research topics related to sports psychology

50 Best Sports Psychology Research Topics

When it comes to selecting sports psychology research topics, it might seem like a challenging task in the eyes of many students. But once you choose a topic from our list and master the tricks of writing a professional research paper, you present yourself as an expert researcher in no time.

What makes a sports psychologist proficient? Sports psychology requires a proficient application of psychological knowledge and skills to address athletes’ most favorable performance and well-being. When studying psychology, your lecturers require you to be skilled and creative in writing and presenting research findings.

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Best Sports Psychology Topics

Are you looking for the best sports psychology research topics? We have some recommendations for you.

• Historical and modern perspective of sports psychology
• How to utilize and improve sports psychology for better customer experience in a sports merchandise store
• Importance of employing sports psychologists in elite sports
• Role of sports psychology and nutrition in musculoskeletal injuries in professional rugby
• Scientific application in sports psychology in sports
• Sports psychology and health: Strategies for creating a healthy and high-performance workplace
• Sports psychology in your local football or soccer league
• Sports psychology perspective on the importance of motivation in increases success
• Sports psychology: An essential aspect for athletes success
• Sports psychology: how to deal with fatigue

Excellent Sports Psychology Research Topics

Finding excellent sports psychology research topics can be a hassle. That is why we have generated top ideas to help you in your next project.  

• Application of Artificial Intelligence in sports psychology
•  Application of psychophysiology in sports psychology
• Personality dimensions in sports psychology
• Psychological factors affecting physical performance and sports
• Role of sports psychology in individual development in sports
• Sports psychology in police training: Building understanding across all police disciplines
• Sports psychology in your country: Review of sports psychology journals
• Sports psychology perspective of anxiety
• Sports psychology perspective of electronic sports
• The role of sports psychology in controlling obesity

Interesting Sports Psychology Research Topics

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• Analysis and visualization of anxiety in final football matches
• Case study: Relationship between competitive anxiety and mental toughness
• Effects of temperament and anxiety on sports performance
• How do anxiety and ego depletion affect sports performance?
• Impact of spectator behavior on individual player’s psychology
• Impact of spectator behavior on team performance
• Managing anxiety levels in sports performance
• Sports psychology perspective: Measuring anxiety in sports
• Understanding fear and anxiety management in extreme sports
• Use of music in mental training

Expert Sports Psychology Research Topics

When you select expert-generated sports psychology research topics, you will for sure impress your audience. We hope you find the best topic from the list below:

•  Challenges of gender studies in sport psychology
• Compare and contrast anxiety and self-confidence between a team and individual sports at your college
• Controlling fans aggression
• Dealing with negative stereotypes in sports: Women soccer
• Mental toughness and sports competition anxiety for male and female MMA fighters
• Psychological and physiological impacts of doping in sports
• Relationship between arousal-anxiety and sports behavior
• Sports psychology: Children anxiety in sports
•  Sports psychology: Effects of racial abuse on athletes
• Volitional regulation and motivation of young boxers

Exciting Sports Psychology Research Topics

Although looking for sports psychology topics can be mind-boggling, we have cut the hassle and generated fascinating topics for you.

• Application of sports psychology in goal setting
• Effectiveness of psychological intervention during a long-term sports injury rehabilitation
• Literature review: Impacts of physical activity in the treatment of depression
• Neuropsychology of sports rehabilitation
• Organizations support mechanisms for soccer players in major leagues. How does league organization affect performance?
• Social factors affecting sports performance in your country
• Sports psychology: Anxiety and emotions of women in sports
• Systematic review: How do skiers manage stress and anxiety before a competition?
• The role of imagery in sports performance
• Theoretical aspects of motivation in sports rehabilitation

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What We’ve Learned Through Sports Psychology Research

Scientists are probing the head games that influence athletic performance, from coaching to coping with pressure

Tom Siegfried, Knowable Magazine

Since the early years of this century, it has been commonplace for computerized analyses of athletic statistics to guide a baseball manager’s choice of pinch hitter, a football coach’s decision to punt or pass, or a basketball team’s debate over whether to trade a star player for a draft pick.

But many sports experts who actually watch the games know that the secret to success is not solely in computer databases, but also inside the players’ heads. So perhaps psychologists can offer as much insight into athletic achievement as statistics gurus do.

Sports psychology has, after all, been around a lot longer than computer analytics. Psychological studies of sports appeared as early as the late 19th century. During the 1970s and ’80s, sports psychology became a fertile research field. And within the last decade or so, sports psychology research has exploded as scientists have explored the nuances of everything from the pursuit of perfection to the harms of abusive coaching.

“Sport pervades cultures, continents and indeed many facets of daily life,” write Mark Beauchamp, Alan Kingstone and Nikos Ntoumanis, authors of an overview of sports psychology research in the 2023 Annual Review of Psychology .

Their review surveys findings from nearly 150 papers investigating various psychological influences on athletic performance and success. “This body of work sheds light on the diverse ways in which psychological processes contribute to athletic strivings,” the authors write. Such research has the potential not only to enhance athletic performance, they say, but also to provide insights into psychological influences on success in other realms, from education to the military. Psychological knowledge can aid competitive performance under pressure, help evaluate the benefit of pursuing perfection and assess the pluses and minuses of high self-confidence.

Confidence and choking

In sports, high self-confidence (technical term: elevated self-efficacy belief) is generally considered to be a plus. As baseball pitcher Nolan Ryan once said, “You have to have a lot of confidence to be successful in this game.” Many a baseball manager would agree that a batter who lacks confidence against a given pitcher is unlikely to get to first base.

And a lot of psychological research actually supports that view, suggesting that encouraging self-confidence is a beneficial strategy. Yet while confident athletes do seem to perform better than those afflicted with self-doubt, some studies hint that for a given player, excessive confidence can be detrimental. Artificially inflated confidence, unchecked by honest feedback, may cause players to “fail to allocate sufficient resources based on their overestimated sense of their capabilities,” Beauchamp and colleagues write. In other words, overconfidence may result in underachievement.

Other work shows that high confidence is usually most useful in the most challenging situations (such as attempting a 60-yard field goal), while not helping as much for simpler tasks (like kicking an extra point).

Of course, the ease of kicking either a long field goal or an extra point depends a lot on the stress of the situation. With time running out and the game on the line, a routine play can become an anxiety-inducing trial by fire. Psychological research, Beauchamp and co-authors report, has clearly established that athletes often exhibit “impaired performance under pressure-invoking situations” (technical term: “choking”).

In general, stress impairs not only the guidance of movements but also perceptual ability and decision-making. On the other hand, it’s also true that certain elite athletes perform best under high stress. “There is also insightful evidence that some of the most successful performers actually seek out, and thrive on, anxiety-invoking contexts offered by high-pressure sport,” the authors note. Just ask Michael Jordan or LeBron James.

Many studies have investigated the psychological coping strategies that athletes use to maintain focus and ignore distractions in high-pressure situations. One popular method is a technique known as the “quiet eye.” A basketball player attempting a free throw is typically more likely to make it by maintaining “a longer and steadier gaze” at the basket before shooting, studies have demonstrated.

“In a recent systematic review of interventions designed to alleviate so-called choking, quiet-eye training was identified as being among the most effective approaches,” Beauchamp and co-authors write.

Another common stress-coping method is “self-talk,” in which players utter instructional or motivational phrases to themselves in order to boost performance. Saying “I can do it” or “I feel good” can self-motivate a marathon runner, for example. Saying “eye on the ball” might help a baseball batter get a hit.

Researchers have found moderate benefits of self-talk strategies for both novices and experienced athletes, Beauchamp and colleagues report. Various studies suggest that self-talk can increase confidence, enhance focus, control emotions and initiate effective actions.

Moderate performance benefits have also been reported for other techniques for countering stress, such as biofeedback, and possibly meditation and relaxation training.

“It appears that stress regulation interventions represent a promising means of supporting athletes when confronted with performance-related stressors,” Beauchamp and co-authors conclude.

Pursuing athletic perfection

Of course, sports psychology encompasses many other issues besides influencing confidence and coping with pressure. Many athletes set a goal of attaining perfection, for example, but such striving can induce detrimental psychological pressures. One analysis found that athletes pursuing purely personal high standards generally achieved superior performance. But when perfectionism was motivated by fear of criticism from others, performance suffered.

Similarly, while some coaching strategies can aid a player’s performance, several studies have shown that abusive coaching can detract from performance, even for the rest of an athlete’s career.

Beauchamp and his collaborators conclude that a large suite of psychological factors and strategies can aid athletic success. And these factors may well be applicable to other areas of human endeavor where choking can impair performance (say, while performing brain surgery or flying a fighter jet).

But the authors also point out that researchers shouldn’t neglect the need to consider that in sports, performance is also affected by the adversarial nature of competition. A pitcher’s psychological strategies that are effective against most hitters might not fare so well against Shohei Ohtani, for instance.

Besides that, sports psychology studies (much like computer-based analytics ) rely on statistics. As Adolphe Quetelet, a pioneer of social statistics, emphasized in the 19th century, statistics do not define any individual—average life expectancy cannot tell you when any given person will die. On the other hand, he noted, no single exceptional case invalidates the general conclusions from sound statistical analysis.

Sports are, in fact, all about the quest of the individual (or a team) to defeat the opposition. Success often requires defying the odds—which is why gambling on athletic events is such a big business. Sports consist of contests between the averages and the exceptions, and neither computer analytics nor psychological science can tell you in advance who is going to win. That’s why they play the games.

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• Published: 05 February 2024

The role of the six factors model of athletic mental energy in mediating athletes’ well-being in competitive sports

• Amisha Singh   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-4456-3510 1 ,
• Mandeep Kaur Arora 2 &
• Bahniman Boruah 1  

Scientific Reports volume  14 , Article number:  2974 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

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• Human behaviour

In the realm of high-performance sports, athletes often prioritize success at the expense of their well-being. Consequently, sports psychology researchers are now focusing on creating psychological profiles for athletes that can forecast their performance while safeguarding their overall well-being. A recent development in this field is the concept of athletic mental energy (AME), which has been associated with both sporting success and positive emotions. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore if AME in athletes can mediate this directly observed relationship between performance and psychological well-being. For stronger predictive validity these relationships were examined across two studies with each involving distinct sets of participants engaged in various sports disciplines, including football, cricket, basketball, archery, and more. The self-report measures of sports performance, athletic mental energy (AME), and psychological well-being (PWB) were administered post-competition on the local, regional, state, national, international, and professional level athletes of age 18 and above. Our study found that both, the affective and cognitive components of AME mediated the athletes’ performance and psychological well–being relationship. Interestingly, the study found no significant gender differences in AME and PWB scores. While family structures didn’t yield significant variations in AME scores, there were some descriptive distinctions in PWB scores across different family structures. Our research offers preliminary evidence suggesting that AME can play a pivotal role in preserving athletes’ psychological well-being following competitive events.

