Psychological Challenges In Sports Essay

Common psychological challenges in sports are: concentration, confidence, control, and commitment. These are addressed through the 4Cs formula.
Concentration is crucial for the success of PST. The lack of concentration can be detrimental to performance given that different sports demand varying levels of concentration. Lack of concentration can be addressed by: goal setting, breaking down a task into specific aspects and focusing on each aspect, using trigger words to refocus in the event of concentration lapse, and developing a routine for competition (before, during, after) (Unit 10, n.d)
The second challenge is confidence. Confidence is correlated with the athlete’s goal and ability in that if one believes they can achieve a given task they will have the confidence to achieve it. Confidence generates positivity, enthusiasm and perseverance. Confidence can be built through imagery where the athletes create mental pictures of themselves performing well which reminds them of how they look and feel in this winning situation. Mental imagery also helps to rehearse both success and failure. Similarly, confidence requires a positive state of

The PST strategy related to control issues is the facilitation of the understanding of emotion to gain control. Similarly, relaxation techniques can be used enhance emotional control, relaxation strategies here include allowing the athlete to experience the feeling of being completely relaxed, training the athlete to control their breathing and to monitor their own tension levels (Thelwell & Greenless, 2001). The mix of physical and mental anxiety leads to a lack of control. Physical anxiety is manifested through sweating, stomach problems and nausea while mental anxiety is manifested in negative thoughts, lack of concentration and confusion. When an individual is angry, they tend to focus on the anger at the expense of the sport and