able to do.I am constantly in the process of creating myown reality which I then use to support andreinforce what I think I am capable of doing.What limitations we do possess are morelikely to be mental limitations than physicallimitations.

7. Development of the mind and exerciseof The-mind _is equally as important to peakperformance as is the development and exer-cise of the body. frost athletes-With-whom Ihave talked will readily agree that success in-their sport is 90% dependent upon mentalattitude. We all realize that we are a mind andwe have a body until it comes to training andpractice as preparation for competition andperformance. Then, themind is neglected andemphasis is placed on the development of thebody. Athletes have only recently been en-couraged to spend time in mental training ona regular basis. It seemed to Me that the idealtraining program would involve developmentof both the mind and the body and would seekincreased harmony between them.

8. Everything is a matter of energy. There isno opposite to energy. This is because there isnothing that is not energy, including ourselvesand everything we think. Thinking consumes,

0

creates, and converts energy. Since energy isan influential force, and our thoughts are en-ergy, we can alter tangible objects and alterthe course of events to come. Learning how todevelop, summon, and use energy then be-comes a critical skill to learn.

Details of a Mental TtainingProgram

The basic format of the.program involvedmeeting with the entire team regularly, first ona three-times per week basis and later on atwo-times per week basis for 30-45 minutesper session. Participation was voluntary,those-whirl:1rd not consider this cif value orwho preferred to spend the time in cither waysto become better swimmers were allowed todo so. To their credit, the athletes, wereopen-minded enough to give me a chance. Imust admit, however, that not all werewhole-hearted supporters nor active partici-pants in the sessions. Following the presenta-tion of each mental component or psycholog-ical skill, ample opportunity was provided forthe athletes to practice in the sessions viaplanned exercises and activities. Also, en-couragement was extended to practice asmuch as possible between meetings. Theblend of the average session was about one-fourth to one-third didactic or cognitive and1wo-thirds to three-fourths experiential withme directing the swimmers in activities re-lated to the skill we were then practicing. Themajor components of the program includedthe following in approximately the orderlisted.

1. Team building and team unity sessions.Even thoiigh these athletes spent a lot of timetogether in the pool and in the locker room,they did not really personally know eachother. It is common practice at Iowa to dividethe team according to swimming specialityareas and to have separate assistant coachesfor each of the groups. Some of the athletesknew very little about other swimmers outsideof their own speciality groups. Althoughswimming is conceived of as primarily an in-dividual sport, we have attempted to play upthe team aspect and to capitalize on the con-

pt of a support system. The usual look ofthe team unity sessions involved dividing

13

the team into a succession of dyads whotalked with each other about various ques-tions or topics suggested to them. Some of the

.topics related to personal issues, artd somerelated to team and sport-related issues. Westarted with a heavy dose of team building andthis focus remained throughout the entire sea-son. Periodically, possibly on the average ofonce every 6-8 weeks, a team unity sessionwas held in which.the team members wouldeither talk to each other or talk about mattersof mutual concern. These sessions were alsoused to discuss preparation for upcomingmeets or to debrief recen)ly completed met(s.

2. Training irremotionat-control-witl -par-ticular emphasis on management of anxiety;tension, and nervousness. Relaxation trainingseemed to be the place to begin because somany of the skilJs to follow r.equire the abilityto relax both thebody and the mind. There aremany ways to go about teaching relaxation.The literature suggests that no approach ispreferable to another. I chose to expose theteam to a variety of relaxation techniques in-cluding cen tering, au togen ic tra ining; pro-

e

gressive muscle relaxation, breathing exer-cises, mental imagery techniques for relaxing,and meditation. I left it to each athlete todecide which procedure worked best for himand encouraged him to practice and develophis skill with this technique. Subsequentlywhen relaxation was called for, I would_merely request that the athlete relax-through apreferred technique.

3. Training in self-rejuvenation and re-energization as a way of combating tirednessand low energy. During the course of a meet,swimmers will typically be called _upon toswim in more than one event All-out efforts inone performance terid-tubedranungforsub=seqyent performances. In addition, swimmerstrain hard and work hard In the water andwear themselves down physically. Athletesmust not only be presented with the principlethat they have unlimited energy resources attheir disposal, but also they must be trained inways to tap into these resources.

4. Training in attention control with par-ticular emphasis on concentration skills.Concentration was presented to the swimtearn as the ability to focus one's awareness,to be ix the "here and now," to blot . out orhandIrdistractiorftom the task at hand, andto remove or not be enticed by competing orverfering thoughts. The primary skill taughtinvolved focusing one's awareness either onan exteroal objett, Internal processes, a partof the body, or a niental device.

5. Training in the development and main-tenance of self-confidence. A great manystudies hh4e been done investigating differ-ences between elite and non-elite athletes

from various sports. A critical discriminatingfactor, which: overrides talent, is self,confidence. ,The athlete who believes inhimself/herself perforrris better 'and achievesmore thanha comparable athlete with lowself-esteem. The battle of self-confidence isone that is never totally won. Unfortunately,how an athlete feels about himself is greatlyaffected by the latest performance. Athleteswho have disappointing performances or whodo lessmell than they would like 'are prone toself-doubt. It is therefore imperative that anathletebe able to have skill's and techniques athis/her disposal so that s9lf-confidenp may

14

be bolstered. A primary technique involvedrepeated self-affirmation statements.

6. Training 'n visualization (mental imag-ery). The varied uses of mental imagery in-clude visualizing desired outcomes, mentalrehearsal, preparation for a particular event,

--and stress inoculation for difficult or-stressfulsituations. It is unfortunate that so much of oureducational energy is directed toward de-velopment of the left brain and its faculties(thinking, reasoning, speaking, expressing

oneself) whilc so little of our educationaleffort-is directed toward the right brain whichhas nonverlial, artistic, creative, visual, andimaginative faculties. To some extent thetraining of visualization assists people to re-capture a skill that they possessed at an earliertime in their lives nd which has fallen intodisuse. The swimmers seem to feel that of allthe skills learned in the course of this mentaltraining program, visualization was the mostvaluable.

7. Training in cognitive intervention andways of reconceptualizing or reframing. The

value of cognitive intervention can be foundin the management of stress and pain. Strs isnot out there located in or attached td p raw-lar objects or events. There is nothing inher-ently stressful about getting married or takingan exam or swimming in a national tournamen t-o r-gi ving--a-speecfrin-publlocated "in here;" what I make of a situationor the meaning I give it is what makes it stress-ful. For a period of time, psychologists talkedabout behavior modification as a. valuabletechnique. More recently, I have noticed,psychologists are now talking about cognitivebehavior modification. What one thinks and

-what-one-say.s_ta_oneselLbecomec cr:Lcritical.in terms of what one is able to do. We havediscovered that feelings are affected bythoughts and what one is able to do is affectedby thoughts. Changing thoughts changes feel-ings; changing thoughts liberates other possi-ble behayiors. Therefore, it is essential to beable to teach athletes the skill of manipulatingtheir own cognitions and thought processes.

The overall aim of the entire program was tohave swimmers focus on the importance ofmental aspects of swimming, to encourageindividualized mental training programs,.toincrease the consistency of the athletes' per-formance through greater harmony betweenthe body and the mind, to move swimmersalong in the direction of coming closer toreahzing,their untapped potential, and to, in-crease swimmers' awareness of what theynormally had to do to attain peak perfor-mance.

Effects of theMental Training Program

The acceptance and use of regular mentaltraining sessions with an athletic team is stillsomewhat unconventional. It is even moreunusual to see any outcome data presented toillbstrate the possible effectivness of such aprogram. Before presenting any data, I need toindicate that this is neither.a laboratory inves-tigation nor a research study in the usualmeaning of the word. This is what is termedfield research and is a long way from theklassic study where all independent variablesare carefully controlled. I certainly do not

present this as "hard" data; bear in mind thatit is si.ggestive rather than conclusive.

Table 1 presents a review of the 1979-1980Iowa svyiniseason. The Iowa Swim Team ac-complished a great many firsts in the course ofthe season and these are described in this ,

table.

15

'Fable 1. Iowa Swim Teamreviewol 1979-1980 season.

First undefeated dual meet season since 1956.Notable dual meet victories included Indiana(defending Big Ten Champion), CaliforniaBerkeley tdefendtng NCAA Champion} andIowa State (first win ever at their pool).First time Iowa swimmers qualified for theNCAA Championship during the dual meet sea-son.First Big Ten Champion in a swimming eventsince 1959.Most Big Ten Individual Champions (3: in thehistory of Iowa swimming.Highest finish (3rd) in Big Ten Championshipmeet since 1956.Most qualifiers (ten) ever at NCAA Champion-ships.Fast N,CAA All-American (two) in an' individual-swimming event since 1958.First Iowa swimmer in an NCAA Championshipfinal (top six) since 1958.Most NCAA All-Amencans (five) since 1958.Highest finish (22nd) in NCAA Championshipsince 1962.Existing school records.broken in all swimmingevents.

Table Pipresents a reyiew of the personalbest times achieved by the Iowa Swim Teamin the 1979-1980 season. Presented in thistable are the number of personal best times offifteen swimmers who did the majority of theswimming for the Iowa team and the numberof different events in which the perconal besttimes were khieved. The range included oneextreme case, Tom Roemer, who had a total ofthirteen personal best times; three swimmersat the other extreme had no personal best

times during the season. As indicated at thebottom of the table, twelve swimmers (exclud-ing the three who had np personal best times)attained a total of fifty personal best times inthirty different swimming events.

2 3

Table g. Iowa Swim Team 1979-1980personal best times.*

SwimmerNo.

Best Times Events

Roemer 13 6

Harrison 7 3

WoodKerrigan 4 3

Roberts 4 2

Naykir 3 3Marshall 2 2

Rychlik 2 2

Urich 2 2

Wilson 2 2

Brask 2

Wisner 2 1

Bullock 0GraettingerKennedy o'

.111%

Another way to evaluate the range of effectof a program like this'is to look at academicperformance and to see whether .any of thepsychological skills learneaVere also havingan effect on study habits and icademic per-formance. Listed in Table. 5 are the mean

--grade point-averages-for-the entireteam for-theacademic year before the mental training pro:gram was begun, ancithe academic year dur-ing which iFils program was msfifEited:As canbe seen in the table, the team grade pointaverage was quite consistent in the', 1979academic year and also comparable in thefirst semester of the 1980 academic year.However, during the second semester there

*Twelve swimmers attained a totat (*fifth personal besttimes in thirty different events:

Tables 3 and 4 summarize the results of therecent Big Ten and NCAA Championshipswimming meet. Once again a large numberof first place finishers were from the Univer-sity of Iowa.

Table 3. A review of the 1981 season for the.lowa Swim Team.

Results of the Big Ten Meet

Arst Big Ten Championship since 1936 and sec-ond in school history.Ended Indiana's twenty-year reign as conferencechampion.Set six All-time Big Ten records.Finished first in nine of eighteen events con-tested (previous high number of Big Ten champ-ions was three).Set new school records in sixteen of eighteeneventsEach swimmer s-et personal best times in everyevent.

a Qualified twelve swimmers and divers ()

NCAA Championships in twenty separate events(most qualifiers ever).

Table 4. Results of 1981 NCAA swim meet.

Tenth place finish (highest NCAA finish since1959).First NCAA champion since 1958.Nine of twelve swimmers and divers qualified asNCAA All-Americans (most since 1955).Existing school records broken in nine events (offourteen entered).Set two All-Time Big Ten-Records.

2

was a large increase in the tearn grade paintaverages (3.00). The next line of grade pointaverages excludes swimmers who graduatedfrom the team and did not reeurn for the sea-son described herein. Again, a similar patternwas noted with three grade point averages insuccessive semesters beinealmost identicalfollowed by an increase for the ten returningswimmers to 3.04. The final grade Point aver-ages presented describe what happened withthe freshmen on the team roster. Their gradepoint averages increased from 2.46 in the firstsemester to 2.93 in the second semester. Ob-viously, however, some of the individual rezsults were not so remarkable. tr,

Although I am not a believer in the value ofpsychological tests for screening purposesarid have been reluctant to use much /psychometric testing with this team, one ex-ception was the use of the Athletic Motivation jInventory developed by Thomas Tutko. Al-

jhough it has been greatly criticized, this testhas been used extensively in high school andcollege circles-with a variety of athletic teams..M., purpose is hot to debate here the merits of

The Athletic Motivation Inventory as a testinginstrument, but merely to use it in the contextof measuring some changes in individualswimmers which seem to be related to basicconcepts cf the mental training program TheAthletic Motivation Inventory is designed tomeasure eleven personality variables, whichare proposed to be distinguishing characteris-tics of elite athletes. However, one factorwhich gets lost in looking at group effects is -that individuals within the group will change

16

Table 5. Mean grade point averages for Iowa Swim Team for 1979 and 1980 academic years.

FirstSemester 1979

SecondSemester

FirstSemester 1980

SecondSemester

Team 2.66 2.69 2.58 3.00

GPA N=13 N=15Returnees 2.65 2.67 2.64 3.04

GPA N=10 N=10Freshmen 2.46 2.93

GPA N=5

and develop in different ways. In examininggroup scores, these opposite effects seem tocancel each other. Focusing on the results of

, the Athletic Motivation Infientory reminds usthat the individual needs to be considered andin ivi Lig-Effects will vary from person to per-sin. What I have selected for inclusion inTable 6 are the results for four swimmers of theAthletic Motivation Inventory administered inSeptember,.1979 and September, 1980. Here,changes can be observed which occurred inone year's time with these four individuals.Obviously I have selected them as representa:tive of extremes of outcomes.

Swimmff K, for example, showed increaseson seven Ofthe eleven scales and Swimmer Wshowed increases on ten of the eleven scales.Scales which are directly related to areas ofcontent in thepental training program andwhich showed increases for these swimmersinclude self-confidence, emctiunal control,mental toughness, and conscientiousness. Atthe other extreme are Swimmers Blnd 5, bothof whom showed decreases in one year'stime. Swimmer B showed a decrease on ten ofthe eleven scales and Swimmer 5 showed a

decrease on eight of the eleven scales. Ratherthan debating the merits of the Athletic Moti-vation Inventory or raising questions abouttest-retest reliability, what I am attempting topoint out here is, the sathe phenomenon that,we have been observing. fot years inpsychotherapy outcome research, i.e., that'some individuals will,khow a change for thgbetter, some will show no change at all andsome individuals will show a change for theworse. This seems to be reflected in this set oflata.`The implication for me is that not allathletes will respond equally well to mentaltraining and as such, it should not be regardedas a panacea for every athlete. Until we havebetter sorting devices for those who mightbenefit, self-selection and voluntary programsare definitely in order.

The Mahoney questionnairg _has beencommonly used Ss way of ascertaining theathlete's approach to mental iraining12 Theself-administered version that I have used in-,olves 44 questions which are scored on ascale ;rum 1 to 9, 1 being the lowest point orlack of endorsement oi the item and 9 being -the high point qr highest agreement with the

DesireAggressivenessDeterminationResponsibilityl.eadershipSelf-confidenceEmotional controlMental toughnessCoachabilityConscientiousnessTrust

Table 6. Percentile rank on subscales of theathletic motivation inventory.

Swimmer K -1979 1980

Swimmer W1979 1980

Swimmer 81979 1980

Swimmer S1979 1980 _

73 . 31 43 61 23 31 53 81

73 28 58 39 13 5 13 12

68 92 68 79 63 9 98 74

43 5 43 59 38 - 8 83 84

33 40 83 98 43 14 63 2448 77 33 89 63 7 48 7

43 78 33 87 83 29 93 3613 50 8 28, 78 8 78. 24

73 61 63 96 48 . 29 33 47

63 94 2'3 59 V 21 98 9428 71 3 . 42 gB 90 98 92

1 7

0

Table 7. Comparison of athle:ic teams' approach to mentill training.

lowaBasketball

Team

IowaSwim

Team (New)

IowaSwim

Team (Old)

Question N -

nit

N= 15 N= 13

Psych self upConcentration

8.007.56

7.737 A6

6.766.30

Think about mistakes 5.18 3.80 4.00

PsychologicaLrecomerability---- 4.20 4:84-

Use of visual imagery 5.62` 7.20 7.76

Mental practice 6.31 5.20 7.23

Re'play past good performances 5.50 5.40 7.46

Olfactory in rpental practice 3.25 1.20, 2.15

Kinesthetic in mental practice ' 5.12 5.46 6.38

Visual.in mental practice 6.94 7.26 8.54.

Self-talk in training 800 7.06 7.84.00 8726 7.30Self-talk in competition

. _

item. The questionnaire,in totality samples awide range of areas, all related to mental train-ing. I administered this questionnaire in Sep-

tember, 1980, to the Iowa Varsity Men's Bas-ketball Team and to the Iowa Swim Team.Rather than listing all of the questions, I haveselected a dozen which seem to reflect somedifferences across teems or portions, of theswim team (see Table 7). The-three columns,in sequence, represent first, the Ipwa Basket-

ball Team,.second, the. new members of thelow-a Swim Team (fuilowing a highly success-fuj requiting season, which may in itself he anindireetcesult of the mental training program,i.e., '15 scholarship and walk-on athletes have

to.ned the team this year), and thi,J, the re-. turning members of the swim team from last

season who have completed one year of men-

tal'training.`. The three columns in Table 7 illustrate a

wide variety in experience. There was asuccessful,group (.)f basketball players,

most of whom ,weree members of the teamwhich went to-theflnal Four in the NCAA lastseason and who were relative nuvices to the

concept of mental training. The new membersof the Iowa Swim Team were inexperiencedfreshmen but were-not totally unfamiliar-withthe concepts of mental trainino, having re-ceived a great deal of exposure to it at somepoint in their athletic careers. Finally, (be_mostsophisticated thletes, in terms of ismentaltraining, were founti among the returningmembers of the-Iowa, Swim Team.. The first

18

item reflects the extent to which the athletespsych themselves prior to the, athletic coin-petition or performance. One of t. concepts

which I present to athletes in the mental train-ing program is the inverted U curve whichillustrates the relationship between arousand performance.,Afhletes are told that levels

that are too little and too high are detrimentalto optimal performance. The results on this

item indicate that the returning members of

Zhe Iowa Swim Team are the lowest of theg,oups in their tendency to psych' themselves

up before a performance and are noticeablylower than the basketball players' in this re-.spect. The next item relates to concentrationskills. It appears from the results in, this areathat more work needs to beilone with concen-tration because the Ki'sketball players arehigher-than the returning swimmer.s-lt is alsopossible that concentration skills may bemore critical to consistently good perfor-mance in basketliall than they are in swim-ming. The next question has to do with theextent to which the athlete think about hismistakes. The results here indicate that thebasketball players are more prone to do sothan either of the swimming groups. The nextquestion asks about psychological re-coverability, i.e., the extent to which theathlete is able to overcome or rebound from apoor performance. These results indicate thatthe swimmers are better able p recover psy-chologkally from a bad effort than the bas-ketball players. The next item asks about the

0;

use of visual imagery. One of the componentsof the mental training proglam was teachingvisualization skills and uses of visualization.The results of this item indicate that both swimgiroups are much more pr()ne to use of visualimager.y than the basketball players. The nexttwo items both illugrate the variety of usgs fqr,visualization. First of all, visualization caribeused in mental practice or mental rehearsaland secondly it can be used to replay pa tgood performances as a way of enhancingself-confidence. The results indicate that thereturning swimmers are much hieer on bothof thgse scores than the new swimmers or thebasketball players. Again related to the use ofvisualization, the athletes are informed thatvisualization is most effective when it in-volves a total sensory experience includingthe kinesthetic, visual, auditory, and olfactorycomponents. The next three items indicate theextent to which olfactory, kinesthetic, andvisual components are included in mental re-hearsal. The basketball players clre highest inuse or inclusion of olfaciory componentswhereas The swimmers are highest- in

19

c!.

kinesthetic and visual. Perhaps the first is ex-plained by the fi.ct that there is more of anolfactory cgereaent in basketball. Manyvarieties of perspitation odor are prevalent inbasketball, whereas in swiMmingThe only ol-factory stimulus is the chlorine in the pater.Tlie final two items relate to the use of self-talk, which is again a component in enhanc-iriself-esteeni. The questionnaire taps sev.:,eral uses of self-talk: self-talk during training;self-talk prior to competition; self-talk duringcompetition. The pattern of results here is in-teresting, in that it reflects 'the fact that moreexperienced athletes, namely the basketballteam alit] thd' experienced swimmers, arehigher in _gelf;talk during training and,lower inself-talk during actual competition thanthe less experienced or iiew swimmers.Thus, it is wise to encourage athletes to talk tothemselves while they are prkticing Pr train-ing and to turn off their internal talk pr6cesswhen they are competing. As a whole, thequestionnaire results demonstrate differencesin mental $oroaches characteristic of agroup of swimriiers exposed to mental train:

2?-)

110

_

ing and a group of basketball players not soexposed.

Reflections and ConclusfonsIt is amazing how fast advancement can be.

Less than two years ago I knew very littleabout sport psychology and had no experi-ence at all working with athletes. I have nowspent one season with a team and am nowfinishing a second. As a result of being fea-tured in local newspaper articles, a nationalmagazine, and radio talk shows, I have stead-ily been bombarded with questions aboutwhat works, what does not woi-k, and most ofall how to do it. I want to respond to thehow-to-do-it questions in two ways, withsome pointers t have picked up and a caution.

The tollowing considerations seem particu-larly relevant for others who might want toemulate my work with their own athletes atother schools:

1. Relationships are critical and take timeto develop. Trust and confidence do not comeovernight and are most effective only if earnedover a period of time. The sport psychologistmust first devote him/herself to the quality ofthe relationships with team members. I am re-minded of how cautiously the swimmers firstapproached me because theyhad been burnedbefore by others who expressed interest inthem and then did not follow through on theinitial burst of enthusiasm.

2. Support and encouragement from an en-thusiastic coach are essential. I was fortunatein that our swim coach spoke positively aboutthe program from the first day, regularly at-tended the sessions indicating to the team that.he expected to learn something also anddemonstrated in his own behavior (decreasedanxiety levels at meets) that he was benefitingas well.

3. Athletes value personal examples. I be-lieve it is essential that one lead by personalexample as well as by presenting concepts orskills. I have made it a point to try things out onmyselt first. This consistency between what Isaid and what I did added to my credibilityalluded to under point 1.

4. Skeptics are quite helpful, even desir-able. I do not like to work in a situation whereeveryone is a wide-eyed believer. Skeptics are

20

2 0

never threatening. Instead, they provide a sys-tem of checks and balances for me and forothers. Generally; the skeptics are encour-aged to reserve judgment, but having experi-enced what I had to offer became my greatestsupporters.

5. There is'a lot to learn in this area. It

seems to me that .1 continuously run acrossanother book, another idea, another tech-nique, another experience. I am quite com-fortable with being a borrower and a synthe-sizer. The creative aspect is in the mixture Ihave generated.

6. It takes quite a while for coaches andathletes to learn how to make the best use ofthe sport psychologist. For a long time, despitemy offer to be available and helpful, I won-dered_why rFore swimmers were not seekingmy services. I finally decided that they did notknow what to do with me and how to use.me.Toward the end of my second season, as theteam members become more psychologicallysophisticated, their use of me became corre-spondingly more sophisticated. I really amfunctioning now as a mental coach.

7. Hand-outs are valuable...I presented a lotof lecturettes related to the covered topics I

suspect that by March, the athletes forgotwhat I saidto theM in October. Writing it downand giving them hand-outs aided considerablyin retention by providing material they couldrefer to regularly and review.

Rolling Thunder once said somethingwhich I find applicable to many of the re-quests I have received: "I want to warn younot to copy me, but work out your ownmethods. Our people tell us to be original. Ifyou can watch the method maybe that willgive you some thoughts about what to follow,what it's all about. Then, you work out yourown substance, your own songs, your ownprayers and things to go with. It's not good to

Copy."I think it is much too earry for a young and

burgeoning field like sport psychology tobegin standardizing a method. I strongly sus-pect that what works for me may not work foryou and what works for you may not work for

me. 1 here are many parameters which needto be explored before we finalize anythingincluding the personal,ities of the involved

athletes, the personalities of the coach o.coaching staff, and the particular sport that isinvolved. We need to explore a range of usefor sport psychologists and a range of inter-vention foritats. Ldoubt that all of us need to

_spend an entire season with every team withwhich we are associated. Coaches are quitecapable of doing some psychological trainingon their-own. But most of all, I would not liketo have otherS-cheated of the same great anddelightful experiences of being creative andorigin-al and oi,reaching down andlearninghow to develop undeveloped talents.

FOOTNOTES

,Tutko, Thomas, and Tosi, U. Sport Psyching. LosAngeles,tA: Tarcher/Hawthorne Books, 1976.

2DevelOsped by Michael Mahoney of Pennsylvania StateUniversity for research with the 1976 Olympic Men'sGymnastics Team.

21

.29

4

Coach's Rpaction to Dr. Eugene F.Gauron's "Mental Preparation forPeak Performance in Swimmers"

Suzi D'Annollo, S.H.A.P.E., Ed.D.West Hartford Public Schools, Connecticut

I applaud Or Gauron for his honesty in

admitting his "learn-by-doing" approach tothe field of sport psychology. Initially I wouldlike to reinforce Dr. Gauron's basic assump-tions with examples and a commentary of my

own:1. Every human being possesses consider-

able unrealized potential. Perhaps man'sgreatest burden is his great potential. One ofthe most exciting facets of athletics is observ-ing a young person in the initial phases of

participation in athletics and watching thatunknown and untapped potential surface.The continual development of a Positive self-

concept and selt-worth through discoveringand releasing this potential is truly rine of themost important benefits of sport.

2. Every human being limits himself/herselt in a variety of ways. This has beenespecially obvious in the myths surroundingthe female athlete. Fortunately, many of thesemyths are being dispelled with' the rapid in-

crease in female participation.3. Athletes are striving to do their very best.

Dr. Gauron states that "if presented with apath Which presents to them a reasonablelikelihood of attaining excellence, they willpursue it." The three major modalities bywhich we learn are through: the auditory; thevisual; the kinesthetic. Ask yourself how youlearn best. A majority of the population learns

best kinesthetically or by doing. Reflect, on

the way most of us were taught, i.e., through

the auditory mode, the least effective way to

3,1

22

learn. This is a key area that all teachers andcoaches need to become aware of, teachingthrough all modalities.

4. People don't really know how to goabout releasing their potential, but it is possi-ble for them to learn. Ultimately they have todo it for themselves. This is extremely impor-tant. Hopefully, we are ultimately teachinglife skills through athletics, one of which is tobe responsible for our actions.

5. The mind affects the body in both nega-tivq, and positive ways. For every physiologi-cal change in the body, there is a psychologi-cal change and vice versa. Reflect upon thetime before a game when your excitementand anxiety caused your heart to beat morerapidly, or your palms to become sweaty. Theconcept of holistic health and the role of thesport psychologist certainly has ramificatiOnsfor lifestyles. As we discuss the concept of"wellness," we are preparing each individualfor optimum performance.

6. What goes on inside the head is criticalto performance. This, again, reinforces theimportancepf focusing on the development ofa positive self-concept.

7. Development of the mind and exerciseof the mind is equally important to peak per-formance, as is the development and exerciseof the body. It's often been said that 80% of all

athletic ability is from t' neck up. Thus, it isapparent that practice sessions should includemental, as well as, physical training.

8. Everything is a matter of energy. Life is

energy. Dr. Gauron's details of his mentaltraining program have highlighted numerouseffective.points. Since it is not feasible for allathletic prosrams to have a sport psycholo-gist', especially at the high school level, and in

light of the numerous demands on a coach, itis imperative that we educate our coachesabout psychological techniques so that theymay become more effective in dealing withathletes.

Team unity is vital to all athletic teams,whether they be team- or indiv idual-oriented.I would hke to offer the practical implennenta,tion .of a big and little brother/sister policywhereby a "veteran" member of the-team ismatched to a novice member. This approachreinforces team unity. Peer recognition fulfillsone of the basic needs of all people and that isthe need for affiliation.

Relaxation techniques, techniques for at-tention control, and training in visuahzation,can all be learned through the art of ''focus-ing." A practical-approach to this involves theathlete learning to "listen" to the body whiledoing warm-up and cool-down exercises,climbing inside his/her body, and focusing inon the stretch of the large muscle groups andfeeling that stretch. This technique is alsohelpful in the reduction of stress.

Dr. Gauron spoke of the effects of the men-tal training program. I would like to reinforcehis line of thought of "different things for dif-ferent people." It is imperative that a coachgets to know his/her athletes and their indi-vidual arousal needs.

I would also like to address Dr. Gauron'sresults, about psychological recoverability,indicating thar swimmers are more able to

'recover psychologically from a bad effort thanbasketball players. We're dealing with an"individual vs team" ::xample and in doingso, a swimmer's "speed" vs a basketballplayer's "teamwork" It is easier to measureand deal with something as concrete as timevs the intricasies of teamwork.

In conclusion, there exists 'a real need toeducate our coaches with regard to the bene-fits of the psychology of coaching. As eachathlete learns or functions best, so too, doeseach coach have an approach with whichhe/she feels most comfortable.

23

It is vital that all coaches know their studentathletes thoroughly, by which modality theylearn best, their arousal level, and their focus-ing abilities. Regardless of the approach, it isimperative that all student athletes receiveverbal and nonveibal reinforrement.

The coach as a role model is another vitaldimension. Fifty percent of all learning isthrough imitation, or role modeling. This is agreat challenge for a coach, to be the best rolemodel heishe can be.

The most important responsibility is the de-velopment of the individual self-concept.Once on this track, we are fulfilling our com-mitmenito excellence.

And finally, Dr. Gauron's insistence that wecontinue to share information and exchangeideas is vital to the growth of the field of sportpsychology. I thank Dr. Gauron forsharing hisknowledge and experience, and appreciatethe opportunitx to react to this...exciting newfield.

Your living is determinedNot so much by what Ide brings to youAs by the attitude you bring life

Not so much by what happens to youAs by the way your mind looksat what happens

Circumstances and situations do coloryour lifeBut you have been given a mindTo choose what the color shall be.

3Cognitive Somatic BehavioralInterventions in Gymnastics*

Kenneth Ravizza, Ph.D.California State University at Fullerton

and

Robert Rotella, Ph.D.The University of Virginia

Recently increased standards of perfor-pance and degrees of difficulty have evolvedin competitive gymnastics. Likewise, the pres-

tige and publicity accorded to successful per-formances has also increased. As a result, thelevels of stress and anxiety with which compe-titors must effectively cope have also risen.-Currently, much interest is being directed to

the study of the psychological strategies em-ployed by athletes to mentally prepare andcondition themselves for competition) ' A

number of cognitive-behavior rehearsalpackages have been specifically designed forhelpins athletes perform up to their poten-

_

This paper is based on psychological train-ing programs developed and implementedwith gymnasts ranging in age from 10-24years representing the California State Uni-versity at Fullerton Gymnastic Team and theRichmond Olympiad Gymnastic Club,Richmond, Virginia. The training programsare specifically designed for gymnastsof vary-

ing ability levels. °

The program was designed and im-plemented at the request of and in coopera-tion with coaches who felt that excessive anx-iety and tension were interfering with perfor-mance. The program utilizes strategies based

*The authors would hke to extend their appreciation tothe ualitornia State University at FuHerton, GymnastkTeams and their coaches, Lynn Rogers and Dick Wolfe,and to Eddie McAulley and the Richmond OlympiadGymnastic Club of Richmond, Virginia. '

25

on cognitive somatic behavioral intervention.These strategies are clearly useful to athletesin other sports but will need to be modified tomeet the needs of the particular sport.

Our approach in working with studentathletes is rooted in a humanistic phenomeno-logical orientation. Thus, the individualathlete's direct movement experience is thefocal point in enhancing performance. Wework from the gymnast's experiential base tomake the necessary changes in their gymnas-tic experience. The importance of indi-vidualizing the program to meet each gym-nast's own experiential base cannot be over-emphasized. It is, however, impossible tocompletely do so within the constraints of thispaper.

In our approach we also emphasize thatwithin each gymnast there is an inner athlete"or an ultimate gymnast'2 that needs to be dis-covered and allowed to grow. The fears, an-xieties, and doubts that cloud this inner gym-nast must be removed so that optimal perfor-mance can move from within.

Another key principle to our approach isthat gymnasts have limited control of theirexternal environment, but total control oftheir response to it. This implies two points:gymnasts should strive to anticipate and pre-pare as well as possible in order to gain as ,

much control as possible of their externalworld, gymnasts can change their response tothe pressure of performance.

Through effective anticipation and prepara-

0

_

tion, athletes can learn to prevent a stressresponse from occurnng. For example, by an-,,ticipating an occasional fall off a beam duringa performance dnd preparing an effective re-sponse, it is possible to prevent a stress re-sponse from ever oc.curring, but, all situationscannot be anticipated and prepared for in ad-vance. In such situations athletes must havestress management skills which will allowthem to totally change or control their re-sponse to these situa:ions. For example, agymnast initially responds to a situation withincreased shoulder tension which could hin-der or destroy performance. Through skill instress management the athlete is able to rec-ognize and loosen the tension to an appropri-ate level. This later point is basic and so essen-tial to copiiig with stress in sport. There will betimes when all athletes will get tense And anx-ious. Even, the very best athletes experienceexcessive tension and anxiety. So it is howwell gymnasts are able to cope with the anx-iety and control the resulting tension level thatis most crucial to maximal performance.

All of the techniques addressed in thispaper complement the gymnasts' rigorousand disciplined-training programs. It should

, not be assumed that they are intended to orcould replace the physical training. It hadbeen previously assumed that when gymnastsfail to perform up to their ability that morerepetition is necessary. The approach detailedhere argues that mental training plays a cru-cial role in maximizing performance for mostgymnasts. Indeed it is the quality of practiLcrather than quantity or repetition alone that iscrucial to optimal performance. To improvequality, athletes must become mcreasinglyaware of the impact of their minds and bodiesand be skilled at self-management.

The detailed approach will utilize cognitiveand somatic approaches to behavioral self-controlGymnasts will learn to listen to andrespond to the subtle messages of their bodiesand minds in an appropriate manner. Earlyemphasis will be placed on increasing aware-ness, sensitivity, and recognition Qf anxiety,arousal, and tension in response to potentiallystressful situations. Gymnasts will be helpedto clearly understand the role of self-perception in defining situations as stressful or

26

non-stressful. Gymnasts will then learn a vari-ety of cognitive and somatic skills includingcognitive restructuring (thought stoppage,counter arguments, self-talk, imagery, etc.),relaxation training, -.onscious stretching,breath control, and concentration improve-ment techniques. These strategies have beenfound to be most suitable to the closed natureof gymnastic performance.13

The presented program consists of five spe-cific but interrelated phases. The first phaseconsisted of interviewing the gymnasts to as-\certain their present methods of coping. Thesecond phase entailed providing the gymnastswith an overview of the total approach to beutilized and the rationale for it. This step iscrucial to the ultimate goal of self-control. It istirrie-consuming but time well-spent in theearly phase of the program. The third phasewas to determine each gymnast's anxietylevel and to discover the way in which anxietyis typically manifested. In this phase gymnastsattempted to understand their own ideal levelof arousal for maximal performance in differ-ent events. Gymnasts were made aware ofextreme situations where they might be tooaroused and anxious as well as situationswhere they might be so confident they couldbe bored and underaroused. The fourth phasewas to teach the gymnasts various techniques,for coping with anxiety at differing situationsand at various stages of performance: pre-meet, warm-up, pre-event; during perfor-mance, following performance. The fifth andfinal phase was designed to facilitate transferof the skills taught to life experiences outsideof the sport world. The intent was to providestrategies for coping effectively with stress andanxiety throughout one's life.

The Initial Interview

Some of the gymnasts had already had eightyears of intense partidpation in gymnastics.Many had prey iously competed at the interna-tional level. This firm foundation provided asolid foundation from which to work. Othershad very little experience.

A first task was to interview each gymnast tohelp grasp an understanding of their experi-ence, to attempt to discover methods alreadybeing utilized to cope with stress, and to es-

tablish a trusting and open relationsriip witheach athlete. Interview strategies varied fromhighly formalized to quite informal depend-

ing upon characteristics of each gymnast. Thegeneral format for the interview is presentedin Table 1.

Table 1. Initial interviewgymna'stics.

A. Establish rapportmake athlete fee l comfortable.

B. aperiential base.1. Athlete describes his/her own Operiential base.

How long have you been competing?What have been your experiences? Success? Failure? Mixed?How do you explain your consistent or inconsistent results?Are there situations or events that you tend to perform well or poorly?Do you feel confident that you are mentally and physically preparing yourself as well as possible?How does your body usually feel when you perform well?How dbes your body usually feel when you perform poorly?Have you ever thought much about the role that your thoughts, emotions, and feelings play in yourperformance?

2. Athlefe describes past problems.When you ha;e performance problems what do you think is interfering with your ability to performmaxim5lly? (Probe and help athlete accurately analyze the problem.)Do you really have a problem?Is the problem imagined?Do you really have the Ohysical skills down?Do you perfectly execute in practice and then fall apart in competition? All competitions or just realimportant meets?

3. Seriousness &the problem.How serious is the problem as far as you are concerned?Does it only surface in certain situations or is itouite general?Do you have any idea as to the cause of the problem?Are there certain people that cause you to get uptight (coaches, teammates, parents, peers,girlfriend, byfriend)?Do you only have problems when you compete away from home and your own equipment andsurroundings?Are there certain competitors that upset and distract you?Do you ever fear getting injured? If so, does it distract you while competing?

4. Athlete describes past peak performances.When you perform real Well do you have any explanation of why? (Probe and help athleteunderstpd self.1 Describe your feelings and thoughts in these situations.How ath they different from when you perforM poorly?What were you thinking and feeling prior to, during, and following these peak experiences?How does it differ from your thoughts and feelings when you perform poorly?Are there certain gymnasiums, kinds of equipment, or meets that help you give a better perfor-mance?Do you have any idea as tdwhy you perform so well in certain situations?Are there certain people that help you to concentrate and perform well?Are there particular competitors that you tend to compete real well against?

5. Evaluation'of antecedent causes.When was Me first time you can remember performing really well?Can you recall anything about that day?When was the first time that you can recall feeling nervous and uptight?Can you think of anything that may have caused you to feel this way?What do you think is the best way to prepare for competition?

6. Comparison of problem and peak performances.

What do you think are the differences between problem and peal performances?Is your explanation logical?Is it consistent with your experiences?

27

Try to recall the last time you performed poorly.What were you saying or thinking to yourself prior to, during, and following competition?Try to recall how your body felt in these situations.Compare these to your thoughts and feelings prior to, during, and following a great performance

Do you notice anything here?Do you realize that you can control your thoughts and feelings?Do you realize that your thoughts and feelings can and do either help you or hinder yourperformance? (It-possible get a film of a great performance and a poor performance and whileviewing it ask the gymnast to verbahze out bud hislher thoughtsand feelings during each arid.note

the difference's.)Why do you think that you have failed to control your thoughts in the past?Are you beginning to realize their importance to your performance?