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Introduction.

Engagement in sports has a profound impact on the physical, psychological, and social well-being of athletes, as demonstrated by various studies indicating that sports training leads to improvements in athletes’ cardiovascular health, neuromuscular function, and respiratory capacity, along with other physiological benefits such as enhanced metabolism, better sleep, and a strengthened immune system 1 , 2 , 3 . Beyond the physical advantages, sports participation also nurtures essential psychological skills like self-esteem, competence, resilience, and motivation, all of which can positively influence various aspects of an athlete’s life 1 . Furthermore, organized sports activities offer a platform for athletes to communicate, build relationships, collaborate, and cultivate a sense of belonging 4 . However, it’s important to acknowledge that an individual’s engagement in competitive sports is not without its challenges and stressors 1 , 5 . Athletes confront a range of stressors stemming from their training and competitions, including sport-specific challenges (e.g., the pressure to win, injuries, and team selection), general life issues (e.g., family relationships and economic conditions), and organizational aspects (e.g., team selection, accommodations, and travel support) 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 . These challenges can lead to both physical and psychological problems for athletes. Physically, stress can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, hyperglycemia, stomach and intestinal ulcers, and asthma 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 . Psychologically, athletes may experience decreased well-being, deteriorating sports performance, mood disorders, eating disorders, depression, anxiety, overtraining, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, burnout, and increased episodes of depression 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 . Additionally, the stress resulting from past unsatisfactory performance can manifest as pain, discomfort, and performance anxiety, all of which can significantly affect an athlete’s well-being and performance efficiency 20 , 21 , 22 .

Athletes need psychological skills to tackle these challenges by managing emotions, handling stressors, and achieving their goals 23 , 24 . Training in these skills not only fosters effective coping strategies but also yields psychological benefits that boost their performance and overall well-being in competitive sports, making them crucial for success 25 , 26 .

Over time, the field of sports psychology has shifted its focus from solely improving athletic performance to considering athlete well-being as an integral part of performance 27 . Well-being is a multidimensional phenomenon that encompasses cognitive and affective dimensions resulting from an individual’s assessment of various aspects of life 28 . The close connection between performance and psychological well-being in sports has prompted researchers to investigate the underlying factors influencing the performance-well-being relationship, enabling practitioners to develop programs and interventions aimed at preventing ill-being resulting from underperformance or high-performance expectations.

One emerging concept of particular interest in sports is "athletic mental energy (AME)," which may play a vital role in athletes’ performance and psychological well-being. Generally, mental energy refers to an individual’s capacity to concentrate on a task and block out distractions 29 . Notably, historical figures like Newton, Galileo, Archimedes, and Einstein possessed strong mental energy, which enabled them to accomplish remarkable feats 30 . The International Life Science Institute (ILSI) suggests that mental energy relates to an individual’s belief in their ability to accomplish a given task. Lu et al. 79 expanded on the ILSI concept of mental energy and defined AME as a multifaceted construct specific to sports, characterized by an athlete’s perceived state of energy, comprising cognitive components such as confidence, concentration, motivation, and mood. These components have been frequently observed in flow research, where Olympic athletes with high AME report an optimal level of activation necessary for peak performance, success, and experiences of flow 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 . For instance, athletes with higher confidence and concentration tend to fear failure less, perform better, report better performance, and have more frequent experiences of flow during optimal performance 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 . Motivation is also recognized as a vital component of AME, with numerous studies in sports psychology emphasizing its relevance for peak performance. The emotional components of AME, including vigor, calmness, and tirelessness, are positively correlated with athletic performance, well-being, and a positive mental state 38 , 45 , 46 , 47 . High AME has been associated with lower athletic burnout and stress, moderating the negative effects of stress and burnout in athletes 48 . For example, research suggests that Olympic medalists in rowing with high vigor experience lower levels of depression and fatigue compared to their counterparts 49 , 50 . In alignment with the principles of positive psychology, AME encompasses positive elements that can help athletes manage stress resulting from perceived performance and safeguard their well-being. Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that athletes with high AME are more likely to deliver exceptional sports performance, exhibit greater engagement and consistency in training and competitions, and experience higher levels of well-being compared to athletes with lower AME levels. However, further research is necessary to validate these assumptions.

Researchers are increasingly interested in developing athletes’ mental and emotional profiles to predict both their performance and well-being. The predictive validity of such profiles holds theoretical and practical implications for future research and intervention development. To our knowledge, this study represents the first attempt to examine the influence of AME on the relationship between athletes’ performance and psychological well-being post-competition. Additionally, our study draws support from various established models and concepts in psychology, including Morgan’s iceberg profile, Hanin’s Individual Zone of Optimal Functioning (IZOF), the Profile of Mood States (POMS) by McNair, Lorr, and Droppleman, psychological skills by Mahoney et al. 53 , performance strategies by Thomas et al. 54 , mental skills by Durand-Bush et al. 55 , mental toughness by Jones et al. 56 , and resilience by Fletcher and Sarkar 35 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 . These models have consistently demonstrated the relationship between performance and psychological state in athletes, further reinforcing the significance of our research in exploring the mediating role of AME in athletes’ performance and psychological well-being.

The present study

Athletes experience significant pressure to excel in competitive sports, impacting their psychological well-being. Poor performance can exacerbate stress and anxiety, harming mental health. Nonetheless, recent research suggests that harnessing athletic mental energy (AME) can help preserve athletes’ well-being. Therefore, through our research we aimed to investigate the connection between sports performance and psychological well-being, using athletic mental energy (AME) as a mediator. The hypothesis was that AME would play a mediating role in the relationship between performance and psychological well-being. Two cross-sectional studies with quantitative research designs were conducted with different groups of participants. Study 1 aimed to explore the mediating effects of AME on the relationship between an athlete’s performance and psychological well-being, while Study 2 sought to replicate the findings of Study 1 and further confirm the role of AME as a mediator in the relationship between athletes’ performance and psychological well-being.

To examine the mediating effects of athletic mental energy on the relationship between athletes’ performance and psychological well-being.

Participants

For study 1 participants were 50 athletes (males = 50%) with an average age of 20.34 years (SD =  ± 1.86) from 10 states of India. At the time of the data collection, 70% of participants were regularly engaged in competitive sports from 15 different individual and team sports, including archery (6), athletics (7), bodybuilding (1), baseball (1), boxing (1), kho-kho (1), rock-climbing (1), table tennis (1), sprinting (1), taekwondo (1), cricket (3), hockey (3), football (12), kabaddi (4), and volleyball (7). The sample was representative of diverse competitive levels, with 58% of participants being national and international athletes.

The average hours of engagement in sports training per week were 23.04 h (SD = 10.68), furthermore, on average the athletes were active in sports for 3.86 (SD = 1.94) years. Lastly, some exclusion criteria were pre-defined across both studies including the exclusion of winter and traditional sports, players competing in parasport, and participants who had not participated in any competitive encounters for the last month (one week for participants in study 2) due to injury, illness, or non-selection.

Measurements and procedures

The study adhered to the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Code of Ethics throughout its entirety. The Departmental Research Council (DRC) approved the study before initiation. Coaches, physical education instructors, and sports clubs were informed of the research’s purpose via email and phone calls by the lead author. Subsequent agreements included details on contacting players, assessment duration, location, and other requirements. During appointments with participants, the study’s purpose, nature, design, and ethical rights were explained, including informed consent, debriefing, anonymity, data safety, confidentiality, and the right to withdraw. Participants received a hard copy of a multi-section questionnaire which was built through the approval of the experts including 2 academicians, 2 counselors, and 1 psychometrician for the sequence and presentation of the Questionnaire. Section A collected demographic and sports profiles (e.g., gender, location, age, family structure, sport category, types of sports, highest competition participated in, and years of athletic experience). Section B included psychological scales: Performance Satisfaction (PS), Psychological Well-being (PWB), and Athletic Mental Energy Scale (AMES). To mitigate social desirability bias, participants were informed that the study aimed to understand their life experiences as sports performers, with no right or wrong answers. Mental energy, as a state construct, is best measured close to competition to reflect the exact mental and emotional state 38 , 57 , 58 , 59 . However, participants completed the scales within one month after the competition due to tight schedules and depleted energy, mood, and motivation during competitions. They were asked to reflect on their sporting experiences from the past month when responding to items.

Demographic questionnaire

In section A, the demographic profile questionnaire contains participants’ information including gender, location, age, and family structure while the sport profile questionnaire contains participants’ information related to sports including sport category, types of sports, highest competition participated in, and years of athletic experiences, etc.

Psychological well-being (PWB)

Psychological Well-being (PWB) is an 18-item scale by Ryff and Keyes (1995), assessing six components: autonomy, environmental mastery, purpose in life, personal growth, positive relations with others, and self-acceptance. Participants rated their agreement with each statement on a 7-point scale (1 = strongly agree; 7 = strongly disagree). Cronbach’s α for the total PWB score was 0.78 60 , 61 , 62 . For the final analysis, we used the total score of PWB.

Athletic mental energy scale (AMES).

The athletic mental energy scale (AMES), by Lu et al. 79 , comprises 18 items measuring athletes’ perception of their energy state, including vigor, confidence, motivation, tirelessness, concentration, and calm. Participants rated their feelings on a 6-point Likert scale (1 = not at all, 6 = completely so). Cronbach’s α for the total AMES score was 0.92 48 , 63 . We used the total score of AMES for the main analysis in Study 1 and scores on each subscale in Study 2.

Subjective performance (SP)

Subjective Performance scale (SP) by Brown (2017) was used to assess participants’ satisfaction with past competitive performances over a month (or a week in Study 2) using an 11-point rating scale (0 = totally dissatisfied, 10 = totally satisfied; cf. Pensgaard and Duda, 2003). This approach allows for comparisons among athletes across different sports, offers sensitivity in performance assessment, and minimizes environmental influences (for example, opponent’s skill level) 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 .

