Psychological techniques can be used to help people perform more effectively — this concept represents a major focus of sport psychology throughout its history. Psychological Skills Training, including, Arousal Regulation, Imagery, Self-Confidence, Goal Setting, and Concentration, provides the coach and the athlete with a choice of "tools" to apply in a given situation. Our chief focus is on teaching students how psychological skills can be trained or developed in sport and exercise participants.  How are psychological techniques used to help people perform more effectively? The chief focus of the prior four weeks centered on teaching how psychological skills can be trained or developed in sport and exercise participants. By using the tools discussed in weeks 1-4 individuals can use the power of their mind to build mental toughness and take sport performance to new levels. Have you ever wondered why athletes with so much talent never come close to reaching their potential, while other athletes with far less athletic ability achieve great success? Many experts believe that sport performance is 75% -90% mental.  This gives a clear indication that athletes who are better prepared mentally are the ones that are successful.  As sports continue to evolve, it will be even more important for athletes to spend more time training their minds. Key Point: Through the methods discussed in this course, athletes can develop confidence  and have  razor sharp focus , have a  fearless approach , enhance your athletic skills, end performance anxiety,  remain calm and relaxed  while playing or competing, and access inner resources of  strength and power. By tapping into the mind's tremendous power, athletes are more able to simply allow their body to operate on pure instinct.  As a result, you will be more consistent in your play and have more opportunities for peak performances. We may encounter many defeats, but we must not be defeated………. Maya Angelou Psychological skills training (PST) is the systematic and consistent practice of mental or psychological skills for the purpose of enhancing performance, increasing enjoyment, or achieving greater sport and physical activity self-satisfaction (Weinberg & Gould, 2011, p.248).  Some of the methods and techniques for PST include, goal setting, attentional control, relaxation and stress management, and attribution training.  Coaches and athletes know how important physical skills are and how they need to be regularly practiced and refined through many repetitions but psychological skills need to be practiced as well.  Psychological skills help an athlete to maintain focus and concentration, regulate arousal levels, enhance confidence, and maintain motivation.  These skills are just as important as physical skills.  Psychological skills training is often neglected because of a lack of knowledge, perceived lack of tie, or a belief that psychological skills are innate and can’t be taught (Weinberg & Gould 20 ...

1. Psychological techniques can be used to help people perform
more effectively
— this concept represents a major focus of sport psychology
throughout its history. Psychological Skills Training,
including, Arousal Regulation, Imagery, Self-Confidence, Goal
Setting, and Concentration, provides the coach and the athlete
with a choice of "tools" to apply in a given situation. Our chief
focus is on teaching students how psychological skills can be
trained or developed in sport and exercise participants.
How are psychological techniques used to help people perform
more effectively?
The chief focus of the prior four weeks centered on teaching
how psychological skills can be trained or developed in sport
and exercise participants.
By using the tools discussed in weeks 1-4 individuals can use
the power of their mind to build mental toughness and take
sport performance to new levels.
Have you ever wondered why athletes with so much talent never
come close to reaching their potential, while other athletes with
far less athletic ability achieve great success?
Many experts believe that sport performance is 75% -90%
mental. This gives a clear indication that athletes who are
better prepared mentally are the ones that are successful. As
sports continue to evolve, it will be even more important for
athletes to spend more time training their minds.
Key Point:

2. Through the methods discussed in this course, athletes can
develop
confidence
and have
razor sharp focus
, have a
fearless approach
, enhance your athletic skills, end performance anxiety,
remain calm and relaxed
while playing or competing, and access inner resources of
strength and power.
By tapping into the mind's tremendous power, athletes are more
able to simply allow their body to operate on pure instinct. As
a result, you will be more consistent in your play and have more
opportunities for peak performances.
We may encounter many defeats, but we must not be
defeated……….
Maya Angelou
Psychological skills training (PST) is the systematic and
consistent practice of mental or psychological skills for the
purpose of enhancing performance, increasing enjoyment, or
achieving greater sport and physical activity self-satisfaction
(Weinberg & Gould, 2011, p.248). Some of the methods and
techniques for PST include, goal setting, attentional control,
relaxation and stress management, and attribution training.
Coaches and athletes know how important physical skills are
and how they need to be regularly practiced and refined through
many repetitions but psychological skills need to be practiced as
well. Psychological skills help an athlete to maintain focus and
concentration, regulate arousal levels, enhance confidence, and
maintain motivation. These skills are just as important as
physical skills. Psychological skills training is often neglected
because of a lack of knowledge, perceived lack of tie, or a