7. Intervention.Today was an important-first-step-in_helping yourself.Are you ready to work to improve yourself?What do you think might be done to improve yourself?Are you ready to take self-responsibility for your performances?

- I want you to talk to your coach about what we did-today and see if heshe has any suggestions. Nextweek we will begin to outline a program to help you...ts there anything else I should find out about you before we get started? I feel we will really make

some progress. Your openness and honesty are very important. It will help you know yourself betterand it will help me help you help Ourself better.

The interview is an essential part of thestress management program. It provides per-tinent information for individualizing the pro-gram. The interview gives the opportunity tofully recognize the importance of atyileteInput and to assure each gymnast thathis/herInput is highly valued. These factors are cru-cial to the establishment of a trusting and ef-fKtive relationship. This trusting relationshipis essential to exploring the experiential as-pects of the gymnast's experience.

In tgeneral it was quite obvious that ourgymnasts had no prior formal training in stressmanagement. Most had been given instruc-tions by a coach or friend to "relax" or "con-centrate."

Atter the interviqws, a team meeting washeld to discuss the program that we would usein working with them. Initially, a summary ofthe research on anxiety and coping and itsrelationship to gymnastic performance waspresented. A key point was to emphasize thatanxiety need not be viewed as something toovercome, but that it could function as an ally

to aid one in achieving peak performance.Another essential point was to explain thateach person's anxiety level.may be different.Each athlete was encouraged to increase his/her awareness and sensitivity to determineindividual levels. Thus, the athletes were in-formed that they would have to know them-

28

selves as gymnasts and that they would haveto take the responsibility of coping. This ses-sion also provided the gymnasts with a per-sonal understanding of anxiety. During theensuing group discussion they shared variousways in which they each had previouslycoped. This discussion provided them withnew options to consider and aided in creatingteam unity at a heightened level. All gymnastsnow had an overview of our program and had

shared their own coping strategies.

Determining Individual AnxietyLevels

Our initial task in the third phase of ourprogram was to determine each athlete's anx-idty level and the way in which it was man-ifested. This was accomplished by first ad-ministering objective tests to measure anxiety.A variety of relevant measures including theSport Competition Anxiety Test, Spielberger'sAnxiety Test, and Nideffer's Attentional Testwere administered and scored by a sport psy-chologist. The second strategy was to talk withthe coach to get his perception of how eachgymnast manifested anxiety, e.g., nail biting,sleeplessness, yawning, edginess, stomach,tension in shoulders, giddiness, etc. It wasinteresting to observe that the coach's obser-vations were similar to the outcome of theobjective measures. A third technique was to

.1111

obtain the gymnasts perspective of the waythey experienced anxiety. The final methodwas.our observation of the way they coped jn.simulated meet situations, and in meets of theseason.

These- four methods provided us with anindepth perspective of the way that eachgymnast manifested anxiety and attempted tocope. It served as a base from which we could

work.

Recognition and Awareness ofAnxiety

Anxiety begins gradually and continues tointensify to the point where it inhibits perfor-mance. To control anxiety the gymnast mustrecognize it early Jnd intervene to stop thelearned response to stress. Prompt interven-tion is important because we have found thatanxiety can often be contagious It can spreadfrom the coach to athletes or froM one athleteto the next.

Each individual experiences the anxiety ina unique way. It may be manifested physically(tense jaw, shoulders, neck or muscle tension,shallow breathing, sweaty palms). Since thegymnasts have a highly developed kinestheticawareness of their bodies they can learn toreadily recognize the physical level if encour-aged to be conscious of it. The tension canalso be observed at the behavioral level(laughing, fatigue, nail biting, etc.). Videotap-ing is a tool that can be'used to enhance the,recognition on this level. On the cognitivelevel ode nThist talk.with the athletes to deter-mine the type of imagery and self-talk thatoccurs: self-doubt; negativity; scatteredthoughts (positive, self-enhancing, and self-defeating).

Each of the gymñqts were asked to observetheir anxiety manife tations and report theirexperiences after each *et. Of course, as theseason progressed the Omnasts needed tofocus their attention on the performance andcould not give undo emphasis\tq tension rec-\ognition.

g.

Enhancing Awareness of StressAwareness is the first step to changing\any

behavior. In our program we have incorp6

%. 29

rated two methods to aid in this recognition:development of a centered present focus;usirigilfe bd,Tis a referenee -Pan t fodefer---mine the level of tension. The gymnasts must'have their attention focused on what they areexperiencing at the present moment. Eachgymnast was encouraged to observe what wasbeing experiencednot judge it, but just ob-serve it. This orientation is essential becausemuch anxiety develops from what occurred inthe past (poor previous event) or expectationsof the future (a difficult event ahead). Whenfocused in the present time orientation, gym-nasts can be aware and in control of theiranxiety level. This present orientation is alsowheleihe_gymnasts-consciousness_nremain during performance because, breaksoften occur due to anticipation, of future,moves or being relieved at completing previ-ous moves (getting too far ahead of oneself orbehind). Bonnie Jordan, a gymnast, stated.

It is just me and the routine; there is acomplete silence. I forget time and justtotally get into it. . It is strange it is justme and the beam. I am so into it that Inot notice anything else.

By having the gymnasts use simple brea-thing techniques they can pull their con-sciousness to the present, then observe howthey are manifesting tension and determine ifit is at their appropriate level. If their anxietylevel is too low.they can raise it, or if too highlower it.

By having the gymnasts develop this pres-ent focus it aided them in becoming sensitiveto subtle messages of the body. All gymnastsworked on developing a feeling bf being cen-tered in the body and this provided a refer-ence point frem which each athlete couldevolve. Inifial training time was spent de-veloping this sensitivity by working with gen-eral relaxation and then maintaining that re-laxed consciousness in a standing positionand eventually in a walking position. Onetechnique utilized at this point in the programwas to use a dark and quiet room and have thekymnasts slowly walk, feeling the subtle as-pects of this usual non-attentive activity. Thiswas.,done for ten minutes with them slowlybecoming aware of the finer aspects of their

walking. They learned to move from this cen-tered perspective. By developing this relaxedstate of awareness :( can serve as a referencepoint for reaching the desired anxiety level.By the time they got to thepationals or majorcompetitions this sensitivity to an innerawareness provide0 a centered perspectivewhere they could confront the anxiety of im-portant competition.The importance of GeneralRelaxation

Coaches can tell Wilen an athlete is too tight

or not properly focused and often all they can

say is "relax" or "concentrate." For this rea-son much time was given to teaching all gym-nasts how to develop specific skills to relaxand concentrate. Early in the season they re-ceived training in progressive relaxation, au-togenics, and imagery for the purpose of gain-ing self-control. Once they got control in aquiet environment, distractions were added ina graduated fashion so they could refine theirskills. The premise was that an athlete needs

30

to know how to relax in general before theycan expect to relax on a balance beam in

national level competition.The general relaxation serves three major

functions. it provides a reference point formanaging anxiety, prepares one for enhancedimagery and visualization procedures; aids in

giving the person the overall benefits of relax-ation (physiological and psychological nur-turing). We believe that the final rationalealone is worth the time spent because of therigorous training schedules in which the gym-nasts were engaged.

Intervention 'Strategies-Various intervention strategies were pre-

sented early in the season so that each gym-nast could determine which methods functionbest for them. The information relevant to anx-iety and tension manifestation, obtained byinterview and questionnaire, was particularlyuseful for individualizing the program. Forexample, a gymnast who manifested tension

in the shoulders might benefit more fromstretching or relaxation training than from im-agery or cognitive restructuring. The essentialpoint was to determine which ayenue workedbest for each gymnast's particular needs.However, emphasis was always placed on thefact that all of the techniques whether,cogni-tive, somatic, or behavioral, hav a simul-taneous effect on the mind and body.

Anticipation and Preparation

An imp-ortant psychological strategyutilized in our program employed a combina-tion of cognitive restructuring and stress in-oculation." ' The intent- of -this 'part of the

,program was to antiupate emotionally dis-

tracting situations and prepare gymnasts torespond with control and concentration.Input received from gymnasts Igving experi-ence in different competitive situations wascrucial to the success of this part of the pro-gram.

The first step was to develop a list of situa-tions that could occur prior to, during, andfollowing gymnastic competition whichcould cause an emotional response. Typicallythis list was comprised of situations that reallydid cause particular problems for gymnastt inthe past (see Table 2).

Once this ,list is drawn up the gymnastspracticed utilizing the strategies of thoughtstoppage and self-statement modification.Self-statementS are determinants of emotional

Table 2. Anticipation of potentially emotion-arousing events.

Prior to Competitive Performance

Having to perform worst event first.

Competitor just before me just gives the best performance of his/her career.-

Teammate just befoie me performs poorly.

Find out what judges are the same ones that underscored me last time I competed.

In the locker room discover that I brought the wrong uniform.

On the morning of competition the alarm fails to go off and I have five minutes to get a ride.

Today is my last chance to qualify ior states or nationals.

Today my parents will see me compete for the first time in 3 years.

I will be trying a new move fur the first time in competition today. I blew 2 out of 4 tries yesterday in practice.

Just before competing a coach or teammate reminds me I'm'Iong overdue.

During Competitive Performance

I just blew my opening move.

I can feel my leotards riding up and feel uncomfortable.

Falling off the balance beam or bars in the middle of my routine.

Getting real excited about a great start.

Dwelling on a difficult move at the end of my routine.

Thinking about how embarrassed I am about my mediocre performance.

I hear the crowd booing someone else's scores while I'm performing.

Worrying that my hands are getting sweaty and slippery and I'm sure to slip off the bars.

Following Competitive Performance

Today is not going to be my day. I totally blew my first event. I'll probably blow them al!.

I can't believe it--I just got beat by someone who has never beaten me.

The judges were terrible. They favored the performers with reputations.

Gosh, how can I face my parents. They have spent so much money trying to help me.

31

j 8

4,

Table 3. Cognitive restructuring and thought stoppage.

Prior to Competition

"My beam routine isn't as goodas my teammates. I don't haveany confidence. I know I'll em-barrass myself."

"Stop" 1/4

"Relax""Think rationally"

"This is my favorite event. I

have done my routine perfectlythousands of times. I stay calm,and visually rehearse the- _ routine perfectly in ray head. Iam prepared. I have nothing tofear. I have a great routine. I will .do my best and be happy. Takemy time arid concentrate onwhat I am doing."

During Competition

"Gosh, I feel awful. I bet I lookterrible. I bet everyone is laugh-ing at me."

"Stop""Relax"

"Take your time""Conceatrate"

"Breath"

"O.K., great mount. Breatheslowly and now focus attentionon the next move and let it flow.Concentrate on each trick as itcomes."

responses and they influence the efficiency ofbehavior in performance situations." Indeed,Meichenbaum has postulated that behaviorsare determined and influenced by whatpeople say or think to themselves prior to,during, and following an event."

Athletes were asked to imagine themselvesin the anticipated situations, and feel them-selves thinking and feeling an inappropriateemotional response. Then they were taught torepeat the word "stop" and to take a "breath"whenever they became aware that they werethinking in a self-defeating manner or feelingan emoOonal response (see Table 3). Theywere prepared to substitute a positive self-enhancing statement that they could repeat tothemselves whenever they ever found them-selves in the anxious situation,"

More Somatic-oriented StrategiesSeveral more somatic-oriented strc.tagies

were utilized in our program. Abdominalbreathing was one technique all the gymnastswere trained to use, because it is so basic andis the body's natural tranquilizer. The breath-ing techniques were learned in conjunctionwith relaxatiomearly in the season. The gym-nasts were taught to associate the abdominal

Following Cbmpetition

"That felt O.K. but I'm just notve.y happy."

"Stop""Relax"

"Think rationally"

"I did great. Look at the scores. Iperformed well and I scoredwell. I slightly missed a coupleof moves. But I don't have themdown in practice yet either. I

must practice more. When I getthem down I'll beable to com-pete with anyone. I'm gettingthere. I feel proud."

3±,

breathing with relaxation so that the behaviorwas habitual. Conkious stretching is anotherway to release tension. From the beginning of

the season it was emphasized that whenstretching one is doing more than just stretch-ing muscles, but releasing tension as well.Massage also :omplements this physical re-lease. Athletic trainers can assist with this as-pect of the program. The advantages_ of these .

three methods are that they are basic and easyfor most gymnasts to execute. These strategieswere not used in isolation. They were com-bined with a variety of other copinn strategies.

Creating a Relationship with theApparatus

Another method used to help the gymnasts__.rnyanage their anxiety levels was to take more

of a Philosophical orientation to their perfor-mance. The gymnasts were encouraged tomove in the direction of an "I-thou" typc ofrelationship with the event. The l-thou rela-tionship is a concept that was developed byMartin Buber to describe those meaningfulmoments in a person's life where they are inUnion with another person. These momentshave a presentness, intensity, and total in-volvement." -

32

Gymnasts can move in the direction of thisL-thou_perspective by familiarizing them-selves with the apparatus (touching it, smel-ling it, feeling it, almost as if it were viewed asa friend). Nancy Jones, a gymnast stated that:

I was surprised that previously I neverreally felt the soft quality of the balancebeam. In my routine I begin with a Mountwhere my hands are in contacf with thebeam. Once- I touch that beam it is likethe final concentration switch is turnedon.2'

No matter where one performs, the balance

beam is uniformly the same. This-familiaritycan be used as a tool to control excessiveanxiety and arousal. Dick Wolfe a gymnas-tics coach explained: "The flooc,exercise areais a 42 foot-square no matter where you arecompeting and it is your area to command."22He at times has told his gymnasts to bring anapple for the pommel horse. The point is thatthe athlete cannot fight the routine bsut mustmerge Into it.

,

This I-thou relationship is stimulated in thepre-meet preparation. For example, at nation-als last year the team arrived three days beforethe meet to become familiar with the enVi-ronment. We fostered this by having the gym-

nasts sit in the stands and look at the apparatusand then view it from different locations andfinally move to the apparatus and walkarounci, it and experience it as more than justan objqct. The emphasis was to have the gym-

nast experience what was different about it(texture, smell, etc). They were then to-look atthe external factors (tele%7Ision cameras, colorof the walls, ceiling, etc.). This was all doneconsciously, not haphazardly. The purposewas to become desensitized to the intensity offinals by associating with the friendly safe en-vironment. Some team members reported thatthis appeared to help in managing anxiety.The technique apparently facilitated habitua-tiori to the environment for those who choseto use it. It must be emphasized that within ourprogram the gymnasts were presented withmany-methods to manage their anxiety, but itwas their decision to determine which strate-

gies work for them. This flexibility is essential.

033

Actual National Level Competition

A variety of specifiC methOds were incorpo- .

rated Into the prOgram to help the gymnastscope with the stress of national competitionis.By way of example we will focus dn the ba-

lance beam (a women's event). This will \bediscussed in terms of managing anxiety in thefollowing stages: pre-meet (three hours priorto competition); warm-up; pre-event; aetualperformance. "'An essenbal point is that thecoach must take care of all coaching respon-sibilities, such as making certain that transpor-tation is arranged, taking care of pre-meeteating plans and tending to other varied de-

tails. These technical factors when not [NO-erly executed can create- unnecessary. stress.

Pre-meet

Three hours before the meet thosegymnaststhat tend to pe higher in anxiety, participate

in a group relaxation and imagery session.

The gymnast has the final choice in determin-ing whether or not this is ppropriate for his/.

her individual needs. To attempt to force aperson to relax :s impossible and potentiallyeven stress-provoking. In the early meets they

were, however, encouraged to at least try it.Often this session was found to aid the gym-nasts by beginning the menial preparationthat is needed in competition ii gives thegymnast a conscious method to make the ad-

justment from the day's events and the actual

gymnastic meef. The imagery techniques(mastery rehearsal) aided the.gymnasts in get-ting their bodies ready for the warmupperiod.Susan Archer,a gymnast, explained her expe-riehce with the pre-meet session:

For me I was, able to get into the state Ineeded to compete. I could create thatfeeling that I needed to perform. Theagery helped my performance.bet'adse I

kit like I had already done the routineonce.""

Wa r m u

The warmup period was used as an oppor-tunity to detei -nine the gymnasts' state of totalbeing with respect to performance. For exam-

Ale, the gymnast focused on muscles thatwere excessively tight. Stretching was used to

a

bring the physical body and thought processto the centered state with which they werefamiliar. Achieving this centered state was agradual process and each gymnast with timelearned how to attain it prior to competition.Susan Archer explained this procethire:

I find out where I am sore (there is adifference between muscle soreness andtightness from tension). I determine howflexible I am that day and stretch out

-accordingly. I then go through myroutine to fee; where I am tight and looseso that I can get my body the way I wantit.24

The warm-up also gives the gymnasts a finalopportunity to farnarize themselves with theapparatus and to adjust to the crowd.

Competition

The gymnasts did what was necessary lofinely tune their concentration. That includedimagining, routines, talking oneself throughthe routines, executing actual physicalmovements on the floor, practicing breathingtechniques, and prayer or meditation. As pre-yiously mentioned, these choices had been,determined earlier in the season. For exam-ple, one gymnast felt she needed to gothrough many routines to establish the confi-dence she needed: So she would see herselfgoing through six routines. Others attainedthe same mental state 1)y going through oneroutine

Immediately before the beam routine eachgymnast narrowed her focus of attention.This was fostered by having a specific point onthe apparatus on which to focus, e.g., a markon the beam. then, the gymnast and ap-paratus move. in the direction of the l-thourelationship. Bonnie Jordan, a gymnast, ex-plained:

Right, before I start, I totally block outvarious distractions. It's as if externalthings are melting away and then a si-lence surrounds me."

Not every gymnast has this type of ability toconcentrate but 16 the future it will be neces-sary for this type of concentration.

34

Actual Performance of Beam Routine

The first task was to finely tune the l-thourelationship; it is at this point that the am-biance was created and the "ultimate gym-nast" began to emerge. The routine was al-most automatic for the gymnast because4 hadbeen done thousands of times. Once theroutine began, the gymnast focused on onepart at a time. As mentioned earlier, this pres-ent awareness was essential because it was in

tthe present time orientation that they makethe subtle compensations in theTmovementsto make it appear perfeci. At various points inthe routine there were internal focus pointsupon which to concentrate in order to stay"centered." For example, when a womahgymnast is doing a "flip-flop" on the beam,fear is a definite factor. Immediately beforethe move, the gymnast focused upon a pointof concentration, e.g., pulling the thighs' to-gether. This point was usually associated witha mechanical aspect of the movement. Thekey factor was to make the poir.t as specific aspossible, i.e., focus upon a specific spotwhere she will experience the tightening ofthe thighs. The assumption was that if she wasfocused on that spot she could not be con-scious of the fear as well. The specific focalpoint will vary among gymnasts.

Some gymnasts used sounds to focus theirattention. Bonnie Jordan revealed.

I use key words like "Jam Go, Jam Go"; Ihave all these words that focus me in. I

will just think of the first trick and then itfollows. I think of my routine as a wholeand at key points I thinkof a sound thatgoes with each trick.26

Another gymnast focused on her breathingas she went through her event. Whateverworked best for th,lt person was implemented.The strategy chosen was established early IR rthe season so that the gymnast would be con-scious pf as she worked the. routinesthroughout the season. These techniqueswere developed by the coach and the appliedsport psychologist Who worked with the gym-n,..sts in practice to det&mine Where theyplaced their consciousness during the routine.The focal points were determined through

,

communication and trial and error. They werenot left to chance. ?-

Thus, the gymnasts were taught specifictechniques on which to concentrate, to relaxand to intervene on distractions at variousstages of meet preparation and the actual per-formance. The concepts of stress ,manage-ment can be presented to all the team mem-bers at the same time, but the applied sportpsychologist must work with each gymnast todetermine which strategies work best for eachindividual.

The Benefit of Stress-managmentSkills in Latrr Life

Throughout the program, it wac explainedthat the skills taught were not juk limited togymnastics, but could be used In aH aspects oflife where one needs to cope with stress, e.g.,test taking, job interviews, childbirth, injuries,or emotional trauma. Thus the gymnast leaves

the program knowing not only gymnasticmovements but also coping skills that can beused throughout life.

la*mrnary, many of`the techniques and, theories we have incorporated in our programwere things many of the gymnasts already didA systematic framework was added whereinthe performers would be understood as/awhole. Furthermore the gymnasts were taughtto bring a consciousness to their perfor-mances so that they could be better prepared

when meeting specific needs.

FOOTNOTES

'Mahoney, M. J. , and Avener, M. "Psychology of theElite Athlete: an Exploratory Study." Cognitive Therapyand Research 1: 135-41.

2Highlen, P., and Bennett, B. "Psychological Charac-teristics of Successful and Non-successful Elite Wrestlers-an Exploratory Study." Journal of Sport Psychology 1:123-37.,

'McAuley, E. "The Effects of Two Cognitive BehaviorModification Techniques upon Gymnastic Perfor-mance." Unpublished Master's Thesis, University of Vir-ginia, 1980.

'Rotella, R. J., Gansneder, B., Ojala, D , and Billings, J"Cognitions and Coping Strategies of Elite Skiers an Ex-ploratory Study of Young Developing Athletes Journal ofSport Psychology, 1981.

5Nideffer, R. M., and Deckner, C. M. "A Case-study ofImproved Athletic Performance Following the Use of Re-laxation Procedures. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 30.821-2.

'Suinn, R. M. "Removing Emotional Obstacles toLearning and Performance by Visuo-motor Behavior Re-hearsal. Behavior Therapy, 3: 308-10.

'Suinn, R. M. "Behavioral Rehearsal Training for Ski-racers." Behavior Therapy, 3: 519-20.

,Suirm, R. M. "Behavioral Methods at the WinterOlympic Games." Behavioral Therapy, 8. 283-4.

'Gravel, R., Lemieux, G., and Ladoneur, R. "Effective-ness of a Cognitive Behavioral Treatment Package forCross-country Skiers.' Cognitive Therapy and Research,4: 83-9:

'"McAuley, E., and Nitella-, R. "A Cognitive Approachto Enhancing Gymnastic Performance."airluscriprsubmitted for publication, 1981.

"Gallwey, T. The Inner Game of Tennis. New York.Random House, 1974.

12Leonard, G. The Ultimate Athlete. New York: VikingPress, 1975.

"Ravizza, K. "The Lived Body Experience in Gymnas-tics & Hatha Yoga." Unpublished paper presented at thePhilosophic Sodety for the Study of Sport, Kadsruhe,West Germany, July, 1980.

"Jordan, B. CSU-Fullerton gymnast, personal inter-view, April, 1979.

1$Meichenbaum, D. H. "Self Instructional Methods."In Helping People Change, edited by F. H. Kaufer and AP. Goldstein. New York: Pergammon Press, Inc., 1975.

"Rotella, R. J. "Psychological Processes for Achi6ingand Coping with Stress in Sport. Paper presented at thesymposium, National Association for Sport and PhysicalEducation: 'Sport- Psychology Academy, Detroit, MI,1980.

"Ellis."Meichenbaum, D. H., 1975."McAuley, E., 1981.'Tuber, M. 1965."Jones, N. CSU-Fullerton gymnast, personal interview,

November, 1980."Wolfe, V. CSUFullerton gymnastics coach, personal

interview, November, 1980."Archer, S. CSU-Fullecton gymnast, personal inter-

view,April, 1979."Archer S., 1979."Jordan, B., 1979."Jordan, B., 1979.

REFERENCES

martens, R. Sports Competition Anxiety Test.Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 1977.

Weer, R. M.,"Test of Attentional & InterpersonalStyle." Journal of Personality & Social Psychol-ogy, 34: 394-404.

Ravizza, K. "The Body Unaware." In Being Humanin Sport, edited by B. Fahey and D. Allen.Philadelphia: Lea & Febiger, 1977.

Rotella, R. J., and Whorely, D. "Helping AthletesPrepare for Competition through Inoculation."Unpublished paper presented at VAPH PER Con-vention, Blacksburg, VA, 1980.

Spielberger, C.D., Gorsuch R. L., and Luschene, R.E. Manual for State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. PaloAlto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press, 1970.

35

4 r)isd

Coach's Reaction-to Dr.Kenneth Ravizza's and

Dr. Robert Rote lla's"Cognitive Somatic BehavioralInterventions in Gymnastics"

Hayes Kruger, Gymnastic Coachlathes Madison University

Harrisonburg, Virginia

The paper-by Dr. Kenneth Ravizza and Dr.Robert Rotella highlights two important facetsof coaching that are usually given little morethan lip service by many coaches. I clearly seethe material objectives of gymnastics, but I donot-have a clear perspective on the psycholog-ical objectives for the gymnast, on the onehand, and for the coach on the other. Only inrecent years havel come to realize that thereis more to concentration than responding tothe command, "Concentrate." Much morecan be accomplished by asking the gymnastto "practice mentally."

As coaches, we are very concerned with thegoal of facilitating the athlete's fullest poten-tial for performance. We fail when perfor-mance in competition does not equal or ex-..ceed practice performance. Practices are notalways pleasant and rewarding either for theathlete or-the coach. Attitudes toward hardwork are not what we, as coaches, think theyshould be. It is often difficult to achieve thegoals we believe are important even when thetalent exists. Sometimes coaching does notseem-worth the effortbut it is. That is espe-cially true now that sport psychologists arepo,nting toward a more humanistic coach/athlete alliance.

With this humanistic relationship the coachwill have to promote goals of self-realizationto make it work. The coach will have to be-come re-educated. Moreover, the coach willhave to make major adjustments, in somecases, to create a climate that reduces unnec-

,4

essary stress while creating the ability to man-age stresses required for competition. Theseadjustments are not easily made. It takes timeand a great deal of patience on the part of thecoach. A psychological climate that permitstalent seeking expression to flourish must becreated daily, to maximize performance. This"talent" may just wither away without everdeveloping no matter how much one tries tonurture it with our newly-found psychology ofcoaching. This is an alliance, a relationshipbetween the coach and athlete. The athletemust try to make it work.

Ravizza and Rotella point out the impor-tance of familiarization, of getting used to anenvironment in all its details. This is especiallyimportant for the gymnast who must oftenperform complex and Tisky movements in anew environment with strange apparatus.Upon reflection, following a missed routine,athletes will often remark that some seem-ingly minor factor was responsible for the er-ror, i.e., "the bar felt thick." Taking the time toexplore a new situation from as many anglesas possible while visualizing oneself in thecompetitive situation appears to be an easilyaccepted suggestion. Stress management isnot so easy to accomplish. The coach is oftenthe most stress-producing agent in the prac-tice and sometimes, even in the competitiveenvironment.

Visualizing performance, learnng to relax,and learning to block out interfering stimuliare techniques that are most useful for the

athlete to practice to maximize performanceon any given day, However, they cannot becommanded into existence. They grow outofa very slow process of encouragement, prac-tice, and improved knowledge. Results cansometimes be dramatic and sometimes disap-pointing. These psychological techniques areevery bit as difficult to learn by some, as arephysical skills by -others. The coach must bepatient and must persevere.

I can speak from experience since I spentthe last seven months in a concerted effort tobecome versatile in stress management tech-niques. I was fortunate in having the assis-tance ora sport psychologist to handle ses-sions on nutrition and weight control, mentalrehearsal, and relaxation. However, theseconcepts and techniques must be appliedevery day. There first must be a canmitmenton the part of the coach. A continuing attitudeof commitment to what was earlier referred toas the goal of self-realization, should be evi-dent in all situations and circumstances affect-ing the coach/athlete relationship. Growthtowards independence and responsible be-havior should be natured during practice,during competition, and during those timeswhen the coach and athlete are engaged inother ways. As a women's gymnastics coach, Ihave found it especially'difficult to wean mygymnasts away from certain forms of depen-dent behaviors. Fear of injury is a strong fac-tor, but greater independence can be* de-veloped by gymnasts who accept responsibil-ity for developing their own resources, such asstrength.

As I continue my oofessionaI growth asteacher and coach, I look forwa0 to con-tinued opportunity to explore the intricaciesof psychological- development in sport, aswell as the ever-increasing challenges pre-sented by the technical development of thesport itself. To fully achieve success and peakperformance, it will take a mardage of techni-cal knowledge and mastery of self, both phys-ically and psychologically.

37

cz

4)

Application of Stress Managementin Competitive Runners

Introductiono

..

Susan G. Ziegler, Ed.D.Cleveland State University

Sport psychologists today arr6xpressinggreater interest in the behavior of the coachand athlete, as well as a great deal of attentionto the role of stress management in sport. It isreally quite remarkable that in a field wherestress and tension reign supreme, our controlof the matter does not reach far beyond ourverbal mastery of the terms. Coaches,athletes, and sport psychologists for yearshave been experts in "sportsugese." We talkof over-motivating, under-motivdting, psych-.ing up, psyching down, and becomingpsyched out. We want the killer instinct, butwe don't want the athlete to choke. We bom-bard our athletes with helpful words of wis-dom, such as concentrate, hit, drive, relax.We plaster the locker rooms and playbooks,ad oauseum, with -helpful catchy slogans:"When the going gets tough, the tough getgoing," "2 + 2 = 5- and "triumph = TRY +UMPH."

Our knowledge of the sports' jargon is as-tounding. We are very good at telling ourathletes what should be done, i.e., concen-trate, relax, but many times we fail to tell themwhy or how to do these things. We are stillvery naive when it comes to diagnosing fac-tors affecting performance and prescribingstrategies to enhance performance.

39

Models of Stress Managementin Sport .

Researchers and coaches have been inter-ested in the effects of stress on physical per-formance since the early 1900s. A quick scanof the literature, however, reveals a new em-phasis on this concept, and with that, a newwave of researa has evolved. The area ofstress management in sport 'lls adapted sev-eral models for consideration in describingand changing sport-related behaviors. Theearlier work of researchers, such as Speil-berger,' Tayior,2 Endler,3 and Martens,' hasgiven us a better understanding of that elusivevariable we call stress. Two models that focusmore on behavioral definition and change arethose presented by Meichenbaum's Stress In-noculation Training (SIM and the model de-scribed by Smith entitled, the Cognitive-affective Stress Management Training Pro-gram (SMT).6 Both pf these models will bediscussed and treatment strategies for stressmanagement will be explored.

Meichenbaum: Stress InoculationTraining (SIT)

One of the cOmplaints of modern-daycoaching is that the coach imposes his will orauthority on the players which results in afalse sense of personal stability within theathlete. More and more coaches are recogniz-ing the need to permit athletes to developself-control measures that they can rely on

during competition. This is essential, becauseonce the contest begins, the coach can dovery little to intervene for the athlete. The oldadage, "A coach knows he has been success-ful when ne /snot needed," has new meaningin the struggle to develop athletes who cancontrol all elements of their own perfor-mance.

Meichenbaum's SIT program blends wellinto this self-control philosophy. The SIT iscomprised of four basic phases. The first,the educational phase, helps the athlete tounderstand the many reactions stress canelicit in the body, and assists in clarifying andredefining theentire event (conditions leadingup to stress, stressor, athlete's reaction, con-sequence of action, feedback). The secondphase allows the athlete to develop self-control strategies for coping with the stressfulsituation. This phase includes techniques in-volving relaxation training and developmentof effective self-instructions including Prepa-ration for the stressor, confronting the stressor,handling the stressor, possibility of beingoverwhel med by the stressor, and self-reinforcement. Finally, during the third phasethe athlete gets an opportunity to rehearse'these Skills in increasingly more difficult situa-tions, i.e., at practice, scrimmage, and game-I ike and game situations. The athlete's re-sponse to stress IS evaluated and appropriateadjustments are made in the SIT program.

Cognitive-affective StressManagement Training (SMT)

A second model, equally applicable tosport training, has been described by Smith.'The Cognitive-affective Stress ManagementTraining Program (SMT) parallels the SIT onmany accounts. The SMT also emphasizes the

trufivicluality of a stress management pro-gram. Some ath letes will be more effective in

stress reduction via the physical modality,whereas other athletes will find greater suc-cess utilizing cognitive methods. The five-step SMT program begins with the pre-assessment phase. A holistic perspective ofthe nature of the athletes' stress response isdeveloped including the nature of response,antecedents, behaviors, and consequences of

40

the athlete's action and the athlete's strengthsand weakness (cognitive and behavioral) incoping witH' these situations. The secondphase educates the athlete concerning thetreatment rationale and explains the interven-tion options for the program. The third, phaseprovides the skill development portion of theprogram. This includes the physical responses(relaxation) as well as cognitive coping skills.The fourth phase provides the opportunity torehearse the newly acquired coping skills viaimagery training. Athletes imagine increas-ingly higher levels of stress and the concomit-tant arousal and then are asked to controlthese feelings v ia the intervention strategies(cognitive, behavioral, and an "integratedcoping response") learned during phase threeof the program. Finally, an evaluation com-ponent is utilized to assess the program's ef-fectiveness and to modify the program to ac-commodate individual needs and interestsBoth of these models and the cognitive copingelements that are utilized share two commonvariables, the ability of the subject to controlhis/her thought processes; development andapplication of cognitive skills

Subject's Control of thought Processes: InitialRecognition and Control

As these two models have suggested, it ispossible for athletes to gain control over theiranxiety reaction. This is possible through thedevelopment of a flexible set of coping skillsthat are acquired through practice. If theseskills are to be effective, the athlete must be-come more in tune with the "inner" athlete

and the 'powerful statements this "inner"athlete generates. These messages generallytake either a positive oriented view, or theform of self-doubt statements and negativethoughts concerning performancecapabilities and outcomes. According toMeichenbaum self statements serve manyuseful and powerful functions includingevaluating the results of the situation, control-ling (or not controlling) negative thoughts,recognition and reinterpretation of signs ofarousal, assisting the athlete in coping withfear, and evaluating and reinforcing the cop-ing effort.9

A (

MINIMIV4.2114

;t" r-o4

..: -, .,,- vs -, s. I'-',- - :-

. ,,.. .........wit-

- -_ : ..: -.' .- 1,

: ;:-_-_-.

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Although the uses of self statements are welldocumented,'° they must first be recognizedand re-evaluated to serve as coping skillsrather than as an inhibitory factor on perfor-mance. To increase the level of awareness ofthese statements an athlete needs to becomemore aware of the overall (physiological andcognitive) body responses to stress. This canbe accomplished for most athletes via the ac-quisition of relaxation skills. The develop-ment of a good relaxation response is impera-tive in the acquisition of a tension recognitionand control responses.

The interest in relaxation is obviously not anew one. Jacobsen introduced the progressiverelaxation technique and it has been used invarying forms for years." The first step in thisprocess is tension recognition. A variety ofprepackaged relaxation tapes are availablewhich verbally guide subjects through relaxa-tiop programs. These programs vary in theirlength (15-45 minutes) and thek approach,e.g. fantasy, tension/relaxation. However, the

difficulty in relying sulely on the "packaged"approach to rdaxation training is that the

41

needs of the individual, i.e., attention spanvisual preference, imagination, etc., may beoverlooked. Other options in relaxation train-ing include verbal guidance by coach/consultant, partner assistance, combinationof tape/verbal guidances and biofeedbacktraining.

Once a good relaxation response is de-veloped the athlete tends to become moreaware of thephysiologicai and cognitive mes-sages the "inner athlete is experiencing.These statements can take the form of inhi-bitory or facilitory self statements. A facilitorystatement focuses on the desired behavior in apositive fashion. An example of a facilitorystatement would be, "This serve will go deepinto their court." Examples of inhibitory selfstatements are. "I hope I don't miss this shot"or "I know I'm off in my shooting tonight."Another form that these inhibitory messagestake is that of negative imagery. For example,a tennis player may visualize a missed serve,

or "sense" a missed volley. A related, andequally disturbing element that interferes withthe self-control of an athlete involves the re-

ported distortion in the perceptual thoughtprocesses. Athletes report that these distor-tions generally take two forms, mind racing, aresponse that appears to be executed in slowmotion. Typical examples that athletes haveshared involving mind racing include rushinga volleyball serve, thinking of all possible of-fensive plays and not being able to concen-trate on the ball, try ing to field a baseballwhile the mind is being flooded with severalpossible plays or options and, finally, a senseof the entire scene being performed at a"Keystone Cop" pace. The opposite, slowmotion responses, have been reported byathletes who have difficulty responding to thecompetitive stimulus. For example, the vol-leyball player who does not respond to tht.ball until it has bounced beside him/her, orthe batter who swings late. All of these v ari-ables inhibit performance. Via stress man-agement programs athletes may learn to rec-

.ugnize and control their responses in theseVarious situations. The development of therelaxafion response and the recognition of in-hibitory messages comprise the beginningphases of a stress management program.

Development and Application of CognitiveSkills

Once an athlete is able to recognize tensionthere are a variety of mental training tech-niques that can be utdized to enhance per-formance. These are concerned with theelimination of the inhibitory messages the"inner" athlete generates. The majority ofthese techniques rely, in part, on mental prac-tice. Mental practice is obv iously not a newtechnique. Washburn first wrote of thephenomenon of muscular activ ity occuringduring periods of mental imagery.'2 Duringthe 19305 an additional surge of interestevolved in the concept of mental prac-tice." '4 " '6 Interest in utilizing mental prac-tice in motor skill acqubition began in theearly 1940st' and has continued to intrigueathletes, coaches, and researchers for manyyears. Two contrasting methods of utHizingmental practice, external and internal mentalpr4tice, are pertinent to this discussion.

External Mental Practice. The first techniquefor mental practice requires the subject to

42

imagine the situation from the perspective of aspectator. The athlete can envision himself/herself dribbling down the floor, 9an see sur-rounding opponents, can viSualize thenumber on his/her back, and so on. This typeof imagery rehearsal is used in techniquessuch as psychocybernetics.Internal Mental Practice. The second mentalpractice technique requires the subject to be-come an active participant in the action. Thesubject is the performer in the image. As hev isualizes himsdf dribbling down the court hesees only what an athlete in' that situationwould see.

Jacobsen noted that external imagery didnot produce the level of muscular activity thatinternal imagery produced:8 Support for thegreater effectiveness of internal imagery inproducing kinesthetic arousal,has also beenreported by Corbin,' 9 ,Lang," Davidson,Schwartz & Rothman2t, and Davidson.22

Epstein? further investigated the role of im-agery style in..a dart throwing task using fourimagery tests and the "dock test."24 Subjectswere randomly assigned to an internal imag-ery condition (N= 30), external imagery(N=30), or control (N=15) group. Tbirty dartswere thrown for a baseline measurement.Subjects in the two experimental conditionsthen mentally practiced the task using eitherinternal or external imagery. Results indicatedthat significant differences evolved only be-tween male and iemale subjects on dartthrowing accuracy. An interesting result ofthis study was the evidence supporting theidea that subjects generally utilized bothinternal and external imagery styles. The au-thor did report concurrences with results ofEpstein and Mahoney and Mahoney and Av-ener" wh..h suggested that negative motorperformance gains seemed to be related to adependency on external imagery. Continuedresearch is needed in the effects of mentalpractice on performance. Readers are referredto a review ofvariables affecting mental prac-tice by Corbin.26

In addition to mental practice most stressmanagement programs include strategies toassist the athlete in monitonng self statementsand in the development of positive task-oriented images and messages. Four such

. 0

e.

techniques have played a major role in myown research: negative thought stopping,positive self statements; stimulus cueing;visuo-motor behavior rehearsal.Negative thought stopping. Most youngathletes have complained of thoughts and im-ages of failure that flash into their minds priorto performance. These seem to most com-monly take the form of negative self state-ments and images and negative thoughts to-ward others that interfere with performance.