Statistical analyses

Statistical analysis has been performed with SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) Version 23. None of the participants were identified as univariate outliers through the inspection by a boxplot. All the participants were kept for analysis. Furthermore, the scores of AMES, PWB, and SP were normally distributed through the assessment of Q-Q plots and the Shapiro–Wilk test (W 50) = 0.84, p = 0.07). Furthermore, we used mediation analysis using Hayes Process v4.1 macro in examining the mediating effects of the AMES on the performance and psychological well-being relationship. The significance level across both studies was set at p < 0.05.

The reliability of a measure in any research study is the measure of internal consistency and is accepted if the Alpha (α) value of the latent construct is greater than 0.70 69 . Internal consistency reliability for the current study was assessed using Cronbach’s Alpha. The results revealed that the AMES with 18 items (α = 0.92) and the PWB Scale with 18 items (α = 0.78) were found reliable for Indian athletes (n = 50).

The sample of athletes (N = 50) consisted of 25 (50%) females with the highest percentage of athletes from Delhi i.e., 25 (50%), followed by Haryana and Uttar Pradesh i.e., 7 (14%). The remaining athletes were from Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, and Mumbai 1 (2% each), 4% from Himachal Pradesh and Jharkhand (2 each), and 3 (6%) from Rajasthan. Furthermore, 17 (34%) athletes were living in joint families, 19 (38%) in nuclear families, and 14 (28%) in single-parent families. For sport profile, 19 (38%) sample of athletes belonged to the individual and 31 (62%) belonged to the team sport category, 13 (26%) Junior category and 37 (74%) belonged to the senior category. The sport category of the participants was 01 each for baseball, bodybuilding, boxing, kho-kho, rock climbing, sprinting, table tennis, taekwondo (2% each), 03 each in Cricket and hockey (6% each), 04 in kabaddi (8%), 06 in Archery (12%), 07 in athletics (14%), and 12 in Football (24%). A maximum number of athletes were engaged in a regular training session 35 (70%). Lastly, in the current sample of athletes, 4(8%) were professionals, 5(10%) were international-level athletes, 24 (48%) were national-level athletes, 14 (28%) were state-level athletes, and 3 (6%) were regional and local-level athletes.

We found an overall mean score of 4.23 (SD = 0.97) for AME, indicating an overall moderate AME experience amongst athletes. Motivation ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 4.62; SD = 1.04) and Concentration ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 4.41; SD = 1.05) had the highest mean values, demonstrating that players feel motivated and persist in high concentration levels during training or competition. Furthermore, an overall mean score of PWB ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 4.81; SD = 0.74) shows an overall moderate PWB experience amongst athletes. Personal growth ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 5.28; SD = 1.17) and Self-acceptance ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 5.12; SD = 0.95) in PWB had the highest mean values, demonstrating that the players generally have a sense of growth, are open to new experiences, and have a positive attitude towards themselves through the acknowledgment and acceptance of all the aspects in life. Lastly, the descriptive statistics for SP reveal overall moderate (M = 6.3; SD = 1.66) SP experiences amongst athletes.

Also, the data was collected from athletes from three different family structures i.e., joint (n = 15), nuclear (n = 16), and the single-parent family (n = 19), and the results from descriptive statistics reveal an overall mean score of 83.66 (SD = 21.97) for the psychological well-being of athletes living in a joint family, 83.50 (SD = 20.01) for the nuclear family, and 83.62 (SD = 18.93) for a single-parent family.

Lastly, the study assessed the mediating role of AME on the post-competitive relationship between subjective performance and psychological well-being. The results demonstrated a non-significant indirect effect of the impact of subjective performance on psychological well-being (b = 1.24, t = 7.0). However, the direct effect of subjective performance on PWB in the presence of a mediator was found significant (b = 9.58, p < 0.001). Hence, athletic mental energy did not mediate the relationship between subjective performance and PWB. To save space, we show only the figure of the mediating effect of AME on the athletes’ performance-psychological well-being relationship (refer to Fig.  1 ). The mediation analysis summary is presented in Table 1 .

Mediation analysis representing the relationship between Sport performance and psychological well-being with athletic mental energy as a mediator.

Discussion for study 1

Our study extended Lu et al. 79 work on AME by examining its mediating effects on the relationship between athletes’ performance and psychological well-being post-competition. The results of the descriptive statistics on the mean score of the psychological well-being of athletes from a joint family, nuclear family, and single-parent family indicate some group differences. However, the significance of this group difference is yet to be tested. Furthermore, the results from the mediation analysis revealed that athletic mental energy did not mediate the relationship between sport performance and PWB. Nonetheless, the first study provides preliminary evidence of the direct effect of athletes’ performance on PWB. Furthermore, the results of our study could be explained either due to the small sample size or due to the long gap time interval between the participants’ involvement in sports competition and the conduction of the test which ultimately fails to record the actual state of athletes’ mental energy in relation to their competitive performance. Therefore, for the second study, a greater number of participants and a lesser time frame for test administration shall be kept for the participants to reflect their exact psychological state relating to their competitive encounter.

The aim of our second was to recreate Study 1 and further confirm the mediating effects of AME on the athletes’ performance and psychological well-being relationship.

For study 2 participants were 100 athletes (males = 50%) with an average age of 23.11 years (SD =  ± 2.32) from 14 states in India. At the time of the data collection, 78% of athletes were regularly participating in training seasons. Also, the participants were from 15 different types of individual and team sports including aerobics (3), athletics (15), archery (1), badminton (4), basketball (11), baseball (1), cricket (3), football (20), handball (2), hockey (4), kho-kho (8), roller skating (1), sprinting (2), table tennis (2), and volleyball (23). 40% of participants were national level players followed by 5% professional and international level players. The average hours of engagement of athletes in sports training per week were 15.77 h (SD = 9.54) and the number of years athletes were active in sports on average was 4.35 years (SD = 1.14). The exclusion criteria were kept the same as in Study 1.

Study 2 followed a procedure consistent with Study 1, maintaining data collection methods, assessment measures, and statistical analyses. The Cronbach’s α for Psychological Well-being (PWB) and athletic mental energy scale (AMES) in Study 2 were 0.74 and 0.93, indicating satisfactory internal consistency. Upon securing informed consent, participants received a multi-section questionnaire. To align with the need to capture participants’ accurate psychological states, AME assessments were conducted within one week of the competitive encounters 25 , 45 , 58 , 59 . Participants who agreed to this timeline were included in the study, while others were excluded. Participants were instructed to reflect on their experiences from competitive sports encounters in the past week when responding to the questionnaire items.

In Study 2, data analysis paralleled the procedures in Study 1. All data were initially screened to ensure they met the prerequisites for t-tests and ANOVA. Univariate outliers were absent based on boxplot examination, resulting in the retention of all participants for analysis. Normality checks for psychological well-being, athletic mental energy, and subjective performance were performed using skewness and kurtosis values within acceptable limits (skewness between ± 2 (George and Mallery, 2020), and kurtosis from a range of − 10 to + 10 (Collier, 2020), alongside the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test confirming a normal distribution (W (100) = 0.053, p = 0.20). This mediation analysis was executed in two phases, initially examining the total AME score in Phase 1 and subsequently assessing the scores for the six AME factors.

As assessed through Cronbach’s Alpha, the scales, AMES with 18 items (α = 0.93) and the PWB Scale with 18 items (α = 0.74) were found reliable for Indian athletes (n = 100).

The participants (N = 100) consisted of 50 (50%) females and 50 (50%) male athletes with the highest percentag e of athletes from Delhi i.e., 53%, followed by Haryana (18%) and Uttar Pradesh (17%). The remaining athletes were from Rajasthan (2%), followed by Arunachal Pradesh, Bhopal, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Manipur, Mumbai, Punjab, and Uttarakhand (10%). Furthermore, 34% of athletes belonged to joint families with an equal percentage of athletes from nuclear families, and 32% of athletes were from single-parent families. For the sport profile, 22% of athletes belonged to the individual sport category and 78% belonged to the team sport category in which 22% Junior category, and 78% belonged to the senior category. The highest percentage of athletes were from Volleyball (23%) followed by football (20%), athletics (15%), basketball (11%), kho-kho (8%), and remaining other sport categories (23%). A maximum percentage of athletes were engaged in a regular training session (78%). Lastly, in the current sample of athletes, 3% were professionals, 2% were international-level athletes, 40% were national-level athletes, 18% were state-level athletes, and 37% were regional and local-level athletes.

The results from descriptive statistics for AME reveal overall moderate AME experiences amongst athletes with a mean score of 4.12 (SD = 0.95). Vigor ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 4.17; SD = 1.13) and Motivation ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 4.61; SD = 1.10) had the highest mean value, demonstrating that the athletes felt energetic and enthusiastic about sports and generally felt motivated towards training and competition Similarly, descriptive statistics for PWB reveal overall moderate PWB experiences amongst athletes (M = 4.79; SD = 0.65). Similar to the study1, Personal growth ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 5.32; SD = 1.08) and self-acceptance ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 5.06; SD = 0.82) had the highest mean value. Also, the descriptive statistics for SP show overall moderate SP experiences amongst athletes (M = 6.22; SD = 1.64).

Similar to study 1, the data was collected from athletes belonging to three different family structures including the joint family (n = 34), the nuclear family (n = 34), the single-parent family (n = 32), and, the overall descriptive statistics show the difference in the mean scores on the psychological well-being of athletes belonging to the joint family ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 83.85, SD = 17.84), the nuclear family ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 77.85, SD = 14.27), and the single-parent family ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 86.71, SD = 21.52).

Furthermore, an independent sample t-test was conducted to compare the Athletic Mental Energy and Psychological well-being of Male and Female athletes. The mean difference for PWB (− 0.18) and AME (− 0.11) was calculated using Cohen’s d and a small effect size was found for male and female participants indicating negligible difference between both the groups. No significant differences (t (98) =  − 0.56, p = 0.57) were found in the scores of Males ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 71.26, SD = 15.40) and Females ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 73.16, SD = 18.41) for Athletic Mental Energy. The magnitude of the differences in the means (mean difference = − 0.11, 95% CI: − 0.51 to 0.28) was very small. Similarly, for psychological well-being, there were no significant differences (t (98) = -0.92, p = 0.35) in scores for Males ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 81.04, SD = 17.17) and Females ( \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)  = 84.42, SD = 19.28) and the differences in the magnitude of the means (mean difference = − 0.18, 95% CI: − 0.58 to 0.21) was very less.

Additionally, we used one-way ANOVA to test if the AME of athletes differs across different family structures. Participants were divided into 3 groups (Group 1: Joint family; Group 2: Nuclear family; Group 3: Single-parent family). The ANOVA results suggest that the Athletic Mental Energy does not differ significantly (F2, 97 = 1.44, p > 0.005).

