When listening to interviews with Tiger Woods, you will always here him comment positively about his Father’s influence in his development as a golfer. Earl Woods is one example of a pushy parent and had encouraged his son to play golf from an early age. In the documentary video Tiger Woods: Son Hero Champion (2004), […]
“Motivation will almost always beat mere talent” Norman Ralph Augustine Motivation is a key subject for athletes, coaches and sporting organisations. In sport psychology, we attempt to define and measure the ‘right motivation’. The self-determination theory is one such attempt to define the ‘right’ motivation, suggesting that more self-determined forms of motivation lead to positive […]
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 […]
I was on a recent train journey and I needed something to read so I picked up a copy of New Scientist (1 June 2013). Several of the articles took my eye with immediate links to sport psychology. The one that really took my eye was from Ecology around intimidation and how predators influence the […]
Clubs are a vital part of sports such as Football and Hockey where a team is vital in order to train and compete, but training for individual sports, such as Running or Golf can be a lonely task. The obvious answer is to join a club, but for some a club is not available or […]
“Confidence is contagious” – Vince Lombardi. This article is written in the context of football. If football is not your sport then simply substitute footballer for cricketer or athlete, the concepts are the same and transferrable. I am a BASES Accredited Sport Scientist in sport psychology and I am based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire and […]
Our greatest enemy… and our biggest ally? I recently tweeted a riddle a few days ago. Unfortunately nobody had the answer. The riddle goes like this “I will be your greatest hindrance or your biggest aid. I will clear the road for you or block it again. Who am I?” Somebody intelligently responded “a traffic […]