It has long been said in the media that different coaches have different styles of coaching. The question is, what does this really mean? There are two main types of coaching style outlined in the literature. These are autonomy-supportive and controlling (Bartholomew et al., 2009 & Isoard-Gautheur et al., 2012). An autonomy-supportive coaching style is […]
Performance Analysis and Sports Psychology are perhaps the two newest additions to the strings of the sports science bow. Documents of their effectiveness are individual entities are becoming more widespread; with professional governing bodies and clubs rapidly expanding and creating departments in recent years. However, despite the fact that support roles complement each other, how […]
Surprising though it may have been, one of the most talented athletes in our world today, LeBron James, has chosen to leave the NBA’s Miami Heat team to come home to the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers team. For all athletes, being happy where you are and with what you are doing is a crucial aspect of […]
A complex process of self appraisals and self persuasion form the basis of judgements that individuals create with regards to whether they believe they have the capabilities to achieve. This is known as self efficacy and it relies on cognitive processing from a wide range of sources of efficacy information (Bandura, 1990). Self efficacy is […]
“The mind’ll quit a lot sooner than the body will.” I had a coach a few years ago that would tell us this as we struggled to finish our workouts. It was something that was meant to inspire, but that we grew to hate. It was something that made us realize that there was no […]
Motivation can be defined as the factors which direct and energise the behaviours of humans and other organisms- the drive behind the reasons we do things. Researchers have investigated a number of theories in order to understand motivational needs- however it seems that it is only through looking at these theories as a collective motivation […]
It is widely acknowledged that the most successful performers across varying sporting paradigms are those that have invested a significant amount of time acquiring the essential skills of their trade through purposeful practice. From a skill acquisition perspective, factors such as repetition are recognized as being of critical importance in providing players/performers a solid foundation […]
Intrinsic motivation can be defined as “engaging in an activity for itself and for the pleasure and satisfaction derived from participation” (Vallerand, 2004). The coach’s ability to intrinsically motivate players is crucial for long term athlete development, in regards to facilitating performance, providing a positive experience, and promoting a healthy lifestyle. The pedagogic setting that […]
Top athletes are made rather than born. Through hard work, practicing and learning they have become the quality players we know now. Working hard might even define the limit of your capabilities, the thin line between top and world class. There is no arguing Paul can ice skate better than John, if Paul has been doing […]
At some time or other I suspect all athletes find it hard to maintain the intensity of exercise. We’ve all been there; the days when you had planned to go for a run but didn’t have the resolve to do it. This is when an athlete’s psychological tools come into their own-helping you stay motivated […]