Perceptions of Sport Psychology within Track and Field Athletics

This article written by Amanda Wilding has been reproduced by kind permission of The Sport and Exercise Scientist – the official publication of the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences. (BASES)  www.bases.org.uk  

For years, practitioners have explored the field of sport psychology in an attempt to offer both coaches and athletes new strategies for gaining a winning edge within competitive sport. With the pace gathering towards the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games, it is clear to see British national governing bodies of sport (NGBs) and organisations such as BASES recognising a need for, and contributing support in the form of, resources and knowledge to increase the likelihood of successful performances on the world stage. What is now of importance, in order to achieve this, is the dissection of the lessons that can be learnt by reflecting upon the Beijing Olympic Games.

As highlighted by Prof Dave Collins in his keynote speech at the 2008 BASES Annual Conference, one potential improvement that is needed, from the sport psychologists’ perspective, concerns the communication between themselves and the relevant personnel within the NGBs. It was also intimated that there is a need for sport psychologists to integrate themselves more effectively into an athlete’s environment. With these statements in mind, it appears to be an appropriate time to present some recent research findings that have highlighted the issues faced by applied sport psychologists within track and field athletics. The findings fall within a programme of research that is striving to find a suitable conceptual framework that can aid the diffusion of sport psychology into track and field athletics.

Since the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games, there has been a marked increase in the number of coaches and athletes employing the services of applied consultants (Zaichkowsky & Naylor, 2005). Though it is undisputed that sport psychology has a critical role to play within the training and performance aspects of an athlete’s sport-science package, evidence suggests that its uptake by coaches and athletes remains limited (Dosil, 2005).

It is within this context that research, focusing on the usefulness and effectiveness of sport psychology, has begun to investigate athlete perceptions of sport psychology and the role of applied sport psychologists.

The findings
My PhD research, involving a mixed-methods approach to investigate coach and athlete perceptions of sport psychology within track and field athletics, has lent support to findings of a lack of widespread use and uptake, which is somewhat disappointing. Specifically, it appears that the rapid expansion of sport-psychology services has caused what could be called “growing pains” within the profession, whereby the supply of academics has increased the demand from the public, but has not kept pace with this demand due to confusion regarding the specific role and function of a sport psychologist. It is important, therefore, to note that the reasons provided for lack of uptake by coaches and athletes have changed and evolved. Lack of awareness and receptivity (on the part of both coaches and athletes) are no longer key issues, with the emphasis now shifting towards the systematic implementation of sport-psychology material.

Previous research (Ravizza, 1990) indicated that coaches and athletes were ignorant of the idea of applying sport psychology within their training programmes. However, recent results have indicated that both coaches and athletes would like to use sport psychology, but do not know how best to implement it. This very issue was raised by the head coach and founder of the New Forest Junior Athletic Club, Tim Wilding, who commented “a simple and concise introduction of sport psychology to aspiring athletes, say county standard, could be very useful.” Furthermore, he notes that a sport psychologist can be a good support function who introduces athletes to some of the wider issues that will affect them as their careers progress.However, he goes on to discuss that, for those voluntary coaches who do not work in the industry, “sport psychologists need to better inform [coaches] regarding its potential uses. It appears a subjective and confusing subject as it is not black and white, so I don’t use it as much as I should.” Finally, he states “squad days and coaching seminars pitched at the right level could do wonders for increasing our understanding and confidence when using the material.”

Both qualitative and quantitative results are producing support for these statements and, as a consequence, it is evident that there is still coach resistance to sport psychology due to an overuse of scientific language in literature and by applied sport psychologists. This should be a major concern to those working within the field, yet it is one that can be dealt with. Thus, if sport psychologists are to penetrate the track and field domain, Maniar et al. (2001) suggest that we must strive to understand how and why athletes and coaches look to obtain help from appropriately trained professionals and provide information at the correct level and volume.