Lastly, the study assessed the mediating role of AME on the relationship between SP and PWB in phase 1. The results revealed a significant indirect effect of the influence of SP on PWB (b = 1.97, t = 2.33), supporting our study hypothesis. In addition, the direct effect of SP on PWB in the presence of a mediator was also found significant (b = 6.99, p < 0.001). Hence, a total score of AME mediated the relationship between SP and PWB (refer to Fig.  2 .). The summary of the mediation analysis is presented in Table 2 .

Mediation analysis represents the relation between performance and psychological well-being with athletic mental energy as a mediator.

Study 2 part B

It was further hypothesized that each of the six factors of AME i.e., vigor, confidence, motivation, concentration, tirelessness, and calm mediate the relationship between performance and PWB.

For this, the study assessed the mediating role of each of the subdimensions of AME including vigor, confidence, motivation, concentration, tireless, and calm on the relationship between players’ performance and PWB. The results unveiled a significant indirect impact of subjective performance on psychological well-being through vigor (b = − 0.41, t = 3.41). The minus sign indicates competitive partial mediation asserting that a portion of the effect of players’ performance on players’ PWB is mediated through vigor, whereas subjective performance still explains a portion of psychological well-being that is independent of vigor. Additionally, the results revealed a significant indirect impact of subjective performance on psychological well-being through confidence (b = 0.51, t = 2.33), motivation (b = 0.64, t = 2.77), concentration (b = 0.002, t = 2.22), tireless (b = 0.68, t = 1.96), and calm (b = 0.32, t = 2.16) indicating complementary partial mediation supporting our hypothesis. Moreover, the direct effect of player’s performance on psychological well-being in the presence of the mediators was also found significant (b = 7.20, p < 0.001). Hence, all six factors of AMES partially mediated the relationship between SP and PWB (refer to Fig.  3 ). The summary of the mediation analysis is presented in Table 3 .

Mediation analysis representing the relationship between performance and psychological well-being with affective (vigor, tirelessness, and calm) and cognitive components (confidence, motivation, concentration) of Athletic Mental Energy as mediators.

Discussion for study 2

The aim of our second study was to replicate Study 1 and uncover further evidence on the mediating effects of AME on the athletes’ performance-wellbeing relationship. With a different set of participants, a larger sample size, and minimizing the timings of test conduction from the competition, we found that the total score of AME along with the six factors of AME mediated the sport performance and psychological well-being relationship. Thus, Study 2 provided initial evidence of the original aim of the study. The theoretical and practical implications, future directions, and research limitations are thoroughly interpreted and discussed in the section below.

Ethics statement

To fairly meet the ethical criteria, APA ethical guidelines were followed while conducting the study which included taking informed consent, ensuring participants’ right to withdraw throughout the study, ensuring anonymity, and data safety. The research has been approved by the Departmental Research Committee of the Department of Psychology, University of Delhi, India.

Consent to participate

All the participants signed the consent form before taking part in the research.

General discussion

Considering mental energy as an important factor in athletes’ well-being, we extended Lu et al. 79 work on AME and investigated its mediating effects on the relationship between sport players’ performance and well-being. The results revealed a significant indirect effect of performance on psychological well-being through AME. Hence, AME mediated the relationship between performance and PWB. Moreover, all three affective (i.e., vigor, tireless, and calm) and cognitive components (i.e., confidence, concentration, and motivation) of the AME played significant roles in mediation.

The first emotional component i.e., Vigor is considered an individual’s feeling with elevated arousal 49 , 50 . Hence, athletes with heightened vigor would maximize their efforts in strengthening their performance with enthusiasm irrespective of their performance-related setbacks. Similarly, we found that athletes with high levels of vigor were better able to deal with performance-related setbacks and scored higher on well-being dimensions. Research also indicates that while dealing with challenges and obstacles, individuals can get back to equilibrium psychologically, physically, and socially by exerting more effort in addressing the problem and overcoming the obstacles 70 . Thus, it is highly likely that athletes high in vigor put more effort into coping with the existing performance-related pressures and stressors in competitive sports, and thus, are better able to preserve their well-being as compared to their counterparts. In support, Morgan 51 , (1980) found that Olympic athletes who scored high on vigor were more successful and had lower depression, fatigue, anxiety, anger, and confusion as compared to athletes who scored low on vigor 51 . Furthermore, similar to Lu et al. 79 conception of vigor and tirelessness, we found that the players’ levels of well-being were impacted by their performance through tirelessness. Chuang, Lu, Gill, and Fang 38 also contended that athletes who performed extremely well during sport competitions reported experiencing a heightened sense of control, energy, and emotional equilibrium 38 , 46 . Conversely, athletes who feel dissatisfied with their performance in sports are at higher risk of experiencing a lower sense of energy and disequilibrium, thus compromising their sense of well-being. Therefore, preserving athletes’ energy levels post-competition through techniques involving physiological and psychological recovery becomes an important aspect of maintaining their improved sense of well-being as well as preparing them for the next competition 46 . Furthermore, our findings on the mediating effects of calm in a performance-well-being relationship are very insightful in sport psychology research as Loehr 46 contended that elite athletes should experience a state of calm by being mentally and physically relaxed and should not have fear of failure even if they encounter highly demanding situations during a competitive encounter 53 . Since athletes’ past experiences of unsatisfactory performance can create some level of future performance anxiety in athletes leading to heightened arousal and distraction, it is likely that athletes who have the skill to remain calm can ease their performance anxiety, and are better able to cope with their fear of failure, and maintain their sense of physical and mental well-being 13 , 23 , 31 , 71 , 72 , 73 . Furthermore, athletes with such emotional stability have reported high levels of resilience in them 35 , 74 . Thus, there is a higher possibility that athletes who tend to remain calm are better able to recover quickly from performance-related setbacks. In support, the calm factor of AME is frequently found in flow research wherein athletes who report sensations of calmness, relaxation, and effortlessness while engaging in any activity frequently experience flow that helps them to fully immerse themselves in preparing for the next competition without getting distracted from the thoughts related to fear of failure or experiencing performance-related anxiety 32 , 47 .

Just like the affective components of AME, the cognitive components including confidence, concentration, and motivation played an equally important role in mediating the athletes’ performance-wellbeing relationship post-competition. The confidence factor of AME indicates an athlete’s belief in one’s ability to accomplish a task 35 , 75 . The sport–confidence model also suggests that a high level of confidence in athletes can trigger adaptive emotions and larger efforts to deal with adversities, challenges, and sport-specific stressors including in-match failure and performance demands. These adaptive emotions help athletes to manage future performance anxiety and maintain a sense of well-being 35 , 36 , 68 , 75 . In addition to this, concentration played an important role in mediating the relationship between performance and well-being. Concentration refers to an individual’s mental ability to block unwanted distractions while focusing one’s attention on achieving a given task 33 , 44 , 75 . Athletes with strong concentration excel in competitions by enhancing focus, blocking past performance-related thoughts, reducing stress, and maintaining well-being 37 , 77 , 78 . Conversely, low concentration in athletes leads to impaired focus during stress, hindering working memory efficiency 63 , 79 . Such athletes struggle to concentrate, easily getting distracted by thoughts of past failures, ultimately causing increased anxiety, stress, and decreased well-being. Thus, our finding of the positive impact of the concentration on performance and psychological well-being relationship is consistent with previous research. Lastly, the mediating effect of motivation on the post-competitive performance- psychological well-being relationship has also been evident in our study. Motivation is the intensity of goal-directed behavior 42 , 80 , 81 . Generally, highly motivated individuals possess higher persistence to achieve their goals. Therefore, an athlete with higher motivation to perform well would persist longer in training to perform his best even when facing adversity 70 , 82 . Thus, sport players with high levels of motivation will exert more effort to handle the competing demands during sports competitions regardless of their past record of unsatisfactory performance. Thus, preserving their mental well-being. Hence, all six factors of AMES played important roles in mediating the relationship between athletes’ performance and psychological well-being.

The difference in the results of mediation analysis across both the studies (Study 1 and Study 2) could be explained either due to the difference in the sample size or due to the difference in the timings (one month in Study 1 and 1 week in Study 2) of psychometric assessment conduction. However, the reasons for the differences in the results are complicated to understand because the participants in both studies were from different sports including team and individual sports, playing at different competitive levels, and belonging to different demographic backgrounds. Nonetheless, our study provides preliminary evidence that AME is a protective factor in preserving athletes’ PWB even after an unsatisfactory competitive encounter. It is to be noted that Athletic mental energy can also be useful in a sport player’s day-to-day life through the transfer effects. Gould and Carson 83 suggested that athletes learn intrapersonal, interpersonal, cognitive, and behavioral skills from sports and adapt them to their daily lives 83 . Thus, athletes with high AME will not just benefit in sports but will also benefit in handling stressors from daily life. However, this is only one possibility we can make through our study. Future studies are advised to examine how AME helps athletes deal with adversities in daily life. In addition to this, our study provides several other implications for the researchers.

Our study highlights the vital role of a protective factor in sports excellence, athletic success, and well-being 33 , 34 , 35 , 44 , 65 , 70 . Despite proposals in the 1990s about mental energy’s impact on player performance, empirical reports remain limited. Our research addresses this gap by exploring the affective and cognitive components of mental energy and their connections to athlete performance and psychological well-being, complementing Lu et al. 79 . We build on Chuang, Lu, Gill, and Fang’s work 38 by examining the interplay between athletes’ performance, mental energy, and psychological states, suggesting the need for post-competition mental state management 5 , 19 , 21 , 34 .

Lastly, athletes from joint families, nuclear families, and single-parent families showed distinct differences in psychological well-being (PWB) mean scores, highlighting variations across family structures. This aligns with Ryan and Willits 84 , emphasizing the impact of family relationships on well-being 84 , 85 . However, no significant differences emerged in Athletic Mental Energy (AME) among athletes based on sex or family structure. Similarly, PWB showed no significant variation between male and female athletes, indicating that neither sex nor family structure influences AME or PWB. In conclusion, our findings suggest that sex and family structure do not affect players’ psychological well-being or athletic mental energy. Therefore, enhancing AME through interventions may assist athletes in managing emotions and stress associated with suboptimal performance while promoting well-being and preparing them for future competitions. However, it is essential to note that additional research is necessary to corroborate our primary findings.