3. belief that psychological skills are innate and can’t be taught
(Weinberg & Gould 2011, p. 251).
Psychological Skills Training Tools:
Attentional Control
Attribution Training
Feedback
Goal-setting
Imagery
Pre-performance Routine
Relaxation
Self-talk
Key PST Concepts
Psychological skills training
refers to learning to systematically and consistently practice
mental or psychological skills, such as maintaining and focusing
concentration, regulating arousal levels, enhancing confidence,
and maintaining motivation. Psychological skills can be learned,
but they must be practiced over time and integrated into a
person's daily training regimen.
Psychological skills training is not just for athletes, but for
anyone who desires to improve performance.

4. A number of myths survive about the development of
psychological skills training (PST), for example that PST is
only for "problem" athletes, is only for elite athletes, provides
"quick fix" solutions to complex problems, and is hocus-pocus
and does not really work.
Three general phases of PST include education (learning the
importance of PST), acquisition (learning mental skills), and
practice (using the mental skills during training before using
them in competition). The learning of psychological skills
progresses from practices and simulations to actual
competitions. Mental training should continue throughout an
athlete's sport participation.
The ultimate goal of PST is self-regulation, the process by
which athletes learn how to effectively function on their own by
working toward long- and short-term goals and effectively
monitoring and managing thoughts, feelings, and behavior. The
five stages of self-regulation include problem identification,
commitment, execution, environmental management, and
generalization.
There are a number of potential problems to be aware of in
implementing PST programs. These include an athlete's lack of
conviction, a perceived lack of time to fit in the training
program, a lack of sport-specific knowledge (when the program
is administered by a sport psychology consultant), and a lack of
follow-up and evaluation.
Key Point:
Going back to the achievement motivation program, it is
visually apparent that the compilation of the different

5. psychological methods (i.e. behavior modification, goal setting,
working on attentional control—concentration skills, etc.) have
a strong impact on achieving success. Not being able to
differentiate between the method and the means to the outcome
can be confusing. For example, “mental toughness, confidence,
self-efficacy” are all examples of psychological skills. But this
represents the desired goal of the PST program. How does one
achieve that state? They do it via the Psychological methods
that are the components of the program itself (behavior
modification, cognitive evaluation, evaluating emotional
responses, setting goals, etc. These are all examples of
psychological methods that can be used to achieve desired
psychological skills.
"Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from
an indomitable will."
- Mahatma Gandhi
Research on elite athletes demonstrates that more successful
athletes were characterized by higher confidence, greater self-
regulating of arousal, better concentration and focus, an in-
control but not forcing-it attitude, positive thoughts and
imagery, and more determination and commitment. Successful
athletes also achieved peak performance by using the mental
skills or goal setting, imagery, arousal control and management,
thought control, competitive plant, coping strategies, and
mental preparation routines (Weinberg & Gould 2011, p. 253).
A PST program consists of three phases: education, acquisition,
and practice. The educational phase is the first phase of the
program where athletes learn how important it is to acquire PST
and how the skills affect performance. This phase may last for
an hour or for as long as several hours over the course of a few
days depending on the individual (Weinberg & Gould 2011, p.
254-255).