The negative self statements are detrimentalto an athlete's performance because theathlete' begins to "program" hidiself withnegative thoughts about performance, e.g., "Iknow I am not a good rebounder," or "I knowI'll miss this shot." Some athletes envision anerror in performance prior to skill execution(seeing himself/herself thissing the freethrow). In addition to generating negativethoughts and images regarding their own be-havior, athletes allow their feelings toward aleammate to interfere with their own playingstyle, e.g., a player is open for a shot and doesnot receive the ball from a teammate, sohe/she lets the thought of the teammate's in-competence interfere with his/her own skillexecution, resulting in hesitation and the mis-sing of the rebound).

Negative self statements and images inter-fere with performance in two significantways: they place self-doubt in the athlete'sown ability thus affecting his/her confidence;the athlete's reaction to them results in inter-ference ol concentration and skill execution.Therefore, the athlete's objective is to begin torecognize and then stop the thoughts beforethey interfere with performance. Thoughtstopping is a skill, and therefore requires regu-lar practice. One effective technique for de-veloping this skill is a five-step approach.1. Begin to recognize and record the number

of times negative thoughts "sneak" intoyour mind.

2. Dunng relaxation practice become awareof the negative messages your mind sends,i.e., "This is ridiculous!" Stop that thoughtby saying NO! I can learn to relax, I justneed to concentrate more."

3. Once you are relaxed, visualize a game orpractice session. Observe your actions via

43

internal imagery. If a negative thought oc-curs, stop it and provide the appropriatecorrectional thought.

4. In regular practice situations when nega-tive thoughts occur stop the thought andprovide correctional in-formation. (Mostathletes also report utilizing the techniqueoutside of sport with good success.)

5. Begin using the technique in game situa-tions, e.g., you are about to take a foul shotand think, "I hope I don't miss." Stop"Iwill make this shot, I'll sink it just like I doin practice." Then visualize the shot, andexecute the skill.

Positive self statements. An athlete must be-come his/her own best fan. He/she alone mustdevelop confidence in his/her ability. Nega-tive thoughts "program" the athlete for mis-takes; therefore, positive thoughts can help"program" for success. Before skill executionthe athlete should envision the successfulexecution of ihe skill. This serves two func-tions: it will ensure concentration for the task(at hand, thus helping to eliminate interferingthoughts; it serves as a skill rehearsal of suc-cess. The execution of the skill can then bethought of as an instant replay of the image.

Athletes can then begin to use a combina-tion of imagery with positive statements tomentally rehearse their skills.272629 The suc-cess of these approaches is enhanced whenan effort is made to record the regular usageand outcome of negative and positive state-ments and positive imagery. As in any otherskill, automatic usage requires regular, seri-ous practice. Coaches meed to include thisaspect of mental- training into their coachingsessions.

Stimulus cueing. An additional techniquethat has been used to assist athletes in theirmental approach to athletics has been termedstimulus cueing.'° Many athletes experience aslight shift in focus from "thinking" about theball, to "watching" the ball. For example, acommon problem in volleyball is the slow-ness of players moving to meet the ball on the

return of service. Inexperienced volleyballplayers often engage in, not only non-task-related and negative thoughts ("I hope I don'tmiss the ball"), but also do not respond to the

STAF

ball until it comes speeding over the net tothem on the serve. Accordingly, to train theathlete to cue in ori the ball as the server-prepares to serve the ball seems to be a_befie-ficial way to aid the player in_respondingquickly to the served ball. By saying toherself/himself ':hit" as the ball is contacted,the body is already responding to the serve. Ifthe player is just thinking about the ball, theresponse may be slightly delayed, by watch-ing the ball on the toss, seeing and hearing iton contact, and so on, the body is alreadyresponding to the stimulus (ball) before itcrosses the net.

Training for stimulus cueing can be done inMany ways. One of the simplest ways in vol-leyball is to train athletes to utilize the tech-niques in practice by yelling "hit" upon con-tact. Another stimulus training techniquewould involve numbering the balls with largenumbers. The server randomly selects a ball.On the toss the players yell the number andthen yell "hit" on contact. So the receivingteam would be yelling out, "2-Hit," "4-Hit."This will train them to watch the ball and

44

verbally and physically respond to it bet re itcrosses the net. Pilot studies utilizing th e

techniques have yielded a high rate of irmprovement on the number of successful re-ceipts of service. Currently subjects are utiliz-ing a three-step approach. First, the athletewill verbalize that he/she will successfully re-turn the serve. Secondly, he/she will visualizea successful handling of the ball and finally,will yell "hit" as soon as the server contactsthe ball.

In a recent investigation, a multiplebaseline design across subjects was utilized todetermine the results of stimulus cueing onintermediate level tennis players. Subjectswere given 20 trials per day for 15 days. Allballs were volleyed from an automatic ballserver. Intervention for Subject 1 was begunon Day 5, for Subject 2 on Day 9, and fdr thefinal subject on Day 12. The intervention in-volved having the subject yell "hit" when theball was delivered.

-

Results indicated a positive correlation be-tween the introduction of the intervention andan increase in the number of returned balls.The multiple baseline design was chosen tocontrol for the effects of practice during thestudy. Subject 1 averaged 6 successful returnsover baseline and increased to an average of14.1 successful returns during the extendedinteraction period. Subject 2 increased from amean baseline rating of 6.9 to intervention X= 15.4 hits. Subject 3 increased from a X =6.7 during baseline to a = 14 hits duringintervention. The number of successful hitsacross all subjects during intervention in-creased over 68% when compared tobaseline data. In addition to the performanceimprovement, subjects reported greater easeand confidence when utilizing thestimuluscueing method. This technique appears tohave great potential in controlling anxiety andin enhancing competitive performance.

Visuo-motor behavioral rehearsal. A finalmental training technique that has recentlybeen utilized, Visuo-motor Behavioral Re-hearsal (VMBR) was developed by Suinn.VMBR is primarily an imagery rehearsal tech-nique. The effectiveness of this procedure inanxiety management is in the pre-coMpetitivepreparation which develops a task-oriented

N\

mind-set that the athlete can fociis on duringcompetition to increase concentration on cor-rect skill performance. in addition, it aids inblocking out anxiety-provoking thoughts,such as negative self statements. This tech-nique involves three basic steps: relaxationtraining; imagery practice; the extension ofimagery to strengthen the psychological, e.g.,anxiety control, heightening of mental aggres-sion, increase concentration, or motor skills.

The relaxation program can ,utilize one ofthe many prepackaged taped programs avail-able on the market today, or the Musele Re-laxation Exercise," Progressive Relaxation,"and others. in addition, the combination ofbiofeedback training with relaxation has beenreported to facilitate the acquisition of therelaxation response. Relaxation skills arecomparable to any physical skill in that theyrequire regular practice to remain effective.Accordingly, regular practice sessions mustbe scheduled. These can be done on theathlete's own time, but it is recommended thata notebook be kept on the relaxation sessions.Once the skills have been learned (2-3 ex-tended relaxation sessions, 30-45 minutes perweek) the regular use of short relaxation exer-cises every day (10 seconds-10 minutes) is

necessary. The short relaxation exercises canbe practiced while on a bus, before a class,walking home, and so on.

An important componant of VMBR trainingis the practice of imagery skills. Imagery re-hearsal skills are acquired through the sameprocess as motor skillscontinbed qualitypractice. The successful performance of im-agery skills provides an identical copy of asuccessful completion of the required motorsk1II, e.g., the,serve in volleyball, the foul shotin basketball. Jacobsen demonstrated the ef-

fectiveness of imagery in muscle stimula-tion.308 He was able to demonstrate that dur-ing vivid imagery experiences there is an en-ergy expenditure or burst of muscle activity.Accordingly, vivid mental rehearsal has beenfound to generate muscle activity correspond-ing to the task.

Suinn recently compared electromyographmuscle response records of one skier undertwo conditions: thinking about the race; usingVMBR while mentally skiing through the

45

course.38 No significant muscle response oc-curred under the first condition; however,there were bursts of EMQ activity during thecritical stages of the race under the VMBRcondition.

The key to VMBR is to visualize the activityas if participating in the event and not to viewit as a spectator. For example, in skiing it wasineffective for the subject to passively observehimself/herself going down the slope. It was-more effective to "mentally ski" the cburse,work through the gates, turn the skis, andattack portions of the hill.

VMBR can be used to train any portion ofthe athlete's performance. Suinn utiHzedVMBR to assist a runner in reducing energyconsumption." Two athletes ran with a Workload approximating 65% of the anerobicthreshold. A twenty-minute running sessionwas utilized. During the first ten minutes bothathletes utilized approximately the same per-centage of oxygen consumption. After tenminutes, the VMBR-trained athlete was in-structed to use his relaxation technique result-ing in a significant drop in oxygen consump-tion in comparison to the untrained athlete.

Noel utilized VMBR on 14 male tennisplayers.38The effects of the technique on theirserves during tournament play was investi-gated. Subjects were divided into two groups,the control and the VMBR training group. Re-sults indicated that the performance of tennisplayers rated as high ability players improved,but low ability players experienced a perfor-

-niante decline alter-VMBR training. It wasspeculated that VMBR training was more ef-fective with players who have the actualknowledge of the skill required for effectivemental practice.

VMBR is currently being used for severalpurposes: to practice correct technique; topractice strategies; to mentally prepare theathlete for comp _tition (increase aggression,decrease anxiety); to rehearse and experiencesuccess in difficult areas of performance thus

increasing confidence; to gain extra, success-ful practice time.

Current Research in StressManagement: Mental Imagery

Recently, two applicable studies have been

1

completed. The first study is rather traditionalin its approach and concerns mental practice.The second ,is the application of stress man-agement to cardiovascular responses incross-country runners.

The use of mental rehearsal has been ex-plored for years but questions regarding itseffectiveness stdl exist. Corbin suggests thatmany factors affect mental practice including.length-And-type_of_practice....sessions,Aype_oL.task; performance abihties of subjects, sex ofsubject, kinesthesis, etc." Although this studycould not include all of these variables, themajor intent was to compare.the effects ofthree imagery styles on physical Performance.

The task selected was^the basketball freethrow shot. Subjects (N -= 43) were cgllegestudents who had no previous varsityThas-ketball experience and, for the duration of theexperiment, were not enrolled in a basketballclass and. were not participating in commu-nity, unii/ersity varsity, or intramural basket-ball programs. Subjects were randomly di-vided into five groups. control (0, physicalpractice only (P), imagery (I), guided imag-ery(GI); a combination of physical practicealid imagery (PI).- All subjects received a pre-test of 10 freethrows. In each case, the ball was retrieved forthe subject.anci no correctional informationwas given. During the treatment phase, eachsubject met with the experimenters threetimes per week for three weeks. The physical_practicezroup shot 15 baskets,under pre-testconditions. Correctional information was gi-ven. The mental imagery subjects met at aquiet location. A description of the properteChnique for foulshooting was provided foreach subject. The internal imagery style wasdiscussed at each session. Directions were

giyen to each subject to "visualize yourselfshooting the ball and successfully making theshot." The guided imagery group differedfrom the imagery group in two ways. Eachsubject was asked to imagine thserpselves atthe foul line, and were instructed in deeprelaxed breathing followed by a detailed vis-ual image of each shot. Once the irnage wasdescribed the athlete then mentally shot the

_ball. The_combination group was given theimagery instructions followed by an actualshot at the basket. All subjects "shot" fifteenbaskets. Results of the pre-post performancegains can be seen in Table 1.

Results indicated that imagery and thecombination Of imagery with physical prac-tice were the most successful techniques forskill acquisition. Subjects utilizing guided im-agery reported that the information interferedsorilewhat with their concentration and theyc)could not develop a smooth flowing image.

Corbin suggested that Many variables affectimagery rehearsal, an additional considera-tion may be the extent of the informationgiyen to the subject in image development."The majority of mental training and stressmanagement programs use imagery tech-niques. As such, additional research in thisarea is needed to provide direction concern-ing ty pe of imagery, extent of information gi-Yen, sex of subject, previous experience, rep-ertoire of skills, and a variety of other factorsaffecting imagery development.

.eurrent-Researehin-StressManagement: CardiovascularPerformance

Few reported studies have investigated theeffects of a stress management program onphysiological functioning. Generally, re-

Table 1. 'Performance gains for basketball practice techniques.

CroupPre-test

% Shots Mat4ePost-test

% Shots Made% Performance

Gains

Control 27.7 28.8 1.1

Physical practice 40 48 8

Imagery 39 57 22

Guided imagery 33 4g 12

Combination: P I 22.8 45.7 22.9

46

search results are reported in terms of im-proved performance, e.g., time, pointsscored. An exception to this is the brief men-

. bon ora Taearezset by-Suinn in whichVMBR was utilized to effectively reduce oxy-gen consumption rates in a female trackathlete.4' Accordingly, there is a need forfurther investigation into the physiological re-sponse of stress management programs. To-Ward this end, I have recentl' completed aninvestigation on the effects of stress manage-ment programs on cardiovascular perfor-.mance. The following information brieflysummarizes this investigation.

SubjectsNine members of a university men's cross-

country team volunteered as subjects.for thisinvestigation. One subject was unable tocomplete the program because of schedulingconflitts.

85

2

.e

5

0.

47

Pre.assessmenttach subject completed a maximal oxygen

consumption run on the treadmill. Heart ratesand oxyger samples were collected everyminute for analysis. One week later all sub-jects ran a submaxsimal treadmill test. This runwas at a constant work:oad approximatingfifty percent of each subject's maximal oxy-gen consumption. Heart rates were recorder'each minute of the run and o xygen sampleswere gathered during minutes 1, 3, 6, 9, 10,13, 16, and 19 for analysis. Following thesubmaximal pre-test, subject's V02consump-tion rates were used to equate three groups forthis investigation. Mean V02 rates for eachgroup wele, Control, X = 37.2, Treatmenti,

= 37.1, Treatment2, = 36.1.

TreatmentSubjects in the treatment groups met indi-

vidually with the experimenter and/odabora-tory- ass is ta nt-twice-per-week-for--51/2--weeks.Treatmenti, (T1) was modeled after Meichen-baum's Stress Inoculation Training Program(SIT). This treatment included discussion onthe effects of stress during training and compe-tition, conditions leading to stress, and thesubject's reaction to stress and the conse-quences olthe reaction. Subjects were taughtcognitive coping responses to stressful situa-tions, e.g.r negative thought stopping, cueing

_ In addition, subjects r:!ceived training in re-laxation (biofeedback training was utilized).During the training programsubjects utilizedrelaxation, coping techniques, and imagery torehearse successful mastery of track prob-lems. Examples of imagery themes generatedby the athletes included: difficulty maintain-ing speed on curves; pacing problems duringraces; "kicking" too late to overtake the com-petition.

The treatment strategy for the second group(T2) was based on Smith's Stress ManagementTraining (SMT) program. The initial discus-sion with each athlete included an assessmentof running strengths and weaknesses, and theathlete's ability to cope with cognitive andbehavioral problems in competition. The pro-gram rationale was discussed, relaxation (viabiofeedback training) and cognitive coping

responses were developed. These techniqueswere then applied to a series of track imagerysituations. The investigatui ;resented increas-ingly more,stressful situations, based on in-take information, to each subject, e.g.,flashbacks to a, disastrous performance, pre-race stress reactions, "giving up" dur:agcompetition. As stress reactions developed,subjects were asked to immediately controlthe reaction and to use cognitive coping skills,positive track imagery, and relavtion re-sponses to regain contrpl.

In summary, the two treatment groups dif-fered in the content and focus of their imag-ery. Ti used a highly positivelThagery ap-proach and focused on running through theproblem areas that were experienced. T2utilized more of a confrontation and conquestof stress proach. Negative situations werede oped nd subjects had to overcome their

actions to these states to regainf their imagery and' physical

mg e conclusion of theograms, subjects in ail threein the twelty-minut . srATmax-

nsumption test Heart ratese'd every minute and oxygen

sam ere collected during minutes 1, 3,6, 9, 10, 13, 16, and 19. After the first tenmindtes ot ie run, subjects were asked tomake an exta..ffort to utilize their mentaltraining techniques to control extraneousstress.

ResultsData for minutes 3-20 were statistically

analyzed using a series of one-way Analysis ofVariance (ANOVA). Separate one-wayANOVAS were computed comparing thescores of tbe three groups on the followingclependenLmeasures of oxygen consumptionand heart rate: total Pre-test score; pre-testscore for the first half of the test (minutes3-11); pre-test score for the second half of thetest (minutes 12-20); total post-test score;post-test score for the first half of the test (min-utes 3-11); post-test score for the second half

of the test (minutes 12-20). Where significantover-all F-ratios were evident, a post hoc in-vestigation of individual group comparisonswas conducted via Duncan's Multiple Range

Test.

48

, Oxygen Consumption. Results of theANOVA indicated that no sigqificant differ-ence on totat oxygen consumption existed on

-the total pre-test, bul thif significance wasobtained on)he total post-test F (2, 5) =10.85,p < .05. Wh..e no significant differences werefound for either tne first half or second half ofthe pre-test, significant post-tc,t differenceswere found in oxygen consumption duringthe first half of the post-ti t r (2, 5) = 13.72, P<.01 and during the secoi half of the post-test F (2, 5) = 7.12, P < .0_ (see Table 2).

Table 2. Mean oxyger consumption rates.

Phase Control SlT SMT F value

1st half Pre-test 36.41 36.75 35.87 .08

2nd half Pre-test 37.44 37.14 36.13 .23

1st half POst-test 36.17 33.16 31.87 13.72'2nd half Post-test 37.35 34.37 32.41 7.12'Total Pre-test 36.86 36.90 35.98 .12

Total Post-test 36.68 33.69 32.11 10.85'

These results were further analyzed with

01the Duncan's Multiple Range Test to deter-mine the group(s) that as (were) significantlydifferent. The post ho analysis indicated giatdifferences did exist lin oxygen consumptionbetween the control group (mean = 36.68)and the two treatment groups, Stress lnnocula-tion Training-Sri (mean = 33.68) and theStress Management Training group-SMT(mean = 32.11), du rjpg the post-test submax-imal run. No significant differences werefound between treatment groups (see Table3).

Table 3. Duncan's Multiple Range Test for totalpost-test 02 consumption.

Group Mean. Grouping'

Control 3 36.68 ASIT 3 33.69 B

SMT 2 32.11 B

'Weans with the same letter are not significantly differ-ent at the .05 level.

Results of the post hoc analysis for the firsthalf of the post-test revealed that statistical

eb

significance was reached between the controlgroup (mean = 36.17) and the two traininggroups (SIT means = 33.16, SMT means =31.87.). No significant differences emergedbetween treatment groups (see Table 4).

Table 4. Duncan's Multiple Range Test for first halfof post-test 02 consumption.

Group

ControlSITSMT

Mean Grouping'

3 36.17 A3 33.162 31.87

°Means with the same letter are not significantly differ-ent at the .05 level.

Further post hoc analysis of the second halfof the post-test oxygen consumption rate re-sulted in statistical significance between thecontrol group (mean = 3635) and the SMTgroup only (mean = 32.41). No significantdifferences emerged between the controlgroup and the SIT group (see Table 5).

Table 5. Duncan's Multiple Range Test for secondhalf of post-test 02 consumption.

Group

ControlSITSMT

Mean Grouping'

3 36.3,5 A3 34.37 A B2 32.41

"Means with the same letter are not significantly differ-ent at the f)5 level.

Heart Rate. Analysis of heart rate data alsoutilized the analysis of variance, and the Dun-can's Multiple Range Test for post hocanalysis. No significant differences emergedwithin total pre- or post-test heart rateanalysis. Differences exist only for heart ratesduring the last half of the post-test, F (2,5) =5.35, P<.05 (see Table 6).

Table 6. Mean heart rate data.

Phase Control SIT SMT F value

1st half Pre-test 13230 132.17 130.63 .02

2nd Half Pre-test 134.77 133.44 129 83 12

1st Half Post-test 136.33 124.58 123.37 1602nd Half Post-test 140.88 124.44 120.33 535aTotal Pre-test 133.38 132.71 130.29 .05

Total Post-test 138.26 124.52 122.07 3 95

'Significant at .05 level.

49

Further pest hoc analysis indicated signifi-cant differences between the control group

= 140.89) and both the SIT group (mean =124.44) and the SMT group' (mean = 120.33).During the last half of the post-test no differ-ences emerged between treatment groups(see Table 7).

Table 7. Duncan's Multiple Range Test for secondhalf of post-test hc.irt rate.

Group N Mean Grouping'

ControlSITSMT

3

32

140.89124.44120.33

A

'Means with the same letter are not significantly differ-\ent at the .05 level.

DiscussionGiven the sample size (N= 8) of this investi-

gation, to gain any statistically significant re-sults is encouraging. Although restrictionsapply in small sample size, the potential prob-lem of normality 'Of population may be mini-mal due to the nature of heart rate and oxygenconsumption data. This investigation dealtwith trained cross-country runners, and assuch, the process would be applicable to allrunners with similar results anticipated.

Although statistically significant results areexperimentally desirable, the practical sig-nificance in a study of this nature is equallyimportant. The major practical results comefrom the subject feedback during and after thisinvestigation. Although all but one runner im-proved over the course of the study due to thetraining effect of 'he general frack program,subjects in both treatment groups reporteddifferences in their approach to running anddifferences in their awareness of messagesfrom the "inner athlete."

Both athletes in the SMT group reportedconsiderable change in their awareness ofmessages from the "inner athlete."

Both athletes in the SMT group reportedconsiderable change in their approach towarm-ups, pre-contest "mental sets," and intheir practice and race behaviors. Both indi-cated an increased level in handling

t.)

"emergency stress" situations during compe-tition. In addition, they reported that it wasuseful to be able to discuss stress as a var,iablethat is part of competition (and can be dealtwith through training) rather than stress as anexpected reaction to and a part of training andcompetition that an athlete "learns to livewith.- Subjects in this group perceived thenegative imagery approach, followed by posi-tive imagery and controlled relaxation re-sponse, as the most beneficial portion of theprogram.

Athletes in the SIT group gave similar feed-back. They generally indicated that they hadutilized imagery before but that the combina-tion ot formal imagery training and relaxationresulted in changes in their approach to run-ning. Typical examples of subject feedbacktrom both groups include, more confidence,ability to control stress so that "little things"didn't hamper performance, increased ap-preciation for positive track experiences andhow those can be used in stress management.

. The results of this investigation are veryencouraging. Not only was practical signifi-cance obtained, but statistical significance, aswell, emerged for oxygen consumption andheart rate. This could translate into perfor-mance terms to aid in the development of amore efficient runner. A runner operatinb at alower percent of oxygen consumption andheart rate could incr,?.ase pace and/or runmore efficiently over a longer period of timeor a longer course.

It is also interesting to note that in additionto significant effects in overall oxygen con-sumption tor SIT and SMT groups for the entiretwenty-minute run, when signalled to begin

\ maximally utilizing their mental training,techniques over the final ten minutes, signifi-cance emerged only between the controlgroup (mean = 112.07) and the SIT Group(mean = '97.25). In addition, for the analysiso t

(heartrate, the only significant difference to

emerge at all was during the final ten minutesot,posmest, where again, subjects were askedto maximally apply their mental trainingtechniques. This lends further support for thecontention that athletes can gain mastery overtheir physiological response via an effectivemental training program.

50

This investigation has raised some interest-ing questions concerning stress managementprograms. There is a great deal of need for

further work to be done on a variety of vari-ables affecting the acquisition of self-management skills. These include, at aminimum, the effects of biofeedback training,tape recorded programs versus coach led ses-sions, individual versus group training ses-sions, and an analysis of actual pre-/post-performance attainment.

Conclusions andRecommendations

The area of stress management in sport isbeginning to receive much attention, primar-ily in popular coaching magazines. It is im-perative, therefore, that research efforts be ac-celerated. Much research is still needed in theeffectiveness of techniques already de-veloped. With the geneiation of new stressmanagement strategies, guidelines, warnings,and procedures need to be developed that thecoach and the athlete can use in their pursuitof performance enhancement.

Accordingly, more controlled research willbe needed in the investigation of the effects ofstress management programs on physiologi-cal functioning, as well as in physical perfor-mance gains. This task is much easier said

than done. It is difficult to conduct controlledresearch on athletes particularly whenphysiological variables are involved. I( is dif-ficult to identify athletes who are willing tocommit the time necessary to be involved inpilot training programs. It is difficult to keepcontrol groups from wanting to participate inthe training once results are achieved. Resis-tance by coaches presents another problem inthe selection of subjects for research en-deavors. In addition to personnel problems,the development and\atninistration of s6mestress management progr rns are costly finan-cially and, even more importantly, are verytime-consuming. It is extremely difficult for asingle researcher to work with large numbersof athletes and to develop indivickral pro-grams based on each athlete's particularneeds. Accordingly, most research has beenof a single subject or small group design. This'

1/4, 6

results in an inability to generalize the find-ings, difficulty in approaching acceptablelevels of statistical significance, and difficultyin validating treatment strategies and pack-ages.

All of these pioblems should clearly indi-cate the need for a new direction in stressmanagement research. It will become increas-ingly more important for sport psychologistsand others to increase their communicationsnetwork, to begin sharing research ideas be-fore the research begins, and to join togetherin cooperative research endeavors. This willnecessitate the development of standardizedtreatment packages that will be tested in avariety of. universities, schools, and com-munities across the country. Stress manage-ment programs in sport can serve as one of thefirst apphed thrusts for sport psychology. Thisthen is the challenge of sport psychology forthe 1980s.

FOOTNOTES

'Speilberger, C., et al. The State-Trait Anxiety Inven-tory Test Manual, Form X Palo Alto, CA: ConsultingPsychology Press, 1968

'Taylor, J. A. "A Personality Scale of Manifest Anx-iety." Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology 48.285-90:

tEndler, N "A Multidimensional Measure of TraitAnxiety the S-R Inventory of General Trait Anxiousnesslpurnal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 43- 319-2.

'Martens, R. Sport Competition Anxiety Test Cham-paign, 11.: Human Kinetics Publisher, 1977

Weichenbaum, D Cognitive Behavior Modification.New York: Plenum Press, 1977

'Smith, R. E. A Cognitive-affective Approach to StressManagement Training for Athletes. In Psychology ofMotor Behavior and Sport-1979, edited by C Nadeau,et. al. Champaign, IL. Human Kinetics Publisher, 1980.

'Smith, R. E., 1980.'Smith, R. E., 1980, p. 59.Weichenbaum, D , 1977, pp 251-52.

'OMeichenbaum, D., 1977"Jacobsen, E. Progres,ive Relaxation Chicago: Um-

versity of Chkago Press, 1958"Washburn, 44 F. Movement and Mental Imagery.

Boston: Houghton-Mifflin, 1916"Eggleston."Sackett, R. S "The Influences of Symbolic Rehearsal

upon the Retention of a Mazellabit " Journal ot GeneralPsy( hology 10. 376-9.5

'.5ai ken, R 5 "The Relationship lietween Amount ofSymbolic Rehearsal and Retention of a Maze Habit.Journal 01 General Psy( hologv I 3- 113-38.

51

"Perry, H. M. "The Relative Efficiency of Actual andImaginary Practice in Five Selected Tasks. Archives ofPsychology 34: 5-75.

'-Vandell, R. A., Davis, R. A., and Glugston, H. A. "TheFunction olMental Practice in the Acquisition of MotorSkills." Journal of General Psychology 29: 243-50.

"Jacobson, E. "Electrical Measurements of Neuromus-cular States durins Mental Acta v ales. Variation of SpecificMuscles Contracting during Imagination. American Journal of Physiology 96: 116-21.

"Corbin, C. B. "Mental Practice." Ergogenic Aids andMuscular Performance, edited by 44. P. Morgan. NewYork: Academic Press, 1972.

"Lang."Davidson, R. J.; Schwartz, G. E.; and Rottman, L P.

Attentiunal Style and the Selt-regulation of Mode Spe-cific Attention. an Electroencephalographic Study Jour-nal of Abnormal Psychology 85: 611-21.

"Davidson, R. J. "Specificity and Patterning in Bio-behavioral Systems-Implications for BehavioralChange." American Psychologist 33, 430-36.

"Epstein, M. L. "The Relationship of Mental Imageryand Mental Rehearsal to Pedormance of a Motor Task.Journal of Sport Psychology, 2. 211-20,

"MMoney, M J. "Cognitive Skills and Athletic Per-formance." In Cognitive-behavioral Interventions:Theory and Procedures, edited by P. C. Kendall and S. D.Holton. New York: Academic Press, 1979,

"Mahoney, M. J., and Avener, M. "Psychobgy of theElite Athlete: an Exploratory Study." Cognitive Therapyand Research I : 135-41.

"Corbin, C. B 1972."Kellner, S. "Psychocybernetics Mental Practice

Makes Pedect." Scholastic Coach, Feb., 1976, pp. 40-2."Sumn, R. M. "Body Thinking: Psychology for Olym-

pic champs." In Psychology in Sports: Methods.and Ap-plications, edited by R. Suinn. Minneapolis, MN: BurgessPublishing Co., 1980.

"Noel, R. C. "Tne Etk-cts of Visuo-motor BehaviorRehearsal on Tennis Pertormance. Journal of Sport Psy-chology 2: 221-26.

'°Gallwey, W. T. Inner Tennis. New York: RandomHouse, 1976.

'Suinn, R. M , 1980.t2Suinn, R. M., 1980"Jacobsen, E., 1958.lacobsen, E., 1958."Jacobsen, 1967.

Suinn, R. M., 1980."Suinn, R. M 1980."Noel, R. C., 1980, pp. 221-6.'9Corbin, C. B., 1972."Corbin, C. B., 197241Suinn, R. M., 1980.

REFERthCE

Suinn, R. M. 'Psychology of Sports Performance."In Psychology-in Sports: Methods and Applica-tions, edited by R.M, Suinn. Minneapolis. MN.Burgess Publishing Co.,< 1980,

Coach's Reaction toDr. Susan G. Ziegler's."Application of Stress

Management in CompetitiveRunners"

Edwin J. Stoch, High School CoachCleveland, Ohid

After 32 years of coaching five differentsports with a total of 54 teams, I had the for-

tune of choosing Dr. Ziegler's "Psychology ofCoaching" class while on sabbatical leave awinter ago. What a revelation it turned out tobe! It was one of the most rewarding class-room experiences of my life. The coursehelped me to organize and reinforce some ofthe things I had discovered earlier in life. I canremember using primitive versions of relaxa-tion exercises during my days as a member ofthe armed forces and throughout my athleticcareer. I have used stress management tech-

niques in my health classes with very positiveresponses and effects.

From a reborn coach's view, a mental train-ing program is extremely relevant. It includesformal training and practice of relaxationexercises, development of imagery skills forthe training, pre-season, formal practice ses-sions, pre-game and dUring the contest appli-cations, thought stopping practice to controlnegative self-statements images, and negativethoughts about others. These techniqueswork! It's as simple as that. Having coachedall these years and having been a footballofficial for ten years, I think I know and under-stand the typical coach working with ouryoung people in the secondary schools andcolleges. You have a tremendous task beforeyou because the coach must first understandhimseltrherself and then be sold on theseideas.

Coaches are on continuous ego trips; the

52

faults of their efforts are on constant publicdisplay. Because they work so hard to put outa good product, they are easily embarrassedand their self-esteem fluctuates with everyperformance. Consequently, personalitiesand overt behavior, especially during con-tests, may become less than desirable. I haveseen many neurotic and even cruel demon-strations by coaches. Thus the first step is toget the coaches to learn and personally userelaxation exercises, so as to gain better self-control. Then they must be taught the princi-ples of mental training, especially imageryskills and negative thought control. Only if acoach has personally used and fully apprecia-tes the great worth of such a program, willhe/she include these skills in the total coach-ing process with a team. What most coachesdo not understand at this point in time is thatthis is the "edge" for which they have beensearching.

About a year ago, when my coaching'career was ended, I finally learned things thatwere practical, completely applicable, andwhich had very positive dimensions with abetter approach to coaching. It macie me con-template a "comeback."

As fate would have it, our basketball coachdecided to take a two-year reprieve from hisduties so that his blood pressure could returnto normal, and asked me to take over asinterim coach. I had never expected to returnto coaching, having felt I had had enoughhasketball for a lifetime. However, I accepted

the job again, solely with the idea of formallyapplying my "new education- to an old styleof coaching.

My good fortune continued as Sue Ziegler,a sport psychologist, agreed to work with oursquad in helping implement sOme of hertheories into our training and game processes.Much to the surprise of many observers, thetraining worked. The more varied the applica-tion of these techniques and the greater thedepth of application, the more successful wewere. They truly worked!

Some of the things we accomplished.1. Dr. Ziegler met with our squad in two ses-

sions during pre-season practice and ex-plained what we were going to do, notwhat we would try to do.

2. We accepted 10 volunteers, including ourtop 8 prospects and Sue interviewed eachone setting up a Goal Statement, whichincluded individual weaknesses and prob-lems with basketball, immediate goals,and a step-by-step process for improve-ment.

3. Each participant took the Illinois Competi-tion Questionnaire, Form A.

4. Dr, Ziegler passed out printed sheets de-scribing the Mental Training Program andciting examples of each of the basics pre-viously mentioned.

S. She placed a set of tapes (The QuietingResponse Training, by Charles F. Stroeble,Ph.D., M.D.) on reserve in our library andsuggested that each member of the squadlisten to all of them and then settle on apersonal version of relaxation exercise andpractice it regularly.

6. The team kept a record of daily tensionsand how these were treated.

7. Dr. Ziegler came to several practices toobserveand after practice would talkwith any of the subjects who felt the needfor more information, explanation, or sim-ple reassurance.

In short summary, we experienced a di-vided season. In the first half, we won only 4of our first 14 games during which time, there,were numerous internal problems and players ,

were not convinced that the mental trainingwould work. To them it seemed strange andradically different from past experiences. In

53

addition, it was surrounded by an aura ofmystique. We had a critical team meeting,and as a group decided we were better thanwhat our record revealed. We needed to winand we were desperate. We vowed to reallygive the mental strategies a fair try. The resultswere gratifying. We had previously lost three

of our best seven players through injury andacademic difficulties which made mattersworse. However, we won 9 of our last 13

games in the second half of the season, with'many outstanding examples of individual im-provement, through use of the program.

In closing, please keep in mind that thecoaches and athletes must be convinced ofthe potential for more effectiVe perfdrmancethrough use of stress management and mentaltraining. Secondly, the coaches must be be-lievers and self-practitioners of th+ tech-niques before the athletes will give seriousattention to mental training.

Biofeedback for Self-regulation oCompetitive Stress

Leonard D. Zaichkowsky, Ph.D.Boston University

Recently Elmer Green, one of the pioneersin the field of biofeedback, made the follow-ing statement:

It is worth noting that all 'Olympicathletes get to the top by learning "torelax at every stroke." Relaxation aftertension is necessary for success in anyactivity. If an athlete becomes so tensethat the relaxation phase is destroyed, heor she may say that they were "psychedout." The difference between the top per-formers and those who never quite makeit indudesf as one important factor, theability to turn off the effects of stress at

Although Green wdS making a case for theuse of biofeedback in a general sense, hisstatement Is very true in the world of sport andfitting for beginning this paper on biofeedbackand stress regulation in sport.

Why is it that some athletes fail to performwith the same grace and skill in competitionas they do in practice? Although it is conceiv-able that a variety of factors could account forthe above questions, one certain answer isstress. People from di walks of life expenencea variety of stressors, such as fear of unem-Ployment, financial insecurity, fear of failure,fear of radiation, pollution, and so forth. Theseare global psychological stressors and it is

known that individuals react differently tothem. Some individuals have the capacity toeffectively cope with these stressors whileothers do not. Those who cannot cope with

55

stress experience what Selye calls distress

and are vulnerable to a variety of stress-related disorders.2

In the realm of sport, there are a few ex-tremely stressful situations where lived are atstake, e.g., parachute jumping, aut6racing,skijumping, etc. The individual not only expe-riences the stress of competition, i.e./ winningor losing, but, also the fear that equipmentmalfunction or disruption in timing could re-sult in death.

Athletes must also deal With a host of otherpsychological stressors such as ;Yictory anddefeat, possible trade or dem6tion to theminor leagues, knowing that victory is essen-tial to make the Olympic team, or winning anOlympic medal to ensure a lucrative profes-sional contract. In addition, the athlete mustalso learn to cope with the compound effect ofphysical stress of training, with all the otheremotional stressors (academic competition,death of a loved one, change in work condi-tions, change in school, etc.). Thus, there arenumerous physical and psychological stres-sors which an athlete must learn to handle.Success or fadure may depend upon how wellthe athlete is trained to cope with these stres-sOrs.

What happens to performers when they ex-perience the stress of competition? Typicallythe athlete responds with increasedphysiological arousal, i.e., increased heartrate dnd respiration, pupil dilation, increasedflow of adrenalin, and increased blood flow to

6 ti

the muscles. This response is typically re-ferred to as the "fight-or-flight" response. Inmost instances, these "arousal" responses arenecessary conditions for good performance;however, there is a point where too mucharousal impairs performance, particularly per-formance which requires complex thoughtprocesses and movement patterns. When theathlete is too physiologically aroused, he/sheno longer has "normal" clarity of mind, con-centration, and body control. For instance,excessive arousal could raise a hockeyplayer's heart rate, respiration rate, and oxy-gen consumption to the point that fatiguewould ensue prematurely. It is also quiteprobable that over-abundant arousal willbring on excessive muscle tension andthereby interfere with normal skilledneuromuscular coordination. This theoreticalrelationship between optimum arousal andperformance is referred to as the "inverted U"relationship. Essentially this theory predictsthat human performance will increase as a-rousal increases to a given point; then perfor-mance decreases as arousal continues to in-

crease. The literature, as a whole, supports thistheory but only when complex skills are in-volved. For discrete tasks which require abrief, explosive effort, e.g,, weight-lifting, therelationship between arousal and perfor-mance more closely approximates a linear

pattern. This theoretical explanation hascome to be termed "drive theory."3

Another psychological construct whichusually accompanies arousal in human per-formance is anxiety. Although_there is a lot ofconfusion in the literature regarding this term,Nideffer considers anxiety to be thephysiological change which is associatedwith a stressor.4 Although we have a certain

amount of trait anxiety, specific competitivesituations may bring about situational or stateanxiety, e.g., depression, confusion, feelingsof panic, which will interfere with importantattentional demands and skilled neuromuscu-

lar activity.Too much arousal and high state anxiety

generally interferes with performance. Somerefer to this as "choking" or "screwing-up,"The fact that many athletes cope, or learn to

cope with competitive stress very well

56b '

suggests that other performers can also be

taught to cope with competitive.stress. Learn-ing to cope with stress has recently lieen

termed stress management.A. variety of techniques have been de-

veloped and employed ;n an effort to teachindividuals how to deal with stress more effec-tively. These techniques include: ProgressiveRelaxation Training;5 Autogenic Training;6Systematic Densitization;7 Meditation;1 Re-laxation Response;9 Hypnosis;1° Visuo-MotorBehavioral Rehearsal;" Cognitive-BehaviorModification." It is important to note that allof these "stress therapies" emphasize self-

regulation, that is, they teach the individual tocontrol his or her own thought processes,musculature, heart rate, :weat response, etc.