Practical applications

Athletic Mental Energy (AME) holds a central role in sports psychology, predicting success, reducing athlete stress and burnout, and enhancing positive mental states 13 , 31 , 48 . Our study emphasizes AME’s significance, showing it as a mediator between athlete performance and psychological well-being. Sports professionals can use this insight in athlete training, especially post-competition, to help manage performance-related stress and improve well-being 86 . Lu et al. 79 suggest cultivating AME through mental and physical training, influenced by factors like nutrition, sleep, relationships, and time management. Sport psychologists can integrate psychological skills training into daily routines, while tailored plans for healthy habits, routines, and sleep cycles can optimize mental energy levels 31 , 48 .

Strengths and limitations

Our research employed an empirical approach to delve into the mediating role of Athletic Mental Energy (AME) in the post-competitive performance-psychological well-being dynamic, encompassing two distinct studies with separate participant groups. Employing diverse assessment methods is a research strategy aimed at gaining a comprehensive understanding, and in this pursuit, we used two different assessment approaches 20 , 87 . However, it’s important to acknowledge the limitations of our study. Firstly, the cross-sectional nature of our research limits its ability to establish variable patterns over time. Future studies would benefit from adopting a longitudinal design to explore the intricate relationship between athletes’ performance, AME, and psychological well-being over extended periods, providing a more accurate depiction of temporal changes. We excluded parasport participants, warranting investigation in this context. Cultural variations may affect generalizability, necessitating exploration in different settings. While we employed subjective performance measures to accommodate the diversity of sports, employing objective performance metrics and expanding the sample size would enhance generalizability. Additionally, measuring AME closer to competition would yield more precise results 25 , 45 , 58 , 59 , 88 . Lastly, the evolving concept of AME requires further examination, identifying potential latent factors beyond the six psychological components explored and their relevance in athletes’ post-competition well-being.( Supplementary information )

Conclusions

Our research examined the mediating role of AME in the link between post-competition performance and psychological well-being. We found that athletes’ performance significantly impacts their psychological well-being through factors within athletic mental energy, including confidence, motivation, concentration, vigor, tirelessness, and calmness. We recommend sports psychologists and professionals prioritize interventions that enhance athletes’ AME, especially after competitions. This equips athletes to effectively handle performance-related stress and improves their overall well-being. Additionally, we advocate for further research to explore the positive aspects and constituent elements of AME in sports, aiming to advance athlete welfare and performance. \( \overline{{\text{X}}} \)

Data availability

The data analysed for this research paper are available from the first and corresponding author upon fair request meeting institutional guidelines.

Abbreviations

Sample size

Athletic mental energy

Athletic mental energy scale

Psychological wellbeing

Subjective performance

Concentration

International life science institute

Statistical package for social sciences

American psychological association

Level of statistical significance alpha

Individual zone of optimal functioning

Items of AME

Items of PWB

Amisha Singh

Mandeep Kaur Arora

Bahniman Boruah

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Singh, A., Kaur Arora, M. & Boruah, B. The role of the six factors model of athletic mental energy in mediating athletes’ well-being in competitive sports. Sci Rep 14 , 2974 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-53065-5

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Sport psychology and performance meta-analyses: A systematic review of the literature

Roles Conceptualization, Data curation, Formal analysis, Methodology, Project administration, Supervision, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing

* E-mail: [email protected]

Affiliations Department of Kinesiology and Sport Management, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, United States of America, Education Academy, Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas, Lithuania

Roles Data curation, Methodology, Writing – original draft

Affiliation Department of Psychological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, United States of America

Roles Data curation, Methodology

Roles Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing

Affiliation Department of Kinesiology and Sport Management, Honors College, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, United States of America

Roles Data curation, Methodology, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing

Affiliation Faculty of Education, Health and Well-Being, University of Wolverhampton, Walsall, West Midlands, United Kingdom

Roles Data curation, Formal analysis, Methodology, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing

Affiliation Division of Research & Innovation, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia

• Marc Lochbaum, 
• Elisabeth Stoner, 
• Tristen Hefner, 
• Sydney Cooper, 
• Andrew M. Lane, 
• Peter C. Terry

• Published: February 16, 2022
• https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263408
• Peer Review
• Reader Comments

Sport psychology as an academic pursuit is nearly two centuries old. An enduring goal since inception has been to understand how psychological techniques can improve athletic performance. Although much evidence exists in the form of meta-analytic reviews related to sport psychology and performance, a systematic review of these meta-analyses is absent from the literature. We aimed to synthesize the extant literature to gain insights into the overall impact of sport psychology on athletic performance. Guided by the PRISMA statement for systematic reviews, we reviewed relevant articles identified via the EBSCOhost interface. Thirty meta-analyses published between 1983 and 2021 met the inclusion criteria, covering 16 distinct sport psychology constructs. Overall, sport psychology interventions/variables hypothesized to enhance performance (e.g., cohesion, confidence, mindfulness) were shown to have a moderate beneficial effect ( d = 0.51), whereas variables hypothesized to be detrimental to performance (e.g., cognitive anxiety, depression, ego climate) had a small negative effect ( d = -0.21). The quality rating of meta-analyses did not significantly moderate the magnitude of observed effects, nor did the research design (i.e., intervention vs. correlation) of the primary studies included in the meta-analyses. Our review strengthens the evidence base for sport psychology techniques and may be of great practical value to practitioners. We provide recommendations for future research in the area.

Citation: Lochbaum M, Stoner E, Hefner T, Cooper S, Lane AM, Terry PC (2022) Sport psychology and performance meta-analyses: A systematic review of the literature. PLoS ONE 17(2): e0263408. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263408

Editor: Claudio Imperatori, European University of Rome, ITALY

Received: September 28, 2021; Accepted: January 18, 2022; Published: February 16, 2022

Copyright: © 2022 Lochbaum et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Data Availability: All relevant data are within the paper.

Funding: The author(s) received no specific funding for this work.

Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Introduction

Sport performance matters. Verifying its global importance requires no more than opening a newspaper to the sports section, browsing the internet, looking at social media outlets, or scanning abundant sources of sport information. Sport psychology is an important avenue through which to better understand and improve sport performance. To date, a systematic review of published sport psychology and performance meta-analyses is absent from the literature. Given the undeniable importance of sport, the history of sport psychology in academics since 1830, and the global rise of sport psychology journals and organizations, a comprehensive systematic review of the meta-analytic literature seems overdue. Thus, we aimed to consolidate the existing literature and provide recommendations for future research.

The development of sport psychology

The history of sport psychology dates back nearly 200 years. Terry [ 1 ] cites Carl Friedrich Koch’s (1830) publication titled [in translation] Calisthenics from the Viewpoint of Dietetics and Psychology [ 2 ] as perhaps the earliest publication in the field, and multiple commentators have noted that sport psychology experiments occurred in the world’s first psychology laboratory, established by Wilhelm Wundt at the University of Leipzig in 1879 [ 1 , 3 ]. Konrad Rieger’s research on hypnosis and muscular endurance, published in 1884 [ 4 ] and Angelo Mosso’s investigations of the effects of mental fatigue on physical performance, published in 1891 [ 5 ] were other early landmarks in the development of applied sport psychology research. Following the efforts of Koch, Wundt, Rieger, and Mosso, sport psychology works appeared with increasing regularity, including Philippe Tissié’s publications in 1894 [ 6 , 7 ] on psychology and physical training, and Pierre de Coubertin’s first use of the term sport psychology in his La Psychologie du Sport paper in 1900 [ 8 ]. In short, the history of sport psychology and performance research began as early as 1830 and picked up pace in the latter part of the 19 th century. Early pioneers, who helped shape sport psychology include Wundt, recognized as the “father of experimental psychology”, Tissié, the founder of French physical education and Legion of Honor awardee in 1932, and de Coubertin who became the father of the modern Olympic movement and founder of the International Olympic Committee.

Sport psychology flourished in the early 20 th century [see 1, 3 for extensive historic details]. For instance, independent laboratories emerged in Berlin, Germany, established by Carl Diem in 1920; in St. Petersburg and Moscow, Russia, established respectively by Avksenty Puni and Piotr Roudik in 1925; and in Champaign, Illinois USA, established by Coleman Griffith, also in 1925. The period from 1950–1980 saw rapid strides in sport psychology, with Franklin Henry establishing this field of study as independent of physical education in the landscape of American and eventually global sport science and kinesiology graduate programs [ 1 ]. In addition, of great importance in the 1960s, three international sport psychology organizations were established: namely, the International Society for Sport Psychology (1965), the North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity (1966), and the European Federation of Sport Psychology (1969). Since that time, the Association of Applied Sport Psychology (1986), the South American Society for Sport Psychology (1986), and the Asian-South Pacific Association of Sport Psychology (1989) have also been established.

The global growth in academic sport psychology has seen a large number of specialist publications launched, including the following journals: International Journal of Sport Psychology (1970), Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology (1979), The Sport Psychologist (1987), Journal of Applied Sport Psychology (1989), Psychology of Sport and Exercise (2000), International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology (2003), Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology (2007), International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology (2008), Journal of Sport Psychology in Action (2010), Sport , Exercise , and Performance Psychology (2014), and the Asian Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology (2021).

In turn, the growth in journal outlets has seen sport psychology publications burgeon. Indicative of the scale of the contemporary literature on sport psychology, searches completed in May 2021 within the Web of Science Core Collection, identified 1,415 publications on goal setting and sport since 1985; 5,303 publications on confidence and sport since 1961; and 3,421 publications on anxiety and sport since 1980. In addition to academic journals, several comprehensive edited textbooks have been produced detailing sport psychology developments across the world, such as Hanrahan and Andersen’s (2010) Handbook of Applied Sport Psychology [ 9 ], Schinke, McGannon, and Smith’s (2016) International Handbook of Sport Psychology [ 10 ], and Bertollo, Filho, and Terry’s (2021) Advancements in Mental Skills Training [ 11 ] to name just a few. In short, sport psychology is global in both academic study and professional practice.