From the athletes’ perspective, it seemed that many individuals lacked an understanding of what applied sport psychology was and hence did not understand the role of a sport psychologist. Unfortunately, this left the field open to misinterpretation and subsequent misuse. However, recent focus-group-oriented research has revealed interesting results. It appears that track and field athletes have become aware of the role sport psychology can play in facilitating athletic performance, due to better education through the schooling system. Many reported that they believe psychological help in today’s highly competitive environment could be a crucial component of their training programme because it allows them to “understand the mind in sporting situations and how it reacts to pressure.” However, after acknowledging a belief in its relevance, importance and impact, the key findings are that a number of barriers still exist. One such barrier many athletes reported was that they did not know how, or where, to find the most suitable sport psychologist; their requirement for a sport psychologist being “someone who knows the sport and has been and done it themselves.” Secondly, athletes had concerns surrounding the expense of sport psychology and further commented that they would use it minimally due to this as they “don’t know how to apply it properly and don’t want to negatively affect their own performance.”

The answer
In an effort to understand, predict and remove the barriers that inhibit the widespread use and implementation of sport psychology, it is possible to draw upon the phenomenon of diffusion. Many researchers are constantly trying to understand why people behave the way they do and then organise such information in order to try to predict human behaviour (Ogden, 2007). A concept that provides a systematic framework upon which coaches, sport psychologists and athletes can base strategic plans for guidance and enhancement of uptake is Rogers’ (1983) hypothetical process of diffusion. According to Rogers, diffusion is a process whereby new ideas are filtered into the structure and function of the social system. In relation to sport psychology, this can be an organisation such as BASES introducing or filtering sport psychology into, for example, NGBs, through useable manuals appropriate to the coaches’ level of qualification. Consequently, during the diffusion process, there is always going to be a degree of uncertainty and perceived risk involved in the change, due to the newness of an idea, which explains athlete and coach reluctance to introduce new components into their training regimes and behaviours. Such barriers are often due to the structure of the social system that is involved as that provides stability to the behaviour of the individuals and the establishment of the “norm”. In order to overcome rigid norms, a change agent or an individual who tries to influence the social norms in a way that is desirable to those involved, such as a sport psychologist, would be of use.

Final thoughts
In conclusion, it is well known that sport-psychology consultants are fundamentally important in identifying and providing the mental strategies required for athletes to improve their performance. In support of recent literature, the latest research findings are now reporting that many practitioners will encounter barriers, leading to the under-utilisation of services within track and field athletics.

However, the reasons for this resistance are proving to be somewhat surprising, given that, although consultants are not gaining widespread access to athletes and coaches, there is evidence that reinforces the value of their work. One would argue, therefore, that the reluctance to source such personnel provides a barrier to achieving the suggestion of Prof Collins: that sport scientists need to be better integrated into the environment in which they work.

It seems that there will be some interesting times ahead for sport psychologists working in track and field athletics.

SPORT SCIENCE SUPPORT
Amanda is a lecturer in sport science at Bournemouth University and is a BASES Accredited Sport and Exercise Scientist (Psychology). She is also part of the coaching staff for the Hampshire county track and field development and performance squad.

Amanda Wilding

Commentary
by Sara Ceil
Psychology Lead for the English Institute of Sport who has considerable experience of working with UKA athletes.

This article touches on some of the key issues that sport psychologists need to consider when working in different sports and with NGBs, which within the EIS we aim to encompass. EIS practitioners work in a proactive and coach-driven manner. We work as a collective group of experts, rather than individual practitioners, and aim to deliver a system of performance psychology. The aim is to be immersed in sports, as Prof Collins advises, and to address in initial negotiations many of the ”fears” Performance Directors, coaches and athletes have about sport psychologists. In addition, part of our work involves gaining knowledge about the current culture (possibly the social situation referred to in the article above) and helping sports and NGBs reach a consensus about whether the focus of their high-performance environment will be on well-being, achievement, innovation or internal process.

References
Dosil, J. (2006). The Sport Psychologist’s Handbook: A guide to sport-specific performance enhancement. Chichester: Wiley & Sons.
Maniar, S.D. et al. (2001). Student-athlete preferences in seeking help when confronted with sport performance problems. The Sport Psychologist, 15, 205–255.
Ogden, J. (2007). Health Psychology: A textbook (4th edition). London: McGraw-Hill.
Ravizza, K. (1990). Sportpsych consultation issues in professional baseball. The Sport Psychologist, 4, 330–340.
Rogers, E.M. (1983). Diffusion of Innovations (3rd edition). New York: Free Press.
Zaichkowsky, L. & Naylor, A. (2005). Sport psychology foundations, organisations and related resources. Journal of Applied School Psychology, 21, 9–22.