Sports Psychology Research Paper

The field of sport psychology is a fascinating and exploding field to be apart of; with the current national focus on health from the overweight third grader to the professional football player with a concussion history, sport psychology has the possibility of impacting all those areas and many more. Being a relatively new field in the grand scheme of psychology means that the variety of backgrounds, qualifications, certifications and licenses is as vast as those sports psychology can help. From the bachelor’s level educated gentleman working in Player Development for the Denver Broncos, the certified personal trainer, to the individual seeking to change the understanding of the impact of concussions on professional football players, each has
tread their own path to their current position. Ideally a bachelors and/or master’s level education is preferred when looking toward licensure as a sport psychologist.
With those specific degrees individuals can seek certification in personal training and athletic training and even in some states licensure as a psychologist depending on the states specific requirements. One of the leading certifications in the field of sports psychology is certification through the Association for Applied Sport Psychology as a consultant, though in some cases that certification process is more involved than some states licensure requirements. In terms of licensure some states, like Texas and Colorado, require an individual to posses a doctorate degree to even be considered for licensure as a sport psychologist. Ultimately, there are many avenues one can pursue but what it all boils down to is the specific people and environment an individual wants to work in. Once that is established, one can then decided on what level of education to pursue as well as the type of certifications and
licensure. There is an interesting line of research conducted by those in the field of psychology that would insist that leaderships skills are apart of the competency needed to be a psychologist; this is representative in the education, practice and even in the very definition of what psychology is.
The APA itself, set forth in its guidelines for doctoral programs, internships, and postdoctoral residencies, decree that psychologist naturally assume leadership roles in their actions as professionals; they are dedicated to ethical practice, continuing education, professional networking, reverence for diversity and the use of their knowledge to promote the health of individuals and society (Kois, King, LaDuke, & Cook, 2015). Beyond education, it is fundamental to the field to constantly establish mentoring and professional collaborations, network connections, and field development to sustain licensure all of which cannot be down without the basic skills of leadership (Kois et al., 2015). Fundamentally, not only do professional psychologist recognize and associate with those that possess leadership skills, in the world of sports, a world full of natural leaders, the same associations occur.
3. Provide three examples of common psychological techniques often employed by exercise psychology professionals and discuss the importance of possessing leadership skills, and building trust and rapport with team
members.
Imagery is a psychological skills technique designed to allow athletes the ability to control the brain into recognizing a specific action, repeatedly visualized by the athlete to perfection beforehand, and allow the athlete to execute the action in real time (Williams, 2010). This tool can be utilized by individuals to create enthusiasm or rest, understanding, and be incorporated to assist in a variety of areas where performance is evaluated. Imagery follows closely the same process as one uses to gradually add weight to a lifting routing; it is a complex process and takes extensive training in order to utilize to gain optimal performance. However, once mastered, the ability for the athlete to visualize the perfect performance and then translate that vivid visualization to tangible action becomes elementary. One of the most unique psychological skills techniques focuses on the harnessing of attention and concentration for athletes. External broad and narrow and internal broad and narrow are the four dimensions of attention that must be controlled by the athlete for peak performance (Williams, 2010). Each dimension focuses on a specific area of concentration resulting in a complete assessment of both internal and external factors in ones performance; these include things from how one feels, the direction in which the offense is running and the location of ones opponent (Williams, 2010). The four focuses allow the athlete to assess the big picture, formulate a strategy, reach hyper self-awareness, and finally performance; each part of concentration is used at different points play providing an ability to achieve complete concentration for the length of performance. There are a number of techniques associated with arousal levels: self-talk, imagery, pre and post performance routines, and talk stop. Ideally, all can be utilized, per the preference of the athlete to reach optimal arousal for peak performance (Birrer & Morgan, 2010). The state of arousal can be manipulated through perception of control, understanding of situational elements, and alteration of mental and physical sensitivities; what is crucial is the existence of fear of failure. Establishing a pre performance routine, for example, allows that athlete to focus on each step of getting ready for a game preventing any extra mental space to think about what could go wrong. As a sports psychology professional none of the above would be possible without the possession of leadership skills and the ability to develop trust and rapport with ones clients. At the very foundations of psychology, professionals are trained to build trust and rapport with clients because without it neither party can explore beyond the surface of any issue presented. It is up to the professional to establish an environment where the client feels safe enough to divulge the reasons for seeking professional help. The same follows suit with rapport; clients want to feel they are entrusting a knowledgeable professional with their treatment. Finally, those involved in sports beyond a young developmental stage possess their own level of leadership skills and recognize that in others; to train leaders one must possess the ability to be a leader. Interestingly enough, the field of sport psychology is such a new field that anyone attempting to carve their own path in this particular specialization must fundamentally have leadership skills. It is very rarely the followers that are remembered for their contributions, but the leaders who stepped up and lead the way.