6. The second phase is the acquisition phase which focuses on
strategies and techniques for learning the various psychological
skills. Each athlete reacts differently to similar situations so
you need to tailor specific strategies to each athlete’s unique
needs and abilities. Psychological skills should be learned and
practiced. People should expect improvement as they develop
skills and refine them over time (Weinberg & Gould 2011, p.
255).
The final phase is the practice phase which has three primary
objectives: to automate skills through over-learning, to teach
people to systematically integrate psychological skills into their
performance situations, and to simulate skills people will want
to apply in actual competition. (Weinberg & Gould 2011, p.
255).
The first thing to do when developing an effective
psychological skills training program is to assess and identify
the athlete’s psychological skills weaknesses and strengths.
This can be done through an interview or a series of PST
questionnaires. Every program is different and only needs to
include the PST methods required to meet the athlete’s PST
requirement (BodyBuilding.com, 2011). Not every athlete
needs to develop all of the skills; they just need to work on
their weaknesses. I would ensure that he keeps a journal to
record the frequency and perceived effectiveness of the arousal
control strategies that he used in practice and competition. If
he includes how the felt, what relaxation procedure he used, and
whether the technique helped or not, this will help him handle
situations the may come across during game time.
Education Phase… During the education phase, inform and
educate the individual about the importance and benefits of PST
to performance.

7. Acquisition Phase… During the acquisition phase formal
practice sessions are scheduled to teach the relevant methods
for acquiring and developing the different psychological skills.
Practice Phase… The practice phase is the longest phase where
extensive practice of relevant psychological tools occurs until
they are learned; automate psychological skills though over
learning.
"You measure the size of the accomplishment by the obstacles
you had to overcome to reach your goals." --
Booker T. Washington
References:
Body Building.com (2011) Psychological skills training:
Critical to athlete’s success. Retrieved from
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/psychological-skills-
training.htm
Weinberg, R. S., & Gould, D. (2011) Foundations of sport and
exercise psychology (6th ed.) Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics
sychological Skills Training
This lesson will focus on how psychological techniques can be
used to help people perform more effectively in sports
activities, which has been a major focus of sport psychology
throughout its history. This lesson will first focus on defining
and discussing the history and important components of
psychological skills training (PST) programs to enhance the
mental aspects of an athlete, in order to increase performance.
The remainder of the lesson will then define, discuss research,
and discuss how to establish an effective PST program in the

8. following psychological skill areas: arousal regulation, imagery,
and self-confidence.
Learning Objectives:
Define and describe PST, the myths surrounding it, and the
scientific and professional practice knowledge base for it.
Discuss the three phases of PST programs and how to develop
and implement an effective PST program.
Describe key aspects of arousal regulation programs and apply
those aspects to develop a training program for various athletes.
Define imagery and the characteristics of imagery, and explain
how to develop an imagery skills program.
Define self-confidence and the characteristics of self-
confidence, and explain how to improve athlete self-confidence.
Analyze how program components from arousal regulation,
imagery and self-confidence fit within the constructs of PST
programs.
PSYC460
SPORT PSYCHOLOGY
LESSON FIVE
Psychological Skills Training

9. Introduction
This lesson will focus on how psychological techniques can be
used to help people perform more effectively in sports
activities, which has been a major focus of sport psychology
throughout its history. This lesson will first focus on defining
and discussing the history and important components of
psychological skills training (PST) programs to enhance the
mental aspects of an athlete, in order to increase performance.
The remainder of the lesson will then define, discuss research,
and discuss how to establish an effective PST program in the
following psychological skill areas: arousal regulation, imagery,
and self-confidence.
Learning Objectives:
Define and describe PST, the myths surrounding it, and the
scientific and professional practice knowledge base for it.
Discuss the three phases of PST programs and how to develop
and implement an effective PST program.
Describe key aspects of arousal regulation programs and apply
those aspects to develop a training program for various athletes.
Define imagery and the characteristics of imagery, and explain
how to develop an imagery skills program.
Define self-confidence and the characteristics of self-
confidence, and explain how to improve athlete self-confidence.
Analyze how program components from arousal regulation,
imagery and self-confidence fit within the constructs of PST
programs.

