Sports Psychology Personal Statement

The 1993 film The Program contained several different situations in which sports psychology could have been applied. Some of these situations include pressure and anxiety, aggression and the effect of injury. All three of these situations were important to this film and all have the underlying need for sports psychology.

Sports psychology deals with the mental and emotional aspects of physical performance. It involves describing, explaining and predicting attitudes, feelings and behaviours in an attempt to improve performance. In the film 'Coach Carter,' directed by Thomas Carter, sport psychology is used effectively to enhance the performance of a high school basketball team. However, this improved performance is not limited to the basketball court, it extends into the classroom where the students use goal setting, motivation, concentration and confidence control, ultimately to become accepted into college, avoiding a life of drugs, gangs and prison.

This report was created to help the Florida Sports Committee understand why Clear Choice Coaching will want to partner and incorporate the sport phycology discipline in our practices to help us with our approach to recruit, retain and develop our coaches. This report was created to bring attention to the benefits of working together with coaches and sport psychology professionals to help advance and implement reliable yearly platforms of activities that carry out quality measurable assessments. We concentrate in coaching Soccer, Basketball, Tennis and Football. We are confident by integrating this discipline we will develop increased efficiency, knowledge sharing and transfer of improved skills to our athletes. We can see the benefits that

I've been asked one question…”What do you want to be when you grow up?” I thought for a long time I wanted to be a Sports Psychologist but for the last 6 months I’ve been asking myself, “Do I really want to be a Sport Psychologist?”, and I have discovered that I'm interested in more than just sports related things-I'm interested in marine life and the marine atmosphere. I don't see how this didn't come to me sooner because every time I would go to the beach I would ask if we could go to the South Carolina Aquarium just to look at the fish or when we would go to Miami I would ask if we could go to the Miami Seaquarium or the Zoo Miami. It's important to me to find out more about marine biology because this is my future and just in case

The philosophy that a sport psychology consultant adopts breathes life into their work. It puts flesh on bone and gives the knowledge base that the consultant has already acquired a thumping heart and a living soul, providing significance and application to the knowledge acquired in their training. Most importantly, the philosophy that a consultant adopts makes their work important to them and to their clients while giving them the opportunity to develop self-confidence. As I consider what I want my consulting philosophy to be, I want to keep in mind that I am the type of person that always wants to be learning. Sport psychology is an ever-developing occupation where there is always something new in the field to implement with your client,

This portfolio is a compilation of my works while pursuing a Master's degree in Coaching and Athletic Administration. These selected works illustrate my professional development gained from this educational experience. Seeking out professional development opportunities is critical for athletic coaches and administrators because every sports program, regardless of the age or skill level, should have a qualified coach lead it. In fact, many would argue there are a moral and a legal obligation to have qualified coaches at all levels. There is a legal obligation because unqualified coaches are more likely to teach improper skills and techniques, which puts athletes at risk for injuries. Further, there is a moral obligation, as qualified coaches are more apt to understand and address the psychological and physiological developmental needs for each athlete. When a coach knows these psychological and

A potential career that I have in mind is becoming a Sport Psychologist. The first scholarly article I found is titled “NCAA Athletic Administrators’ Preferred Characteristics for Sport Psychology Positions: A Consumer Market Analysis”. The study conducted in this article looks into the market for Sport Psychologist in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It compares different Athletic administrator’s preferences for sport psychology positions based on time, commitment, affiliation, payment, services, and clients. The next scholarly article I found is titled “Professional Philosophy in the Sport Psychology Service Delivery: Building on Theory and Practice”. The purpose of this article is to explain the role of professional philosophy in sport psychology practice. Examples of how professional philosophy is the foundation of sport psychology practice are shown. And a conceptualization of the philosophy of service through s discussion of the the necessary components that were grouped using a hierarchy chart are explained. Both of these articles use a unique research process, and have relevance to my potential career path.

The study was conducted to test a new outreach model that required a partnership between counseling services and student-support services. The model was based on the development of sport psychology’ mental skills, namely relaxation, imagery, routines, self-talk, and concentration. Two different research method approaches, an anonymous Likert scale questionnaire, and qualitative interviews were used (Beauchemin,

Although mental rehearsal is not as beneficial as physical practice, it fairs better than no practice at all. Therefore a program involving both mental and physical rehearsal training seems to be the most beneficial to the individual. However, improvements need to be made by sports psychologists in the area of mental rehearsal, so athletes can have a better understanding of the game and what is involved to enhance their performance. Further studies need to be conducted to determine when and why mental rehearsal techniques will be effective to enhance better performance by athletes in their sporting

(Gould & Pick, 1995). For being the first person who systematically conducted research in sport

It has been identified that through sports psychology one can improve their physical ability and performance. Sports psychology is the study of how the mind, mental states and behaviour effect sporting performance. There are several sport psychology techniques, which have helped me become a better volleyball player. These techniques include planning for performance, controlling arousal levels, mental rehearsal and concentration.

If I was forced to choose a field in Psychology, I would most likely choose to be a sports psychologist. According to the American Psychologist Association, a sports psychologist will, “Help athletes refine their focus on competition goals, become more motivated, and learn to deal with the anxiety and fear of failure that often accompany competition (American Psychological Association, 2016, para. 2).” This would be my prefered field because I could somewhat connect with my patients since I am very active in sports and other competitive activities. If I was in this field, then I would be able to best help because I have known the intense feelings of stress and anxiety that comes along with a serious sport and I could be able to communicate

Sport psychology is another biophysical principle which influnces improvement in trainings. These include motivation, self talk, visualisation, mental rehersal, routines, arousal control, goal setting, confidence and concentration. Sport Psychology is a importnant component as it influnces your motivations levels and keeps you going when you are struggling. Motivation is very important when it comes to exerscising because if you are not motivated you will not be enthusiastic about training and therefore you will become lazy, however if you are motivated you will become ready to go and will take on any challenge. There are many ways to influence your motivation one way I think influnces my motivation is by listening to up beat music while exerscising

In earlier days sports psychology was mostly concerned with developing assessment methods that would identify those people with the potential to become serious superior athletes. Today the focus is on psychological training, exercises that strengthen the mental skills that will help athletic performances on the path to excellence. These skills include mental imagery and focus training. If an athlete is serious about becoming the best he or she can possibly be, the most essential ingredient is commitment to practice the right things. It takes incredible commitment to reach the top: a commitment to rest and train the body so it can perform under the most demanding conditions and a commitment to train the mind to

Children who participate in sports are developing rapidly in sports skills, sportsmanship, and psychologically, but does this come from organized sports are just nature’s process. Children develop emotional and social benefits from participating in sports. Children experience character and leadership development through peer relations leading to an increase in self-esteem and a decrease in anxiety levels. Children will get opportunities to experience positive and negative emotions throughout their practice and games trials. It is important for the coach to understand the “psychology of youth sports and physical activity participation” (Weinberg & Gould, 2011 p.516).