In recent years the most exciting and widelypublicized, if not most efficacious, techniquefor controlling stress has been that of biofeed-

back. In simplest terms, biofeedback involvesthe use of physiological monitoring equip-

ment to return immediate information (vis-ually or auditorily) about changes in heartrate, muscle tension or a wide variety of other

variables. By trial and error with feedbackreinforcement the subject learns to controlthese variables for optimal functioning. The

idea that biofeedback might 'be a useful

method for dealing with competitive stress is

rather new, although speculation on this pos-sibility existed six years ago."

In this paper, the concept of biofeedbackwill be incorporated into the larger concept ofstress management in sport. First of all, a briefhistory and description of biofeedback will bepresented; secondly, studies utilizingbiofeedback in a sport contest will be re-viewed and analyzed; thirdly, training proce-dures or the "how" of biofeedback will bediscussed.

A Brief Description andHistory of Biofeedback

Biofeedback is a technique wherein an in-dividual interacts directly with a sensing de-vice (machine) which in turn informs, (feed-

back) the individual of moment-to-momentchanges in biological function. These func-tions are under the control of the involuntaryautonomic nervous system or the volUntary

central nervous system. The term "biofeed-back" thus is a product of older terms, namelybiology and feedback.

The concept of biofeedback is based uponthe concept of operant learning. Behavioralchanges occur in response to positive or nega-tive remforcement. We have known for a longtime that in order to learn a voluntary skillsuch as typing, shooting a basketball, andeven winking an eye, we need feedback re-garding our performance. In fact, the greatlearning theonsts of the past and present(Thorndike with trial-and-error learning, Hullwith instrumental learning, and Skinner withoperant conditioning) Viewed feedback ascritical to their theones of learning. This im-portant principle of feedback, which makeslearning possible, has merely been applied toso-call0 involuntary responses such as heartrate, brain waves, skin response, skin temper-ature, etc. As a xesult, individuals who aregiven feedback about these "involuntary" orsubconscious physiological activities are ableto learn to control them. For example, if anindividual was motivated to learn heart ratecontrol, information about heart rate wouldbe "fed back" to him or her in the form of

0 41111(

visual, e.g., light or TV display, or auditory,e.g., pitch and loudness of a tone, feedback.After several "learning" trials the individual

. should be able to voluntarily control his or her

heart rate.The exact genesis of the current public and

research interest in biofeedback is difficult topinpoint exactly. In reviewing the hisibricalliterature on biofeedback related phenomena,it seems as though the discovery of present-day biofeedback was a result of a flowingtogether of electromyographic (EMG) re-searCh, electroencephalographic (EEG) re-search, and operant conditioning research.

Electromyographic (EMG) feedback hadbeen practiced sporadically since the dis-covery of EMG techniques in the 1920s, but itwas not until the individual motor unit work ofBasmajian that a surge in biofeedback re-search was noticed.u.'5 The initial interestwas in describing the normal mechanisms ofmotor control and applying this informationfor treating neurologically and orthopedicallyhandicapped patients. In the midst of his workBasmajian found that when subjects wereprovided with instant visual and acousticfeedback of the EMG signals arising from in-

BFKUNIT

CLIENTFigure 1. The biofeedback system interacting: client; therapist; machine.

57

'visible and unfelt contractions of their mus-cles, they could learn to perform elaboratetricks" with the smallest units of muscle, the

motor unit. This finite control is probably aninherent factor in world-class athletes. Assuch, the application of biofeedback to en-hance motor control in anxious athletes isobvious.

It was perhaps Neal Miller's article in Sci-ence which did the most to start inquiry in thefield now known as biofeedback.16 Miller andhis colleagues at Rockefeller University con-ducted a series of operant conditioning exper-iments on laboratory rats and were able todemonstrate that the animals were capable ofcontrolling involuntary visceral responses(heart rate, blood pressure, and renal func-tion). This study disproved the idea that theautonomic nervous system was conditionedonly by classical or Pavlovian conditioning.Soon numerous laboratories were demon-strating that humans could also voluntarilychange their heart rates (up and down), in-crease and decrease blood pressure, and in-crease and decrease blood flow to the ex-tremities. Since that time, researchers havedemonstrated voluntary control of heart rateduring exertion."

About the same time that Miller was en-gaged in his operant conditioning research,two other laboratories were conductingbiofeedback research which helped propelthe concepts of biofeedback to its currentstatus in the field of psychophysiology. Elmerand Alyce Green at the Menninger Founda-tion in Topeka, Kansas, demonstrated thatthey could teach anxious subjects to alter'blood flow in their fingertips by monitoringskin temperature obtained from tiny thermis-ters fastened to the skin. This work eventuallyled to the conclusion that conscious control ofblood flow was possible and represented abreakthrough for athletes and coaches con-cerned with controlling pre-competition anx-iety.

At the University of Colorado, researchersThomas Budzynski and Johann Stoyva rea-soned that if one received information aboutthe level of tension in a given muscle, then itshould be possible for one to utilize this feed-back to alter the tension. Budzynski and

58

Stoyva tested this hypothesis using clientswho experienced tension headaches.'s Theresearchers first developed EMG feedback in-strumentation then demonstrated that whensubjects were taught to reduce tension in thefrontalis muscle, they not only could elimi-nate their headaches, but could invoke gener-alized relaxation in other muscles of the body.This generalization phenomena has sincebeen questioned and may only be feasible invery astute learners in a somatic sense.Athletes appear to have great potential herein.

Since this initial inquiry into biofeedbackthere has been enormous growth in the field.Studies on theoretical and applied aspects ofbiofeedback have appeared in major journalsrepresenting the disciplines of psychology,physiology, education, medicine, dentistry,and others. Two professional societies, theBiofeedback Society of America and The So-ciety of Biofeedback Clinicians have beenformed and they publish their own journals,Biofeedback and Self-Regulation and Ameri-can Journal of Clinical Biofeedback, respec-tively.

Many different modalities of biofeedbackhave been developed and are currently in use.The most widely researched and applied mo-dalities include:1. Muscle feedback. Detects activity of mus-

cle and has principally been used for re-laxation training, desensitization, tensionheadaches, and muscle rehabilitation.

2. Thermal feedback. Detects peripheral skintemperature and has demonstrated to beuseful for relaxation training, migraineheadaches, and vasoconstrictive disor-ders.

3. Electrodermal biofeedback. A term whichrefers to feedback obtained from electricalactivity at various skin sites. Presentlythere is a proliferation of terms and genefallack of consensus regarding the measure-ment of electrodermal activity. Thenumerous specific measures include gal- .:

vanic skin response (GSR), skin conduc-tance response (SCR), skin resistance re-sponse (SRR), skin conductance level(SCL), skin resistance level (SRL), arid skinpotential response (SPR). Electroderma Ifeedback has been uSed to teach relaxa

bon and as an adjunct in therapy, e.g.,systematicdesensitization.

4. Cardiovascular biofeedback A variety ofrelatively simple sensors, e.g. electronic,mechanical, .or plethysmographic, havebeen utilized byresearchers and cliniciansto provide feedback about heart rate andblood flow. Studies have shown that sub-jects can decrease and increase heart ratevoluntarily. Presently heart rate biofeed-back is being researched for the treatmentof cardtac arrhythmias.

5. Electroencephalographic feedback. Mea-sures brain wave activity. Has been usedfor relaxation training but has been foundinefficient comparek to EMG and thermalfeedback. It is also used in treating sei-zures.

Biofeedback and AthleticPerformancethe ResearchEvidence

In 1976 a Task Force of the BiofeedbackSociety of America attempted to determinewhether biofeedback had any application tothe field of athletics.° The Task Force re-ported that a handful of clinical researcherswere using biofeedback in three differentareas: as a technique for teaching athletes todeal with general and specific anxiety, as ameans of restoring function after muscle in-jury; as a means for providing biomechanical

or muscle feedback to athletes so that they

may perfect highly skilled movements and

enhance performance. The Task Force regret-fully reported that their findings were primar-ily based on anecdotal reports and there wasonly one exploratory study which had- anydata. The 1980 update of this report showsthat very little has been added to the literaturein two years."

Zaichkowsky" and Greene" have recentlyconducted more extensive literature searcheson the topic. The more recent reviews have

verified the three areas of application in sportand have also documented ten studies whichrelate biofeedback to sport. Of these tenstudies, only three have been published inreferred journallkin North America.

Two other biofeedback studies whichcould be considered "sports medicine" havebeen reported, however, they would becategorized as dealing with the third area de-scribed by the Task Force review.23.24 Thesecond area of application, namely the resto-ration of injured muscle via EMG biofeedbackis well documented in the EMG rehabilitationliterature."

The rationale for using biofeedback to helpcombat competitive stress is largely basedupon the evidence collected by numerous re-searchers working in the mental health field.Diagram 1 portrays the consequences ofcompetitive stress and the hypothesized ef-fects of biofeedback intervention.

-

ATHLETE

-

MuscleTension

/ArousalBp, INCREASED

Resp. 1PERFORMANCE

Self-reportState Anxiety

High ArousalAnxiousTensePoor

Performance

Competifive-Stress

BiofeedbackIntervention

Diagram 1. Model depicting chain of events which occur with competitive stress, and subsequent biofeed-back. intervention. Competitive stress results in excessive arousal which leads to disruption ofthought, lack of concentration, confusion, and excessive body tension. These and other re-

sponses to stress result in the poor performance which is predictedby the Yerkes-Dodson LawBiofeedback intervention should theoretically result in decreased muscle tension, autonomic

responses and self-report state anxiety. From this should follow increased athletic performance

59

A total of eight studies dpoeared to investi-gate biofeedback intervention effects onmotor performance based upon the modeloutlined in Diagram 1. Three of these studiesused a laboratory task, the stabilometer, astheir measure of motor performance (anotherused the pursuit rotor), the other five used thesports skills of gymnastics, archery, syn-chronized swimming, basketball, and Ameri-can football.

The first of the laboratory studies was con-ducted by Teague." Teague used both sys-tematic desensitization and EMG biofeed-back in an attempt to reduce state anxiety andimprove balancing performance on astabilometer. After providing college studentswith a total of four hours of treatment, Teaguefound his subjects were able to reduce stateanxiety (although statistically not significant)and also improve balancing performance.

French likewise used a stabilometer forhis measure of motor performance.r Hehypothesized that EMG feedback trainingwould reduce general performance debilitat-ing muscle tension and improve balancingperformance. Results of the study showed asignificant decline in tension between pre-testing and post-testing on the stabilometer.Associated with the lower EMG reading was asignificant improvement in performance bythe experimental group. French's contentionwas supported by his obtained coefficient ofcorrelation for time-on-balance and concur-rently scored EMG values (r= .60).

More recently French reported upon an in-vestigation which looked at the effects of EMGbioteedback on the learning and performanceot a pursuit-rotor task." As in the stabilometertask, subjects reduced tension and signifi-cantly improved performance.

A third study dealing with balance wasconducted by Blois at the University of Ot-tawa." Blois investigated the effects of fron-tons EMG biofeedback training on sport pre-competitive`anxiety variables and on ffluturpertormance (stabilometer). The subjects(10-13-year old males) were selected on thebasis of high scores on the Sport CompetitionAnxiety Test and randomly assigned to abiofeedback or placebo group. Blois reportedthat the EMG group significantly reduced

60

muscle tension and that it appeared to transferfrom resting conditions to a competitive set-ting. He concluded however that EMGbiofeedback training did not enhance perfor-mance under competitive stress.

Although Nideffer" reported usingbiofeedback in a clinical setting in 1976, itappears as though the first clinical biofeed-back study conducted on athletes was that byDorsey3' at'Boston University and reported in1977 at the IV International Sport PsychologyConference in Prague." This research testedthe hypothesis that EMG frontalis biofeedbackin combination with systematic desensitiza-tion would be effective in reducing state anx-iety and improving the performance of col-lege gymnasts. It was found that biofeedbackreduced frontal EMG activity as much as 42%from baseline. However, A-state anxiety, al-though lower than baseline under two differ-ent conditions of competitive stress, was notsignificantly reduced after training. Eventhough performance was improved for thetreatment group on four out of six eventsunder moderate and high conditions of stress,design limitations prevented unequivocalstatements regarding treatment. This occurredbecause the gymnasts were not required tocompete in all events, thus sample sizes forparticular events became rather small. It wasof interest to note that experimental subjectsreported biofeedback to be helpful in'manag-ing their anxiety and perceived it to enhancetheir perfOrmance.

Tsukonioto likewise studied biofeedbackeffects on gymnasts in a master's thesis at theUniversity or Western Ontario." Tsukomotofound no differenees be.keeri groups wholearned to relax with biofeedback and groupsthat did not. One major limitation of this studywas the use of subjecthe evaluation only. Iftreatment was, in fact, effective, it may havebeen masked )4 the inaccuracy or insensitiv-

\ity of the performance measure.

\Another stLidy at tile University of Western

Ontario was conducted by Bennett and Hallon archery performers." The researchers as-signed novice archers to one of three groups:biofeedback-cognitive training; biofeedbacksingle exposure, no biofeedback. EMG fron-tons muscle training for group one consisted

0 "--:....i L)

a

\1

\\

of four ten-minute sessions, whereas grouptwo received a single ten-minute session. Re-sults indicated that muscle tension levelscould be signlficantly reduced with biofeed-back training.lHowever, Bennett concludedthat EMG tension levels were not accom-panied by increases in archery performance.The major weakness of this study was that thetraining periods were too brief. As such, themethod was not given a fair test of feasibilityto increase performance.

Wenz and Strong at California State Uni-versity in Hayward had also reported someexploratory work with elite athletes (mainlytrack and synchronized swimmers) using bothEMG and therMal biofeedback." These psy-chologists reported teaching dthletes anxietymanagement by using biofeedback as wellas Jacobsoman relaxation training, au-togenic phrases, and imagery. Although theirwork to date is such that it has precludedhypothesis testing, the California researchersreported athletes developed greater "self-regulation" when they became more self-confident and improved their performances.

Recently DeWitt reported on two studieswhich attempted to determine whether a cog-nitive and biofeedback training programwould help athletes reduce competitive stressreactions and iMprove performance.16 In thefirst study six foitball players attended 12biweekly training sessions of one hour. Thetraining sessions, included EMG biofeedbackon either the frontalis, masseter, or trapeziusmuscle, as well as general relaxation training,training in visual imagery, and cognith,e train-ing. Results showed that four of the six athletesImproved in game performance bsised uponcoaches ratings. In a second study reported byDeWitt, twelve university male basketballplayers were randomly assigned to treatmentand contact-control groups7---In addition toEMG feedback, training in visual imagery,and cognitive strategies, subjects receivedheart rate feedback. Results showed that theathletes were able to significantiy reduceEMG and heart rate levels over 11 sessions.Furthermore, two team managers, who were-not aware of which athletes were in the feed-back training programs, rated the perfor-mance of the treatment group significantly

higher than the control group. Additionally,the treatment subjects reported feeling morerelaxed, had greater control over tension, felt"looser" dudng games and stated that therewas a decrease in the number of minor in-juries while they participated in the program,

In sunanary it can be said that although thegeneral biofeedback literature clearly sup-ports the notion that biofeedback training is auseful means of controlling stress, the limitedresearch on competitive stress is equivocal,particularly as it pertain:, to performance. Performance, of course, is what cokhes,athletes, and sport psychologists are all tryingto enhance. Thus, it is perhaps important topoint out that biofeedback studies in general,when demonstrating efficacy in stress reduc-tion, show appropriate changes in physiolog-ical parameters and perhaps positive self-reports by subjects; however, they rarelydemonstrate this impact on job performanceor any other performance measure. Perhapsmole research is needed to determine whataspects of human performance are enhancedwhen stress responses are clearly regulated bythe individual. What is needed are morestudies which will rigorously test the modeldepicted in Diagram 1. Admittedly, it is dif-ficult to conduct "clean" field studies. Onesimply cannot tell a group of athletes "you areserving as the control group" in a between-subject design, and it is impossible to with-draw biofeedback-aided relaxation trainin&a within-subject A-B-A design. Neverthelesswe can carefully and systematically recordrelevant and sensitive cognitive, affective,and behavioral data on individual cases, or ona single group. We can also conduct exper-iments using multiple baseline designs1' andultimately there may be conditions where itwould be appropriate to use a controlled-group study.

In my opinion, biofeedback is a tool whichenhances the learning of self-regulation andthus is most effective when it is used in com-bination with some other form of clinical orhome therapy such as progressive relaxation,autogenic training, meditation, visual imag-ery, and systematic desensitization. That isessentially the approach I take in workingwith athletes at Boston Uhiversity and

61

elsewhere. The following is a description ofthe procedures I use in working with athletes'Who wish assistance in learning to cope withcoMpetitive stress.

Biofeedback Training Procedures1. Participation by the athlete is based upon

the coach's recommendation and desireby the athlete to be a part of the trainingprogram. It is important that the coachhave an understanding of biofeedback andstress management techniques. Prior toany biofeedback training there is a clinicalinterview and assessment. In the clinicalinterview we discuss such things as theathlete's athletic history, whether he or shehas problems with hypo- and hyper-arousal, short and long term goals, moti-vation,- use of cognitive strategies, coach/athlete relationships, and diet. Stan-dardized tests which are used for assess-ment include: Test of Attentional and In-terpersonal Style," State-Trait Anxiety in-,ventory;" Sport Competition AnxietyTei..4° These data, along with input fromthe coach and athlete, are used to structureindividual training programs.

2. During the first session in the biofeedbacktraining laboratory, baseline data are ob-

. tainedfor the following measures. frontalismuscle tension (EMG); skin temperature(thermal); skin potential (SPR) or sweatingresponse. After collecting baseline data,the athletes are informed about biofeed-back and self-regulation and its usefulnessin teaching relaxation and coping withcompetitive stress. The three systems(EMQ, thermal, SPR) are explained in de-tail. Emphasis is placed on the idea thateveryone uses feedback to perfect theirskills, and in fact, no skill can be learnedwithout feedback.

3. It is assumed that the essence of self-regulation is proper visualization. This isteue whether the person is an Olympicathlete trying to break the pole-vault re-cord or a migraine patient trying to controlblood flow. The athletes are asked to usethefeedback in some way (trial-and-error)so as to reduce muscle activity, increaseskin temperature, and reduce SPR activity

to a specific criterion. Wr refer to this asmulti-modality training.

4. Relaxation tapes are-used to facilitate theteaching of relaxation. These tapes are acombination of Jacobson's technique andautogenic training.

5. Breathing exercises are also taught to theathlete. The breathing pattern consists ofdeep, but not forced, inhalations and exha-lations at a constant fate.

6. During relaxation the athlete is' asked topractice imagery of the competitive eventwhile emphasizing the positive. The SPRunit is extremely sensitive and conduciveto monitoring imagery sessions.

7. Home training in relaxation is suggested tothe athletes. Essentially they are asked tovisualize relaxatiort scenes and utilizestrategies which effectively bring on relax-ation in the lahoratory. Each athlete keeps,a daily diary nWher psychological train-ing.

8. Most athletes are able to self-regulate thesemodalities to the desired criteria (we use<2 microvolts of EMG activity and 95 de-grees F. thermal) after about ten 30-minutesessions. However, They periodically re-turn tO the laboratory fora session in relax-ation, at the same time verifying their abil-ity to reach the criterion level of relaxation.

ConclusionThe application of-biofeedback to sport is

still in its infancy. However, there is strongclinical evidence and some research evi-dence suggesting that biofeedback in con-junction with other self:regulatory techniquessuch as Jacobsonian relaxafion, autogenicphrases, and imagery has great promise forassisting in the psychological preparation ofathletes for competition. Although there aresome limitations such as adherence to prac-tice, transfer of coping skills to competition,availability of portable instruments, andskilled clinicians, the multi-dimensional ap-..mach previously described can potentiallyefihance the performance of any well-motivated athlete.FOOTNOTES'

'Green, E., Green, A., and Norris, P. "Self-regulationTraining Control for Hypertension: Primary Cardiology 6.126-37.

62

2Se lye, H. Stress without Distress. New York: SignetBooks, 1975.- 'Martens, R. "Anxiety and Motor 8eh5vior. a Review."

Journal of Motor Behavior 3: 151-79.4Nideffer, R. The Inner Athlete. Klew York. T. Y.

Crowell Co., 197k.'Jacobson, E. Prpgressive Relaxation. Chicago. Univer-

sity of Chicago Press, 1938.'Schultz, J., and Luthe, Autogentc Training. a

Psychophysiological Approach to Psychotherapy. NewYork: Grune & Stratton, 1959.

'Wolpe, J. Psychothe`rapy by Reciprocal Inhibition.Stanford, CA: Stanford Universini,Press, 1958.

'Coleman, D. "Meditation as Meta-therapy. Hypothe,sis toward- a Proposed Fifth State of Consciousness."Journal of Transpersonal Psychology 3. 1-25.

'Benson, H. The Relaxation Response. New York. Wd-ham Morrow & Co., 1975.

'°Gordon, J. Handbook of Clinical and ExperimentalHypnosis. New York: MacMillan, 1967.

"Suinn, R. M. Behavioral Rehearsal Training for SkiRacers. Behavior Therapy 3. 519-20.

"Michenbaum, D. Cognitive-behavior Modification.N6-4, York: Plenum, 1977.

Zaichkowsky, L. D. "Combating Stress. What aboutRelaxation Training Ad Biofeedback? Mouvement.1975. pp. 309-12.

"Basinajian, J. "Control and Training of IndividualMotor Units. Science 141: -440-41.

"Basmapan, J., ed- Biofeedback. Principles and Prac-tice for Clinicians. Baltimore. Williams & Wdkins, 1379.

"Miller, Id, "Learning of Visceral and GlandOlarRe--sponses." Scierice 163: 434-45.

"Ziegler, S. "Application of Stress Management inCompetitive Runners." Stress Management for Sport. ,Reston, VA The American Alliance for Health, Physical'EduCation, Recreation and Dance, 1982.

"Budzynski, T., and Stoyva, J. "An Instrument for Pro-ducing Deep Relaxation by Means of Analog InformationFeedback." Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis321-37.

"Sandweiss, J. "Task Force Study Section Report. Ath-letic Applications of Biofeedback." Paper prepared for

,the Biofeedback Society of Amerka, August, 1978."Sandweiss, J. "Task Force Study Section RepOrt. Ath-

letic Applications of Biofeedback." Paper prepared forthe Biofeedback Society of America, March, 1980.

"Zaichkowsky, L. D. "Biofeedback and Anxiety Man-agement in Sport." Paper presented at the meeting of theCanadian Psychomotor Learning Conference, Toronto,November, 1978.

2IGrèene, W. A. "Literature Review of Biofeedback andAthletics." Paper presented at the meeting of the Biofeed-back Society of America, San Diego, California, February,1979.

"Goldstein, D. S.; Ross, R. S., and Grady, J. V."Biofeedback Heart Rate Training during Exercise."Biofeedback and Self-Regulation 2. 107-25.

2lWilson, V., and Bird, E. "Ublizing EMG Biofeedbalkand/or Relaxation Training to Increase Hip Flexibility inGymnastics." Paper presented at IL meeting of the International Congress id Physical Edutation, Trois Rivieres,Quebec, June, 1979.

"Basmajian, J., 1979.2'Teague, M. "A Combined Systematic Desensitization

and Electromyograph Biofeedback Technique for Con-trolling State Anxiety and Improving Gross Motor SkillPerformance." Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Uni-

63

versity of Northern ( olorado, 1976."French, S. "Electrodwogranhic Biofeedback for Ten-

sion Control during Gross Motor Skill Acquisition Per-ceptual and Motor Skills 47: t83-89.

"French, S. ElectrOmyographic Biofeedback for Ten-sion Control duridg Fine Motor Skill Acquisition."Biofeedback and SO-Regulation 5 221-28.

"Bla is, M., apd Orlick, T. "ElectroinyographicBiofeedback as a Means of Competitive Anxiety Control.Problems and Potential. In Proceedings of the 9th Cana-dian Sports Psythology Symposium, B'anff, Alberta, Oc-tober, 1977.

"Nideffer, R !lest of Attentional and InterpersonalStyle." lourn1 of Personality and Social Psychology 34394-404.

"Dorsey, J. A. "The Effects of Biofeedback AssistedDesensitization Training on State Anxiety and Performance of College Age Male Gymnasts." Unpublisheddoctoral dissertation, Boston University, 1977

32Zakhkowsky; Dorsey, J.; and Mulholland, T. B"The Effects of Biofeedback Assisted Systematic Desen-sitization in the Control of Anxiety and Performance." InProceedings of the 4th International Congress of Sport,PsyEhology, Prague, Czechoslovakia, October, 1977.

"rfsukomoto, S. "The Effects of EMG Biofeedback As-sisted Relaxation on Sport Competition Anxiety " Unpub-lished master's thesis, University of Western Ontario,London, Ontario 1979.

"Bennett, B. B., and Hall, C. R. "Biofeedback andArchery Performance." Paper presented at the Interna-tional Congress in Physkal Education, Trois Rivieres,Quebec, June, 1979.

"Wenz, B., and Strong, D. "An Application ofBiofeedback and Self-regulation Procedures ysithSuperior Athletes. the Fine Toning Effect In Psychologyin Sports. Methods and Application, edited by R Suinn,Minneapolis, MN: Burgess, 1980.

"DeWitt, D. J. "Cognitive and Biofeedback Trainingfor Stress Reduction in University A.tHetes Journal ofSport Psychology 2: 228-94.

"Zaichkowsky, L. D. "Biofeedback and the Manage-ment of Competitive Stress." In Stress and Anxiety inSport, edited by Y. Hanin. Moscow. Soviety Press, 1981

"Nideffer, R., 1976, pp. 394:404."Spielberger, C.; Gorsuch, R. and Lushene, R State-

trait Anxiety hixentory Manual Palo Alto, CA ConsultingPsychologists Press, 1970,

"Martens, R. Sport Competition Anxiety Test. Cham-paign, IL: Human Kinetics Publishers, 1977

REFERENCES

Basmapan, J. Muscles Alive. Their Functions Re-vealed by Electromyosraphy. Baltimore, MD:Williams & Wilkins, 1962.

Brown, B. "Recognition of Consciotb-ness through Association ith EEG Alpha Activ-ity Represented by a ig t Signal "Psychophysiology 6: 42..

Brown, B. Stress and the Art of Biofeedback NewYork: Erantam Books, 1977.

. J. "Conscious Control of Brain Waves."Psycho/ogy Today 1: 56-60.

Mulholland, T. "Feedback Electroencephalo-graph. In Biofeedback and self-control, editedby T. Barber et. al. New York: Aldine, 1971

Zaichkowsky, L. D. "Single Vase Experimental De-signs and Sport Psychology Research. In Psy-chology of Motor Behavior and Sport, edited byG. Roberts and W. Halliwell. Champaign, IL:-Human Kinetics Press, 1979.

6 4

Coach's Reaction toDr. Leonard D. Zaichkowsky's

"Biofeedback for Self-regulation ofCompetitive Stress"

David HemeryDepartment of Athletics,

Boston Un;vercity

During my first couple of years of collegecoaching it became increas.r.gly apparentwhat a large part the mind plays in top sportspertormance. I have encountered numerousathletes who have had the physical ability tocorhpete at the national level, however, theyotten disappointed themselves and otherswhen the pressure of competition intensified.They did not have good psychological controland as a result, lost sorne physical control.

The question ot whattmakes that competit-ive difference tor some athletes has interestedme tor years. The psyihological makeup ofpeople and how they, fulfill their personalgrowth needs, obviouslY play major parts. Asa coach, my biggest pi-oblem is not merelyhelping the athlete to reach a higher physicalstandard, but how to help them maintain ahigh level of self-confidence when stress in-creases. For this reason I welcome the recentinvolvement of psychologists in facilitatingenhanced sports performance.

I believe it is a worthlile venture, be-cause I view sport as one ot \the most benefi-cial ot all growth experiences There will be avariety ot experiences including victory, ela-tion, ecstasy, defeat, depression, questioning,'exhaustion, sickness, health, stength, injury,frustration, personal control, flow andachievement, notoriety, rejection, fr!endship,frppiness, challenge, aggression, risk-taking,stress, and hopefully, personal grqwth.

The greater the risk-taking, thellarger thegain. However, in many cases the athlete who

65

has no tools of self-control will let things hap-pen to him or her rather than making things

happen. For some, psychological preparationis much easier than for others. I believe thatwith tools such as biofeedback the athleteswho lack a high degree of self-control willrealize that stress management is within theirpersonal control. The poor competitor oftenallows other competitors around them to dic-tate what he or she does. Many times anathlete can be beaten before the event evengets under way. On the other hand, it is possi-ble to use relaxation techniques even duringthe most critical phases of warm-up and prep-aration.

Our high jumper, Julie White, was 6th inthe 1976 Olympics at the age of 16. HerCanadian coach told her not to begin herapproach to the bar until she had imaginedherself going over it. Sometimes in her mindthe bar comes off, so she does the jump again,mentally, until she is successful. She neverjumps without picturing this success.

Mental rehearsal and mental imageryplayed a large part in my own Olympic prepa-'ration. While flying into Mexico City for the1968 Olympic Games I could feel my anxietyincreasing. This was the Olympic Games! Thebest competitors from 120 countries weregoing to be there! I mentally took a step backand said to myself, "This is just another trackmeet . .. a pretty big one .. . but just anothermeet." My event was the 400-meter hurdlesand my Boston University coach suggested

that I focus my attention on, "It's your lane,your 10 hurdles, your pa e. judgment." I don'tknow how iharty hundreds of times I ran myrace in my mind, but it was under every con-ceivable condition: different line draws; dif-.

tering windconditions, different opponents inditterent positions, sometimes going out fasterthan I; finding myself in the lead. In mentallyrunning the race I was not just watching amovie in my head but was experiencing the

sensations with my pulse rate and breathingrate increased to the point where I had to lieback_down on the bed to relax and breathedeeply and slowly to lower my pulse rateagain after the "run."

To turther reduce anxiety of running against32 of the best in the world, I mentally ran mytop opponents in a one-on-one race. With

each athlete I would run a full race where Ifinished ahead. it at any stage in my mentalrehearsal the opponent began to pull ahead toany point where I didn't believe I'd have himby the end, I would wipe out the image andbegin again until each highly respected orfeared opponent would _have been at leastmentally conquered.

This mental rehearsal was coupled withmental imagery for stress control. At the warm-up track before the semi-final, I saw theUnited States athlete Jeff Vanderstock runfrom The- blocks around the first bend. Helooked powerful, fast, and graceful, and for. aminute my mind was on him and wondering ifI was really as fast. It was late afternoon andevery day at 4 p.m. rain descended brieflywith tropical intensity. This had left the infieldgrass wet, although still warm. I was on the

infield changing from the flats to spiked shoes.In order to regain self-control mentally I left

my shoes off and ran on the grass feeling themoist landing underfoot, which would takeme back 13 months to the beach at Duxbury,

-Massachusetts, where I had started my Olym-pic preparation. It took me back to the sheerjoy of running, flowing at high speed with thesun on my back, lifting my knees to longstrides through 6" of water at the edge of thefine low tide sand. The feeling of almost limit-less power and control from that time, helpedme to again feel confident in my own ability.The final call for my event carhe up 25 min-

66

utes before the starting time. The eight menwere placed in the small pen on the rampwhich was 50 yards from the track. We werechecked in but had to stay there for 15 min-utes. Ron Whitney, the favorite from Califor-nia, began jogging around. One by one, theothers followed suit. I lay on my back on abench, closed my eyes, and by breathing longand slowly, with eyes closed, tried to lowermy pulse rate and focus on the task at handto run faster than ever before.

Dr. Len Zaichkowsky has a strong interestin sport and our discussions with and withoutthe athlete present have been helpful in focus-

ing upon the athlete's problems, goals, andthe available methods of stress managementWith biofeedback to give quantifiable feed-back information, any athlete may learn howhe or she can best gain personal control ofwhat most have considered uncontrollablefactors.

.4.

6The Role of Hypnosis in

Competitive Stress ManagementVeronica L. Eskridge, Ph.D.

Ithaca Co/kge, New York

Overview of Stress

Stress is a condition with which everyhuman being 15 familiar. Yet the term is sowidely used that it is often subject to confu-sion and ambiguity. For the purposes of thisdiscussion Hans Se lye's definition of stresswill be used: "Stress is the nonspecific re-sponse of the body to any demand."'

It is common knowledge that the humanbody physiologically responds to demands(stressors) whether those demands be pleasantor unpleasant. The demands may be differentbut they all elicit the same physiological re-sponse. What 15 happening is that when ademand is placed on the body the entire sys-tem mobilizes for action. Upon seeing a de-mand in the environment, whether danger orsome other form of the unexpected, the bodyautomatically modifies itself to deal with thenew situation. The entire system becomesalive and alert, ready to respond as it deemsfit.

The above description of stress is often re-terred to as the "tight or flight syndrome."Here is an example of the syndrome in thearea of athletics. You, as an athlete are in-formed that you will be playing in the statefinals. Your coach calls you at home to notifyyou that you will be competing tomorrowmorning. It does not necessarily matterwhether you think that you will win or lose.You will spend a restless night anticipating thecontest. You certainly had an initial stress re-

67

sponse while talking on the phone (rememberthe feeling in your throat and/or stomach?)and you will have a similar reaction as you goto the contest the next morning. The expecta-tion of the event can be every bit as powerful astressor as the actual event itself.

Uncertainty and novelty can be stressors.Anything which happens for the first time, orwhich one cannot immediately make senseof, is likely to trigger stress. Normally, onequickly analyzes what is happening or de-cides that it is not dangerous and the stressreaction is stopped. If sense cannot be madeof what is happening but some constructiveways of handling the situation can be found,the stress reaction will decrease or stop. How-ever, a completely disrupting stress reactionwill occur if the danger is real and serious or ifuncertainty and doubt continue for a pro-longed period.

What is quite stressful for one person maynot be for others. It is not necessarily the inten-sity of the stressor that determines the intensityof a reaction; it is one's perception of thestressor that determines the intensity of thestressor. So when the state finals comearound, an athlete who knows the game in-side and out, backward and forward, may notrespond in such a panic-stricken way as theathlete who is new to the team. Whatever thereasor.s, people do respond differently tostress.

The relationship between stress and per-formance is especially provocative for

athletes and coaches who are always inter-ested in increasing productivity. In general itcan be said that the performance of both thecoach and the athlete is best when moderatedemands (levels of stress) are being madeupon them. If the performance is less than

optimal then it is likely that the demand is toohigh or too low. For the typical athlete, themore common problem is to experience somuch stress that productivity is adversely af-fected.

Hypnosis as a Tool forStress Management

Debate over the use of hypnosis for enhanc-ing performance has been waged for years.Many claims have been made and refuted forthe miraculous things that can be achievedusing this technique. It is important to empha-size that hypnosis is not a mystical nor amiraculous method of accomplishing fantas-tic teats. It can, however, be a useful tool for

many dimensions of the psychological as-pects of the athletic area. Hypnosis is perhapsmost useful in the sense that it can be used tospeed up what are otherwise quite normalpsychological processes. For instance, theprocess of coping with stress, the topic ad-

dressed here, can be facilitated by hypnosis.Over the years the methods of using,hyp-

nosis have been revised and improved. How-ever, there is no real agreement among psy-chologists and researchers on a theoretical,much less an operational, definition of hyp-nosis. Most authorities agree that the processof hypnosis is a technique for making the sub-conscious conscious. Most important is thetact that hypnosis is a natural state, one canfrequently slip in and out of hypnotic-liketrances throughout the day. The techniques

t,used and called hypnosis are merely a moreprecise method tor controlling and using thisability of\communicaung between the con-scious and, subconscious aspects of the indi-vidual.

The following comments summarize boththe approach and the sequences in whichhypnotic information and experiences couldbe presented to the athletes. Some of theprocedural suggestions have come from theathletes themselves. Whenever possible the

68

coach should participate both in the sessionsand in defining the goals for the group as wellas the individual athletes.

Since the level of understanding of hyp-nosis varies w idely among athletes and ranges

from "losing control Of their will" to the moresophisticated realization that one practicesand performs in a "trance" on many occa-sions, it is often preferable to eliminate the useof the word hypnosis in referring to the train-ing sessions. The sessions may legitimately bereferred to as mental practice sessions or re-laxation sessions, etc.

The Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Sus-ceptibility' is easily administered to theathletes as a group. This test provides informa-tion to the hypnotist concerning how suscep-tible the athletes will be to the suggestionsand, perhaps, the difficulty of suggestionswith which to begin the training.

The progressive relaxation induction tech-niques appear to be the most appropriate foruse with athletes in a group setting. This tech-

nique, if used judiciously, will not produce, side effects which are negative to athletic per-

formance and it allows those athletes with awide range of susceptibility to benefit from thesessions. Throughout the induction and theremainder of the session the athletes are givenpleasant images to focus on, particularly im-ages associated with the athletic event in

which they participate. They are frequentlyasked to imagine themselves in that athleticsituation.

Following the induction, the athletes couldbe asked to deliberately bring themselves"up" to the feeling of the best situation forperforming. They are just excited enough toperform well but not too excited. They are justrelaxed enough but not too relaxed. The hyp-notist can guide the athletes through exercisesdesigned for controlling these feelings; takingthemselves too "high" and noting how itfeels; taking themselves too "low" and notinghow that feels; bringing themselves to feeling"just right" and maintaining that feeling. Em-phasis should be placed on the fact that they,the individuals, are controlling this feelingand with practice can develop good controlregardless of the situation.

Another effective exercise utilizes the men-

tal practice ot a selected activity the-athlete isto perform in the athletic situation. Prior toeach hypnosis session the athletes should in-dividually meet with the coach to establishwhat physical aspect of their performanceeach ot them could practice during the hy p-nosis session. For tfils exercise, the activ ity

that should be chosen would be one theycould perform correctly but were havingtrouble executing optimally when understress because of the athletic event. For in-stance, a particular dive an individual mightbe having trouble executing during a meetwould be chosen for practice ill the hypnosissession. The athlete is asked to imdgine how i*teels to correctly do the dive. They are not towatch- themselves perform the dive but to

imagine how their body feels when correctlyexecuting the dive. The hypnotist then guidesthe individuals through mental imagery exer-uses of feehng the performance correctly, in-correctly, in slow motion, and at appropriatespeeds. Each time the indiv idual is urged toteel the difterences between the correct per-tormance and the incorrect performances.