Meta-analysis in sport psychology

Several meta-analysis guides, computer programs, and sport psychology domain-specific primers have been popularized in the social sciences [ 12 , 13 ]. Sport psychology academics have conducted quantitative reviews on much studied constructs since the 1980s, with the first two appearing in 1983 in the form of Feltz and Landers’ meta-analysis on mental practice [ 14 ], which included 98 articles dating from 1934, and Bond and Titus’ cross-disciplinary meta-analysis on social facilitation [ 15 ], which summarized 241 studies including Triplett’s (1898) often-cited study of social facilitation in cycling [ 16 ]. Although much meta-analytic evidence exists for various constructs in sport and exercise psychology [ 12 ] including several related to performance [ 17 ], the evidence is inconsistent. For example, two meta-analyses, both ostensibly summarizing evidence of the benefits to performance of task cohesion [ 18 , 19 ], produced very different mean effects ( d = .24 vs d = 1.00) indicating that the true benefit lies somewhere in a wide range from small to large. Thus, the lack of a reliable evidence base for the use of sport psychology techniques represents a significant gap in the knowledge base for practitioners and researchers alike. A comprehensive systematic review of all published meta-analyses in the field of sport psychology has yet to be published.

Purpose and aim

We consider this review to be both necessary and long overdue for the following reasons: (a) the extensive history of sport psychology and performance research; (b) the prior publication of many meta-analyses summarizing various aspects of sport psychology research in a piecemeal fashion [ 12 , 17 ] but not its totality; and (c) the importance of better understanding and hopefully improving sport performance via the use of interventions based on solid evidence of their efficacy. Hence, we aimed to collate and evaluate this literature in a systematic way to gain improved understanding of the impact of sport psychology variables on sport performance by construct, research design, and meta-analysis quality, to enhance practical knowledge of sport psychology techniques and identify future lines of research inquiry. By systematically reviewing all identifiable meta-analytic reviews linking sport psychology techniques with sport performance, we aimed to evaluate the strength of the evidence base underpinning sport psychology interventions.

Materials and methods

This systematic review of meta-analyses followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines [ 20 ]. We did not register our systematic review protocol in a database. However, we specified our search strategy, inclusion criteria, data extraction, and data analyses in advance of writing our manuscript. All details of our work are available from the lead author. Concerning ethics, this systematic review received a waiver from Texas Tech University Human Subject Review Board as it concerned archival data (i.e., published meta-analyses).

Eligibility criteria

Published meta-analyses were retained for extensive examination if they met the following inclusion criteria: (a) included meta-analytic data such as mean group, between or within-group differences or correlates; (b) published prior to January 31, 2021; (c) published in a peer-reviewed journal; (d) investigated a recognized sport psychology construct; and (e) meta-analyzed data concerned with sport performance. There was no language of publication restriction. To align with our systematic review objectives, we gave much consideration to study participants and performance outcomes. Across multiple checks, all authors confirmed study eligibility. Three authors (ML, AL, and PT) completed the final inclusion assessments.

Information sources

Authors searched electronic databases, personal meta-analysis history, and checked with personal research contacts. Electronic database searches occurred in EBSCOhost with the following individual databases selected: APA PsycINFO, ERIC, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, and SPORTDiscus. An initial search concluded October 1, 2020. ML, AL, and PT rechecked the identified studies during the February–March, 2021 period, which resulted in the identification of two additional meta-analyses [ 21 , 22 ].

Search protocol

ML and ES initially conducted independent database searches. For the first search, ML used the following search terms: sport psychology with meta-analysis or quantitative review and sport and performance or sport* performance. For the second search, ES utilized a sport psychology textbook and used the chapter title terms (e.g., goal setting). In EBSCOhost, both searches used the advanced search option that provided three separate boxes for search terms such as box 1 (sport psychology), box 2 (meta-analysis), and box 3 (performance). Specific details of our search strategy were:

Search by ML:

• sport psychology, meta-analysis, sport and performance
• sport psychology, meta-analysis or quantitative review, sport* performance
• sport psychology, quantitative review, sport and performance
• sport psychology, quantitative review, sport* performance

Search by ES:

• mental practice or mental imagery or mental rehearsal and sports performance and meta-analysis
• goal setting and sports performance and meta-analysis
• anxiety and stress and sports performance and meta-analysis
• competition and sports performance and meta-analysis
• diversity and sports performance and meta-analysis
• cohesion and sports performance and meta-analysis
• imagery and sports performance and meta-analysis
• self-confidence and sports performance and meta-analysis
• concentration and sports performance and meta-analysis
• athletic injuries and sports performance and meta-analysis
• overtraining and sports performance and meta-analysis
• children and sports performance and meta-analysis

The following specific search of the EBSCOhost with SPORTDiscus, APA PsycINFO, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, and ERIC databases, returned six results from 2002–2020, of which three were included [ 18 , 19 , 23 ] and three were excluded because they were not meta-analyses.

• Box 1 cohesion
• Box 2 sports performance
• Box 3 meta-analysis

Study selection

As detailed in the PRISMA flow chart ( Fig 1 ) and the specified inclusion criteria, a thorough study selection process was used. As mentioned in the search protocol, two authors (ML and ES) engaged independently with two separate searches and then worked together to verify the selected studies. Next, AL and PT examined the selected study list for accuracy. ML, AL, and PT, whilst rating the quality of included meta-analyses, also re-examined all selected studies to verify that each met the predetermined study inclusion criteria. Throughout the study selection process, disagreements were resolved through discussion until consensus was reached.

• PPT PowerPoint slide
• PNG larger image
• TIFF original image

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263408.g001

Data extraction process

Initially, ML, TH, and ES extracted data items 1, 2, 3 and 8 (see Data items). Subsequently, ML, AL, and PT extracted the remaining data (items 4–7, 9, 10). Checks occurred during the extraction process for potential discrepancies (e.g., checking the number of primary studies in a meta-analysis). It was unnecessary to contact any meta-analysis authors for missing information or clarification during the data extraction process because all studies reported the required information. Across the search for meta-analyses, all identified studies were reported in English. Thus, no translation software or searching out a native speaker occurred. All data extraction forms (e.g., data items and individual meta-analysis quality) are available from the first author.

To help address our main aim, we extracted the following information from each meta-analysis: (1) author(s); (2) publication year; (3) construct(s); (4) intervention based meta-analysis (yes, no, mix); (5) performance outcome(s) description; (6) number of studies for the performance outcomes; (7) participant description; (8) main findings; (9) bias correction method/results; and (10) author(s) stated conclusions. For all information sought, we coded missing information as not reported.

Individual meta-analysis quality

ML, AL, and PT independently rated the quality of individual meta-analysis on the following 25 points found in the PRISMA checklist [ 20 ]: title; abstract structured summary; introduction rationale, objectives, and protocol and registration; methods eligibility criteria, information sources, search, study selection, data collection process, data items, risk of bias of individual studies, summary measures, synthesis of results, and risk of bias across studies; results study selection, study characteristics, risk of bias within studies, results of individual studies, synthesis of results, and risk of bias across studies; discussion summary of evidence, limitations, and conclusions; and funding. All meta-analyses were rated for quality by two coders to facilitate inter-coder reliability checks, and the mean quality ratings were used in subsequent analyses. One author (PT), having completed his own ratings, received the incoming ratings from ML and AL and ran the inter-coder analysis. Two rounds of ratings occurred due to discrepancies for seven meta-analyses, mainly between ML and AL. As no objective quality categorizations (i.e., a point system for grouping meta-analyses as poor, medium, good) currently exist, each meta-analysis was allocated a quality score of up to a maximum of 25 points. All coding records are available upon request.

Planned methods of analysis

Several preplanned methods of analysis occurred. We first assessed the mean quality rating of each meta-analysis based on our 25-point PRISMA-based rating system. Next, we used a median split of quality ratings to determine whether standardized mean effects (SMDs) differed by the two formed categories, higher and lower quality meta-analyses. Meta-analysis authors reported either of two different effect size metrics (i.e., r and SMD); hence we converted all correlational effects to SMD (i.e., Cohen’s d ) values using an online effect size calculator ( www.polyu.edu.hk/mm/effectsizefaqs/calculator/calculator.html ). We interpreted the meaningfulness of effects based on Cohen’s interpretation [ 24 ] with 0.20 as small, 0.50 as medium, 0.80 as large, and 1.30 as very large. As some psychological variables associate negatively with performance (e.g., confusion [ 25 ], cognitive anxiety [ 26 ]) whereas others associate positively (e.g., cohesion [ 23 ], mental practice [ 14 ]), we grouped meta-analyses according to whether the hypothesized effect with performance was positive or negative, and summarized the overall effects separately. By doing so, we avoided a scenario whereby the demonstrated positive and negative effects canceled one another out when combined. The effect of somatic anxiety on performance, which is hypothesized to follow an inverted-U relationship, was categorized as neutral [ 35 ]. Last, we grouped the included meta-analyses according to whether the primary studies were correlational in nature or involved an intervention and summarized these two groups of meta-analyses separately.

Study characteristics

Table 1 contains extracted data from 30 meta-analyses meeting the inclusion criteria, dating from 1983 [ 14 ] to 2021 [ 21 ]. The number of primary studies within the meta-analyses ranged from three [ 27 ] to 109 [ 28 ]. In terms of the description of participants included in the meta-analyses, 13 included participants described simply as athletes, whereas other meta-analyses identified a mix of elite athletes (e.g., professional, Olympic), recreational athletes, college-aged volunteers (many from sport science departments), younger children to adolescents, and adult exercisers. Of the 30 included meta-analyses, the majority ( n = 18) were published since 2010. The decadal breakdown of meta-analyses was 1980–1989 ( n = 1 [ 14 ]), 1990–1999 ( n = 6 [ 29 – 34 ]), 2000–2009 ( n = 5 [ 23 , 25 , 26 , 35 , 36 ]), 2010–2019 ( n = 12 [ 18 , 19 , 22 , 27 , 37 – 43 , 48 ]), and 2020–2021 ( n = 6 [ 21 , 28 , 44 – 47 ]).

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263408.t001

As for the constructs covered, we categorized the 30 meta-analyses into the following areas: mental practice/imagery [ 14 , 29 , 30 , 42 , 46 , 47 ], anxiety [ 26 , 31 , 32 , 35 ], confidence [ 26 , 35 , 36 ], cohesion [ 18 , 19 , 23 ], goal orientation [ 22 , 44 , 48 ], mood [ 21 , 25 , 34 ], emotional intelligence [ 40 ], goal setting [ 33 ], interventions [ 37 ], mindfulness [ 27 ], music [ 28 ], neurofeedback training [ 43 ], perfectionism [ 39 ], pressure training [ 45 ], quiet eye training [ 41 ], and self-talk [ 38 ]. Multiple effects were generated from meta-analyses that included more than one construct (e.g., tension, depression, etc. [ 21 ]; anxiety and confidence [ 26 ]). In relation to whether the meta-analyses included in our review assessed the effects of a sport psychology intervention on performance or relationships between psychological constructs and performance, 13 were intervention-based, 14 were correlational, two included a mix of study types, and one included a large majority of cross-sectional studies ( Table 1 ).

