Regulating Arousal PDF

REGULATING AROUSAL  Regulating Arousal Athletic performance is an activity which inherently engenders high levels of arousal. That arousal can be facilitative or debilitative, so it is important for athletes to be able to: know their optimal levels of arousal have strategies in...

REGULATING AROUSAL  Regulating Arousal Athletic performance is an activity which inherently engenders high levels of arousal. That arousal can be facilitative or debilitative, so it is important for athletes to be able to: know their optimal levels of arousal have strategies in place for achieving & maintaining those optimal levels  Regulating Arousal Arousal regulation is an essential skill in sport, but one that does not get practiced enough. Proper arousal regulation = better focus and control = better skill execution = better performance. This applies both to athletes and coaches. Q1: what percentage of your sport is mental? Q2: how much time do you devote to mental training?  Stress & Coping Lazarus & Folkman argued that how individuals cope with stress & anxiety is more important than how much anxiety they experience. They classified coping strategies as being either: Problem-focused: efforts that help people change the actual situation. Emotion-focused: efforts to change the way a situation is attended to or interpreted–to deal with the emotions that arise during the situation. Avoidance oriented: efforts in which athletes attempt to remove themselves from the stressful situation.  STRESSOR Lazarus & Folkman Stress & Coping Model APPRAISAL Events have both + PRIMARY APPRAISAL SECONDARY APPRAISAL high control and low control elements. CONTROLLABLE UNCONTROLLABLE This dictates which ASPECTS ASPECTS coping strategies will COPING be most appropriate. PROBLEM-FOCUSED EMOTION-FOCUSED How individuals COPING COPING + + cope with stress is Emotion-focused Problem-focused important than how coping coping much stress they experience. REAPPRAISAL RESOLVED UNRESOLVED EXIT  Stress & Coping Gaudreau & Blondin (2002): developed the Coping Inventory for Competitive Sport, assessing the following coping types: Task-oriented coping: strategies aimed at dealing directly with the source of stress and its resulting thoughts and emotions. Disengagement-oriented coping: strategies to disengage from the process of trying to make progress on a personal goal. Distraction-oriented coping: strategies to focus on internal and external stimuli that are unrelated to the stressful situation. Coping Inventory for Competitive Sport framework for classifying coping strategies  Coping Effectiveness Problem-focused/ task-oriented copers have higher positive affect + are more likely to attain better achievement outcomes than other competitors. Avoidance-oriented strategies associated with lower levels of goal attainment. Disengagement-oriented is associated with increased negative affect.  Emotion Regulation Similar to the concept of coping is emotion regulation. Gross (1998) proposed that people engage in five types of emotion regulation strategies: 1. Situation Selection 2. Situation Modification 3. Attentional Deployment 4. Cognitive Change 5. Response Modulation  Emotion Regulation 1. Situation selection: 4. Cognitive Change: - put yourself in situations - change how you think that will bring about +ve to change emotions emotions 2. Situation modification: 5. Response modulation: - influence the situations to - controlling intensity of bring about +ve emotions emotional response 3. Attentional deployment: - direct your attention toward or away from something  Self-compassion Desire to be moved by one’s own suffering, and a desire to alleviate that suffering (Neff, 2003 Comprised of self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness.  Self-compassion Self-compassion can apply to different domains (body self-compassion). Practicing self-compassion can increase positivity and perseverance. Interventions (e.g., letter to a friend) have been shown effective in decreasing self-criticism, rumination, and concern over mistakes.  Emotion Regulation Learning how to regulate your emotions can be an asset in sport. In order to do so effectively, you want to become aware of: – which emotions are experienced – when and how they are experienced – how they are expressed – what factors influence your emotions – impact of coach’s emotions – impact of teammates emotions Arousal Regulation Strategies Somatic anxiety reduction: progressive muscle relaxation controlled breathing biofeedback training Cognitive anxiety reduction: classical conditioning cognitive restructuring self-talk stress inoculation training imagery / visualization  Regulating Arousal - Somatic Progressive Muscle Relaxation: Alternate between tensing and relaxing muscles in a systematic manner. Regulating Arousal - Somatic Controlled Breathing: When you are calm, confident, and in control, your breathing is smooth, deep and rhythmic. When you are under pressure and tense, your breathing is short, shallow and irregular.  Regulating Arousal - Somatic Diaphragmatic breathing is a controlled breathing technique. It uses significantly less energy than chest breathing and allows more blood to be oxygenated in less time. When your breathing becomes short and shallow you are creating an oxygen deficit. Regulating Arousal - Somatic Biofeedback: Use physiological feedback (not normally available) to learn how to control physiological responses. Increase awareness such that equipment is no longer needed. Regulating Arousal - Somatic Biodots: Small self-adhesive, temperature sensitive discs that are placed on the skin to monitor the skin temperature. Changes in skin temperature are due to changes in the amount of blood flowing through the skin. More blood flow = warmer skin; less blood flow – cooler skin. Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Classical Conditioning Techniques: 1. FLOODING Expose athlete to anxiety-provoking situation to show it is not as catastrophic as feared. Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Classical Conditioning Techniques: 2. COUNTERCONDITIONING First teach relaxation & then expose athlete to anxiety- provoking situation; relaxation response should replace anxiety response. Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Cognitive Restructuring: Recognizing & challenging cognitive distortions 1. Catastrophizing That’s it, my career is over! 2. Personification Why me? What did I do to deserve this? Regulating Arousal - Cognitive 3. Dichotomous thinking If I can’t win this race, I won’t be able to win any race 4. Overgeneralization My performance sucks… everything sucks. 5. Selective abstraction I know a runner with my time who never won a race Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Cognitive Restructuring: productive thoughts - focus on controllables (learned optimism) - acceptance & problem-solving focus - countering thought stoppage positive self-statements positive imagery Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Self-Talk: Instructional self-talk: The overt or covert speech that individuals use for skill development, skill execution, strategy development, and general performance improvement. Motivational self-talk: The overt or covert speech that individuals use for mastery, arousal control, and drive. Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Self-Talk Use Questionnaire (Hardy et al., 2005) 59 items measuring: – when athletes use self-talk – what athletes say to themselves – why athletes talk to themselves (practice and competition) – how athletes use self-talk Regulating Arousal - Cognitive The Six Dimensions of Self-Talk: 1. Valence—positive (you got this) or negative (I’m not ready) 2. Verbalization—overt or covert (visible vs hidden) 3. Self-determination—assigned or freely chosen (are they coming up with it or are people telling them to tell themselves) 4. Directional interpretation—motivating or demotivating (do this vs. don’t do this) – if someone is trying to tell themselves that they’re ready when they’re not, it’ll be very demotivating 5. Directional intensity—not at all or very much so 6. Frequency—often or never  Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Stress Inoculation Training: Explore stress-inducing scenarios in order to develop effective coping strategies. “What if” (if-then) planning; having a plan reduces stress. Think about a stressful situation and attempt to calm yourself down – build up comfort with stress slowly / step-by-step  think of one – image – video – same room – touching… Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Stress Inoculation Training: 1. Discussion of link between thoughts + feelings + performance 2. Athlete learns self-regulation skills 3. Coping behaviors prescribed (change negatives into positives) 4. Exposure to stressful event/outcome Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Hypnosis: Altered state of consciousness induced through deep relaxation Puts person in a state in which they respond to suggestions designed to alter perceptions, feelings, thoughts and actions To benefit from hypnosis, you must be highly suggestible Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Hypnosis: Myths and fears about hypnosis interfere with suggestibility. Positive suggestions are effective in facilitating performance regardless of whether athlete is hypnotized.  Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Imagery Also called mental practice / visualization Consciously controlled copy of experience involving all senses (sight, sound, smell, touch, feel) + moods & emotions Combines relaxation training, imagery, and behavioral practice under simulated conditions Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Imagery types: cognitive general imagery: Images of strategies, game plans, or routines. motivational general imagery: Images relating to physiological arousal levels and emotions. motivational specific imagery: Images related to an individual’s goals. motivational general–arousal: Imagery associated with arousal and stress. motivational general–mastery: Imagery associated with being mentally tough, in control, and self- confident. Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Conditions that facilitate imagery: 1. Vividness & controllability - more effective when athletes are high in their ability to control their images 2. Practice - more practice = better control 3. Skill level - effects stronger for experienced performers  Regulating Arousal - Cognitive 4. Image content - most effective to visualize what you want to do rather than what you want to avoid 5. Internal vs. external perspective - unimportant as long as it suits individual preference and ability External: picturing yourself doing it from an outside perspective (watching yourself do the routine in your mind Internal: creating a mental image (sensations and feelings) 6. Real vs. accelerated time ??????? - Are they doing a quick marking of it in their head… Regulating Arousal - Cognitive How imagery works: 1. Psychoneuromuscular theory 2. Psychological skills hypothesis 3. Bioinformational theory Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Psychoneuromuscular theory Imagery programs muscles for action Imagery facilitates the learning of motor skills because imagined events innervate the muscles; strengthen neural pathways Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Psychological skills hypothesis Imagery develops and refines mental skills such as concentration and reduces anxiety Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Bioinformational theory Images strengthen stimulus response connections Decision-making process is more rapid because the links between problems and solutions have been established Regulating Arousal - Cognitive Uses of imagery: improve concentration build confidence control emotional responses acquire and practice sport skills acquire & practice strategy cope with pain and adversity solve problems Regulating Arousal - Combined Psych up strategies: deep breaths stretching & exercise pre-competition workout music & video energizing imagery energizing verbal cues Regulating Arousal - Combined Psych up strategies (cont’d): energizing from environmental cues personal notebooks / cue cards / ribbons, etc. pep talks / slogans / posters