10. CONTINUE
The Mental Aspect of Sports Performance
Many sport psychologist professionals indicate that around 50
percent of an athlete’s performance is dependent on mental
aspects of the game. Some sports such as golf and tennis are
said to be more like 75 to 80 percent mental. Mental and
emotional components often overshadow and impact the
physical and technical aspects of sports. As a result, it is very
important for sport psychologist professionals to understand this
aspect of performance and understand how improving athletes’
ability to handle the mental aspects of the game will translate
into increased performance.
Psychological skills training (PST) is a system of consistent
practice of mental and psychological skills for the purpose of
enhancing performance, increasing engagement, or achieving
greater sports and physical self-satisfaction. Over the years,
PST programs have seen several approaches including
behavioral modification, cognitive therapy, rational emotional
theory, goal setting, attentional control, progressive muscle
relaxation, and systematic desensitization. The focus on
improving psychological factors usually focuses on improving
the mental skills that are part of mental toughness, which is
often referred to by sport psychologist professionals. Mental
toughness can be defined as an athlete’s ability to focus,
rebound from failure, cope with pressure, have determination,
persist in the face of adversity, and possess mental resilience.
Overall, psychological factors account primarily for the day-to-

11. day fluctuations in performance.
Myths About Psychological Skills Training and Why Some
Reject It
Although changes are beginning to happen somewhat in the
field of sports and exercise science regarding the focus on
psychological skills improvement, there are still a large group
of professionals that ignore this aspect of performance. There
are several reasons for this:
Coaches and trainers feel they have a lack of knowledge to be
able to help athletes improve in mental toughness. They are
more comfortable with improving physical skills.
There are still several misunderstandings about PST. One such
misunderstanding is that great athletes are born not made. This
is not true, in that all athletes regardless of sport and level of
play, can realize growth and development in mental toughness.
Coaches often cite that there just is not enough time to focus on
the mental aspect of the game. Considering that researchers say
that the mental aspect of the game determines almost 50 percent
of performance, this argument seems puerile.
MYTH ONE
MYTH TWO
MYTH THREE
MYTH FOUR
MYTH ONE

12. Sport psychologists only work with athletes with severe mental
illness.
This is not the case. Clinical sport psychologists do tend to
focus on mental illness but educational sport psychologists do
not. The following is a quick comparison of the two and their
focus with athletes.
Educational Sport PsychologistsClinical Sport Psychologists1.
Goal Setting1. Eating Disorders2. Imagery2. Substance abuse3.
Arousal regulation3. Personality disorders4. Concentration4.
Severe depression and anxiety5. Mental preparation5.
Psychopathology
Psychological Skills Training Knowledge Base and
Effectiveness
Knowledge of PST comes in the same way that all knowledge is
obtained in sports: both from scientific knowledge from
research studies and professional practice knowledge from
coaches and athletes (refer to Lesson 1).
RESEARCH STUDIES
Successful athletes do tend to have certain mental skills in
common as compared to less successful athletes. Research has
also indicated that athletes can reach peak performance by
employing the following strategies:
Goal setting

13. Imagery
Arousal control
Thought control
Competitive planning
Coping strategies
Mental preparation routines
PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
The effectiveness of PST has been studied in various
competitive situations and has revealed several important
findings that have helped shape program development. These
findings include that educational based psychological
interventions improve competitive performance in collegiate
and adult athletes; the more recent studies conducted show even
more positive effects of the training programs most likely due
to the development and improvement in skills training
programs; and that PST interventions need to be applied in an
individualized, systematic manner over time.
The application of this work can be seen in professional
practice throughout the sports and exercise world. Chee (2010)
states in her article on PST to improve performance in
bodybuilding, that PST is just as important as physical training
and can provide a large performance boost. She further states
that it is important to know if you need work on foundation,
performance, or facilitative skills. Effective PST methods
include goal setting, self-talk, imagery, mental rehearsal, and
relaxation.