A presentation I made to fellow colleagues during my short time in Student Affairs. I chose Mental Toughness as it was something often overlooked in sports.

1. . SLD Sharing . Sports . 29 April 2014 .

2. Introduction
 Mental Toughness has many definitions and is not
limited to athletic performance and pain tolerance.
 From the sports environment - something that is very
often referred to but rarely defined.

3. How mentally tough individuals/teams differ from
others.
Focused for Rugby by Adam Nicholls, Jon Callard.

4. Notable example in sports.
L-R (Top): Liverpool winning the Champions League, Mo Farah winning
the 5000m Olympics, Kilian Jornet’s speed record on Mt. Cervino.
L-R (Bottom): Oscar Pistorius beaten by Alan Oliveira, Bradley Wiggins
winning the Tour de France, Alex Honnold free soloing Yosemite's Half
Dome wall.

5. 3 Research Definitions
• Defines four categories for mental
toughness attributes
(attitude, training, competition and post-competition)
Jones, Hanton
and Connaughton
(2002)
• Defines mental toughness as
having both reactive and proactive
qualities
(Using mental toughness attributes to help endure and perform
well during adverse situations)
Gucciardi, Gordon
and Dimmock
(2008)
• Combines existing psychological
theory and applied sport psychology
(Presented as a generic concept and should not be limited to the
sports domain)
Clough and Earle
(2002)

6. Mental Toughness - Clough and Earle (2002)
 “Mental Toughness is the quality which determines in
large part how people deal with . . .
 challenge,
 stress and
 pressure
. . . irrespective of prevailing circumstances”
 It can also be described as the link between peak
performance and stress management
 Mental Toughness (MT) helps us to understand why one
person succeeds & another struggles when the pressure
is on.

7. Mental toughness for students
HIGH
MT
(A) Improved
Performance
(B) Improved
Behaviour
(C)
Improved
Well being

8. Mental toughness for students
For students, MT impacts on:
A. Performance
 it explains up to 25% of the variation in individual
performance
B. Behaviour. Students with high MT:
 are more engaged,
 are more positive and
 have a more “can do” attitude
C. Wellbeing. Students with high MT:
 are more content,
 have better stress management ,
 experience less bullying

9. 4C’s Model of Mental Toughness
Mental Toughness
Control
The ability to handle lots
of things at once and
remain influential rather
than controlled.
Training in the presence
of distractions.
Commitment
Being deeply involved
with pursuing goals and
striving to achieve them
despite difficulties.
Goal-setting and goal-
achievement.
Challenge
Being able to perceive
potential threats as
opportunities for personal
growth and thriving in
constantly changing
environments.
Increase familiarity with
change (new challenges
in training).
Confidence
The ability to maintain
self-belief in spite of
setbacks, and not to be
intimidated by opponents.
Imagine facing and
coming through difficult
situations.

10. Mental Toughness Development
Coaching
Positive
Thinking
Visualisation
Anxiety
Control
Goal Setting
MTQ48 Test
& Feedback
Mental toughness capability can be developed in many individuals (but maybe not all)

11. Testing Mental
Toughness
• MTQ48 Questionnaire
developed by
Professor Peter
Clough and Dr. Keith
Earle.
• A psychometric
measure used to
assess Mental
Toughness.
• Designed to provide a
reliable and quick
assessment of an
individual’s ability to
withstand pressure in
a range of workplace
environments.

12. Final Thoughts
 Mental Toughness as a
personality trait is not
confined to the sporting
realm.
 It can occur in all sports
and also in life in
general
 It is having the capacity
in a quick time frame to
turn a negative
experience into a
positive one.

13. For more
information
Book published in Feb
2003 Kogan Page.
Written by Dr. Peter
Clough and Doug
Strycharczyk.
Crust, L., & Clough, P. J.
(2011). Developing
mental toughness: From
research to practice.
Journal of Sport
Psychology in Action, 2.