The effect of yoga on the state anxiety and mood state of athletes
- Authors: Timmermans, Chad , Spittle, Michael , Plaisted, Vicki
- Date: 2003
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: Paper presented at XIth European Congress of Sport Psychology, Copenhagen, Denmark : 22nd-27th July 2003
- Full Text: false
- Description: Introduction: This study examined the effect of yoga on the state anxiety and mood states of athletes. Yoga has long been practised by athletes but its influence on the mood state of athletes has not been empirically examined. Method: Participants were 15 female netball players, aged between 18 and 27 years (M = 20.97, SD = 3.09) who completed the Abbreviated Profile of Mood States (APOMS) and the state anxiety inventory (A-State) before and after each of six yoga or strength and conditioning sessions completed one night per week. Participants acted as their own controls with all participants completing both treatments. The main hypothesis was that yoga participants would report significantly greater changes in mood state and state anxiety than strength and conditioning participants. Results: A One-Way Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) indicated that yoga sessions had significantly greater pre to post test change on overall mood state and state anxiety compared to strength and conditioning sessions. In addition, on the subscales of the APOMS, yoga produced significantly greater pre to post test decreases on confusion and tension than strength and conditioning. Conclusion: Results support the use of yoga to positively enhance mood state and decrease state anxiety in athlete populations.Implications for coaches and athletes are discussed including the potential use of alternative and holistic training methods for the management of mood and anxiety. Future research directions are also discussed including investigating alternative approaches to the management of mood and anxiety in athletes and further investigation into the components of yoga.
- Description: 2003003782
“I did not ‘choke’!” : Introducing a preliminary self-presentation model of “choking” in sport
- Authors: Mesagno, Christopher
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: Paper presented at 43rd Annual Conference of the Australian Psychological Society, Hotel Grand Chancellor, Hobart, Tasmania : 23rd-26th September 2008 p. 219-223
- Full Text: false
- Description: Based on recently proposed definitions, “choking under pressure” (i.e., choking) is defined as a critical deterioration in the execution of habitual processes as a result of an elevation in anxiety levels under perceived pressure, leading to substandard performance. Researchers have provided descriptive choking models (i.e., self-focus and distraction models) with the self-focus model receiving the most empirical support, however, no one has offered explanatory models that may answer the question “why does choking occur?” Thus, the present paper is an amalgamation of three interconnected studies that, in part, examined the psychological characteristics of “choking-susceptible” athletes using qualitative interviews, which helped to develop an explanatory model of choking. A total of 174 experienced athletes completed three psychological inventories to purposively sample 14 choking-susceptible athletes who participated in a series of single-case designs that included both low- and high-pressure phases. After the experimental phase, participants were interviewed about their experience and content analyses were conducted. Common choking-related themes were increased public self-awareness, fear of evaluation/failure, and self-monitoring techniques. Further qualitative cross-case analyses provided evidence for a preliminary self-presentation model of choking that link public self-awareness, anxiety, and conveying a positive self-presentation, which will be discussed.
- Description: 2003006464
Competitive pressure and decision-making accuracy in a video-based simulation of soccer
- Authors: Mesagno, Christopher , Spittle, Michael , McNeil, Dominic
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: Paper presented at 43rd Annual Conference of the Australian Psychological Society, Hotel Grand Chancellor, Hobart, Tasmania : 23rd-26th September 2008
- Full Text: false
- Description: Perceptual-cognitive skills and decision-making in sport have typically been explored using videobased protocols in settings where participants are not exposed to the type of competitive pressures that characterise a game situation. Consequently, this study aimed to investigate the influence of competitive pressure, or competitive anxiety, on decision-making accuracy. Seventy-seven (Male=44, Female=33) undergraduate students with mean age of 20.16 years (SD = 3.18) were randomly assigned to an experimental (n=56) or control group (n=21) and completed a video–based perceptual decision-making test of 25 temporally occluded offensive soccer plays. Participants in the experimental group completed the test with and without competitive pressure conditions. Pressure was manipulated by introducing a competition for a monetary prize. Participants in the control condition completed the test twice without competition. All participants completed a state anxiety measure prior to each test. The competition produced significantly higher cognitive anxiety than no competition; however, this was not reflected in any significant differences in decisionmaking accuracy. Although not statistically significant, more experienced performers tended to score more accurately with competitive pressure.
- Description: 2003007671