A wide variety of performance outcomes across many sports was evident, such as golf putting, dart throwing, maximal strength, and juggling; or categorical outcomes such as win/loss and Olympic team selection. Given the extensive list of performance outcomes and the incomplete descriptions provided in some meta-analyses, a clear categorization or count of performance types was not possible. Sufficient to conclude, researchers utilized many performance outcomes across a wide range of team and individual sports, motor skills, and strength and aerobic tasks.

Effect size data and bias correction

To best summarize the effects, we transformed all correlations to SMD values (i.e., Cohen’s d ). Across all included meta-analyses shown in Table 2 and depicted in Fig 2 , we identified 61 effects. Having corrected for bias, effect size values were assessed for meaningfulness [ 24 ], which resulted in 15 categorized as negligible (< ±0.20), 29 as small (±0.20 to < 0.50), 13 as moderate (±0.50 to < 0.80), 2 as large (±0.80 to < 1.30), and 1 as very large (≥ 1.30).

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263408.g002

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263408.t002

Study quality rating results and summary analyses

Following our PRISMA quality ratings, intercoder reliability coefficients were initially .83 (ML, AL), .95 (ML, PT), and .90 (AL, PT), with a mean intercoder reliability coefficient of .89. To achieve improved reliability (i.e., r mean > .90), ML and AL re-examined their ratings. As a result, intercoder reliability increased to .98 (ML, AL), .96 (ML, PT), and .92 (AL, PT); a mean intercoder reliability coefficient of .95. Final quality ratings (i.e., the mean of two coders) ranged from 13 to 25 ( M = 19.03 ± 4.15). Our median split into higher ( M = 22.83 ± 1.08, range 21.5–25, n = 15) and lower ( M = 15.47 ± 2.42, range 13–20.5, n = 15) quality groups produced significant between-group differences in quality ( F 1,28 = 115.62, p < .001); hence, the median split met our intended purpose. The higher quality group of meta-analyses were published from 2015–2021 (median 2018) and the lower quality group from 1983–2014 (median 2000). It appears that meta-analysis standards have risen over the years since the PRISMA criteria were first introduced in 2009. All data for our analyses are shown in Table 2 .

Table 3 contains summary statistics with bias-corrected values used in the analyses. The overall mean effect for sport psychology constructs hypothesized to have a positive impact on performance was of moderate magnitude ( d = 0.51, 95% CI = 0.42, 0.58, n = 36). The overall mean effect for sport psychology constructs hypothesized to have a negative impact on performance was small in magnitude ( d = -0.21, 95% CI -0.31, -0.11, n = 24). In both instances, effects were larger, although not significantly so, among meta-analyses of higher quality compared to those of lower quality. Similarly, mean effects were larger but not significantly so, where reported effects in the original studies were based on interventional rather than correlational designs. This trend only applied to hypothesized positive effects because none of the original studies in the meta-analyses related to hypothesized negative effects used interventional designs.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263408.t003

In this systematic review of meta-analyses, we synthesized the available evidence regarding effects of sport psychology interventions/constructs on sport performance. We aimed to consolidate the literature, evaluate the potential for meta-analysis quality to influence the results, and suggest recommendations for future research at both the single study and quantitative review stages. During the systematic review process, several meta-analysis characteristics came to light, such as the number of meta-analyses of sport psychology interventions (experimental designs) compared to those summarizing the effects of psychological constructs (correlation designs) on performance, the number of meta-analyses with exclusively athletes as participants, and constructs featuring in multiple meta-analyses, some of which (e.g., cohesion) produced very different effect size values. Thus, although our overall aim was to evaluate the strength of the evidence base for use of psychological interventions in sport, we also discuss the impact of these meta-analysis characteristics on the reliability of the evidence.

When seen collectively, results of our review are supportive of using sport psychology techniques to help improve performance and confirm that variations in psychological constructs relate to variations in performance. For constructs hypothesized to have a positive effect on performance, the mean effect strength was moderate ( d = 0.51) although there was substantial variation between constructs. For example, the beneficial effects on performance of task cohesion ( d = 1.00) and self-efficacy ( d = 0.82) are large, and the available evidence base for use of mindfulness interventions suggests a very large beneficial effect on performance ( d = 1.35). Conversely, some hypothetically beneficial effects (2 of 36; 5.6%) were in the negligible-to-small range (0.15–0.20) and most beneficial effects (19 of 36; 52.8%) were in the small-to-moderate range (0.22–0.49). It should be noted that in the world of sport, especially at the elite level, even a small beneficial effect on performance derived from a psychological intervention may prove the difference between success and failure and hence small effects may be of great practical value. To put the scale of the benefits into perspective, an authoritative and extensively cited review of healthy eating and physical activity interventions [ 49 ] produced an overall pooled effect size of 0.31 (compared to 0.51 for our study), suggesting sport psychology interventions designed to improve performance are generally more effective than interventions designed to promote healthy living.

Among hypothetically negative effects (e.g., ego climate, cognitive anxiety, depression), the mean detrimental effect was small ( d = -0.21) although again substantial variation among constructs was evident. Some hypothetically negative constructs (5 of 24; 20.8%) were found to actually provide benefits to performance, albeit in the negligible range (0.02–0.12) and only two constructs (8.3%), both from Lochbaum and colleagues’ POMS meta-analysis [ 21 ], were shown to negatively affect performance above a moderate level (depression: d = -0.64; total mood disturbance, which incorporates the depression subscale: d = -0.84). Readers should note that the POMS and its derivatives assess six specific mood dimensions rather than the mood construct more broadly, and therefore results should not be extrapolated to other dimensions of mood [ 50 ].

Mean effects were larger among higher quality than lower quality meta-analyses for both hypothetically positive ( d = 0.54 vs d = 0.45) and negative effects ( d = -0.25 vs d = 0.17), but in neither case were the differences significant. It is reasonable to assume that the true effects were derived from the higher quality meta-analyses, although our conclusions remain the same regardless of study quality. Overall, our findings provide a more rigorous evidence base for the use of sport psychology techniques by practitioners than was previously available, representing a significant contribution to knowledge. Moreover, our systematic scrutiny of 30 meta-analyses published between 1983 and 2021 has facilitated a series of recommendations to improve the quality of future investigations in the sport psychology area.

Recommendations

The development of sport psychology as an academic discipline and area of professional practice relies on using evidence and theory to guide practice. Hence, a strong evidence base for the applied work of sport psychologists is of paramount importance. Although the beneficial effects of some sport psychology techniques are small, it is important to note the larger performance benefits for other techniques, which may be extremely meaningful for applied practice. Overall, however, especially given the heterogeneity of the observed effects, it would be wise for applied practitioners to avoid overpromising the benefits of sport psychology services to clients and perhaps underdelivering as a result [ 1 ].

The results of our systematic review can be used to generate recommendations for how the profession might conduct improved research to better inform applied practice. Much of the early research in sport psychology was exploratory and potential moderating variables were not always sufficiently controlled. Terry [ 51 ] outlined this in relation to the study of mood-performance relationships, identifying that physical and skills factors will very likely exert a greater influence on performance than psychological factors. Further, type of sport (e.g., individual vs. team), duration of activity (e.g., short vs. long duration), level of competition (e.g., elite vs. recreational), and performance measure (e.g., norm-referenced vs. self-referenced) have all been implicated as potential moderators of the relationship between psychological variables and sport performance [ 51 ]. To detect the relatively subtle effects of psychological effects on performance, research designs need to be sufficiently sensitive to such potential confounds. Several specific methodological issues are worth discussing.

The first issue relates to measurement. Investigating the strength of a relationship requires the measured variables to be valid, accurate and reliable. Psychological variables in the meta-analyses we reviewed relied primarily on self-report outcome measures. The accuracy of self-report data requires detailed inner knowledge of thoughts, emotions, and behavior. Research shows that the accuracy of self-report information is subject to substantial individual differences [ 52 , 53 ]. Therefore, self-report data, at best, are an estimate of the measure. Measurement issues are especially relevant to the assessment of performance, and considerable measurement variation was evident between meta-analyses. Some performance measures were more sensitive, especially those assessing physical performance relative to what is normal for the individual performer (i.e., self-referenced performance). Hence, having multiple baseline indicators of performance increases the probability of identifying genuine performance enhancement derived from a psychological intervention [ 54 ].

A second issue relates to clarifying the rationale for how and why specific psychological variables might influence performance. A comprehensive review of prerequisites and precursors of athletic talent [ 55 ] concluded that the superiority of Olympic champions over other elite athletes is determined in part by a range of psychological variables, including high intrinsic motivation, determination, dedication, persistence, and creativity, thereby identifying performance-related variables that might benefit from a psychological intervention. Identifying variables that influence the effectiveness of interventions is a challenging but essential issue for researchers seeking to control and assess factors that might influence results [ 49 ]. A key part of this process is to use theory to propose the mechanism(s) by which an intervention might affect performance and to hypothesize how large the effect might be.

A third issue relates to the characteristics of the research participants involved. Out of convenience, it is not uncommon for researchers to use undergraduate student participants for research projects, which may bias results and restrict the generalization of findings to the population of primary interest, often elite athletes. The level of training and physical conditioning of participants will clearly influence their performance. Highly trained athletes will typically make smaller gains in performance over time than novice athletes, due to a ceiling effect (i.e., they have less room for improvement). For example, consider runner A, who takes 20 minutes to run 5km one week but 19 minutes the next week, and Runner B who takes 30 minutes one week and 25 minutes the next. If we compare the two, Runner A runs faster than Runner B on both occasions, but Runner B improved more, so whose performance was better? If we also consider Runner C, a highly trained athlete with a personal best of 14 minutes, to run 1 minute quicker the following week would almost require a world record time, which is clearly unlikely. For this runner, an improvement of a few seconds would represent an excellent performance. Evidence shows that trained, highly motivated athletes may reach performance plateaus and as such are good candidates for psychological skills training. They are less likely to make performance gains due to increased training volume and therefore the impact of psychological skills interventions may emerge more clearly. Therefore, both test-retest and cross-sectional research designs should account for individual difference variables. Further, the range of individual difference factors will be context specific; for example, individual differences in strength will be more important in a study that uses weightlifting as the performance measure than one that uses darts as the performance measure, where individual differences in skill would be more important.