Imagine how it feels!" This exercise is com-pleted atter the athlete has mentally practicedthe pertormance correctly and at the correctspeed several times.

Focus of attention exercises in the hypnosissessions have been found to be quite useful.4

The athletic event in which the individualparticipates dictates to a degree how thisexercise ls approached. For instance, a diveris in an advantageous position if attention canbe tocused on a single point as the dive isapproached, thus eliminating distracting ex-ternal cues. Therefore, suggestions would begiven for concentrating upon a chosen pointon the board, counting to a specified number,

and beginning the dive. An athlete participa-ting in a team sport, such as fe.)tball, or anindividual sport, such as tennis, must, how-ever, attend to multiple external cues to per-form optimally; the hypnotic suggestions forconcentration must be adjusted accordingly.Regardless, sestions for concentration canbe given appropriately and practice on thisaspect ot performance can be accomplishedin the group hypnosis session.

The last ot the group hypnotic sessions

69

could best be used in giving the athletes sug-gestions for how and when to practice self-hypnosis during the week. This is a -relatively-simple and quick method of helping theathlete to learn self-hypnosis as well as amethod for practicing the exercises given dur-ing the group session. As the athlete becomesmore secure and skilled at self-hypnosis, sug-gestions can be given for the use 'of self-hypnosis prior to and/or during the athleticevent. Some individuals become quite profi-cient at using self-hypnosis for "psyching"themsek es up or down before and at variouspoints throughout the athletic situation. Self-hypnosis is also useful for focusing attentionduring the execution of particular skills,eliminating distracting and irrelevant cuescorning from the environment, such as crowdnoise or sideline movement, and conductinga rapid mental practice of a specific skill.

When appropriate, suggestions for refocus-ing fatigue cues can be useful. Often athletes,upon noticing that they are becoming tired,tense in an effort to overcome the results offatigue. This increased tension causes themore rapid onset of fatigue and its negative

effects on performance. Tension is fatiguing.In addition, attention to the fatigue takes atten-tion away from appropriate aspects of the per-formance. Through hypnosis, it can besuggested to the athlete that when he/sh6ieelsthe first signs of tiring it will be a cue to slightlyrelax and to focus attention on some aspect ofthe performance. Note that it is important notto suggest that fatigue go unrecognized, as thesymptoms of fatigue are an important warningsignal. To remove this warning by means ofhypnotic suggestion could put tHe athlete indanger of injury.

Just as fatigue signals can be refocused socan pain signals be refocused. For example, a

diver has a minor sprain of the left ankle. Thetrainers and doctors establkh that diving is notdangerous or injurious to the athlete. How-ever, the twinge of pain felt upon springingdistracts from his/her concentration on thedive. Perhaps more important (in terms of per-formance) is that the anticipation of thetwinge could make it difficult for the athlete toapproach the dive. Under hypnosis it could besuggested that the twite of pain would re-

A

main as long as was natural. However, itwould not distract from concentration.Rather, it would serve as a physical cue totOCUS attention upon the dive to be performed.

As suggested in the previous example, indi-vidual hypnotic sessions with athletes whoare average to above average ri suggestibilitycan be useful.' In addition to dealing withpain, other general areas can be handled in adirective manner that is individual- ratherthan group-appropriate. For instance onecould handle analyzing or overcoming a"block" of a specific p&formance.

How does all that has been said about hyp-nosis relate to the earlier statements Loncern-mg stress? Hypnosis gives the athlete a spe-cific and direct method of dealing with vari-ous aspects of athletics which produce stress.As described, tne athletes can practice andgain control of self in the sense of "psyching"before a game or performance. Too often theathlete is merely told to get ready and theyseldom have any idea as how to accomplishthis task. Should they "psych" up or downand how? Uncertainty is a stressor. Whetherthe self-hypnosis technique is completelysuccessful or not, in achieving appropriate"psych" levels, much of the uncertainty isremoved from the situation and thus, stress isreduced. Furthermore, the athlete can begiven a method of concentrating attentionwhich in and of itself will produce better per-formance. The fact that it removes uncertaintyand gives the athlete a sense of self-controlreduces stress. Suggestions for removal of ex-traneous external cues that are distracting canbe viewed as suggestions for removing exter-nal and unnecessary stressors, such as crowdnoise.

Another strong support for the use of hyp-nosis in stress control is the fact that peoplediffer in what is stress-producing. The hyp-nosis technique allows for these individualdifferences. Either the athletes make decisionsfor themselves in the group session, e.g.,psyching themselves to their own best level,or the athlete can be dealt with in individualsessions, e.g., control of a specific and dis-tracting pain.

The use of hypnosis in athletic situations, beit as a stress control technique, a motivating

70

technique, a practice technique or any other,has only recently been an acceptable ap-proach. Much is still not known of its actual orpotential resourcefulness. Coaches who areinterested in hypnosis as a tool can offset thepotential cost of a psychologist or sport psy-chologist by permitting case studies and re-search to be performed on their athletes inexchange for the application of the knownbenefits. Most of what is presently knownabout hypnosis as a performance tool is taken 'from athletes' subjective reports or from areasoutside of athletics. More applied researchwould be quite informative. The use of hyp-nosis with the administration of anxiety reportforms from the athletes might be a fruitfulapproach. Various physiological andbiofeedback measures should produce someinformative data. Perceived exertion itudiescould potentially be used for gathering stressinformation and the effect hypnosis has uponit. Both coaches and researchers must accepthypnosis as a viable option and as a valid areafor research if it is to become the useful toolthat current knowledge suggests it can be toassist the athlete in attaining optimal, athleticperformance.

FOOTNOTES

'Seyle, H. The Stress ot Lite. New York. Mctraw-HillBook Company, 1976, p. 15.

,Bowers, K. S. Hypnosis for the Serious! yCurious. Mon-terey, CA: Brooks/Cole Publishing Company, 1976.

'Shore, R. E. Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Suscep-tibility. Palo Alto, CA. Consulting Psychologists Press,1962.

4Teitelbaum, M. Hypnosis Induction Techniques.Springfiekl, IL. Charles C. Thomas, 1965.

5Shore, R. E., 1962.

,)

4

Coach's Reaction toDr. Veronica L. Eskridge's"The Role of Hypnosis in

Compebtive Stress Management"Betty R. Hammond, Ed.D.

Edinboro State College, Pennsylvania

, Stress reaction is an individual phenome-non because no two athletes react to the per-formance situation in exactly the same way.Therefore, it is not possible for the coach todeal with a team or group of athletes as oneunit to prepare for competition. Indi-vidualized stress control is essential to en-hance the performance of each athlete. Hyp-nosis appeai,s to be one method which pro-duces positive results by helping athletes todeai more effectively with their own stressreaction. -

It is important to analyze the role of the

coach in the stress-controlling process prior todetermining how stress is to be controlled.Tin coach is responsible for his/her athletes'phy:.ical development (skills, fitness etc.) aswell as cognitive development related to theathletic, situation. The coach is responsible forperformance levels, safety, and individualand team output.

Teachir,g the skills, plays, and team workare probably the easiest part of a coach's job.The difficulty lies in the psycholog;c5I aspectsot self-confidence, attention, and motivation.Any coach would probably welcome with en-thusiasm a technique which promotes appro-priate or successful methods,of handling thesepsychological problem areas. Hypnosis ap-pears to be such ci technique. There is littledoubt in my mind that the training sessionsdescribed by Dr. Eskridge would be a vaht-able asset. There are, however, unansweredquestions about which 4, as a coach, would be

71

concerned.First, perhaps, is the logistical question of

when should this hypnosis training begin foran athlete? Most serious college-level athletes

have learned some form of self-hypnosis,psyching or mentally rehearsing before arriv-ing at that level. The key to effectiveness iswhat happens then. Does the athlete really doanything beneficial at that point? The trainingsessions described by Dr. Eskridge may beessential to identify the key elements to whichthe athlete should attend during the period ofself-hypni. 'is. Certainly beginning performerscould benefit from a detailed analysis withattention to key points. When, doring anathletes' career, is it most appropriate to beginsuch training? Without doubt, the earlier thisability is acquired the more beneficial it, maybecome. Is it feasible to begin this training atthe high school level, the junior high level, orbefore?

Another area of concern is the coach's rolein using hypnosis. Should the coach learnhypnosis techniques in order, to hypnotizeathletes? Should the coach allow thOse youngpeople in his/her care to be "guinea pigs"from which some sport psychologist cangather data? What credentials should an indi-vidual possese before a coach permits thatindividual to "play with the minds" ofathletes?

The coach who uses hypnosis must be sup-portive of the entire procedure, obviously, butfew coaches have the training or expertise to

do the job themselves. While it is a relativelyeasy task to "put someone under" (certainlysomething all of us could easily master), whatpessible difficulties or problems could arise?Is there potential harm Or are such claimssimply the cry of alarmists inhibiting progress?Are we capable ef handling such situationswithout further training? Even the exberts donot agree!

What are the legal and ethical ramificationsof hypnosis related to athletic preparation?Who is to be held responsible if the unforeseendoes happen? Who is going to protect youngathletes from the unscrupulous coach whoseprimary concern is other than the welfare ofthe athlete?

Perhaps the major disadvantage associatedwith the training sessions previously dis-cussed is where to find a qualified individualwho is willing to expend the necessary hoursand effort, who has, or is willing to acquire,the expertise associated with specific athleticevents, and who is geographically and tem-porally available when the training sessionsare scheduled.

This area of research is fascinating and po-tentially of great benefit. There is a distinctneed to help athletes learn to use whatevertechniques and cues are Available to benefitfrom those psychological aspects of perfor-mance which so often elude conscious con-trol. The use of hypnosis is but one of manyself-regulation strategies utilized to speed thenatural acquisition of these skills. Thissuggests tremendous benefits for the athlete.

72

7Stress Managementfor Professional and

World-Class CompetitionMichael D. Margolies, M.S.

Charlottesville, Virginia

Sport psychology *shifting from the labora-tory to the playing fields. There is a need towork with and design programs (both activeand practical) that will help athletes of anycaliber or sport fulfill more of their potentials.Each athlete is really a team of muscles, coor-dination, and emotional control. The man-agement of such a team requires psychologyas well as physical expertise. Therefore, it isimperatwe that stress management tech-niques are available to coaches and otherpractitioners of sport.

This paper is not a critical review of compe-titive stress management techniques. Rather,it consists of subjective observations made inthe field working with professional andworld-class athletes. Research in this areamust be done to clarify which cognitive strat-egies work best with the various categories ofathletes and their varied sports.

This paper is not directed specifically at thestress problems that confront professional andworld-class athletes. If it were, it would haveto include techniques for alcohol rehabilita-tion, sexual, and marriage counseling, andperhaps a short course in money manage-ment. All of these are either symptoms or by-products of a lifestyle that allows for and, tosome degree, encourages certain abuses. Itmight even be concluded by the general pub-lk that drugs and alcohol are a stress man-agement technique. The lifestyle of the pro-fevional world-class athlete is displayed dailyin a fishbowl-type of existence. Fans admire

73

and scrutinize these athletes; thus the athletesmust live their lives differently, and perform atthe highest levels. It is in their perSonal livesthat outside stress interferes and often carriesover into their competitive performance. Addto this pressure a fierce desire to succeed, andthese outside frustrations and distractions be-come even more apparent.

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrateto the sport psychology consultant, coach,and athlete some of the uses of stress man-agement techniques including relaxationtraining, and imagery, to not, only reducecompetitive stress but also to promote andencourage optimum performance.

Relaxation Training

My first experience with stress managementoccurred as an undergraduate. I was writing aterm paper on whether relaxation had anymajor effect on athletic performance. Theonly information I had on relaxation was alimited psychological description. My re-search efforts prompted me to apply thisnewly acquired knowledge to a swimmingclass I was teaching.

The class consisted of adult nonswimmers.They had been working for five weeks, andnow possessed the skills needed to swimacross the deep end. A slightly modified ver-sion of jacobson's Progressiv RelaxationTechnique was applied.' The); were in thewater wearing life jackets. After they went

through the technique, instructions to thinkand feel pleasant thoughts about the water,while they floated on their backs at the ten-foot level, vOere given. They then imaginedthemselves to be comfortably swimmingacross the,pool. Following the exeiuse,.theyactually swam across the pool. Much of theiranxiety had passed, and most made it acrosswith very little assistance.

In the succeeding years, I have realized thatwelkiefined relaxation training program

can be an excellent skill for any athlete toacquire. Relaxing has many implications.First, it. allows an athlete to shed tension andstress caused by everyday life apd.ctmpeti-tion. Secondly, relaxation is necessary forconservation of energy, enabling greater en-durance. Lastly, and possibly most important,relaxation training leads to greater awarenessof the entire body.

Relaxation eventually becomes a perfor-mance skill, just as learning proper techniquein the pole vault is a skill for the decathalon. Itis also a personal skill because each athletewill use a different combination of relaxationtechniques. Some of thesejnclude progress-ive relaxation, yoga, biofeedback, autogenictraining, hypnosis, meditation, and sensoryisolation tanks.

Imagery TrainingThe bulk of my experience has been in the

area of applied imagery training. There aremany diverse skills an athlete can developwith the aid of imagery. While working withathletes, I have followed these basicguidelines:

define realistic goals and limitations Filch

are sport specific;utilize relaxation training to prepare for im-ageryTdevelop a very clear image or feeling of thesuccessful performance;maintain periodic surveillance over theathlete's experience.Clear pictures and feelings are important to

the process. It appears that the dearer thepicture, the better the effect. The picture canbe ot the event or of the athlete, it can andshould be from many perspectives. This notonly helps the athlete become more aware of

74

the situation, but also aids in reducing anxietyas well. A pole vaulter may v isualize what theperformance looks like from the pit or fromatop t,he crossbar. The resulting familiaritywith the feel and sight of a successful perfor-mance will lessen amdety as he/she vaults anew theight.

Monitoring has always been important inorder to subjectively judge how an athlete isdoing with the visualization. This can be ac-complished by asking the athlete to respondwith a predetermined cue. Communicationallows the athletes to take their time and feelcomfortable with the clinician. It dfso al loWsthe clinician to monitor' the athlete's atterftionspan and determine whether or not the .sub-

ject has drifted into sleep. This can be a.prob-lem when working with an athlete who worksout four to six hours per day.

The most familiar way of using imagery is tohave the athlete see his/her competition. If wecan simulate actual competition in theathlete's mind, cOmpetitive stress may be les-sened by getting him/her to that stress. Thisprocedure can be accomplished by slowlybuilding up pressure to fit the situation.

There are times when stress can be man-aged by having the athlete go through theevent and see that he/she can, indeed, per-form within his/her goals and limitations. Ayoung swimmer came to me two days beforehis league championship. He'd had an acci-dent and had almost severed the middle fingerof his right hand. Due to the apprehensionbecause of pain, he had developed a greatdeal of anxiety about not being able to swim.He was also very concerned about disap-pointing his relay team. After using imageryand relaxation training for the two days pre-ceding the event and seeing a very strongimage of himself swimming well (in a surgicalglove) and feeling that his teammates appre-ciated his efforts, this event happened. Heswam well enough to surpass.his oWn per-sonal- record swim without too much discom-fort.

The practiee of imagery training combinedwith relaxation can improve performance. Aworld-class decathlete came to my office inthe hopes of learning how to improve his per-formance. We used imagery training for all a

7:i

the decathalon events, but primarily focusedon the disc hoLput,_high kurd les, and h igh

jump. This coincided with the emphasis of hisphysical training during the fall and wintermonths. Within one week after his first ses-sion, his performance started to improve.Within six weeks, he had broken his personalrecords in five events, and had approachedthe others closely, something he had not donefor almost two.years.

Table 1. Treatment effects of decathlete's perfor-mance.

Event

Career BestPre-

Treatment

TreatmentPeriod

Oct-Dec.1979

Post-TreatmentJan.-Aug.

1980

Discus 139' 177'0" 155'

400 Meters 48.72* 48.9 sec 49.1 sec

Shotput 39' 46' 42'

100 meters 10.88 10.63 sec 10.96 sec

High Jump 6'2" 6'6" 6'2"1500 Meters 4:18* 4:20 4:35

Pole Vault 15' 9"* 15'10" 15'

Long Jump 21'3" 23'6" 21'5"110 High

Hurdle 14.7* 14.9 sec 15.2

Javelin 239" 1978 217' Less than200'(injury)

(1979-80201' best)

'1978

The decathlete worked on imagery traininga minimum of three and one-half hours aweek in my office, and one hour per day, fivedays per week at home. During this timeperiod, he wun three decathalohs and scoredbetter than he had in two previous seasons.He continued the imagery training for twomonths, and then stopped because of growingdemands on his time. A month after ceasingthe cognitive strategies, his performance slid

back. In some events, he performed below hispretraining level. Little injuries began to oc-cur, further hampering his performance andforcing him to withdraw from two decatha-Ions. This was something that had only oc-curred twice before in his entire career. Table1 charts the treatment effeCts on his perfor-

mance.Imagery training can also be used for the

development of timing and pace. In the case

75

of figure skating and gymnastics, this can beaccomplished through music. The programmusic'can be played while the athlete ic in adeeply relaxed state while developing thefeeling, the timing, and the precision. A met-rononie can be used by track athletes to aid intraining ,and the development of pace. Bothpace and timing are very much like an internalclock. Imagery training can be used to finetune them.

Another advantage of imagery training isthat because time is relative, an athlete canlook at performance at different speeds. It canbe an advantage to go through a performancein either slow or fast motion. With slow mo-tion, the athlete has the opportunity to furtherlook into and analyze performance. Fast mo-tion can be used to run through a particularlylong event such as a marathon or decathalonand still give the athlete a feeling of continuitywhich may reduce anxiety.

For imagery training to have the greatesteffect, it must be flexible. In many trainingsituations, the creative coach or sport psy-chologist can come up with an imagery strat-egy that may indeed help the athlete reach his

or her own potentials.Athletes can be taught as individuals or in a

group. If a group situation is involved, it is

important that individual programs areworked out so that each athlete has his ownprogram?Cassette recorders work well for thispurpose, allowing group work to be even

more effective.The strategies covered were thpse applied

in the field and in individual situaticins.Further study is necessary to substantiate therole of complex imagery training with differ-ent skills and skill levels. The only way thiscan be done is by looking at the whole pictureof athletic competition along with closedskills and seeing the effects of mental trainingon the athlete. It is evident that we can nolonger separate mental training from physicaltraining. The challenge of sport psychology isto bring practical stress management tech-

niques to the field.

FOOTNOTE

'JaLobson, E. Progression Relaxation. Chicago. Uni-versity of Chicago Press, 1938.

8 Li

REFERENCES

Jacobson, E. "The Course of Relaxation in the Mus-cles of Athletes." American Journal of Psychol-ogy. 48: 98-108.

Jacobson, E. Teaching and Learning Nelv Methodsfor Old Arts. National Foundation for ProgressiveRelaxation, 1973.

Ceonard, G. The Ultimate Athlete. New York: Vik-,ing Press, 1975.

Mahoney, M. J., and Avener, M. "Psychology ofthe' Elite Athlete: an exploratory study." Cogni-tive Therapy and Research: 1, 135-41.,

Rotella, R. J. and Ganseder, B. "Cognitions andCoping Strategies of Elite Skiers: an ExploratoryStudy of Young Developing Athletes. Journal ofSpoits Psycliology 2: 350-54.

Straub', W. F. Sport Psychology: An Analysis ofAthletic Behavior. Ithaca, NY: Movement Publi-cation, 1978:

Suinn, R. Psychology in .5,)orts: Methods and Ap-plications. Minneapolis, MN: Burgess Publish-ing, 1980.

Watson, L. A Study of the Relationship between theAbility to Relax and Athletic Ability among Col-lege Women. Ph.D. thesis, University of Oregon,1952.

76

.4"a

c.;.7

Coach's ReactiOn sto. Michael D. Margolies'

"Stress Management forProfessionatand World-Class

Competition"Robert E. Neeves, Ph.D.

Human Performance Laboratory 9irectorCollege of Physical Education,

University of Delaware

As a practicing coach, semiprofessionalcompetitive Masters athlete, and researcher inhuman performance, I view the title "StressManagement for Professional" and °World-

. Class Competition" as pertaining to howstress manifeststself during the season as aresult-of training; how stress manifests itselfprior to competition; how the athlete canhandle the problem ip both cases.

The terial stress has been defined by Dr. HanSelye as the rate of wear and tear in the humanbody that accompanies any vital activity. It isour body's mental, phYsical, and biothemicalresponses to conditions that scare, threaten,

anger, bewilder, or excite us. If_prolonged,fatigue or damage to a system of the body willultimately cause mental or physical failure.

The word stress is a general term that isreally composed of four parts: eustress

.happiness and elation; hypostressboredoMand lack of stimulation; distressanxiety,frustration, and anger; hyperstressover-stress and/or systemic failure. The latter two

are most critical to the competitive athlete.

Hyperstress results from prolonged near-maximum training efforts with the athlete at-tempting to maintain peak physical training.Very few athletes can physically or mentallycope with this longer than six to eight weeks.Frequent competition and consistently in-tense workouts deplete the athlete's strength

and endurance. As the athlete fails to keep upwith tne heavy workloads because of fatigue,deconditioning sets in and performance de-

77

clines. In fhe past this has been referred to asstaleness or a slump.

Using Selye's model ,of reacti,ons to stressone could say that the three stages of stiessthrough which an athlete "passs are: afarm

reaction pre-seasorr tra in ing; resistancestagebeing ,in "good condition; exhaustionstagea drop-off in periormance. To achievethe resistance stgge, the athlete trains for ix toeight weeks. Overtraining is a definite p b-

lem in amateur as well s profeisional:athletes, The result is frequent rnjury orlistlessness, run-down feelings, and definite.signs othyperstress. To combat this syndrome,most of the year should be devoted to basictraining with the emphasis on systematicallyincreasing work loads. Peaking should beginabout one month before .1 critical meet orgame.

The technique of overload training duringthe week provides the necessary 'effect ofphysical stress on an athlete to raise the physi-cal tolerance level that is so important forcompetitive efforts. This is physical stress. It isabsolutely necessary, but it can be carried too

far.It is the responsibility of the coach,to detect

the signs of overstress in the athlete. Typicalsymptoms are prolonged fatigue, muscularsoreness, weight loss, muscle cramps, inabil-ity to maintain practice session intensities,loss of kinesthesis, mental attitude change,depression, arnennorhea in women, a signifi-cant drop-off in athlete performance, and a

I.

decline in scholastic aCiievement. Generally,these problems can be handled physiologi-cally by acliustins the training sLhedules ofspecific athletes. Vary the training schedule,add v anety to the workout, use hard days andeasy days, and provide a day off now and thenif needed.

Most athletes do not knuw how to pace andpeak themselves for competition. The generalattitude is to strive to exceed one's maximalcapacity every game or meet, tO conquer theopponent, to will and never lose. The greatestimpediment to achieving one's maximal ca-pacity is taking a sport so seriously that the funof it is destroyed. Ultimately, one's oerfor-mance diminishes. The constant tate of wor-rying about beating the opponent producessevere pregame anxiety, and it definitely de-tracts from the intimate concentration orsingle-mindedness that permits an athlete toattain better times. This thought process onlyreduces the prospects of winning.

If the goal is to perform at maximum levels,then the greatest concern should not bewhether one wins or loses. It should be, "WillI do my personal best? Will I maintain perfectform? Will I conquer me, my lesser self?" Theathlete should always keep within reach ofspecific personal goals that are realistic andattainable. World-Class athietes most gener-ally train with the knowledge of what they aredoing at all times. They are so tuned into theirbodies that they ore kinesthetically aware oftheir training intensity levels, and they estab-lish specific attainable goals to accomplisheach week. By the time a meet arrives, theathlete enters it with the calm assurance thathe will better his previous best effor.t. Win-ning, therefore, is much broader than just de-teating someone else. It's conquering oneselfthat is more important. There is just as much

.satisfaction in self-improvement as th- -- i, inwinning.

Coping with pre-event and event mentalstress begins during regular practice sessionsand even before that. Developing a goodtraining base provides athletes with the assur-ance that they can physically endure. How-ever, the technical skills needed to properlypenorm are learned in multiple ways. Oncelearned, an athlete will nave complete confi-

78

dence in his/her capabilities. Stress will thenbe lowered but not eliminated. Learningproper skill performance comes from: intentlylistening to a coach talk them through themovements, reading, attending workshopsand clinics, observing professional and pre-mier amateur athletes perform; talking tosuperior athletes, watching films, televisiOn,and critiquing v ideotapes of themselves per-forming. After these sources of informationhave been used, imagery becomes a highlyimportant tool for engraining proper tech-nique into the nervous system.

Springboard divers may think a specificdive through for a year or more before theyphysically attcmpt it. They will think it, dreamit, feel it, talk it through, watch and talk toother divers. They will see themselves goingthrough the dive in slow motion; they willspeed it up, they will think of the feeling thatshould occur in selected parts of the dive, andthen put it all together in their minds. We referto this as the part-whole method of learning.The key is conditioning nervous pathwaysthroughimagery first until the kinesthetic feel-ings are developed, then the actual physicalattempt is made.

Even though all of these techpiques arepacticed, refined, and tuned to perfection,pre-event stress must still be controlled in allathletes. It is a necessary ingredient to per-forming well, but an athlete can perform wellor poorly according to how pre-event stress ishandled. Anxiety is, easily recognized. Theaifhlete will feel a warmth rush over the body,t e heart rate speed up, the hands becumedamp, the mouth become dry, sitting still isimpossible, self-doubt creeps in, "butterflies"in the stomach occur, the urinary and intesti-nal tracts work overtime, an insatiable desire ,to sleep frequently sets in, and a feeling ofmuscula weakness is overbearing. Whenthese occur, development of a positive mentalattitude is of paramount importance. Theathlete should try reading a book or magazineor stay in a relatively quiet place and avoid thesurrounding stimuli created by the presenceof other competitors or audience. The athleteshould daydream, go into a self-imposedtrancelike state, close out all sounds, slowlywith the use of imagery. As a practicing

I-

f

athlete, my pre-event stress reduction is han-dled by meticulously copcentrating on thespecific finite mechanics involved in thecompetitive sprint breaststroke angles of thehands, pressure in the shoulders, or the handsand in the knees, timing the breathing, bodyposition in the pun, kick arid ghde, turns, andgrab-start. In addition, I establish an internalmetronome cadence that permits a rhyth*,consistent body movement that continuesthroughout a race regardless of the discomfortlevel. In combination with this is a routine Offlexibility, relaxation, and rest. Think of theinvestment of time and discomfort that havebeen made preparing for this event. Don'twaste the hours vent in training in fruitlesspre-event anxiety.

I he athlete should practice dynamic orprogressive relaxation, but remember to onlylower the tension to a level that permits him/her to retain an optimal level of tension for theperformance. No one competes well afterbeing immediately awakened from a soundsleep. The object is to turn on the tension alittle bit immediately prior to the start o: theevent without wasting lots of nervous energylong before the event, otherwise the athletebecomes too tired, concentration on skilltechniques is lost, the athlete will over-excel,and performance is adversely affected.

During the actual performance of the event,an athlete can still let mental stress affect his/her performance. All too often the athlete getscaught up in' the performance of. the oppo-nent. The athlete must play his/her own game,run or swim his/her own race. The athletemust play the game within his/her skill andphysical capabilities regardless of what thecompetitor is doing. The athlete must think"It's not a life or death situation. I'll try mybest, and if I don't succeed, so what? I'veprepared myself well up to this point. If I lose,it's because the other person has prepared alittle better. I'm the best that I can be to date.I'll give it my best effort and maintain perfectform and beat my own time. I'll evaluate myperformance later." This is the proper healthyattitude. When physical distress sets in duringa race, 0-peer* can still call upon imageryto block out the tendency to succumb to thedistomfort. Instead, extreme concentration

79

, on technique should be rigidly enforced re-'.,gardless of how much discomfort is felt. Manytimes the athlete who wins is the one who hastrained well and maintains proper techniquethroughout an entire event.

summary, Mr. Margolies is correct in thatrelaxation and imagery are integral parts ofcompetitive athletics, but both athletes andcoaches must be made aware of what ,tress is,how it can be controlled, modified, and ma-nipulated to the advantage of the athlete.Recognition of the overt as well as the subtlesigns of \physical and mental stress is neces-sary in order that appropriate coping tech-niques can be apphed at the correct time topromote the best possible personal perfor-mance.

Coaching Strategies Based uponTension Research

A. B. Frederick, Ph.D.State University of New York Co//ege at Brockport

Dr. Wdham Hughes uf Temple Universityonce rektted tu d graduate class that the forgot-ten indiv !dual in any profession is the "mid-dleman." This is the person who attempts tobind the data of the laboratory with the wis-dom of experience. The glue or welding mate-nal is Often insufficient for the task but themiddleman plods ahead looking for compati-ble surfaces on both sides which will result ina better understanding of diverse views andthe development of new insights.

In another context, Arthur Koestler has por-trayed the oscillating, uncertain path of themiddleman in terms of the intersection of twoplanes (see Figure 1). The planes (M, and M2)represent twu frames of reference. The solidline shows the path of the "middleman" whooccasionally hits upon the intersection, thelatter represented by black duts. In the presentdiscussion, the twu frames of reference r,epre-sent the researcher and the general prac-titioner or coach.

The field of tension control has a rich as-sortment uf researchers and practitioners.Among the latter, athletic coaches have occa-sionally taken the "middleman's" path.' Asthe' Koestler model suggests, both the re-searcher and the coach play a role In pruv id .

ing insights for the "middleman."The cOach is typically impatient in a

number uf respect's. Hearing about une tech-nique ur another, there Is always the urge totry this or-that in hopes that it will help toresolve some pressing problem. At times, sug-

gestions are simply rejected without trial butthe most common test of a suggestion is "if itworks, use it!" The typical coach becomes avirtual authority on "things that seem towork" and is very much like a psychiatrist ingeneral practice in this respect. Sometimesthe things "that work" seem to go against thegeneralizations from research.

In one respect, the coach and researcherare similar. They have few opportunities tospeak with one another. This is perhaps themotivation behind AAHPERD's series WhatResearch Tells the Coach Abotit . . . It is prob-ably true that the coach would also representa good resource person for the researcher butthe., paths seldom cross with few opportuni-ties for a mea ingful dialogue in both direc-tions.

Although the researcher may have preciouslittle to share with the coach, when the datasuggests a very strong relationship over time,the coach should take note. From time to time,clinical significance is cited in addition to thetraditional use of statistical inference. Forexample, Budzynski and others showedrather conclusively that home practice was animportant ingredient in the reduction of ten-sion headaches.' In the same series of studies,it was pointed out that the practicing clinicianis often a rich source of information about"things that work." When given appropriateforums for interactior;, the coach has a greatdeal to share with the researcher.

Other contrasts Could be pointed out. The

81

t

/11

71,

M2

liiiillrttllL

Figure 1. The 'middleman s search for corkeptsat the intersection of two frames of refer-

ence. (Adapted from Kiestler, 1967)

researcher is often persuaded by some estab-lished theoretical perspective to develop wid

test hypotheses. The clinician or coach isoften found to be.a highly specialized techni-

cian with little interest in theory. In reviewing

the gymnastic literature, for example, one

finds little theoretical work in English.4 We

will shortly examine one aspect of gymnastic

theory which should prove to be enlightening.

A/

Gymnastic Theory andTension Control

A representation of the universe of gymnas-

tic elements is found in Figure 2. The diagram

identifies the placement of tension control in

gymnastic work as a function of balance. Pin-

pointing the role of relaxation and tension

resulted from the question, "what is pure ba-

lance?" The shaded portions of the semicir-

cle tR, and Rd representing balance elements

are in concert with Jacobson's dual notion of

ision control which is inclusive of general

or complete relaxation for purposes of health

and rest and differential relaxation for move-

ment efficiency.6 It is not coincidental that this

representation also reflects Cannon's notion

of "equilibria" for which he coined the term"homeostasis." Of interest here is Cannon'sstatement suggesting that ". . . every complexorganization must have more or less effectiveself-righting adjustments in order to prevent a

check on its functions or a rapid disintegration

LIM 41.

Figure 2. The Id, Itification of general and differential relaxation within gymnastic jaalance.

0... OPP 11. Ob., ea. ........... Om* .11.0 =No am. Win OM IMO

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o 0

f.

of its parts when it is subjected to stress."'The acquisition of skilled rdaxation, both

general and differential, is of prime interest inthe development of suggestions and adap-tations for athletics. Both varieties areperformance-onented. General or primary re-laxation is represented in Figure 2 as RI. Dif-ferential relaxation is represented, by R2.

The notion of differential relaxation is com-patible with theoretical positions on activa-tion. Just as activation is defined in terms ofthe release of energy into vanous internalphysiological systems, maving in a differ-entially relaxed.manner implies the efficientuse of the body's energy.8 Inefficient effortshave been defined as 'dysponetic" responsesby Whatmore and Koh kg These authors alsosuggest four effort categories that are usefuldivisions for The suggestions offered thecoach: performing efforts (learned motorskills); bracing efforts ("on guard" or fight-flight efforts); representational efforts (vis-ualization and speech); attentional efforts(focusing upon sensation or "going as if to

." efforts).Although the example cited above is from

the domain of gymnastics and some of thesuggestions for coaching havc a gymnasticreference, experienced specialists in othersport disciplines should be able to transposethe ideas encountered here.

Applications ofPrpgressivc Relaxation

Progressive relaxation (pR), like any otherskilled behavior, requires time and practice.Few clinicians question the efficacy of FR intreatment but .the restraints of hme make itswidespread use difficult. Studies comparingtreatment effects typiCally refer to abbreviatedPR or other sorts of brief treatment.I° Manypsychiatrists and clinical psychologists favorelectromyographic (EMG) feedback or com-binations of biofeedback and brief relaxationinstruction. Since the educator can find thenecessary time, PR is ideally suited for educa-tional- purposes. Such purposes would ordi-narily indlude athletics.

Two fundamental lessons are suggested inthe Jacohsoman literature." His mea-surements of muscular tension were painstak-

83

ngly precise. Any hi-StorY of EMG instrumen-tation must necessarily include his many con-tributions.'2'314°5

The second lesson is one of patience intherapy. There is simply no quick method toteach a person to relax. When a patient visitsthe physician with any one of a number oftension-related symptoms but with no appar-ent organic involvement, the therapy of fchoice is tranquilization. The doctor eitherdoesn't know how to teach such patients torelax or, if he does.know, cannot find the time.Jacobson has been one of those rare physi-cians who took the time to teach. Thanks tohis efforts in self-observation beginning in thefirst decade of this century and his technicalinstruction based upon years of clinical prac-tice, we can adapt his techniques for use ineducation add athletics.

S,: Learn Progressive RelaxationYourself"

There is abundant evidence for such a sug-gestion. Why progressive relaxation? Becauseyou should learn the best method available."The prOblem with the use of PR in athletics isagain a temporal one. Finding time to teach anathlete proper techniques may be difficult forthe coach however valuable the result of such-training. This dilemma is overcomeyvhen thecoach can i'ecommend a local course in ten-sion control. Such courses have been appear-ing with increasing frequency on collegecampuses.

Time constraints have led to the use of ab-breviated PR in some instances (Wolpianmethods) or combinations and selected com-ponents of cognit;ve strategies of relaxationtraining.'8 Another difficulty with PR proce-dures, according to Sime, is the length'of ges-tation period, that is, a student must practicequite a long time before the benefits are bornout in successful performance. As such thereis a real need for a bona fide "free sample" inorder to motivate participants to invest thenecessary time at practice. Since othermethods purported to produce relaxation re-quire trainees to engage in some "cognitive"procedure, e.g., uttering a covert sound as intranscendental meditation or employingphrases suggesting "heaviness" and

C., '7

'11

"warmth," Sime indicated that some aCtivqscanning" procedure employed with PR

might be useful.'9 Having trainees witness askilled relaxer as a model might be the best

tree sample" of all. It has been the experi-ence of the author that even untrained indi-viduals can quickly observe gross differencesbetween skilled and nonskilled relaxers.

S2: Design and Teach a Course inTension Control or Take aLeadership Role in theDevelopment of Such Courses

Teaching PR has-some-positive advantagesbeyond the development of cultivated relaxa-tion. Teachers very often deN elop excellentobservational skills while teaching tensioncontrol classes. The coach who cultivatessuch skills will be-better prepared to observetension signals before, during, and after ath-letic performance. Even very minor "bracing"efforts may interfere with performance.

S3: A Coach Skilled in Tension ControlTechniques Often 1-fas Better'Control of His_Own BehaviorDuring Contests

Coaching behavior and personality styleare quite different.- In recent years, we arereminded of the contrast between HerbBrooks who coached a very emotional seriesof hockey matches at the Winter Olympicsand "Woody" Hayes the former footballcoacliat Ohio State University. The formerwas in obvious control while the latter be-came so tension-burdened at one point that

he struck out at one of the players. The behav-ior of the coach h 3S an impact potential on theathlete. Where such behavior is obviouslyuncontrolled, it may affect athletic perfor-mance.

S4: Encourage Instruction in TensionControl in the Elementary School

The widespread use of relaxation training intheilementary school i not presently a prom-inent feature of the curriculum. Colvilleprovides an excellent rationale for its adop-tion, however, and there has been more inter-est in such programs in the last few years," At

84

0

least one professional athlete has stronglyrecommended such programs." At the pres-ent time we have no 'ongitudinal data on the

ct of early training in tension control onthe health apd understanding of adult popula-tions inclusive pf athletes.

Wolpian Adaptations ofProgressive Relaxation

Joseph Wolpe's systematic desensitizationuses an abbreviated version of progressive re-laxation (PR) combined with a hierarchicalprogression to gradually condition patients tobe tolerant of a variety of phobias, e.g., fear ofsnakes, spiders, heights, etC.22'23 Wolpe's workis familiar to all behavior therapists. In the

,development of his. abbreviated PR, WOlpecited Jacobson's conclusion that emotionalbehavior is absent in the fully relaxed state.The recognition of,rather significant bracingefforts in the presence of fear-producingstimuli rather than relaxation per se is the goalof Wolpian PR. Instruction in brief relaxationtechniques require recognition thresholdsthat are not as demanding as would be thecase in standard PR. Brief training proceduresare therefore easier to teach require a less

sophisticated sensitivity, and take less time.Piogressive relaxation is very rarely employedin therapy outcome, research but even ab-

breviated PR often shows favorable or signifi-cant effects when compared with othermethods. Borkovec and others list more than adozen comparative studies in this aregrnost ofwhich tested the effects of brief PR trainingagainst a variety of other therapies." GordonPaul's comparative studies are the most fre-quently cited." Not surprisingly, instructionin PR is often confused with abbreviatedmethods. Since educators will ordinarily havemore time than the busy therapist to teach, it ispossible for them to teach the more sensitiveversion of PR.26

Wolpian techniques also include the de-velopment of desensitization hierarchies Per-formance at each step of the hierarchy isclosely observed as patients are gradually"shaped" to relax dysponetic effolis in thepresence of a fear-producing stimulus, This

procedure ir not unlike a gymnastic learning)

ec

progression which exposes the gymnast to aseries of movement experiences gradually in-creasing-in difficulty. This procedure helps toco'ntrol the "fear factor." Overt tension exhib-ited by the athlete at any level of the progres-sion serves as a warning to the coach.

S3: The Coach Should Be Vigilant forState-induced Tension Responsesin the Athlete

A specific example from gymnastics is theperformance of the first, unassisted giantswing (see Figure 3). This movement has been,selected because it will always be accom-panied by dysponetic efforts. If the first trial ismore or less successful, many minor tensionresponsesmill disappear in Trial 2. But if un-productive responses like overgripping,clenched teeth, excessive i.eibal behav ior,and general nervousness persist, Wolpian-like methods can be applied.

-

Sb: Make Sure That the Athiete Has NotAdvanced Too Rapidly in theLearning ProgressionGo Back aStep

Experienced gymnastic coaches can oftenfeel a tension response through their handssince they have had years of "hands-on" ex-perience in the physical manipulation of theirgymnasts (spotting).

S7: Have the Performer Engage in aStrong Contraction of ThoseMuscles Involved in theDysponetic ResponseAfter aFew Seconds, Signal the Athlete toRelease the Tension

This procedure might help the athlete tobecome aware of certain tension signals thatinterfere with performance. Frederick hasphotographed a number of facial responses

Figure 3. The forWard giant swing.

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..

i

which can interfere with the performance ofgymnastic movements the learner perceivesas dangerous.2- It should not be assumed thatuntrained individuals can either contract orrelax specific muscle groups.

Differential Relaxation andSelective Tension

Differential relaxation has been defined interms of movement efficiency, i.e., using onlythose muscles that are necessary in perfor-mance. Selective tension in the sense usedhere is a technique designed to bring specificcontractile sensations to the attention of theperformer. Thus the discovery method isutilized by including sensation awareness inthe first lessons of progressive relaxationwithout specific suggestions about the locusof contraction.

S8. Pinpoint the Loc us of the DesiredTension Signal and Assist theAthlete in Cultiyating It(Proprioception).=8

There are many applications of this sugges-tion. For example, some gymnasts are unable

to contract the gluteal muscles,on commandparticularly in the handstand position. Theymust be shown just how to make these mus-cles contract and once learned, they practicetensing them in a variety of positions and fi-nally contract them in the handstand. Thisvery positive use of tension is often over-looked.

One further example from gymnastics isworthy oi mention. A "dislocate" on the rings(see Figure 4) is ordinarily taught from an in-verted hang. While hanging in this position,the total length of the arms are stretched dueto gravity. The triceps muscle, an elbow ex-tensor, is often seen to be flaccid showing nodefinition. The coach is puzzled by the con-tinuous arm bending behavior of the gymnastduring the execution of the "dislocate" andadmonishes the gymnast repeatedly to "keepyour arms straight!" Progress is often veryrapid when the gymnast can feel the contrac-tion of the tricep muscle in hang and is en-couraged to retain the sensation throughoutthe movement. Doherty has described a simi-lar intervention as "underloading.""

Figure a. Tension awareness during a "dislocate" on the rings.

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t

S9: Don't Assume That an Athlete CanRelax br Contract a Muscle GroupVoluntarily on CommandVerySpecific Instruction Is Requireci inSome Instances30

Redirecting AttentionA large number of intervention strategies,

including many therapips reported to producethe relaxed state, are in reality methods ofdiverting attention from one sort of stimulus toanother. For example, Benson's "relaxationresponse" has no reference to muscles what-ever, nor has Benson tested his subjectselectromyographically." His method redi-rects one's attention by the use of innerspeech (the word "one" is used) at those timeswhen thoughts seem to be forming that inter-fere with rest. All meditation procedures in-clude a meditation object. Mental activity insighted individuals typically includes vis-ualization and inner speech. All such ac-tivities have muscular components.32'33'34With this in mind, the following paragraphsare devoted to attentional strategies that arefrequently, but incorrectly, described as re-laxation techniques.

Visualization

Visualization in sighted individuals tends toproduce eve movements. Such activity can beparticularly distressing during those periodswhen athletes are waiting to compete. Duringsuch periods and given the presence of inor-dinate mental activity, the eyes may be con-trolled by diverting their activity in some way.Meditators often use a lighted candle for suchpurposes. Hypnotic induction sessions arealso very freq ently eye-oriented with -! fix-

ation being lie of the first goals. Chaves'series of tap s on basic hypnotic inductionroutines are uggestive of some strategies thatmight be employed in athletics."

S: The Coach Should Be Aware ofExcessive Eye Movements inAthletes and Question SuspectedIndivOttals about PotentialProblems

Bringing the eye muscles under control bymethods taught in progressive relaxation

87

Ii

9

45,

would be ideal but it is well known to PRclinicians that relaxation of the eyes is oftenvery difficult for the trainee.

S.,: The Coach Might Instruct theAthlete to Close the Eyes andCreate a Mild Contraction byDirecting the Eyes SlightlyUpward

Inner Speech

A second important component of muchmental activity tnat can interfere with perfor-mance is a tendency toward inner speech.Compulsive verbalizers are seen making ex-cessive hp movements but actually use all

muscles that contribute to speech, e.g., ton-gueand jaw muscles.

Meditation using a word or.sound in inner,speech will inhibit tile formation of otherwords and thereby redirect mental activity.Benson's "relaxation response,:,essenti-ally aspin-off of transcendental meditation, mightactually provide some quiescen-ce of the mind

for some athletes.

S12: Athletes Distressed by innerSpeech Might Obtain SomeDegree of Relief Using Benson'sStrategy of Redirecting InnerSpeech

Again, it should be noted that an individualwho is thoroughly trained in progressive re-laxation will have learned to skillfully relaxthe speech musculature at those times whendysponetic efforts are self-observed.

Other Coniderations

Sleep onset problems are described as. afunction of the speech and eye muscul-tUre.36'37'38

S,3: Athletes with Problems of SleepOnset May Respond to TrainingWhich Features Relaxation ofthe Eye and Speech Musculature,

The author has found a gymnast who, al-though skilled in movements in tumbling,none-the-less exhibits dysponetic behavior

88

9 .1

4.1

prior to execution; e.g., exces3ive speech orinner speech inferred from lip movements anderratic eye movements. Attention in such per-formers can be directed by cueing initiation toa sound, e.g., a click, given by the coach. The,sound is presented when the coach observesgeneral quiescence in the performer. Very of-ten, performances following the sound areexecuted without errors.

S14: Sound Cued Performance CanInhibit the Negative Effect ofDysponesis

It should be noted tiv.4slaysileing other:-formancettilfisrlotdirectly controlledby theperf6rmer is subject to the development of adependency relationship. When overused,performance may become dependep: on thegiven sound for example. Every gymnasticcoach has seen such a dependency relation-ship develop with certain gymnasts whoseperformance depends upon manual assis-tance by the coach ("spotting"). Experiencedspotters skillfully withdraw their assistance byoffering gradually less manual pressure untilthe gymnast is vieaned from the spot. An iden- q

tical type of problem is noted in biofeedbackresearch when subjects are weaned from theelectronic apparatus which supplies themwith signals about events in the internal envi-ronment, e.g. muscular tension. (EMG), eyemovementts (V)G), etc.

A much more positive use of sound hasbeen uggested by Cooper and Glassow." Anappe dix lin their book describes the rhythmof sei ected athletic skill elements. TherhythInic perception of performance eleTentsis thought to reinforce motor skills. Sounds ofvarious types can be matched with the force-time-5pace ingredients of actual moverhents.Along these lines, Moreno devised an ingeni-ous apparatus to create the rhythmic elementsof a glide kip on the parallel bars." Sounds fora similar movement have also been sug-

gested by Wiemane and Frederick:" Theeffect of such rhythmic constructions on,.forexample, performance anxiety, is unknown. Itwould seem that rhythmic modeling is at leastas effective (or perhaps more so) as compli-cated verbal instructions. Rhythmic sounds

may be shaped into performance analogues,whereas verbal instructions about a move-ment are signals of second order, one stepremoved from the performance:"

Breathing techniques and autogenic train-ing have also been associated with relaxation.In a recent talk to coaches attending the 1980United States Gymnastic Federation's Conc.gress, Thomas Tutko explained that breathintitechniques leading to the relaxed state wereinvented by Jacobson. Wilson and O'Learystate that learning to regulate one's breathingis an important element in progressive relaxa-tion."" Neither of these statements is accu-rate, Jacobson has stated again and again that"Von1ro11ed breathing- is nut used as an aid torelaxation ,in the present method. Rather, the.aim is to free the respiration from voluntaryinfluence, leaving its regulation to the au-tonomic system.45 46 Autogenic training (AT)also has the goal of "natural" respiration butemploys the verbal formula-, "breathing calmand regularit bieathes me."'" Jacobson hassuggested that a gross assessment of the re-laxed state might be made by observing thebreathing rate (personal communication).Persons at rest breathing regularly at a rate offrom nine to twelve breaths per minute maybe judged to be generally relaxed.

Sr,: Observe the Athlete's BreathingRate While at Rest for a RoughMeasure of Relaxation

Controlled breathYoga, for example,recting the attenphysiological benefrom jt.4.49 In Yogconcentration. Bre

ng as it is'practiced inas mor to do with redi-ion tljan any Lfniqueit that rnay be derived, the o'al is often- alertthing in the prescribed

manner has a tende cy to interfere with sleep.Transcendental meditators evidently obtainno physiological advantage as a result of prac-tice."'" As pointed out by Curtis andWessberg, the perception of the experience orthe "belief" about the method introduces'some "cognitive" variable which seems totranscend the physiology of the experience.

In general, techniques featuring the redirec-tion of attention or the substitution of a con-trived response for a less desirable one are little

89

more than comenient "band aids" for thepsychologically distressed athlete. Severecases can be handled individually by the psy-chiatrist or the clinical psychologist who mayelect a v#iety of interventions. Most coacheswill neither have the time nor the experienceto handle such cases, however.

The redirection of attention does not resultin cultivated relaxation in the Jacobsoniansense but some of the techniques andstrate-gies cited in this section can have temporary,beneficial effects and might be pursued by thecoach. The placebo effect or "faith" factorshould not be overlooked in the application ofsuch strategies._ The 'cognitive behaviortherapists of today hypothesize that behav-ioral changes may be mediated by self-statcrhents or beliefs."

Davidson ar d Schwartz suggest that the re-laxation strategy ryloyed should dePendprimarily on anxietK behavior wh:ch theyclassify into two mainomponents, cognitive,anxiety and somatic anxiety, each of whichmight be rated either "high" or "low."" InTable 1, the fOur cells contain suggestedtherapies for each of fo.ur hypothesized condi-tions.

Too much thought abopt a performancetypically interferes with it. Beginners mayhave poor form due to a failure to relax differ-entially. Anderson found that the movementefficiency of skilled players results in a de-crease in muscular activity measured elec-tromyographically.54 Skilled performers may

Table 1. Cdgnitive ,and somatic components ofanxiety and associated activity or inac-tivity hypothesized to ryduce such anx-iety.

Low

COGNITIVkANXIETY

11:7

'High

SOMATIC ANXIkTY

Low High

Zen meditation

Transcendentalmeditation

-,

Progressive ,

relaxation

Hatha Yoga

_Walking.

Reading

Watchingtelevision

Playing chess

.Dancing

Active sportsie$ sports, ,

tennisfootball.gymnastiCS)

"choke" when they begin to think about themovements that they ordinarily initiate andcombine harmoniously with little consciousattention to detail. The following suggestionsare therefore nothing new,to the coach.

SI: Too Much Thought aboutPerformance InhibitsPerformance

S17: Thc. Best Hedge against Tensionin Athletics Is the Administrationof Good Pre-contest PracticeSessions

cogniti v6 Strategies

Therapies, like any other sort of profes-sional activity, are guided by the "spirit of thetimes.' Although it would be simplistic tobelieve that tension and stress have either asomatic or psychological origin in human be-ings, the approach to intervention has shiftedemphasis over the years. Until recently, be-

. havior therapy has had a definite, niechanisticflavor drawing upon the thedry and practiceof behaviorism. The self-conscious mind, al-though acknowledged, has been treated as anunmeasurable, intervening vaciable

During the 70s, a cognitive.stMin of behav-ior therapy had a renaissance. Prominentmembers of this relatively new Cranch oftherapeutic intervention commonly invokethe wisdom of the ancient stoic Epictetus whois quoted as having said that "man is notdisturbed by things but the view he takes of

Although some of the many emergentcognitive-oriented therapies are verballybased, e.g., rational-emotive theiapy," it isprobably more useful to view cognitionwithin the total/tontext of behavioral change.One prominent spokesman for stici a unifiedview of behavior is Albert Bandura f Stanford

University. He believes that learni g throughpaired experiences (conditioning) dogs notoccur in humans automatically but is cogni-

tively mediated."Relaxation procedures employed in cogni-

tive behavior therapy generally follow the ,

Woloian tradition. Jacobson's techniques areseldom cited despite his woa on thephysiolsgical elaboration of mental activities

, 90

a half century ago. Having lived through therise and decline of behaviorism but often re-ferring to it as a "half scienCe,"-Jacobson hasbeen frequently and incorrectly identifiedwith a "Motor theory of learning." Morerecently, Bandura refers to behaviorism as a"truncated image of man."" He also warnedcognitive behavior therapists not to becomeso immersed in thought that they are divorced

from conduct."

S18: The Coach Should Be Prepared toConserve and Understand thePsychoPhysical Nature of

/ Athletes

To formulate a few suggestiOns for thecoach, the problem of gymnastic anxiety,"gymnophobia," will be explored. Specific-ally, the Mitiation of a first, unassisted giantswing (see Figure 3) has been selected as ananalogue for other stress-related experiencesin athletics. The giant swing problern (GS) will

be examined in the.context of Bandura's con-_ -.-

cepts of efficiency and- outcome .expectan-cies.° Bandura suggests four pri/mary sources

of efficacy information: performance ac-compliShMerits; vicarious experience; verbalpersuasion; emotional arousal. "Cognitiveevents are induced and altered most by expe-

rience and mastery arising from effective per-

formance."The representation of possible expectations

with respect to GS is adapted from Bandura."utcome expectation are associated with

ne's belief that a pajtiCular course of 'actionII produce, for example, a giant swing.

Doubts about or confidence in one's personalskill are termed "efficacy expectations."

Notice how nicely the representation ;riDiagram l matches the components ofanother quotation from Epictetus:

Appearances to the mind are of fourkinds.

Things either are what they appear td. be;(I've done it .. . no problem!)or they neither are, nor appear to be; (I'venever done it and probably couldn't doit.)or thby arg, and do not appear to be; (I didit onCe but I don't think I can do it again.)

0 4to *ar

,

1

The personality charkteristics of athletesare important sour.ces of information for aicoach. In gymnastics we talk about a "fearfktor." The meth dg bmployed by the coach '''should be shape i to some extent by thele'rai,ts. Mdrgan sta es,.. speaking of the predic-ability of trait theory, that "any depertdent

iranable that accounts for 20-45% of ihe var-iance should theoretically be.Useful in pre-dicting. behavior if utilized in concert withiother dependent measures."62

520: Know Your Athletes and, the WayIThey Typically Cope with Stress

GYMNAST ),, BEHAVIOR

rI "Can I do it?"

rre'

"no" "YES!"(+)

Efficacy Expectations

GIANT SWING

"If I do itL_this way ..."

"no way" "IT WORKS!"() (4-)

Outcome Expectations

Diagram 1. Bandura's 0977) expectation model adapted for a performance of a giant swing,

or they are not, and yet appear to be. (Inever did it but I think I can.)

Discourses (Chapter 27)

S19: The Coach Might Review theI

Combinations Presented in Figure5 and the Self-StatementsAssociated with Them. Eih -

Athlete Will Probably Be R vealedto Have Particular Learning orPe,rformance Traits Which theCoach Should Know andUnderstand '

..IThe gymnastic "fear factor" is in all proba-

play normally distributed. At the extremes ofhe distribution we find at one end an exces-ively cautious gymnast with a relatively high

degree of fear, at the other end is the carefree,faring type. The former will require extreme

91

patience and carefully worked OUt prog-ressions whileThe litter advances rapidly andneeds adaccidents.

The

quate supervision so as to prevent/

o lo,wing sections briefly explore somepossibilities suggested by Bandura's foursources orefficacy information.

Performance AccomplishmentsParticipant modeling. Suc ssful perfor-

mance is the primary vehic Ior the de-velopment of positive sejf-efficacy. A progres-sion for the giant swing is therefore judged bythe extent to which'the performer achievessuccess at each step. *Success reinforces sel=efficacy and helps to reduce anxiety that maybe associated with the movement.

1S. Carefully Planned Lea ningProgressions Help tOR duce Fear

Performance exposure. It is important topractice under conditions which match, so faras possible, the competitive environment.Gymnasts always worry about the type of ap-paratus 'they will, encounter at away meets.This sort of state anxiety can be reduced if thecoach Obtains advanced information includ-irt the specifications and floor locations ofeach piece of apparatus. %Alien preparing forunusually different gymnaStic facilities, thecoach should plan practicie sessions accord-ingly.

. r

S22: Practice Sessions Should BePlanned to Accommodate ContestConditions

Orlick's discussion of this kind of practicedesensitization is especially us4ful.63

.Vicarious ExperienceObserving another gymnast with similar

skills is a ccimmon experience in the gym-nasium. In terms of live modeling, the coachshould make the most of novice performers asmodels for those who may feel hesitant oranxious about the giant swing; Experiencedgymnasts often make\ poor models since they,do not ordinarily exhIbit behavior that paral-lels that of the "phobic" performer. Observ-ing three or four different gymnasts with skillpotentials that parallel those of-the anxiousobserver tends to increase the power of themodeling procedure."

S: The Modeling Procedure Not OnlyProvides the Observer withinformation about SkilledMovements but It Also Has aPotential in the Reduction ofPerformance Anxiety

Verbal PersuasionThe use of su-ggestion in coaching is a

weaker technique than actual, performanceexperiences but there are timq when cogni-tive processes are so burdened with dyspone-

tic behavior that the coach must take-thelimeto speak, with the athlete. Where possible,

negative self-statements should be reversed

S24: Make Your Athletes Believers

Emotional ArousalEmohonal arousal has been observed for

centuries in the form of sweaty palms, in-creased heart rate, and "goose flesh." Suchautonomic symptoms are often accompaniedby_ingeased dysponetic behavior. Fear, gen-erates fear and many of its signs are non-verbal.

S25: Coaches Should Be Trained tp. Recognize Visceral Responses

and Other "Nervous" Behavidr

It should be re-emphasized thal a funda-mental premise of systematic desensitizationis that emotional arousal is incompatible withrelaxation. The viscera tend to "relax" reflex-ively as the muscles relax.

S: Highly "Emotional" AthletesShould Derive a Number ofBenefits from a Course inProgressive Relaxation.

ConclusionEverybody knows what a good idea it isto relax, so there is a ready-made recep-tivity to relaxation programs. The effectof relaxation is, of course, much greaterwhen a person has been trained to relax.But its greatest importance is not in rela-tion to its ad hoc use, but in relation to itsrole in changing habits of tension."

Joseph Wol pe6s

This rather simple suggestion was offeredby a therapist of long experience and hiswords have been uttered again and again byother/professionals in the field of tension con-trol. 7.1'here is no difficulty accepting the sug-gestion; it is the implementation of the sugges-tion that poses enormous difficulties.

As there is no substitute for practice in thefield of athletics, the techniques of progressive tel -....3t!jn o!soidemand serious pr 'dice. Ab-

breviated relaxation_of the Wolpi n type canbe administered in selected inte entions but,t should be noted that such met odology isnot designed to produce skilled relaxers. Withappropriate changes in the curaculun-r-wemay expect a majority of athletes,to possess afoundation experience in tension control butwe are far from such an ideal state at present.

In the short term, there are a number ofthings that coaches can do and many morethings that they should think about. The coachshould be willing to search for solutions Withthe sport psychologist to add to the Hsi of"things that work." The middle person insport represents the catalyst for this sort ofinteraction. Furthermore, it is important to ex-

aniint performance per se to note those signsthat signal dysponetic behavior during per-formance, A good deal of the work in sportpsychology has been devoted to pre-contestand post-contest variables.

The coach has an important role in exertingthe kind of leadership that is necessary tomake some or all of the suggestions offered inthis paper work in the gymnasium or on theathletic field. In the words of John Madden,

I'm not the same crazy coach who usedto storm up and down the sidelines. I'velearned to relax!

So should we all.

FOOTNOTES

'Koestler, A. The Act of Creation New York: TheMacMillian Co., 1967.

,Doherty, ). K. Track and Field Omnibook. Swar-thmore, PA: TAFMOP Publishers, 1971

,Budzynski, T. H., et al. ''EMG Biofeedback and Ten-sion Headache: a Controlled Outcome Study.'Psychosomatic Medicine 35:483-96.

'Frederick, A. B., "Critical Review of Books on Gym-nastics." In Gymnastics Safety Manual. 2d ed., edited by.E. Wettsone, University Park, PA. Penn State Press, 1979.

5Frederick, A. B. "Balance: the Delicate Quality. In-ternational Gymnast, November, 1977, pp. 50-1.

lacobson, E. Progressive Relaxation. 2d ed. Chicago':University of Chicago Press, 1938.

'Cannon, W. The Wisdom ot tne Body. 2d ed. NewYork: W. w. Norton & Co., Inc., 1939.

'Duffy,'. E. "Activation." In Haedbook ofPsychophysiology, edited by N. S. Greenfield and R. H.Sternbach. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc.,1972.

1Whatmore, G. B., and Kali, D. R. "Dysponesis. aNeurologic Factor in Functional Disorders. BehavioralScience 13: 102-24.

°Paul, G. L. Physiological Effects of Relaxation Train-ing and Hypnotic Suggestion. journal of Abnormal Psy-chology 74: 425-37.

"A collection ot lacobson's articles are available infour paperback volumes at a very modest cost (less than$12) from the Foundation for Scientific Relaxation, 55 E.Washington St., Chicago, IL 6060.2.

"Wobson, E., 1938."Jacobson, E. "The Neurovoltmeter." American jour-

nal of Psychology 52: 620-4."Jacobson, E. "The Direct Measurement of Nervous

and Muscular States with the Integrating Neurovoltme-ter." American Animal of Psychiatry 97(3): 513-23.

"Jacobson, E. "Recording Action Potentials withoutphotography." American Journal of Psychology 54:266-9.

'6In order to highlight the msights ot the present "mid-dleman" approach to coaching strategies generated byway of tension research, the reader will find such sugges-tions preceded by an "S" and a subnumeral.

93

"This speculation is supported by Russell, Sipich, and-Knipe (1976).

"Meichenbaum, D. Cognitive Behavior Modification.An integrative Approach. New York. Plenum Press, 1977

"Sime, W. E. "Cognitive Strategies and Subject Reportof Tensiorf in Relaxation Training." Proceedings of theThird Meeting of the American Association for the Ad-vancement of Tension Control, 1977, pp. 85-99.

"'Colville, C. Formation of the Relaxation Concept inPhysical Education. Quest 31(1): 107-13.

"Marshall, M. A Method for Teachmg Tension Controlin the Elementary School. Proceedings of the SecondMeeting of the American Association for the Advance-ment of Tension Contro/, 1976, pp. 7-18.

2'Wolpe, J. Psychotherapy by'Reciprocal Inhibition.Stanford, CA: Stanford University Pres.-, 1958.

"Wolpe, J. The Practice of Behavior Therapy. NewYork: Pergamon Press, 1974.'

24Borkovec, T.; Rockwell, M. Matthews, K.; andCooper, K. "Tension Control Bibliography." Proceedingsof the Third Meeting of the American Association for theAdvancement of Tension Control, 1977, pp. 21-39.AAATC proceedings are available from the InternationalStress and Tension Control Association, P.O. Box 8005,Louisville, KY 40208.

"Paul G. L., 425-37."Steinhaus, A., and Norris, J. E. Teaching Neuromus-

cular Relaxation. Downers-Grove, IL. George WilliamsCollege, 1964.

"Frederick, A. B. "Signals of Tension in Skill Learn-ing." Proceedings of the Third Meeting of the AmericanAssociation for the Advancement orrension Control,1977, pp. 145-50.

''The use of this technique could lead to whatMahoney (1974) has termed a "cognitive click" or whatFrederick (1973) refers to as the "That's It!" response

29Doherty, J. K., 1971."In their discussion of comparative methods of relaxa-

tion, Lader and Matthews (1970) suggest "that patientsare unbble to relax at will prior to training." See alsoMatthews and Gelder (1969).

"Benson, H. The Relaxation Response. New York:Avon, 1975.

"JaCobson, E, "Electrophysiology of Mental Ac-tivities." American Journal of Psychology 44: 677-94.

"Steinhaus, A. "Your Muscles See More Than YourEyes." Journal of Health, Physical Education and Recrea-tion, September, 1966, pp. 38-40.

"Sokolov, A. N. Inner Speech and Thought. NewYork: Plenum Press, 1972.

35Chaves, J. Basic-Hypnotic Induction Routines, SanFrancisco. Proseminar, Inc., 1979 (Series of altdiotapes )

"Jacobson, E. "Inhibition." Unpublished doctoral dis-sertation, Harvard University, 1910.

"Kleitman, N. Sleep and Wakefulness. Chkago: Uni-versity of Chicago Press, 1939.

"Jacobson, E. Biology of Emotions Springfield, IL:Charles C. Thomas Publisher, 1967, pp. 157-8.

" Cooper, J. M., and Glassow, R. B. Kinesiology. 3ded. St. Louis. The C V. Mosby Co., 1972, Appendix B

4°MorenO, G. "Un-Etude-Experimentale aux BarresParalleles." Education Physique et Sport, No, 116, July-August, 1972, pp. 29-32.

"Wiemann, K. Vom Kippen zum Oberschlagen.Schorndorf bei Stuttgart, Germany. Verlag Kad Hofmann,1968.

"Frederick, A. B. Gymnastics for Women. Dubuque,IA: Wm. C. Brown, 1966.

'

"Steinhaus, A., 1966, pp. 38-40."Wilson, G. T. andO Lea 0,, K. D. Ponuples of Beha--

ior Therapy. Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Prentice-HA 19'0, p235.

',Jacobsen, E., 1938."Jacobson, E. You Must Relax. 5th ed New York:

McGraw-Hill, 1978.47Luthe, W. "Progressive Relaxation and Autogenic

Therapy: Similarities and Differences." Proceedings ofthe Fourth Meeting ot the American Assouation for theAdvancement of Tension Comrol, 1978, pp. 11-29.

"Ryan, A. J. Yoga Practitioner Has Poor Aerobic Ca-pacity." President's Council on Physical Fitness & SportsNewsletter, December, 1980, p. 3

"Curtis, W. D., and Wessberg, H. W. "A Comparisonof Heart Rate, 'Respiration and Galvanic Skin Responseamong Meditators, Relaxers and Control's." Journal ofAltered States of Co nscrOusness 2(4): 319-24.

3°Treichel, M.; Clinch, N.; and Cran, M. "TheMetabolic Effects of Tianscendental Meditation. ThePhysiologist 16; 472.

"Michaels, R. R., (Tuber, M. J., and McCann, D. S."Evaluation of Transcendental Meditation As a Method ofReducing Stress. Science 192; 1242-4.

"Meichenbaum, D. "Cognitive Behavior Therapy?" InStress and Anxiety , Vol. 1, edited by C. D. Spielberger andI. G. Sarason. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1975.

"Davidson, R. J., and Schwartz, G. E. "ThePsychobiology of Relaxation and Related States: aMulti-process Theory." In Behavior Control and Modifi-cation of Physiological Activity, edited by D. Mostofsky.Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1976.

"Anderson, I. P. "An Electromyographic Study of Bal-listic Movement in the Tennis Forehand Drive." Unpub-lished doctoral dissertation, University of Minnesota,1970.

"Elk, A. "Rational-Emotive Therapy: Research Datathat Support the Clinical and Personality Hypothesis ofRET and Other Modes of Cognitive Behavior Therapy."The Counseling Psychologist 7; 2-42.

16Bandura, A. "Behavior Theory and the Models ofMan." American Psychologist 29: 859-69;

"Kimble, G. A. and Garmezy, N. Principles of GeneralPsychology 2d ed. New York: The Ronald Press Co.,1963, p. 278.

5'Bandura, A., 1974, p. 861."Bandura, A., 1974, p. 865."Bandura, A. "Self-efficacy: toward a Unifying Theory

of Behavioral Change." Psychological Review, 1977,89: 91-215.

"Bandura,°A., 1977, p. 193.cimorgan, W. F. "The Trait Psychology Controversy."

Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport 51(1): 50-76.6'Orlick, T. D. Psychological Circlesin Gymnastics. In

The Advanced Study of Gymnastics, edited by J. Salmela,Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas Publisher, 1976.

"Bandura, 1977, pp. 91-215."Wolpe, 3. "Relaxafion As an Instrument for Breaking

Adverse Emotional Habits." Proceedings of the FirstMeeting of the American Association for the Advance-ment of Tension Control, 1974, pp. 25-30.

REFERENCES

Blanchard, E., and Young L. "Clinical Applicationsof Biofeedback Training." Archives of GeneralPsychiatry 30: 573-89.

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9

Borkovec, T. "Therapy Outcome Research: Grouit)Design and Methodology." ProceedingsGof tffeThird Meeting of the American Association fixthe Advancement of Tension Control, 1977, Rio.1-20.

Frederick, A. B. "The That's It response." Jouroal4Physical Education and Recreation, 1973, ;Atp-

p. 30+.Lader, M. H. and Matthews, A. M. "Compariscin of

Methods of Relaxation Using PhysioloOcalMeasures." Behawor Research and Therapy 8:331-7:

Mahoney, J. J. Cognition and Behavior-MoVfica-lion. Cambridge: Ballinger, 1974.

Matthews, A. M. and Gelder, M. G...'lelycho.'physiological Investigations of Brief RelqkationTraining." Journal of Psychosomatic Ref earch,1969, 13: 1-12.

Russell, R. K.; Sipich; J. F., and Knipe, J. "PLogress-we. Relaxation. A Procedural Note." gehaviorTherapy 7: 566-8.

Coach's Reaction toDr. A. B. Frederick's

"Coaching Strategies Based uponTension Research"

Andrea B. Schmid, Ph.D.San Francisco Sote University

Dr. Frederick's paper has evoked severalreactions from me. As I read, my overriding.thought was "To what end do ,coaches wantathletes to learn to relax?" ,How can relaxa-tion techniques and stress-reduction enhanceperformance and learning?" As a coach andperformer, these kinds of questions must beasked about all of the techniques we attemptto use. It is true that most coaches take aneclectic approach to method. "If it works, useit." But without critical thought to our pur-poses, we may tend to simply try this, and trythat, because 'this" and ''that" are new, orbecause they are being used by others, withlittle or no consideration to the purposes. en-hancement of learning and performance. If,atter careful consideration, our professionaljudgment tells us that a technique has merit toenhance learning and performance, then weare obliged to try it and test it. Various relaxa-tion and stress reduction techniques are anintegral part of good learning and perfor-mance. Thus, they are an important part of theteachingicoaching/prauicing methodulogy,and must be integrated into ou? training regi-mens, just as we integrate progressions for thelearning of difficult movements and se-quences. It is from this frame of reference, andfrom my experience as a gymnastics coach,competitor, and judge, that I have focused onthe following eight observations.

1. Dr. Frederick has expressed that a coachneeds to be personally skilled in tension con-trol techniques. I wholeheartedly agree with

95

him! The coach needs to be skilled in stressmanagement for both Iiis/her athletes and forhis/her own_sake.

The coach's responsibility is to prepare theathlete both phYsically and mentally for learn-ing new skills and for competition. Includedin the training program should be relaxationand tension control, techniques so that theathletes can cope With the anxiety of stress.However, before attempfing to teach others,one must have learned stress control for one'sself. Tension control techniques can only belearned thrOugh self-experience. Withoutthis,, it is far more.difficult to understand theirpotential and applied use. As well, d is dif-ficult to convince our athletes that a some-what different technique, relaxation, is impor-tant to them if they see us not able to utilize itfor ourselves. The coach who is not able tocontrol his/her own stress is not a very con-vincing model for the athlete!

The amount of emotional stress placed onthe coach during workout and competition istremendous. Many gymnastics coaches agreethat they experienced much less stress whenthey competed than now as coaches. Whenthey competed, they only 'had to perform on4-6 events and were-generally able to controltheir performances both physically and men-tally. As coaches, however, they are unable tocontrol their gymnast's performances andthey "perform"emotionally with each of theirgymnasts, 24-36 routines, in a competition.Consequently, the coach should also be

skilled in tension control techniques as a pre-ventive health measure. No matter what ourpotential as coaches, we ore of little value toour athletes when stress drives us out of oursports.

*Iso, as Dr. Frederick has pointed out, up-tight, anxious behavior on the part of thecoach can be sensed by the athlete and thisMay have a negative effect on athletic perfor-mance. Indeed, we can become one of thesources of stress for our athletes, adding anunnecessary burden to already difficult situa-tions:

2. Finding time to teach an ajhlete relaxa-tion techniques may be difficult for the coach,but the coach must teach the whole indi-vidual (both mind and body). Unfortunately,becauk there is "no time/,' many of ourathletes are getting only pure physical train-,ing (strength, flexibility, endurance, techni-cal skills) and no proper pSychological educa-tion. The coach has the responsibility to-teachan athlete both the physical and psychologi-cal skills so that he/she can perform at anoptimal level. One must learn how to handlepressure if he/she is to compete well, espe-cially now when evf .yone is training hard andsuccess is determired by tenths or hundredthsof a point or second. Thus, both mental andphysical training are necessary-to become atruly accomplished athlete. How then, can acoach neglect to teach "psychological gym-nastics?" "No time to teach it," is a poorexcuse. Most of the techniques, after inttpduc-non, can be accomplished with home prac-tice. Thus, relaxation/concentrationhomework assignments should be incorpo-rated into the training schedule. The few min-utes of daily home training in relaxation/concentration techniques may help theathlete to relieve tension and fatigue, to bemore alert, and to be able to better concen-

trate. I believe we must view the practiceschedule ima much broader way. ''No time"implies that we have only so many hours inthe gym and that these hours must be usedpracticing "moves." Yet we build into ourcoaching s,:hedules time for weight work, en-durance work, etc. In similar fashion, Ike mustbuild in psychological training.

Tension control techniques require prac-

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tice and consistent application. Just read:ngabout them will not do. Each individual mustfind the technique that will work forliim/her.A committed athlete can and will practice thetension control skills at home which are effec-tive and seem to fit individual situatiOns.

3. Dr. Frederick shows concern that thegreat number of daring and difficult moves ingymnastics have greatly magnified the fearfactor that each gymnast faces in daily work-outs. The coach can reduce the fear-causingfactors by

teaching the basics thoroughly;

applying the principles of learning prog-ressions;

preparing the gymnast both mentally andphysically for the task;building confidence in the gymnastthrough repeated success;

teaching tension control techniques.

4. In competition, there is another fear fac-tor, the fear of "blowing-it," that is absent inthe practice due to a "nothing to lose now"attitude. How can one eliminate this upsettingmental condition? Both coaches and athletesagree that fear blocks out concentration nec-essary for success. We have all seen greatathletes perform who are the "picture of per-fect concentration."

I have seen Zoltan Magyar, Olympic ColdMedalist, achieve the highest state ofsinglemindedness and exclusive concentra-tion and attention. This was at the 20th Gym-nastics World Championship in 1979. At thefinals of the pommel horse competition,Magyar was up after Nikolai Adrianov theOlympic all-around champion. Adrianovmissed two elements in his routine and10,000 spectators verbally reacted twice tothe occurrence.14agyar was abte to tune outall sounds and distraCtions. He was also ableto shut out defeating thoughts such as "I hopeI don't fall" and was able to synchronize andharmonize the forces of his mind and body todefend his Olympic gold meddroff the porn-mel horse. According to the team physician,he didn't even realize that Adrianov missed!He was able to channel all his energy into aproductive performance.

\,

There are many techniques used today byathletes to achieve this high level of concen-.tration ability and to reduce competition anx-iety and tension. For example, modified au-(ogenic training has helped many Europeanand Soviet athletes to eliminate lack of con-centration, lack of confidence, fear of errors,and fear of defeat. Consequently, it alsohelped them to control nervousness beforeand during competition.

The coach must train the athlete's, mind toexert control. Concentration pushes distrac-tion out of the mind and leaves it clear to dealw ith control. Lapses in concentration invitefear and self-doubt which block out concen-tration necessary for success. A vicious circle

. develops. Lack of concentration on the busi-ness at hand leaves room for doubts and fearsto enter. Entertaining doubts and fears pre-vents concentration. Champion JackNicklaus, in his book Goff My Way, claimsthat his success is entirely due to practicingconcentration and v isualization. He first tunesout the world, then, gets into a state of concen-tratioh, followed by a mental visual rehearsal.

Jhere are several approaches that a coachcan utilize to help the athlete train for concen-tration and mental preparedness. For in-stance, the gymnast should develop "keypoints" that she must concentrate on duringher balance beam routine in order to performit well. During the fhp-flop to back salto on thebeam, the gymnast's key_ point for the backsalto should be on his/her feet (contact .withthe beam) and take otf from the beam, and noton the arm swing. The arm swing should be anautomatic reaction. (Sometimes coachesteach the technique, concentrating on the armswing, so that the gymnast develops a poorkey point and, therefore, makes mistakes.)The next key priint to concentrate on shouldbe to focus and pull the scapulas together tostabilize the movement. Developing "kecypoints" to concentrate on in the routine win11-11- the- gynrin-aSfs minl -and-he/She nothave time for negative thoughts ,such as "Ihope I don't fall." It should be pointed out,that the coach better know very well what thecritical components are before he/she selectsor helps the athlete select the appropriate"keys."

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shoujd be planned to approximdte contestconditions. in gymnastics, for example, two ofthe most important stress-producing elementsin a competition are the judges 4nd the crowd.As the competition season draws closer, thecoach must adapt team practice to take thesesources of stress into account in order to pre-pare the gymnast for meets.

A good way to simuhte a competitive at-mosphere is to have an intramural meet. Thisgives the athlete an opportunity to perfprm infront of judges and a crowd. It is also helpfulto have the gymnast participate in as manydemonstrations as possible before a meet, toaccustom her/him to an audience. "Workoutcompetition" should be planned as a part ofthe training program. Each gymnast on theteam should peiform his/her routine wah the.same spirit as would be used in competition,with the coach as a judge and all team mem-bers as an audience. The coach should con-duct many workouts as near to competitionconditions as possible 50 that the first meetwill be a continuation of the practice situationrather than a new and unsettling experience.Theories of transfer of training indicate thatthe more similar the "practice" sithation is tothe "test" situation the better transfer we canexpect to occur. Isn't this what we are lookingfor? It does not do a bit of good to be able toperform a perfect routine in practice if thiscannot be transferred to the competitive situation.

6. Differential relaxation is required formovement efficiency. Controlled relaxthion,in which the muscles maintain sufficientlevel's of tension required for the activity whilethe muscles not directly involved are kept at aminimum level of tension, is essential to allskilled moves in ill sports. This condition isdescribed by Tutko as "staying-loose." It de-ootes freeing oneself from unnecessary mus-cle tension and maintaining a state of op-timum coordination and control.--The abilify to rêla unnecessary muscles ispart of skill, of course, and comes about inpart by practice. That is to say that as onelearns a movement, the relaxation patterns arelearned right along with the contraction pat-terns, in regard to space, time, and force.Sometimes I have wondered if we, as

1

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a

teachers, don't put far too much of our timeInto working with "contraction" rather thanwith the "relaxation" side of the equation. Ifwe work with the premise that proper patterns(space, time, force) of contraction can bebrought under voluntary control, we can workwith the same premise with relaxation pat-terns. Consequently, we should gear some of

our teaching/coaching effort (cuing and prog-

ressions) to the relaxation siae.Research has shown that anxiety causes

high degrees of uncontrolled muscular ten-sion which makes coordinated motor.activitydifficult it not impossible. How can we teachour athlete to reduce anxiety in order to inhi-bit any extraneous kuscular activity exceptfor that needed for gbod physical' perfor-mance? .

Dr. Frederick refers to a few methods toincrease the awareness 6-extraneous muscu-lar tension and eliminate misplaced efforts,such as biofeedback, pinpointing the locus ofdesired tension, uing the performance,rhythmic constr i s, and breathing tech-niques. I have found oordination of breath-ing with movement to be a very effectivetool for learning to contractrd relax musclesin the required sequence. Proper breathing

/ cadence also helps reduce an.sietymd im-proves timing and fluency In movements. For

example, in the giant swing, selected by Dr.Frederick as an analogy for stress-related ex-perience, the gymnast should inhale duringthe descent phase, hold his/her breath at thebottom of the swing, and exhale during-theascent phase of the swing. Psychologically,this will divert attention from amuety-causingdistraction to refocus on breathing, timing,and rhythm, which are very important parts of

relaxed, natural performance.7. Dr. Frederick has stated "Make a 'be- ,

liever' of your athletes." The coach shouldhave the ability to inspire belief in Kis/herathletes. She or he can generate that innerconfidence,--the sense that "I can do it" or "Ihave control." The coach also has an impor-tant role in developing realistic goals for suc-cess that arq meaningful to the athlete. Thecoach aqd ffie athletes together must set goals.The goal-setting process should be two-fold.first, short range or imrr ediate goal-setting,

98

that is, something-now almost within reach, apossible success near at hand, that developsthe "can do" attitude which leads to a sensethat long-term aspirations can, indeed, bemel; secondly, long range goal-setting, aspira-tions of greater and greater success and abil-ity. One can never set the long-term goals toohigh. Believing more, as has been shown bypast great athletes, opens the door to unex-pected excellence. Hurnan potential may belimitless. As Dyer's best seller book for the lastyear points out, "The sky's the limit."

Bel ief affects performance and "perfor-mance affects belief. In the end, the athlete nolonger believes but "knows" that he or she isable to do it. The following short poem froman unknown author sums all of this up quite

nicely:

If you think you are beaten, yoU areIf you think you dare not, you don'tlf you'd like to win, but think you can'tIt's almost a cinch you won'tLife's battles don't always goTo the strongest or faster man,But soon or late the man who winsIs the one who thinks he can.

8. Lastly, I would like to consider the ques-tion, "Which technique should be used forwhom under what circumstances?" Many dif-ferent psychological techniques have beendeveloped and used by elite athletes to con-trol tension, namely progressive relaxation,autogenic training, biofeedback, hypnosis,systematic desensitization, cognitive strate-gieb, meditation, stress management training, tand visio-motor behavior rehearsal. We knowthat the basic skill that all athletes must masteris voluntary relaxation. But we do not krow atthe present which of the above methods is thebest for an individual for a specific sport envi-ronment, which will bring the largest effects inthe shortest time. Further research is neededin the area.

Nevertheless, available evidence tends tosupport the concept that athletes who psycho-logically prepare for a competition' are capa-ble of delivering more. It sliould be noted,however, that "psychological preparation"does not necessarily mean relaxation. Forsome, psychological preparation might meanmental practice, for others, meditation and -0"

,

,

"centering." Research tells us that peak per-formance occurs at some "optimal" level ofarousal. Indeed sometimes a coach needs tobring an athlete "up" rather than "down." As ,well, psychological techniques do not give anindividual athlete more skHl. Instead, theyallow.the athlete to perform to the best of hisor her ability.

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Hemispheric Dominanc: Using theRight Brain in Sports

Evelyn G. Hall, Ed.D.School of Health, Physical Edudation, Rreatiop and Dance

Louisiana State University, Baton' Rouge

Introduction

There is no question in the minds ofsuperior athletes that the mental side of sportscomprises as much as 90% of human perfor-mance. Yet, little progress has been made in

.. the field of sport psychology toward artk.ulat-ing an integrated theory of how the brain ac-tually functions so that peak performance isyielded in the realm of physical activity andsport.

There is much to be learned from RogerSperry's research with split-brain patients inthe 1950s and 1960s. Split-brain patients arethose who have had the connecting nervecable, the corpbs callosum, severed, separat-ing the two hemispheres of the brain. From thesplit brain research, we know that each of thetwo hemispheres specie.iizes in its own sepa-,rate mode of information processing.' '4Theleft. hemisphere is the verbal, analytical,sequencing hemisphere, while the righthemisphere is the holistic, spatial, intuitiveone. The left brain deals mainly with verbali-zation while the right brain is primarily con-cerned with images. It has recently been dis-covered that the right hemisphere is muchmore_cap_le of processing_h_ohAis_spat ia Itypes of information that commonly exist inart, music, dance, and sport."' However,since the verbal, language-based hemispheretends to dominate most cognitive functionsregardless of whether it is capable, it ofteninappropriately dominates the processing of

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visual and kinesthetic information inherent inmovement!'

There are, however, important'exceptions_to what has been -mentioned as the mostcommon type of brain lateralization. Someright-handed individuals show a pattern diflateralization of verbal information to the righthemisphere. All tests for left/right lateraliza-tion show that females and left-handers, areless lateralized than males.91° About 70% ofall left-handers appear' to have language intheir left hemispheres like most right-handersOf tbe other 30%, 15% have it in the righthemisphere and the remaining 15% have lan-guage divided about equally between bothhemispheres. Left-handers who have no his-tory of left-handedness in their family tend tohave language in tilp left hemisphere just asthe majority of right-handers. Thus la-teralization is consistently related to handdominance.

The genetic programming for"differentiallateralization of the hemispheres of the brainbecomes obvious at birth. The one mentaldifference between males and females thatmost experts can-agree on is that females aresuperior at verbal tasks (left hemisphere) andmales are superior at visuo-spatial tasks (righthemisphere). One clear biological differencebetween males and females is the rale, ofmyelination and maturation of the nervoussystem and lateralization of the brain. Aboutfive months after conception, the female em-bryo is already two weeks ahead of the male

I.

At birth the female baby ig` about four weeksmore advanced than the male. As develop-ment continues; the female talks, walks,reaches puberty, and maximum growth ear-her than the_ male.'2 The varied patters oflateralization shown hy individuals of differ-ent sexes may well account for any uniquecognitive strategy tor coping with the epvi-ronmeht between thesexes.

Without actually understanding or ar-ticulating the unique function of the twohemispheres ot the brain, Gallwey" and other"inner sports" proeonents'4 have discovereda method of instruction for tennts,,skiing, andother sports whic.h apparently causes a greatershift of the performer into the'right hemis-phere mode orprocessing. Gallwey's Methodis to minimize verbal instructions and to limitselt-degrading verbal criticisms, thus perrnit-ling the right, holistic, imagining hemisphereto take over. He has discovered that individu-als can learn tennis and other sports muchtaster aria with lesS anxiety over imageryrather than verbalization. Moreover, Edwardshas used the right hemisphere mode of infor-mation processing with art students and hasfound amazing results in the stress-free prog-ress of her students."

Thousands of great athletes have reportedthat their greatest performancesin spoil occurwhen they are not thinking about anything atall. Their concentration is focused on the"here and now" during peak Performancesand they are not preoccupied with verbaljudgments of themselves or their perfor-mance, thereby using the full power of bothhemispheres of the brain simultaneously.

Coinciding with the "inner sport" revolu-tion has been the revolutionary use of varioustypes of relaxation techniques, e.g., transcen-dental meditation, yoga, visuo-motor behav-ior rehearsal, and autogenic training, to en-hance concentration and alleviate stress insport and other fields. A combination of relax-

ation techniques and visual imagery has Leenreported to yield amazing results in sport per-formance, rehabilitation of injuries, accelera-tion of learning in various academic areas, ,and even cancer remission in the medicalfield.16.17.18,19,20

Actually, the use of relaxation techniques

with visual imagery is nothing new. Threethousand years ago, Eastern mep of wisdom

-thscovered techniques for sileuting verbalthoughts, thereby tapping nonverbal con-sciousness and shifting hemispheric domi-nance to the right hemisphere. Thus; Eastern

instructors place-a- greardeal of ernjihisiS onreducing verbalization during training.

Relaxation training and visual imagerytechniques can increaSe the performer's ajAl-ity to use the right hemisphere function to thefullest potential in sports. This greater shift toright hemisphere control can allow a state ofmind which yields stress-free informationprocessing in the appropriate hemisphere forMovement. Accordingly, the intent of thispaper is. to review the literature on split brainresearch-and hernispheric functicn; to use in-formation from hemispheric function studies'to support the concept of more consistentshifting to the right hemisphere fopenhancingsport performance; to demonstrate that theright hemisphere representsh common bondfor several types of stress-reduction tech-niques, to suggest ways in which right brainactivity can be increased in sport.

Functions of the Left and RightHemispheres of the 13rain

Nineteenth century scientists labeled theleft hemisphere the dominant mode and theWright hemisphere the subordinate mode."Until recently, the right hemisphere has beenviewed as less adVanced, less involved inhigher cognitive piocesses, ahd dominated bythe left hemispnere.

ResearChers in the 1950s and 1960s dis-covered that, in actuality, both hemispherescontribute to thinking, reasoning, and com-plex cognitiVe processes.2223 However, eachhemisphere has a unique mode of thinkingand memory. The left hemisphere mode islogial, Sequential, and verbal; the righthemisphere-modeutilizessens-ory, ndriVer-hal, and holistic images. The right hemispherecontrols the left hand and left visual field,while the left hemisphere controls the righthand and right visual field. However,_the two

_hemispheres are connected by a thick band ofneural fibers, the corpus collosum, which

allow communication between the two inde-pendent,modes of information processing.

Gazzanigo undertook the visk of sto,dyingthatwo separate modes of processing.24 In hisexperiment, two different pictures wereflashed for an instant on a screen, with asplit-brain patient's eyes fixed on a midpointso that scanning both images was prevented.A picture of a spoon on the lekside of thescreen went to the righ4 brain, a picture of aknife on the right side of the screen went to theleft brain. When asked to name what hadbeen flashed on the screen, the patient ver-balized, "knife, based upon the left hemis-phere's perception. When asked to reach be-hind a curtain with his left hand (right hemis-phere) and pick out what had been flashed onthe screen, the patient picked out a spoontrom the group of objects. When asked what

e he was holding, the patient responded with aconfused look and said, "a knife." The righthemisphere, knowing very well that the 5n-

swer was wrong but not having sufficientwords to correct the verbal, articulate left

hemisphere, continued the dialogue by caus-inu the patient to mutely shake his head.

Ornstein in his book, The Psychology ofConsciousness, has providedol clear descrip-tion of the differences in information proces-sing between the two hemispheres.25 As evi-dent from Ornstein's description, the lefthemisphere is more appropriate for proces-sing v,erbal, analytical, linear types 'of informa-tion such 4s that which is inherent in mathe-matics, language, reading, or writingWhereas the right hemispheric function is ob-viously best .suited for holistic, intuitive,simultaneous, and instantaneous processingof information required in art, music, dance,and sport.

The folrowing description from Bryprovides a iisdul analogy of how the twohemispheres function.2' Imagine a longfreight train moving down a railroad track asseen from two differerit vantage points. Thefirst viewer is standing about three feet,fromthe track and each part of the train can be seen,from moment to moment as each part passes:

Function of the Two Hemispheres26

The Oft SideConnected to the right side of the body, and theright side of' each eye's vision.

Deals with inputs one at a time.

ProcessesAntormation in.a linear manner. Has a-____110eat'ind sequential mode ot operation.

Deals with time. Responsible tor the faculty ofbal expression, or language.

Responsible tor verbal and mathematical func-tions.

The Right SideConnected to the left side of the body, and the leftside of each eye's vision.

Demands readY integration ny inputs at once

Processes information more diffusely. Has a non-lineal and simultaneous mode of operation.

Deals with space. Responsible for 'gestures, facialand body movements (or "body language"), toneof voigic,,)

Responsible' for spatial and rational functions.awareness of our bodies, for sports ad dancing,our orientation in space, recognition of faces, artis-tic endea.vor, musical ability, and recognition ofpitch.

Specializes in memory and recognition of words or Specializes in memory and recognition of objects,

numbers. places; riiusic, etc.

Normally tends to specialize in logic and analyticalreasoning or thinking.

The S'eat of reason.

The crucial side of the brain for wordsmiths,mathematicians, and scientists.

Normally tends to specialize in intuition and holis-tic perception or thinking.

The seat of passion and of dreams.

The cruciql side of thd brain for artists, craftspeople, aiiiPinusicians.

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4.

4

first the engine, then (h.e first car, then thesecond car, and so on, until finally thecaboose,passes. The left, logical 'hemispherefunctions much like this,exlimple.

,

Imagine a, second viewer watching simul-taneously, but high up'iri the air in a helicopteror balloon. From this vantage point, instead ofseeing oneocar at ,a time, the airborne indi-vidualsees_the whole train all at once. Thisintuitive, holistic view is a good example ofhow the right brain functionS.

Because of the right hemispher's inability-to verbalize, it has been unfairly Libeled the-uoconscious mind." Perhaps a better choice,..,orcls would be the "nonverbal" iitind.The right hemisphere strongly influences be-havior, but individuals have great difficultyexplaining its actions in verbal terms. In theunconsciobs mind (right hemisphere), billionsot neutal cells are capable of millions of sepa-rate but simultaneous operations. The righthemisphere regulates such autonomic func-tions as tge.,athing, cell reproduction, heartrate, and metabolism. Creativity and self-image or self-awareness are also thought toreside within the right hemisphere mode ofph9cessing. 28.2930

Damage to-theright hemisphere leaves lan_;'guage intact, but like a computer. Literalmeaningis understood, biit *metaphor, inflec-tion, emotional meaning, facial expression,and body language are not. The individualbecomes spatially disorienteci:ancl has greatdifficulty with 'simple tasks such acputtingtheshoes on the correct feet. On the other hend,damage to the left-hemisphere,causes a loss ofverbal ability, but conscious thinking, emo-tion, and nonverbal actions remain unim--

paired.31.3233Since the right hemisphere is responsible

for processing nonve;bal, spatial, and visualinformation, it is capable of processing largemasses of data in parallel without separateanal ysts-of-each-fac tor,Verba I-process ingmuch more difficult because it requires morememory space than the visual imagery storedby the right hemisphere,"

When a normal person performs a manipu-lating task such a, theBlock Design Test, theoght hemisphere clearly processes the irlfor-mation. According to Haber, the right hemis-

e

z

4 .phere is faster and less easily fooled by inis-

'ning or altered details of lighting, distance, or`orientation." If asre;;:cgnition task is extremew

..-clifficult and t ornplex, a clear right hemisphere ativantage-in proceising dccurs.

It has bten postulated that asymmetrical..* development of the tvio hemispheres specif-,

ically occurred ihroughoul the evolutionaryprocess to keep tbein separated-The, to

ferent modes may sometimes interfere with-each other to prevent maximum p-erformance.More commonly, the left verbal interfereswith the' right nonverbal herniephere.

The most efficient performances in all areasof human endeavorl occur when the twohemispheres cooperate to contribute each

.one'S mOde of processing to thg task bestsuited to its abilities.'6 The split-brainstudies have shown, however, thht the lefthemisphere tends to dominate even when it isnot the appropriate .one to solyel the prob-

, One of the most significant sont(i-butOrs to stress in learning or perfoThiance isthe inefficient piocessing of task-related in-fonpation-Secause of too much dominance bythe inappropriate hemisphere. This ineffi-

- ciency in processing content from.the envi-ronment is \ery frustrating and siressful, be-cause it irthibits individuals from being su'c-

cessful in achieving their;goals. 0

Thus, one of the most exciting discoveriesfrom the split-brain research is fat ,eachhemisphere has its own ayvargness. Eachhemisphere Ins unique sensations, percep-tions, cognitive processes, learning experi-ences, and memories. Indeed, unicoe butoverlapping archives of knowledge residewithin each hemisphere. Although one 'pn-not consciously think in both hemispheressimultaneously, it is possible for the more ac-tive one to use the less active one on an au-tomatic level.4.42.43

Scientists have estimated that individualsGseless.than..1.0%Loutheir bra in power Co u I d

such inefficiency be related to the fact that ourcomentional methods of inputting informa-tion into the brain and processing it are ineffi-cient? I believe that a plausible explanation.The logical conclusion is that we mustcapitalize on the right hemi;phere'scapabilities, so that we all might increase our

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mental capacity by' at least 50%.

Right Brain Function in'Sport

Edwards has discovered a retharkable newstress-free method of teaching art. Themethod provokes students t9 shift from theverbal, logical, analytical, left-mode into thespatial, holistic, v isual mode of the righthemisphere. This method has been proveneffective with art students of all ages, levels ofability, and degrees of brain lateralization."Edwards has observed that teaching art is

rn.lh like teaching someone to ride abicycleboth are difficult to express in v er-bal terms. Iris as difficult to explain to an artstudent how to perceive as it is to explain tosomeone how to balance on a bicycle. In-strpctors are likely to resort to instructionssuch as, "Watch while I get on and showyou!"

Edwards has postulated that the right-modeshift represents a shghtly altered.state of con-suousness or what artists refer to as being at,'one with the work." In this Vate, artists are

able to grasp relationships that ordinarilyseem impossible to understand. There is'afeeling of alertness, awareness, relaxation,and freedom from anxiety."

Theleft-to!right shift in art lb manipulatedhy having students look at a painting or draw-ing upside do,wn. In the familiar right-side-uponente.tion one,is restncted by the memorystore of the left hemisphere which labels,categorize's, and verbalizes. In the tlp-skie-.,down orientation, the left brain becon les con-fused by the complex pattern and cannot ye;balize or lab it passes the job over to theright hernis here v Fitch deals more effiuentlywith sha s and Seas of shadow and light.

Si ar higher cognitiv,e functioning maybe Involved in other performing arts, i.e.,sports. By shi(ting.tothe rit3ht mode, access isjoined to the inventrve, imaginative, intuitive,

-powenoLthe right hemisphere plat havelargely been untapped by sour verbaltechnological society ana educational sys-tem. In drawingpr other types of human per-formance, our 6Id habits and preconceivectideas about .what should be often interfereand restr)ct our ability to fully use our poten-

tial to see what can be. Thus, we need-tcrreach out and go beyond our present restric-tive prattices of atternpting to reach ourmaximum human potentral.

Many teachers, authors, researchers, andathletes have alluded to the use of the righthemisphere in sport either directly or indi-rectly. There is a great need for a theoreticalintegration in the field of sport psychology ofwhat now exists as rather fragmented reportsand studies concerning this phenomenon.The field of spat psychology has done little tostudy the problem. Recently, Blakeslee haspresented in his book, The Right Brain; a fas-cinitinj explanalion of using a right brainapproach to the performing arts.".

Much of the anxiety and negative stress insport is created by ourselves. We are our ownworst enemies. We let our left hemisphereinterfere too much and suppress the right

t' hemisphere from automatic control of ourmovements in sport performances. The righthemisphere mode is efficient in processingmovement because it has a holistic image ofhow parts existin space 'and fit together into a,holistic pattern-. The intuitive, subjective, rela-tional holistic, time-free right mode can stillcommunicate, even when something is loocomplicated to express verbally. Both vis-ualization and imagination are importantskills in sports.

Most individuals !I...aye built up a lifelonghabit of Acknowledging only thoughts thatcan be ,expressed in verbal terms. However,there are many instances in physical activityand sport where toughts,canriot be ex-pressed in words. If you were to ask twoschool children how tb perform a jumping

.jack, most likely they could r ot verbally ex-plain it. Most likdy they would watch eachother perform, and then try to verballY ex-trapulate from watching the visual images.

In movement, thinking consists o; manipu-lating and reaTranging mental images.Athletes learii to think directly in kine4heticmovement images. They develop a "feel" forcertain basic movements. The process ofcombining basic movements and solvingmovement problems is called "kinesthec

, thinking." To some degree this mode of think-ing is used in conjunction with the verbal

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a

thinking of the left brain. Teachers andcoaches need to understand this quasidualityof their students minds. Classes and practicesessions should be conducted in such a wayas to respect intuition and nonverbal thinking.An effort should be made to develop the cog-nitive abilities of both sides of the brain (ver-barand-nonverbal). -II-the- nonverbarrnind- isignored too much it pays less attention, learnsless, and gradually becomes less competent inmaintaining a balance with the verbal mind.Thus, teachers and coaches should avoid rely-ing exclusively on words or formulas. Ges-tures, demonstrations, and pictures are effec-

e -1.-Vays to commuirRate to the nonverhalmind. Very Merl a .-PiCTUTE TS worth athousand words."

Much of what is verbalized by instructors isan exercise in frustrationd anxiety for ftlearner. Many athletes have told me of iti:stances where they did nt know what theircoach meant, but were afraid to ask. Forexample, a place kicker might be chastised,"Your leg was not high enough!" What doesthis mean?

Since abstract words evoke no visual im-ages, instructors need to be careful what theysay to students and athletes. In sports thereneeds to be greater awareness of this, so in-structors can create more realistiC, accurateimages as students learn. Imagery is vmuchmore efficient means of information storage inthe brain. One good correct image is far'betterthan tons of verbage which clutter and restrictthe performer's mind. From simple observa-tion of himself and his students Gallwey inInner Game of Tennis has stated that bothinstructors and performers verbalize andcriticize excessively.4' Unless instructors orcoaches are poetic, they usually provide apitiful verbal representation of what they ac-tually want their students to visualize.

Although the "inner sports:. concept makesno reference to left and right hemispheres, it isa sound application of related principles.What Gallwey calls Self 1 and Self 2 areequivalent to left and right hemispherir pro-cessing, respectively The basis of Gallwey'sapproach is to suppress the verbal criticizing(Self 1) and permit the imaging self (Self 2) toplay the game. Gallwey uses verbal instruc-

tions only where useful and avoids verbal de-scriptions of the actual movements. Visualand kinesthetic images are used to teach anonverbal understanding of the requiredmovements.

Because the right hemisphere thinks in vk-ual images, it has a tremendous advantage forrecognizing and manipulating complex-visualpatterrb such as those commonly found insport. When totally absorbed in nonverbalactivity such as skiing, jogging, or swimming,one's verbal consciousness is automaticallyswitched off. The problem lies in the fact thatperformers are seldom "totally absorbed"nonverbally.

On- the court- or playing-fieldr_most peoplewage a running battle with themselves as theyparticipate in tennis, golf, racquetball, orother sports. After a bad shot or performance,individuals typically become angi'y and be-rate themselves. This increased verbal criti-cism actually causes greater stress becausethe left hemisphere inappropriately attemptsto control the situation. Thus, a frustratingcycle is established in which performerscriticize themselves more and more whileperformance steadily decreases. Since the lefthemisphere mode is too slow and systematicto be useful during actual performance, itshould yield control to the right hemispherefor action.

Much of the performer's self-imposed stressis created by a strong intent to fulfill habitualexpectations and preconceived notions ofcorrect performance. By thinking too muchand trying too hard, the performer will oftenexperience awkwardness, frustration, incon-sistency, and stress.

The inner game is usually played againstsuch obstacles as self-doubt, nervousness,lapses in concentration, and self=condemnation. Being aware of the inner'game is the first step toward overcoming all ofthe barriers which create stress and inhibit ourexcellence in sport. All of the inhibitors areuscally what cause a performer to fail. It is thepresent author's contention that the best cog-nitive strategy for coping with the pressures ofsport lies within the .information processingpowers of the right hemisphere of the brain

Performers experience their greatest lapses

in concentration when they allow their mindto project into the future or the past. This

causes them to live in a world of "what if's"instead of "what is." Actions needed for thepresent have their best chance for successwhen the mind is focused on the here andnow.

The logical mind is fine for mentally recog-nizing mistakes of the past and planning forthe future, so as not to commit the same mis-takes. Verbal instruction has an important roleto focus attention on relevant cues in between

critical aspects of performance. Optimal per-formance occurs in the present moment. Insport, the isolated frozen moment of the pres-ent-stands-between-two eternities-of-the-past,and tuture. Thousands of prominent, superiorathletes have reported that their best perfor-mances oQcur at times when their mind isempty and they are not thinking at all.

Truly, many of the complex ma,neuvers-insport are a marvel of instant calculation in-

volving instantaneous parallel processing ofthe right hemisphere. The key to top perfor-mance is to lock into the intuitive, nonverbal

processing of the right hemisphere. Nobodydoes it better than football player 0. J.Simpson. In an interview when asked what he

thought about on one of his great runs, 0. J.

replied:

Nothing. My definition of a good runneris that he's insanehe does wild things,stuff you never see, and he does it spon-taneously. Even he doesn't know what heis going to do next. All I know is thatwhen I'm running well, my mind justgoes blank. I'm not thinking about any,,_thing at all. Thinking is what gets yoticaught from behind.48

To the interviewer's further question if 0meant he was unconscious, 0 J. replied.

No, even though I'm not thinking, I'maware of everything. I may run sixty yardswithout a thought, but when I, get to theend zone I can tell you where everybodywas, and who blocked who. And I meannot just the guys near me, but all over the

Clearly, to play unconsciously does notmean without consciousness. It simply means

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that the verbal side is inoperative, not think-ing, not trying too hard, and not interferingwith the right hemisphere:s function. Thingsseem to happen automatically, effortlesslyWhen performers start thinking, analyzing,and verbalizing excessively they may sufferfrom what is commonly termed, "paralysis byanalysis." In such instances, timing and-fluid:ity win be lost and performance will suffer.

Commonalities among States ofAltered Consciousness:,

In recent. years there have been volumeswritten about altered states of awareness in allfields of human endeavor. Characteristics anddeoscriptions of the runner's high, positive ad,diction, peak experiences, meditation, andflow (heightened creativity) all bear a remark-able resemblance. Could it le that they allreside in the right hemisphere of the brain? Isthere a common mod-, of processing ormechanism of brain function underlying allthese unique experiences? Perhaps the termsused are just different words which describethe same phenomenon.

Very often runners reach a state of mindcalled "the run ner. s high" defined as a"euphoric sensation experienced during run-ning, usually unexpectediy, in which the-run-ner feels a heightened sense of well-being andtranscendence of barriers of time andspace."50.5' Glasser has termed the state ofmind experienced during running as "rightbrain" concentration. He has contended thatrunning provides a classic meditative state inwhich the left brain switches off, thus permit-ting the right brain to dominate.

Glasser has also postulated a theory called"positive addiction" in which he suggests thatrunning and many other activities may be-come addicting if certain qualities exist. Onenoteworthy quality is that an activity must bedone without a need to criticize oneself. AsGlasser has stated, "If you can't accept,your-self during this time, the activity will not beaddicting.""

These positive addictions usually involve"a trance-like, transcendental" mental statethat accompanies the addictive exercise.Glasser has postulated that this state is the onethat exercisers reach directly and that

11

meditators reach indirectly.At first glance, Glasser's concept of running

as a meditative, right hemisphere phenome-non, may appear in conflict with Morgan'swork on association/dissociation of marathonrunners." However, I believe these conceptsare in harmony. What Morgan describes as"association" is the runner's ability tomonitor or be aware of precise bochly func-tions during the run. The concept of associa-hon actually fits very nicely with the "runner'shigh" concept of a state of greater internalawareness. World class marathoners associ-ate more consistently and also ..port morefrequent experiences of the "runner's high"than lowerlevel runners. Morgan's-concept of"dissociation" where the runner (usually oflower _caliber) distracts himself/herself byouter environmental factors is actually a pro-cess which activates the verbal mind or lefthemisphere. For example, the runner solvesmathematical problems, mentally builds ahouse, or thinks about solving other prob-lems.

The phenomenon of "peak experiences"has _Leen described by Maslow as follows."The e is greater integration than at othertimes peak power, effortlessness and ease ofcond honing, free of inhibitions, more spon-tane us, expressive, more creative, feel thehere rand now, free of past, nonstriving, non-need ng, completeness, or closure athe act."

T le characteristics of the greatest momentsof a hletes are also "peak experiences" inspor. . Ravizza has studied these sport experi-enc s extensively." Eleven qualities werecon istently reported by athletes. nonvolun-tar ; temporary, total immersion in the expe-y

rie ce; temporary transcendence of self,umpue experience, perfection of the sport ex-peiience; total control of the situation, loss offe, r; effortlessness; self-validating; completec ntrol and execution of basic skills withoutth nking about technique. Literally, thousandsof athletes have experienced a certain qualityo intensity and release as they have tried toush against their psychobiological limits.isk-taking sports have especially caused

pome athletes to extend themselves toward/their absolute physical, emotional, and intel-lectual limits. Ogilvie has shown that such

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athletes are highly intelligent, highly creative,and possess very stable personalities."

Some of the great geniuses of our time,Einstein, Mozart, Russell, TchaikovskY, Dar-win, Shakespeare, Picasso, Planck, to name afew, have acknowledged that their most cre-ati ,e ideas have emerged as spontaneousnonthinking inspiration. The artist, surgedri,composer, writer, inventor, actor, or athleteoften feels complete unity with the activity.Csikszentmihalyi has termed such experi-ences as "flow" experiences.s7

The characteristics of flow are described asfollows, centers attention; loss of conscious-ness, pleasure gained from the activity itselfinstead of some external reward; skiilsaresufficient for task demand; time appears topass faster. An entire story or event may flashin a matter of seconds.

However, according to Csikszentmihalyi,the most typical kind of flow experience isplay, and games are the most common formsof play activity. Excellent descriptions of"flow" in activities have been given by Mur-phy in his book on golf, Herrigee with regardto Zen archery, Abrahams on chess, and Un-sworth on rock climbing.8599'° What Mas-low has called "peak experiences" and de-Charmes has called the "origin" state, sharemany distinctive features with the concept of,,fiow.,,62

If play is indeed the most common avenuefoil flow experiences to occur, Czik-szentmihalyi's concepts should cause phys-ical educators and sport psychologists toseriously question the highly structured, re-strictive, professional model of sport which isfrequently imposed on children in play activ-ity in this society. Harris discussed the flowconcept in relation to building intrinsicallymotivated cognitive and affective behaviorsof children in sport."

Eastern men of wisdom, martial arts, andmeditators have known for at least threethousand years that emptying one's mind ofv erbal thoughts greatly enhances perfor-mance. In most endeavors involving move-ment, the Eastern philosophy has incorpo-rated relaxation techniques and/or meditativetechniques for mobilizing energy and increas-ing awareness and concentration. Martial ar-

1 1 . 6.j

a

tists call the flowing energy "ki," Chinese callit "tao," and Japanese call it "zen." Easternphilosophy of sport is.the antithesis of theWestern "uptight," "win-at-all-cost" philos-ophy.

Finally, there is a great deal of controversyas to what is meant by 'altered states of con-

__ sciousness." Marsh defines consciousness as"the awareness of what passes in one's ownmind."" Could this mean that those conceptswhich we can verbally describe are consid-ered consciousness, whereas those conceptswhich cannot be verbalized are unconscious?.1 am in complete agreement with Gowan'ssomewhat bold definition of an altered stateas "any state where the left hemisphere func-tion is in abeyance."65If all the great momentsin sport are indeed nght brain experiences,then they may as well be classified as alteredstates, free from stress and flowing!

Relaxation Techniques, VisualImagery, and Right Brain Function

In the last twenty years much attention hasbeen given to the physical and mental benefitof relaxation techniques and visual imagerytraining. Scientists have written volumes inreputable scientific and medical journals onyoga, transcendental meditation, Shultz's re-laxation technique, biofeedback, antogenictraining, attention control training, visuo-motor behavior rehearsal, and the relaxationresponse. 66,670,70,71,72,73,74,75,76,77

In the Western world scientists have re-cently begun to investigate ways of usingsome of these techniques to help athletesharmonize theirminds and bodies for superbperformance. There is nsing evidence that ourlogic-laden culture has trained away, sup-pressed, or even distorted many of our naturaltalents in art, sport, music, and dance.'8"8"'

To date, no one has proposed an integratedtheory to explam why a combination of relax-ation techniques with visual imagery hasproven to enhance sport performance, re-habihtate injuries, speed recuperation fromillness, and even cause cancer remission. Isthere an underlying mechanism in the brainwhich is the key to these remarkable events? Itis my hypothesis that relaxation techniquesand visual imagery enhance the use of the

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right hemisphere's potential. Relaxationtechniques enhance the vividnOss of visualimagery. Vivid imagery training eithances theinner awareness of the right hemispherewhich also assists in the control of the au-tonomic functions of the body. T4 right brainstores both perceptive and imagirlative infor-mation as reality. It has a difficult time distin-guishing what is really "real." Thd, perceptivestore of the right hemisphere contains the sen-sory information that one perceiveS frbrn real-ity. The imaginative store is just aS powerfuland stores very clearly in the mind, thoseevents that are visualized.

In her recent book, Supermind; Brown-hasstated that imagination is the most neglectedand underdeveloped of the normal abilities ofthe human mind." With imagery (righthemisphere), human beings have the ability toc-reate and recreate mental pictures of situa-tions and events that are not actually present

During the 1960s the Soviet Union and EastGermany employed a technique called "psy-chic self-regulation" to sport performance. Itis based on the knowledge that human beingscan control, through imagination, variousphysiological processes, including pulse,muscular relaxation, blood pressure, bodytemperature, and breathing."

The more precise and specific the image,the more specific the body's reaction. Theimage, excites exactly those physical mecha-nisms of the bodY needed (or normal action.Imagination can make the body work by pre-paring nerves, muscles, heart, and mind tounify their physical actions toward a single-minded, determined objective.

Vivid mental, visual rehearsals that almostduplicate actual physical performance be-come a reality in the subconscious mind (righthemisphere). If an athl4te ['las never actuallyshot twenty out of twenty free throws butstrongly desires to. improve the probability ofdoing so, he/she can mentally visualize, aswell as physically practice them. Mental re-hearsal is very effective because it preparesthe right hemisphere. Most world-classathletes make it a point to forget as quickly aspossible how they made their mistakes, Theiremphasis is on replacing mistakes with cor-rect images. ,

Because of the principle of reinforcement,as the performer prepares for competition,thinking about excellent performance will in-crease the probability of producing excellentperformance. For that same reason, thinkingabout mistakes Is likely to have a negativeinfluence on performance. Anxiety usuallystems-from some internal conflict such as fearof failure. Therefore, performers who wish tosucceed should visualize success. Likewise,teachers and coaches should be careful not toreinforce images of poor performance in theminds of their athletes.

Almost all tennis players have expel iencedplaying "over their heads" right after watch-ing championship tennis on T.V. The benefitsof seeing top level performers in action are notfrom analyzing their strokes but from uncon-scious absorption of the images that are pre-sented. There is no doubt, in my mind, thatlearning takes longer without exposure to ef-fective models for the aforementioned rea-sons.

The Chinese have used visualization andeffective role models to advance their na-tional team in archery. Their program forwomen has involved selecting adolescentathletes (ages 12 to 14) from sports-I ike javelin

or discus throwing. These athletes alreadypossess well-developed shoulder girdlestrength. Then, the chosen athletes observefilms or actual performance,of top caliber ar-chers for a period of about three months.Next, they practice the draw mimetically withbows that are unstrung and visualize thearrow going into the center of the bull's eye. Itis literally six to eight months before they areallowed to actually shoot arrows at targets.Imagine such patience in training athletes inthe West!

A positive mental image can help anyonewith any type of performance whether publicspeaking, art, music, dance, sport, business,or architecture. Gunfighters in the Old West,circus performers, and martial artists have

used visual imagery just as extensively asphysical trainers.

Thousands of great athletes have used vis-ual imagery and positive self-efficacy to theiradvantage: Babe Ruth, Bruce Jenner,_Arnold_Swartzenegger; Ben Hogan, Bill Russell, Dick

Fosbury, 0. J. Simpson; Jack Nicklaus; BillieJean King, Jean Claude Killy; Vesma Grin-felds.64 85 86 Jack Nicklaus, for example,claims that hitting good golf shots depends10% on his swing, 40% on his set-up andstance, and 50% on his mental conception 37

Sport constantly shows us how the verbalmind (left brain) imposes barriers on what theright brain can do. This mental barrier, thiscollective tendency to set a limit on humanperformance is what needs to be overcome.Time and time again, as one athlete has bro-ken through a barrier, other athletes have fo;-lowed, showing that the barrier was mental,not physical, Roger Bannister first visualizedbreaking the four-minute mile before he actu-ally broke it. Within three months, twentyother ainners had also broken the barrier."

A similar example occurred in the 1976Summer Olympics when a weight was lifted,heavier than any human had ever hoisted Inweight-lifting, 500 pounds had long been animpenetrable barrier, like the four-minutemile. Alexeyev, the famous Russian weight-lifter first broke the 500-pound mark with5011/2 pounds. He was also a master at visualimagery, so it is little wonder that a few yearslater he hoisted 564 pounds.

The world's greatest athletes have learnedto use mental techniques because they havepersisted at the sport long enough to discoverthese principles. I believe resew& in this areacaRcontribute greatly to condensing the timerequired to master these skills and sorting outthe precise techniques that work best.Technology such as electroencephalography(EEG) and electromyography (EMG) can beemployed to research the mechanisms offunctioning in the brain and body.

In most individuals, the left hemisphereshows more electrical activity than the righthemisphere because it is the hemisphere thatcontrols verbal function. This dominance ofcognitive activity by the left hemisphere isreduced and removed altogether with trainingin relaxation and meditative techniques.

A study of some 3,000 meditators hasshown an EEG pattern which is more bilateral,symmetrical, and integrated. Such techniques

_apparently promote a more integrated, ba-lanced functioning of the two hemispheres of

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1

the brain.89T1ius, the right hemisphere has thechance to provide more input into situationswhere it can appropriately be used (sportbeing one of those approPriate situations).

There is some evidence that in stressfulsituations, there may not be an efficient shift-ing back and forth to the appropriate hemis-phere for processing. This may explain thedebilitating effects of stress on all skills. Re-laxation techniques and visual imagery mayindeed enhance the balance of activity be-tween the two hemispheres.

Coaches and athletes all over the world arealready using selected mental techniques toenhance physical performance. These varioustechniques can be used to prevent stress andenhance self-control of arousal through ap-propriate cognitive strategies, i.e., righthemisphere functioning.

One of the greatest contributions sport psy-chologists can make to sport is to disseminatesome of the knowledge that scientists nowhave available on mental training. Those whoreally need to know and use this informationare those at the grass roots level in sport.Moreover, there is a need for further study to .

find ways to simplify techniques so that resultscan be seerr in the shortest amount of time. Inthis country we are still at a st,age where thereis something magic about a certain number ofhours of physical practice each day. There is acommon belief in quantity of physical prac-trce, rather than quality of physical and men-tal rehearsal. Basically, I believe athletes areoverworked physically across this natibn, es-pecially those in youth leagues, junior highschool, high school, and 'college. If one somuch as suggested a fifty-fifty split betweenphysical and mental training, most 'Coacheswould think the suggestion was outrageous.How can anyone realistically leave the men-tal aspects of sport to chance? Unfortunately,that which is currently being taught toathletes, especially at the younger ages, ismostly a chance occurrence.

FOOTNOTES

'Levy, J. "Cerebral Asymmetncs as Manifested inSplit.brain Man." In Hemispheric Disconnection andCerebral Function, edited by M. ,Kinsbourne and A.Smith, Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas, 1974.

'Levy, J. Lateral Dominance and Aesthetic Preference.Neuropsychologia, 1976, 14; 431-45.

111

'Sperry, R. W. Hemisphere Disconnection and Unity inConscious Awareness. American Psychologist 23: 723-33.

'Sperry, R. W. Left Brain, Right Brain. Saturday Review,1975, pp. 30-33.

'Blakeslee, T. R. The Right Brain: A New Understand-ing ot the Unconscious Mind and Its Creative Powers.Garden City, NY. Anchor Prest-IDoubleday, 1980.

'Bry, A. Visualization. New York: Barnes & NobleBooks, 1978.

"Ornstein, Robert E. The Psychology of Consciousness.New York. Harcourt, Brace & Jovanovich, 1972

'Blakeslee, 1980.'Ornstein, 1972.'°Blakeslee, 1980."Luna, A. R. The Working Brain. An Introduction to

Neuropsychology. New York: Basic Books, 1973."Gazzaniga, M., and LeDoux, J. The Integrated Mind.

New York: Plenum Press, 1978."Gallwey, T. The Inner Game of Tennis New York

Bantam Books, 1974."Gallwey, T., and Knegel, B. Inner Skiing. New York:

Random House, 1977."Edwards, B. Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain

Los Angeles: J. P. Larcher, Inc., 1979."Bry, 1978.'-Ostrander, Shida and Shroeder, Lynn, Super-learning.

New York. Delacorte Press/Confucian Pkss, 1979"Brown, B. Super-mind. New York: 1-rper & Row,

1980.'9Singer, J. L., and Switzer, E. Mind-p1ay. Englewood

Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1980."Garfield, C. Russian's Olympic Secret: Mental Train-

ing. State-Times. Baton Rouge, LA, Feb. 22, 1980, p. 5.',Ornstein, 1972."Blakeslee, 1980."Edwards, 1979."Gazzaniga, M. The Split Brain in Man. PercOtice

Mechanisms and Models, edited by R. Held arid WRichards. San Francisco, CA. W. H Freeman, 1972 ,

"Ornstein, 1972."Ornstein, 1972."Bry, 1978."Brown, 1980."Ornstein, 1972."Nauta, W. 1.,11., and Feirtag, N. "The Organization of

the Brain." In Scientific American, 1979, pp. 39-53."Bogen, J. E., and Vogel, P. S. Cerebral Commis-

surotomy in Man. Bulletin of the Los Angeles Neurologi-cal Society 29: 169-72.

"Guilford, J. P. The Nature of Human Intelligenc.e.New York: McGraw-Hill, 1967.

"Blakeslee, 1980."Blakeslee, 1980."Haber, R. N. How We Remember What We See."

Scientific American 222 (5): 104-12.. "Blakeslee, 1980.

''Edwards, 1979."Ostrander and Schroeder, 1979."Bogen and Vogel, 1962, pp. 169-172."Gazzaniga, 1972."Bogen and Vogel, 1962, pp. 169-172."Ornstein, 1972."Blakeslee, 1980." Ed wa rd s, 1979.13Edwards, 1979."Blakeslee, 1980."Gallwey, 1974.

11 4

"Oates B. The Winner's Edge. New York: MayflowerBooks, 1980.

4'0ates, 1980."Morgan, W. P. "The Mind of the Marathoner." Psy-

chology Today I I (11): 38-49.5'Morgan, W. P., and Pollack, M. L. Psycho logic

Characterization of the Elite Distance Runner." Annals ofthe New York Academy of Sciences 301: 382-403.

"Glasser, W. Positive Addiction. New York: Harperand Row, 1976, p. 93.

"Morgan, 1978, pp. 38-49."Maslow, A. The Farther Reaches of Human Nature.

New York: Viking, 1971."Ravizza, K. "Peak Experiences in Sport." Journal of

Humanistic Psychology 17: 35-40."Ogilvie, B. "Psychological Consistencies within the

Personalities of High Level Competitors. Journal of theAmerican Medical Association 28.

"Csikszentmihalyi, M. "The Flow Experience." InConsciousness: Brain, States of Awareness, and Mysti-cism, edited by D. Coleman and R. Davidson. New York:Harper and Row, 1979.

"Murphy, M. Golf in the Kingdom. New York: Viking,1972.

"Herrigee, E. Zen in the Ad or Archery. New York:Pantheon, 1952.

"Abrahams, G. The Chess Mind. London: Penguin,1960.

"Unsworth, W. North Face. London: Hutchinson,1969.

"deCharmes, R. Personal Causatrons. New York:Academic Press, 1968.

"Harris, D. V. "Assessmenmf Motivation in Sport andPhysical Education." In Sport Psychology: An Analysis ofAthlete Behavior, edited by W. F. Straub. Ithaca, NY:Mouvement Publishers, 1978.

"Marsh, C. "A Framework for Describing SubjectiveStates of Consciousness." In Altered States of Conscious-ness, edited by N. E. Zinberg. New York: The Free Press,

1977."Gowan, J. C. "Altered States of Consciousness: A

Taxonomy, Journal of Altered States of Consciousness 4:141-56.

"Benson, H. The Mind/Body Effect. New York: Simon& Schuster, 1979.

"Bnh 1978."Cade, C. Maxwell, and Coxhead, N. The Awakened

Mind. New York: Dell Publishing Company,1 979."Goleman, D., and Davidson, R. Consciousness:

Brain, States of Awareness, and Mysticism, New York:Harper and Row, 1979.

"LeBoeuf, M. Imagineering. NeW York: McGraw-Hill,1980.

"Walker, C. Learn to Relax. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: ,

Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1975.72Nideffer, R. M. The Inner Athlete. New York: Thomas

Y. Crowell, 1976."Nideffer, R., and Sharpe, R. C. A.C.T. Attention Con-

trol Training. New York: Wideview Books, *1978."Ostrander and Schroeder, 1979."Singer and Switzer, 1980."Sommer, R. The Mihd's Eye, New Yorl: Dell Publish-

in 978."Suinn, R. M. "Psychology and Sports Performance:

Principles and Applications." In Sport Psychology: anAnalysis of Athlete Behavior, edited by W. F. Straub,Ithaca, NY: Mouvement Publishers, 1978.

"BlakeJee, 1980.

1 2

'ff3ry, 1978."Edwards, 1979."Ostrander and Schroeder, 1979."Brown, 1980."Murphy, M., and White, R. A. The Psychic Side of

Sports. Reading, MA. Addison-Wesley Publishing Co.,1978.

"Murphy and White, 1978."Bry, 1978."Sommer, 1978."Murphy and White, 1978."Murphy and White, 1978."Cade and Coxhead, 1979.

,s0

Coach's Reaction toDr. Evelyn G. Hall's

"Hemispheric Dominance: Usingthe fkight Brain in Sports"

Joan A. FinnSouthern Connecticut State College

IntroductionThe alarming assassination attempt made

on President Reagan indirectly resulted insudden national awareness of the importanceof brain function. The injuries sustained byJames Brady became public interest illustra-tions of the control mechanisms directed bythe ri Igtand left hemispheres of the brain. Her-paper-prOvides-a-real-challenge to sport-scien-tists to conduct S-Pecific research designed toanswbr the all-importanrandirequent ques-tion asked by the physical eduCator/coach:"So what?"

Nty reactions reflect my own.work based inphysiology and psychology, as well as myexperiences as a physical educator andcoach. It appears Dr. Hall's position regardingthe use of the expressive right brain in sports isa concept which is intuitively reasonable. Hertheory is an interesting, refreshingly new ap-proach to several psychological parameters ofsport. However, I would suggest that the prin-ciples of specificity of training should, be in-terpreted very carefully. Specificity of trainingmeans the individual must focus trainingtechniques toward the sought goals. Forexample, in endurance sports it is esseptial toexercise at 75% of one's maximum capacityto excel. Parallel, but unique principles areimportant in skill acquisition, mental concen-tration, and competition performances.

To efficiently reach one's goals, three stepsshould be followed in keeping with the spe-cificity principle: an accurate evaluation must

113

be made to determine what currently exists;realistic goals should be set to establish pre-cisely the desirable outcomes of training pro-cedures; a goal-directed program should bedesigned for specific, logically-ordered, prog-ressive improvement. From this premise, I willestablish a hypothetical regression "line ofbest fit" between Dr. Hall's position and apractical statement regarding: efficiency ofskill acquisition for our students and consis-tencies of peak performance for our athletes.

Efficiency of Skill Acquisition

Dr. Hall's-discussion on right brain theorycan be appropriately a-pplied to skill acquisi-tion considerations only under ce-i--tairrspe-cific conditions. I am not certain that the phys-ical educator should teach beginning studentsthe "feel" of a motor skill through imagerymodes of demonstration, pictures, and vid-eotape display. One unique aspect of ourchosen profession is that our students learn bydoing. However, precise verbalization is necessary so that the beginner has a cognitiveunderstanding of where all body parts shouldbe. Internal self-dialogue is important fornovices so that they can make the transitionfrom verbal awareness of what is to the feelingof what was a correct movement.

Fitts' describes the perforTance of motorskill learning as progressing through thieestages. cognition; fixation; automation. I pro-pose this model as a simple frame of referencefor right hemispheric dominance. Durin&the

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cognitive phase of acquisition, the learnergets the general idea of what the performanceeritails. Application of the whole-part-wholemethod of teaching seems most efficient dur-ing this phase. The student is shown the skill(for example, a forward roll). We havetheoret-ically presented the image to the right hemis-phere. Me instructor now talks the performerthrough the skill. `4Flex your knees so that youare squatting'dfte,Place your hands on the

mat ... etc." After the movement hits beencompleted with the aid of verbal direction, thestudent should be shown the whole desiredmovement again.

Thus the athletes know-precisely what theymust do to accomplish the movement that hasbeen verbally labeled the "forward roll." Asthey attempt to repeat the skill, initially theyshould internally talk themselves through theskill as the coach ,did. These verbal cues areexact, precisely descriptive and will guide thelearner to concentrate on what should bedone in a step-by-step order and direct him toprecisely that which should be accomplished.

Once the child gets the general idea he orshe repeats the roll to correct and refine themotor acunn. This error reduction phase isfixation. At this-point, the instructor gets theperformer to recognize the correct "feel."That is, the instructor begins teaching the tran-sition and integration of hemispheric contri-butions in directing the movement. Thisshould be doneby specifically calling thechild's attention to precise movements,of thebody parts. I believe that verbal communica-tion is still the most efficient way to ac-complish integration of hemispheric control.

The instructor must verbalize: "Where isthe back of your neck comparafto your toes?etc." Since the child is actually performing ashe/she is receiving cues, time for activity is notlost viewing demonstrations. The child is

N using the left, verbal hemisphere to interpretdirections and simultaneously is feeling therespective image using the right hemisphere.As the -frformer becomes more and moreproficient ukexecuting the forward roll andthe fixation pl\tse progresses, theoreticallythe messages of 'dye right hemisphere's be-come increasingly pr ominant and effective.

Once you have deter med that the per-

former has learned a perfect forward roll; thatis, the movement is rapid, automatic, anderror-free, the student has reached the so-called automation phase of execution. Intui-tively, I would say it is at this performancelevel where actual internal dialogue can beeliminated to allow the nonverbal righthemisphere to direct the entire task. It is at thishighest level of performance that cognitiveevaluation occurs following rather than dur-ing the movement.

Consistency of Peak PerformancePeak performance in itself suggests that the

athlete has reached an automation of per:or-mance in terms of relying on imagery direc-tion of the right hemisphere. Training proce-dures most efficient in attaining automation ofperformance is of primary concern to thecoach. This amount of time actually availablefor athletic practice may be the single mostlimiting factor regarding peak achievement. Ifthe coach has access to the athlete for practiceover prolonged periods (six to eight hours

daily), then I agree with Dr. Hall that a 50%split in Inental and physical training may beappropriate. However most athletes today donot have personal scheduk.., that will permitsuch training time.

It is my belief that the physiological condi-tioh is the all-important prerequisite for peakcompetitive performance. The true athletemust spend time in strenuous physical train-ing to attain levels of muscular strength andcardiovascular endurance specific to the de-mands of a given sport. If my field hockeyplayers are unable to run up and down thefield for a full 70 minutes, they could mentallypractice shooting, tackling, and passing im-ages all week for naught.

The very feel of peak performance is, initself, reinforcing. Therefore, the athleteshould be taught to magnify the peak move-ment. This may be done by attention focusand directed concentration of the mind. Fol-

lowing a completely correct execution of askill, the athlete should internally recognizethe feel.of that success. In keeping with DrHall's model, the right hemisphere has di-rected' the action. The left hemisphere iden-tifies success following execution. Here it

114 _

1 "Vak

.4*

may be appropriate to recreate the physicalperformance in the right hemisphere imagerymode several times to intensify awareness ofWhat the feel is actually like. This immediatefocus of concentration, theoretically, shouldreinforce the correct physical performancewhen reinforcement is most potent, that is,immediately following the event. The coinbi-nation of mental and physical practicecoupled with hemispheric integration of leftside internal dialogue andright imagery focusmay be practital.

A carefully prescribed program that teaches .mental discipline must-be created. Effectiveshared direction of physical perforMance bythe left and right brain 4iemispheres can-belearned by the performer. Such hemisphericintegration should be taught in the same logi-cally ordered, progressive manner as wa§ thephysical skill.

FOOTNOTE

'Fitt's, P. M. Factors in Complex Skill Training, TrainingResearch and Education. Edited by R. Glaser. Pittsburgh,PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1962.

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11 8

10Competitive Stress Management

Techniques in Perspective.Wesley E. Sime, MPH/Ph.D.

Director, Stress Physiology LaboratoryUniversity of Nebraska at Lincoln

This chapter presents_ a_ review _and-a-syn-thesis of all the previous papers and coachreactions_published in this book. In addition,it will analyze the wide variety of competitivestress management techniques from aresearcher/dinician standpoint while stillmaintaining the "frontline" perspective from

- the author's memories as a player and a coachin previous years. -

It is important to focus upon the manage-ment of competitive stress, not elimination ofit. Experience dictates that the majority of allsuperior performances occur under peakcompetitive pressures. Some athletes seem tothrive on the high pressure environment whileothers tend to fall apart under these condi-tions. The athlete who chokes under pressureis often a better practice or scrimmage compe-titor than the athlete who rises to the occasionunder stress. As such, we mustlecognize theindividual needs of each coMpetitor and pre-

, scribe the appropriate management tech-nique from a broad selection of choices.

.Another very important variable to considerin developing optimal competitive stressmanagemeip Is the differences amongcoaches or clinicians. Even the most univer-sally effective stress management techniquewill not be appropriate for all coaches or_clinicians: The-belief factor is a powerful ele-ment in success or failure and the athlete willquickly pick up nonirbal cues (from the dis-believing coach) that influence his or hermotivation and cooperation. Beyond simple

117

belief-in a-technique, thereare- some proce-dures which selected coaches/clinicianscannot effectively convey to an athlete. It isnot likely that Woody Hayes would have hadmuch success with the quiescence of prog-ressive relaxation, visual imagery, or biofeed-back.

In the formula for successful competitivestress management, another element to thn-sider is the nature of the sport or the Oentitself. Among the widely varying sports(swimming, diving, baseball, archery, gym-nastics, football, tennis, golf, basketball, vol-leyball, soccer:Wrestling, boxing, hockey,figure skating, weight-lifting, etc.) there areseveral inherent cognitive-behavioral charac-teristics. Some of the dimensions include:team vs individual; power vs finesse,,,- speedvs endurance. Requiremeals vary greatly forprecision, foresight, coordination, balance,and aesthetic beauty. Each type ofspsa.1--places a unique demand on the athlete sdithestress management technique must be chosen

accordingly.With these three elements to consider (the

individual athlete, the individual coach orclinician, and the nature of the sport)( theformula for success might be best achieved byselecting the appropriate-technique accord=ing to the model presented in Diagram 1.

Unfortunately, we do not yet have sufficientinformation babe able to ccmpute a factor for\each of these criteria to media which tech-nique will be most effectiJe. However this

1 "1tt.)

t

,Characteristicsof the

:` athlete

Characteristicsof the

coach clinician

Nature of theevent (power, finesse,

speed, endurance)

Diagram 1. Selection of the most effective competi-tive stress management technique foreach individual athlete.

model represents an intriguing approach todecision-making in this field. In the absence-of precise, data-based criteria, I predict thatthe mosteffeclive coach and clinicians willfind their success through empirically derivedconsiderations of these elements. With thisrough per'spective in place, I can now ap-proach the analysis and synthesis of the tech-niques presented by the authors in this book.

Psychophysiological Analysis ofCompetitive Stress

Psychophysiological response to stress ofany nature or source can be objectively mea-sured. The parameters of interest for competit-ive sport include heart rate, blood pressure,muscle tension, skin temperature, and palmarsweat. There are clearly defined proceduresfor administering a standardized emotionalstress test which parallel the techniques usedin exercise tolerance testing.1 Briefly, the gen-eral guidelines specify presentation of a chal-lenging circumstance with progressively in-creasing gradations of speed, complexity,and/or frustrating distractions. These are, ofcourse, common elements in many competit-ive sport circumstances, as well. Fcir most ac-curate analysis nf individual responsivenessto stress, it is necessary to use sophisticatedmonitoring devices in a carefully controlledlaboratory environment. Fortunately, how-ever, the physiological parameters of interestm sport are also geherally observable, though

with less absolute accuracy.

Cold, clammy, and/perspiring hands aroeasily recognized bi the alert coach who isusually in close proXimity to the athlete duringprecompetition. High levels ofmuscle tensionare nearly alwaYs present when the athleteappears fidgity,bnchrembling, at one extreme,or braced in a frozen position at the otherextreMe. Heart rate and blood pressure areless easily oberved, but they are probably notas detrimental to performance as theaforementioned parameters.

In addition to the observable signs of stressresponse there are many stress-related symp-toms which the athlete might experience.Sometimes a coach will hear about or see theathlete so aroused that he/she vomits, but it isequally as important to query the athlete re-garding less dramatic symptoms. Kroll hascited a list of somatic complaints includingupset stomach, nervousness, urge to urinate,ringing in the ears, and sore muscles. In somecases, the athlete may not realize that a spe-cific symptom is linked with the precompetit-we environment. It may be overlooked as aslight case of the N.

Another common element in the competit-ive stress environment is aggression. Thecoach-or clinician should be alert for signs orreactive aggression which Kroll' notes aredifferent from instrumental aggression. Theformer emotion exhibits anger and hostilitywhich are totally different from the goal-oriented instrumental aggression characteris-tics. One should note the underlying causesfor verbal abuse, fights, and brawls on theplaying field. In many cases the athlete expe-riences guilt or self-deprecating-feelings (as-sociated with performance) that are trans-ferred into reactive aggression. These are tallystress-related symptoms and should be recog-nized very early and averted.

Cognitive (Mental) and Somatic(Body) Methods of Coping

If fear of failure is a common source ofanxiety in competition, then one must ac-knowledge the role of cognitions in producingthe stress-laden circumstance. In contrast, thesomatic aspect of stress is usually a. response,not a cause. However, the somatic compo-

118

'4)

a

nents of a stress response often e?(acerbate thecognitive element and tend to perpetuate theexperience. Stress response can be describedas a vicious circle as shown in Diagram 2.

Anxious cognitions

Somatic reactionsinciuding tension

. Diagram 2. Stress response.

Can't relaxgets more uptight

In presentthg,this model it is il,portant to notethe positive, as well as negative, potentialtherein. Gauron has recogniv I the unusedpotential that athletes need to ur eash.3Some-times trying too hard confounds iuccess. Thevicious circle shown in Diagram I can workboth ways, that is, facilitating or debilitatingone's performance. Gauron docgrnented re-markable achievement in swimmers at theUniversity of Iowa pursuant to initiation ofmental training with the athletes. One hopesthat it is more than coincidence that the Iowaswim team moved progressively upward innational ranking (NCAA champions in 1981)within-two years after this psychologist began-consulting-with the team. He admits that bet-ter athletes were recruited during those years,

.but recruiting has improved also becausecandidates knew the coach incorporatedmental -training. Gauron deserves- credit forincluding psychological assessment of pre-and post-training. He may be on the brink ofestablishing one element of the formula pre-sented in the introduction (see Diagram 1),that is, he has begun to assess individualcharacteristics (concentration, psych-up, vis-.ual, kinesthetic, olfactory sensations, andself-talk) which might, in the future, be predic-tive of which stress management procedurewould be most successfully prescribed forselected athletes..

119

Olcott's reaction to Gauron is very appro-priate and _upportive. She quotes a poem thatends with the phrase' . .. the man who wrnsis the one who thinks he can."4

Another-approach-to-the-cognitive-elementin sport was presented by Ravizza andRotella.s They took a humanistic,phenomenofogical ,orientation in workingwith competitive gymnastics. I was very im-pressed with their empirical approach to theproblem. In 'actuality, it's not a problem, butrather a uniqtie experience. They stronglyrecommend an in-depth interview witheach athlete to determinewhether there mightbe some unique, objective, cognitive factorspresent on those rare occasions when "I coulddo no wrong." Many athletes have had theseoccasional perfect experiences where "the'just-couldn't miss." To begin to identify theantecedent causes or to realize that one'sinner self might be so terribly influential uponperformance is a startling and.useful concept..

Ravizza and Rotella also cited other valu-able strategies. They recommend helping theathlete to assess his/her optimal anxiety level.This can be measured with the Sport Competi-tion Anxiety Test or Nideffer Attentional Test.By getting the athlete to personally recognizetheir own physiological responses (tension,shallow breathing, sweaty palms, etc.) theyare moving toward an objective formula forsuccess. Awareness is the first step towardchange ar,d it also enhances successful pre-scription of a stress management technique.'

The most innovative apriroach Ravizza andRotella used was-the-ILThou philosophy. Thatis, they ask the gymnast to develop a "one-ness" relationship with the apparatus. Any-one who has ever tried to maneuver on apommel horse or parallel bars will quicklyrecognize the importance of flowing with theapparatus. When a gymnast begins to fight the-natural flow of movement, the performancequickly deteriorates. This may appear to besoft science, but it is very real to the gymnast.

Another effective approach in gymnasticshas been described by Frederick.6 He notedthat errors on the gymnastic floor are usuallycoincident with "dysponetic" bracing efforts.Efficiency is greatly impaired when the athletehas insufficient tension control. Accurate as-

sessment and recruitment of muscle Cbers fora given performance tasr is dependent uponthe psychophysical principle of 'signal detec-,

/ion theory. In the same manner Ihat someindividuaLhave_veraccurate4)err Ppitch for piano tuniog, so also some athleteshave very accurate perception of muscle ac-tiv ity for movement performance. As suchtension control, as projected by edmundJacobson in progressive relaxation and differ-ential relaxation, is extremely crucial forathletes at mammal as well cb maximal levelsof contraction!'

In order to enhance tension perceptionskills, Frederick suggests that both coaches%and athletes learn relaxation skills in a supinelying position. Transfer to the functional-set-

. ting can be developed later.I strongly agree that coaches need to under-

stand these skills in order to be good observersof their. athletes. They need to recognize dis-ruptive behaviors in eye movement, respirat-ory pattern, and jaw clenching. Early detec--bon and acknowledgement can be useild toavert tension-riddled performance decrementin the face of heated competition. My ,ownexpehence with Jim Hartung, NCAA All-Around Champion in Gymnastics for Neb-raska is quite notable. Interview data fromHartung shows that he has an unusual abilityto focus his attention on his own performance.He uses mental rehearsal with small physicalcues to avoid distraction from the crowd orother performers. Even in practice, he tries tosimulate competition_conaitions by asking acritical observer, such as a.coach to observe,and finishing every routine regardless of er-rors. This chdracteristic is very commonamong successful international competitors.

Biofeedback, Hypnosis, MentalRehearsal, and Restructuring

Biofeedback as a means of coping withcompetitive stress is only a very recent con-ceptual trial. The logistics of using sophi 4i-cated monitoring devices on athletes who areinvolved in extremely dynamic irregufarmovement patterns is extremely, difficult. Justthe cost of equipment and the time involved isbeyond the scope of most coachingsand sport

120

adriiinistration circUmstances. Yet the,princi-

ple, involved (feedback of performance out-come .to the conscious or siibconsciousawareness of the athlete) iIs basic as learn-.inOtself. Learning in any environment mustinclude feedback, whether it comes from aknovvIedgable.observer Or from simple out-come success, Le., visual documentation-thatthe basketball either goes throeh the hoop4orit doesn't. Empirically we know that someathletes are better than others incorporating

iw ledge o success/failure into theirneuro-muscular pathways during the tri I and

error proCess.The natural learning ability based pon

wise use of feedback seems to be aphenomena, that functions at the subcon-scious level. In other words,. e "natural"athlete we observE seems to have inherentability which he/she does not haygto try hardto achieve. In fact trying hard seems to con-found the learning process. All of this discus-sion about the learning process in athletescoini.ides very well with the concepts Used inbehay ioral medicine where biofeedbackfacjlitates reversal of advase Ohysiologicalfunctioning that had previously resulted inorgInic dysfunction, e.g., tension headache,hypertensioh, etc. The important point is thatpatients who try hard to reduce muscle ten-sion for relief of headache will invariably fail.Success is most often achieved in a mentalstate characterized by a free-floating, "let-it-happen" attitude. Now we can clearly see theparallel between successful athletes and pa-tients who succeed in eliminating aphysiological disorder.

In light of the discussiob above, perhaps it ispossible to use biofeedback to enlighten theathlete's subconscious (n a quiescent, inac-tive state) and to make the transfer to the com-petitive scene with mental suggestions of per-fect performance. In many cases this may takethe form of a minor reduction of muscle tension in a crucial antagonist muscle group. Theresultant outcome is a loose, fluid, unim-peded movement which appears graceful aswell as correct or successful. As such, weoften note that the natural athlete makes itlook so easy. Perhaps the performance is ac-tually :easy" because the athlete is not

struggling with the-interference-of-unneededmuscle groups that might have been recruitedin the ill-fated "trying too hard" behLior.

Zaichkowsky has summarized the literatureto-comparecathletics with stress-related disor-ders.9 The commOn element is that elusiveand poorly defined concept "stress." He hascited "choking" phenomena whichexemplifies all that has been discussed above.He also contributed a very comprehensive setof guidelines for the use of biofeedback in the

,sport setting.We may never see athletes practicing

routines with a web of wires and transmittersattached to every functional muscle group. Itis more likely that blofeedb,aa will be utilizedto facilitate quicker success through othercognitive and somatic strategies such as men-tal rehearsal, stress inoculation, progressiverelaxation, aufogenic training, hypnosis, etc.The true value therein is eqdally as great asanything perceived in the eyes of any en-gineering genius pursuing the "wired" route.Zaichkowsky is a clinically experiencedbiofeedback consultant who sAies emphati-,cally that "biofeedback is merely a tool t6enhance self-regulation." It is apparent thatoptimal selfygulation is the key to successfulath letic rmance in the face of heatedco etition.

Hypnosis is as veryi)owerfulcoeitiye ol

which, like biofeedback, has been success-fully used in,the clinical health field. Its appli-cation in the sports arena is a function of thesuggestibility as discussed by Eskeridge.m"Athlet,es will benefit from its use only insofaras tb0 are able to sttbmit to its influence at thesubconscious level. Athletes vary in their abil-ity to establish thieommunication betweenthe conscious and thp subconscious.. Manyprofessionals currently downplay the con-_ceptual and functional difference betweenhypnosis and other cognitiA str.gies.Surely relaxation and irn :SW 'are CsIntialelements in.hypnosis and the trarict-like statemay be present in a variety of relaxation-likecircumstances. Thus perhaps it is better todownplay the semantic caricature o( Iwpnosis.since the word itself is so poorly accepted inthe athletic environment. For those Who wishto pursue it subtly, the outcome aril the meth-

odology in athletics are clearly documentedby European practitioners."

Objective experimental evidence in theneophyte field of competitive stress manage-rnent is relatively rare. The primary obstaclesare the confounding problems of doing fieldstudies, the difficulty obtaining bona fidecompetitors who are willing to be arbitrarilyassigned to treatrnent Or no treatment groups,and difficulty in masking a control group toyield apparent treatment statuS for expectancyeffect. Thus most researchers shy away fromthese studies. Ziegler took this challenge andfound interesting results in basketball and intrack." She observed that subjects randomlyassigred to the combined imagery and physi-cal practice group were significantly moresuccessful in shooting free throws than sub-jects assigned to imagery alone, guided imag-ery, physical practice, or control.

-Ziegler also conducted an experimentalstudy on track athletes utilizing two differenttechniques, Meichenbaum's Stress Inocula-tion and Smith's Stress Management, in com-parison with a control group:Heart rate andoxygen consumption values were signifi-cantly lower for both treatment groups thanfor the control group after training. These re-sults are supported by.previous research withsimilar experimental design using7 biofeed-back of heart rate.'' These effects, which not-ably decreased phOological function duringexercise under cOgnitivetfluence, are trulyremarkable. HC3'Wever,,the real test of perfor-mance will lie in competitive success and that

has not yet been adequately tested.All of the strategies described above pur-

port to provide the athlete with a means ofcontrolling competitive arousal by cognitivemeans. Underlying each procedure is the in-herent fact that athletes who fail to controlarousal, have done SO b"y allowing theTselvesto become upset. The sugcess of some athletesunder tHe worst environmental conditions at-tests to the fact that cognitron, no,t externalstimuli, causes the upset. As such, we need toemphasize to Ihe,atitte. the Ellis concepi that"I upset myself." As uch the ath lete has the 'internal ability by.,yoli ion tihyoid thatrupsetcognitively.

If cognition is ortant at the practiCala

121.

(1 9 ) ./

level, then hemispheric dominance may serveto account for the remarkable differences inathletes. Recent rekarch has_clearly shownthe hemispheric difference in cognitive func-tioning..The left hemisphere controls verbal,analytical, and rational behavior while theright hemisphere controls imagery, intuition,and creativity. Hall has extrapolated the re-sults of neural research to its relevance insport.15 The general hypothesis is that highlycreative, fluid, relaxed successful athletic per-formance is likelyT(Theqoricurrent with rightbrain activity. But since ttleright brain is over-shadowed by the left brain during high-stress,aroused conditions it ist not surprising lb ob-serve performance decrement. The impact ofcompetitive stress management- is likely ef-fected through facilitation of right brain activ-ity in the midst of an arousal reduction. Rightbrain activity might also account for the peakperformance phenomena described byRavizza and Rotella.16 It is logical to assumethat right brain activity js the neurologicalmechanism which accounts for performancesuccess or failure in competitive stress undertheinfluerice of a yarietyof cognitive controlstrdtegies. The future for development in thisarea appears to be very bright.

CopciusionsIn -summary, it is apparent that competitive

stress management is an essential aspect ofsport psychology,training and of athletic train-

ing in general. The prOfessional developmentin this field is at the neophyte stage, but it israpidly burgeoning. Ultimately the prescrip-tion of a stress management strategy for aspecific athlete will be determined by thecareful observation of the nature of the com-petitive event; the characteristics of thecoach/clinician; the characteristics of the -

. .

athlete.The burden of responsibility- lies with the

coach/clinician to utilize objectivepsychophysiological techniques and empiri-cal observation to assess the athlete's need Ifthe coach/clinician does not recognize thatanxious cognitions elicit disruptive muscletension reactions which preclude relaxed be-

havior, heishe will never be able to prescribeappropriate competitive stress management

strategies necessary to facilitate superior per-formances. It is obvious that "peak perfor-mances" occur only when the athlete hasachieved maximal cognitive and somatic con-trol. The principle of efficiency, which comesabout with perfect perception of effort, is thehallmark of success in sport competition, as itis in almost every performance circumstance.The minimum basic element seems to be get-ting the athlete to ignore competition distrac-tions and focus attention upon the details ofthe performance. As such, the athlete neverachieves great success by "trying harder,"rather the 'iierformance must come about witha free-floating,'Yet-it-happen" attitude. Thusthe development of cognitive, right-brain"dominance is crucial to sport-relatedachievement.

'In the past few decades, great advances insport performance hayezoccurred largely be-cause of sophisticated physical training tech-

niques. NOw as *rformances seem to bereaching an asyMptote, the great opportuni-ties appear to in sport psychology andcompetitive stress management where re-finemerlt andt reativity are the key words.

FOOTNOTES

'Sime, W. , Buell, 1. C.; and Eliot, R. S."Psychophysi logical (Emotional) Stress Testing for As-sessing Corot ilry Risk." lournal of CardiopulmonaryTechnique 8: p. 27-32.

rp.1.1 Competitive Athletic Stress Factors inAthletes and aches.'' Stress Management for Competit-ive Sport. Re's! n, VA:,The American Alliance for Health,Physical Educ tion, Recreation and Dance, 1982.

JGauron, E "Mental Preparation for Peak Perfor-mance." Stres Management for Competitive Sport Re-ston, VA: Th American Alliance for Health, PhysicalEducation, Re reation and Dance, 1982.

401cott, S. "Coaches Reaction to Dr. Eugene F.Gauron's Me tal Preparation for Peak Performance inSwimmers." tress Management for Sport. Reston, VA:The America Alliance for Health, Physical Education,Recreation an I Dance, 1982.

1Ravissa, K. and Rotella, R. "Cognitive Somatic Behav-ioral Interven ons in Gymnastics." Stress Managementtor Sport. Rest n, VA: The American Alliance for Health,Physical Educ lion, Recreation and Dance, 19,82

'Frederick, . B. "(i,oachihg Strategies Based uponTension Resea ch."Stress Management for Sport. Reston,VA: The Ame can Alliance for Health, Physical Educa-tion, Recreati and Dance, 1982.

'Sime, W. E "Cognitive Strategies and Subjective Re-port of Muscle ension." In Proceedings of the AmericanAssociation to the Advancement of Tension ControlMeeting, edit by F. ). McGuigan. Blacksburg, VA Uni-versity Publica ions, 1977, pp. 85-9.

122 .1

A10.4 ,;-6

'Jacobson, Edmund. You Must Relax.. New York,McGraw-Hill, 197A.

"Zaichkowsky, L. "Biofeedback for Self-Regulation ofCompetitive Stress." Stress.Management for Sport. Res-ton, VA: The American Alliance for Health, Physical Edu-cation, Recreation and Dance, 1982.

oEskeridge, V. "The Role of Hypnosis in Stress Con-trol." Stress Management for Sport. Reston, VA: TheAmerican Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Rec-reatibn and*Dance, 1982.

"Unestahl, Lars-Eric. "New Paths of Sport Learningand Excellence." Proceedings of the Fifth World SportPsychology Congress, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, August,1981.

"Ziegler, S. "The Application of Stress Management inCompetitive Runners." Stress Management fti(r Sport.Reston, VA: The American Alliance for Health, PhyskalEducation, Recreation and Dance, 1982.

"Goldstein, D. S.; Ross, R. S.; and Brady, Ly,"Biofeedback Heart Rate Training during Exercise."Biofeedback and Self-Regulation 2: 107-25.

"Ellis, A. "Rational Emotive Control for Sport." Pro-ceedings of the Fifth World Sport Psychology Congress,Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, August, 1981.

'Hall, E. "Hemisphere Dominance: Using the 'Right'Brain in Sports." Stress Management for Spurt. Reston,VA: The American Alliance for Health, Physical Educa-tion, Recreation and Dance, 1982. ,

"Ravizza, K., and Rotella, R., 1982.,-

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About the Author's

Dr. Leonard D. Zaichkowsky

Dr. Len Zaichkowsky is an Associate Professor at BOs-ton University's School of Education. He is an instructorof Psychology of Motor Behavior, Motor Development,Biofeedback, and Research Methods. He is licensed as apsychologist in the State of Massachusetts, is a member ofthe Biofeedback Society of America, and is presently thePresident of the Biofeedback Society of Massachusetts.Dr. Zaichkowsky is one of the first researchers to write onthe topic of biofeedback and its application to motorbehavior and sports. Since 1975 he has delivered numer-

ous papers and published 7 research articles specifically concerned with biofeedbackand human performance, ;ncluding a revie article in a recent book edited by YuriHanin-Institute of Physical Culture, Len ingra i, U.S.S.R. In, 1979 Oregon State Univer-

sity awarded him a "Distinguished Educa onal Research Award" for his work inapplying biofeedback to education.

Dr. Wesley E. Sime

Dr. Wes Sime is the Director of the Stress PhysiologyLaboratory and Associate Professor in Health Educationat the University of Nebraska. With a background inexercise physiology and psychophysiology from the Uni-versity of Pittsburgh, Dr. Sime is currently conductingresearch in competitive stress management. He is co-editor of the book, Stress and Tension Control (Plenum,1980) and the author of 20 publications and 35 presenta-tions on various topics in exercise physiology, stress

1 1

physiology, and stress management. He is a member ofthe Biofeedback Society of America and is an Associate Director of the InternationalStressland Tension Control Association. He teaches a course in Stress and TensionRedu/tion for top level athletes at the University of Nebraska and has worked individ-ually with selected athletes who exhibit stress-related problems associated with high-

level competition. He is a certified biofeedback therapist who utHizes specific tech-nique in biofeedback, progressive relaxation, and movement dynamics for achieving

maxinkal perf4ance efficiency.

124

1 f,Itl,w1)

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