A fourth factor that has not been investigated extensively relates to the variables involved in learning sport psychology techniques. Techniques such as imagery, self-talk and goal setting all require cognitive processing and as such some people will learn them faster than others [ 56 ]. Further, some people are intuitive self-taught users of, for example, mood regulation strategies such as abdominal breathing or listening to music who, if recruited to participate in a study investigating the effects of learning such techniques on performance, would respond differently to novice users. Hence, a major challenge when testing the effects of a psychological intervention is to establish suitable controls. A traditional non-treatment group offers one option, but such an approach does not consider the influence of belief effects (i.e., placebo/nocebo), which can either add or detract from the effectiveness of performance interventions [ 57 ]. If an individual believes that, an intervention will be effective, this provides a motivating effect for engagement and so performance may improve via increased effort rather than the effect of the intervention per se.

When there are positive beliefs that an intervention will work, it becomes important to distinguish belief effects from the proposed mechanism through which the intervention should be successful. Research has shown that field studies often report larger effects than laboratory studies, a finding attributed to higher motivation among participants in field studies [ 58 ]. If participants are motivated to improve, being part of an active training condition should be associated with improved performance regardless of any intervention. In a large online study of over 44,000 participants, active training in sport psychology interventions was associated with improved performance, but only marginally more than for an active control condition [ 59 ]. The study involved 4-time Olympic champion Michael Johnson narrating both the intervention and active control using motivational encouragement in both conditions. Researchers should establish not only the expected size of an effect but also to specify and assess why the intervention worked. Where researchers report performance improvement, it is fundamental to explain the proposed mechanism by which performance was enhanced and to test the extent to which the improvement can be explained by the proposed mechanism(s).

Limitations

Systematic reviews are inherently limited by the quality of the primary studies included. Our review was also limited by the quality of the meta-analyses that had summarized the primary studies. We identified the following specific limitations; (1) only 12 meta-analyses summarized primary studies that were exclusively intervention-based, (2) the lack of detail regarding control groups in the intervention meta-analyses, (3) cross-sectional and correlation-based meta-analyses by definition do not test causation, and therefore provide limited direct evidence of the efficacy of interventions, (4) the extensive array of performance measures even within a single meta-analysis, (5) the absence of mechanistic explanations for the observed effects, and (6) an absence of detail across intervention-based meta-analyses regarding number of sessions, participants’ motivation to participate, level of expertise, and how the intervention was delivered. To ameliorate these concerns, we included a quality rating for all included meta-analyses. Having created higher and lower quality groups using a median split of quality ratings, we showed that effects were larger, although not significantly so, in the higher quality group of meta-analyses, all of which were published since 2015.

Conclusions

Journals are full of studies that investigate relationships between psychological variables and sport performance. Since 1983, researchers have utilized meta-analytic methods to summarize these single studies, and the pace is accelerating, with six relevant meta-analyses published since 2020. Unquestionably, sport psychology and performance research is fraught with limitations related to unsophisticated experimental designs. In our aggregation of the effect size values, most were small-to-moderate in meaningfulness with a handful of large values. Whether these moderate and large values could be replicated using more sophisticated research designs is unknown. We encourage use of improved research designs, at the minimum the use of control conditions. Likewise, we encourage researchers to adhere to meta-analytic guidelines such as PRISMA and for journals to insist on such adherence as a prerequisite for the acceptance of reviews. Although such guidelines can appear as a ‘painting by numbers’ approach, while reviewing the meta-analyses, we encountered difficulty in assessing and finding pertinent information for our study characteristics and quality ratings. In conclusion, much research exists in the form of quantitative reviews of studies published since 1934, almost 100 years after the very first publication about sport psychology and performance [ 2 ]. Sport psychology is now truly global in terms of academic pursuits and professional practice and the need for best practice information plus a strong evidence base for the efficacy of interventions is paramount. We should strive as a profession to research and provide best practices to athletes and the general community of those seeking performance improvements.

Supporting information

S1 checklist..

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263408.s001

Acknowledgments

We acknowledge the work of all academics since Koch in 1830 [ 2 ] for their efforts to research and promote the practice of applied sport psychology.

• 1. Terry PC. Applied Sport Psychology. IAAP Handbook of Applied Psychol. Wiley-Blackwell; 2011 Apr 20;386–410.
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• 4. Rieger K. Der Hypnotismus: Psychiatrische Beiträge zur Kenntniss der Sogenannten Hypnotischen Zustände [Hypnotism: Psychiatric Contributions to the Knowledge of the So-called Hypnotic States]. Würzburg, Germany: University of Würzburg; 1884.
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• 24. Cohen J. Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences. New York: Routledge Academic; 1988.
• 50. Ekkekakis P. The Measurement of Affect, Mood, and Emotion. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; 2013.

What We’ve Learned Through Sports Psychology Research

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Since the early years of this century, it has been commonplace for computerized analyses of athletic statistics to guide a baseball manager’s choice of pinch hitter, a football coach’s decision to punt or pass, or a basketball team’s debate over whether to trade a star player for a draft pick.

But many sports experts who actually watch the games know that the secret to success is not solely in computer databases, but also inside the players’ heads. So perhaps psychologists can offer as much insight into athletic achievement as statistics gurus do.

Sports psychology has, after all, been around a lot longer than computer analytics. Psychological studies of sports appeared as early as the late 19th century. During the 1970s and ’80s, sports psychology became a fertile research field. And within the last decade or so, sports psychology research has exploded as scientists have explored the nuances of everything from the pursuit of perfection to the harms of abusive coaching.

Read the whole story (subscription may be required): Smithsonian Magazine

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Sports Psychology Dissertation Topics & Ideas

Published by Carmen Troy at January 2nd, 2023 , Revised On October 10, 2023

If you are a psychology or sports sciences student, you might be looking for unique and interesting sports psychology dissertation topics for your thesis research. If that is the case, you have landed on the right place because this article provides a list of several trending and focused sports psychology dissertation topics that you can consider for your dissertation project.

Make sure to base your research on a topic that you find interesting. Sport psychology covers a wide range of topics, including visualisation, choking, pressure handling, fame management and players’ mental health.

The modern world places a strong emphasis on promoting good mental health and developing strategies to help athletes develop “mental toughness”. Choose the sport you are most interested in.

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List of Sports Psychology Dissertation Topics & Ideas

• Examining the link between depressive symptoms in semi-pro athletes who participate in team sports and long-term sports injuries.
• What impact does racism in organized sports have on professional athletes of color?
• The pressure and choke experienced by skilled golfers during competitions are examined in “the pressure shot.”
• Olympic athletes and performance-enhancing substances: is using peds worth a chance at the big stage?
• A case study of the psychological effects of career-ending injuries in Spanish football academies is presented in this section on career transition in sports.
• Parenting and exercise: An investigation of the difficulties faced by young athletes practicing with their parents.
• A research to see how kid football players’ egos and complexes in sports academies affect their performance.
• Football player animosity: A study of the conflicts between players on the same football team.
• A conflict between the player and the coach: An investigation of the causes of such disputes.
• Football players who abuse drugs: An investigation on such footballers in Africa.
• Understanding the feelings and thoughts of homosexuality among professional sports, both male and female.
• What effects do recurrent sports injuries have on professional players’ mental health?
• How parents use their children to relive their sporting fantasies is known as living sporting dreams through children.
• How does elite athletes’ mental health affect their performance?
• Recognizing the relationship between culture and racial attitudes among English football supporters.
• Quality of life variations among semi-pro athletes in team sports.
• A research to determine whether a good sports player’s mental toughness is weakened by repeated injuries among football players.
• A study was conducted to determine what mental illness causes athletes to become drug addicts.
• Football player depression: A study to comprehend how depression affects a football player who is rarely used on the field.
• How are an athlete’s identity and performance impacted by the level of celebrity? What are the key metrics that famous athletes pay attention to?
• What effects can interval training methods that include positive reinforcement have on enhancing competitive performance in professional matches?
• What impact do team chants have on a team’s performance before a game? What do the statistics say about each player’s degree of chant participation?

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Center for Sport Psychology and Athlete Mental Health

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The UNT Center for Sport Psychology and Athlete Mental Health's faculty and graduate students maintain active research programs.

Past Projects

In conducting research, our purpose is to (a) add new knowledge and understanding to specific areas of study, and (b) translate what we learn into new and more effective ways of providing services to the athletes, coaches and parents with whom we work.

Publications

Along with maintaining active research programs, the Center's faculty and graduate students seek to publish their findings in scientific journals and popular magazines to share what they have learned with other sport psychology professionals, students, and sport participants.

Presentations

Presentations provide us with the opportunity to share our research findings and ideas with (a) other professionals in order to stimulate new thinking and (b) athletes, coaches, parents, and other sport personnel to help them learn new information and improve their performances.

COVID and College Student Athlete Health and Well-Being Study

Impact of COVID-19 on ​College Student Athletes' Health, Performance, and ​Psychological Well-Being​ - Released July 8, 2020

Return to Sport: Athletes’ Confidence and Mindset Post-ACL Surgery

Physical therapy is standard for post-ACL surgical rehabilitation, though such protocols normally do NOT address directly athletes' psychological responses to the injury, surgery, and recovery.

NCAA Coaches' Perceptions of Transgender Athletes Inclusion

Coaches hold particular responsibility in developing sport environments and team cultures and have critical and often personal relationships with athletes; therefore, coaches have a direct role in athlete wellbeing and personal development.

Current Grants

The Center for Sport Psychology and Athlete Mental Health supports much of its research program through grants from a variety of external agencies and organizations. The Center has received multiple grants from the NCAA and AASP, as well as funding from NASPE.

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The Relationship Between Psychosocial Correlates and Bulimic Symptomatology in Retired Female Athletes ​ Researchers : Stephanie Barrett, M.S., Trent A. Petrie, PhD -Supported by a Grant from the National Collegiate Athletic Association

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Articles on Sports psychology

Displaying 1 - 20 of 35 articles.

Cricket commentators love to talk about the ‘nervous nineties’ – but our new research suggests there’s no such thing

Leo Roberts , The University of Melbourne ; Daniel R. Little , The University of Melbourne ; Matthew J. Spittal , The University of Melbourne , and Mervyn Jackson , RMIT University

The secret of Novak Djokovic’s record-breaking tennis success is his mental resilience – expert explains

Sahen Gupta , University of Portsmouth

Plastic rats and playoff beards: Superstitious behaviours in hockey fans and players increase during the playoffs

Terry Eddy , University of Windsor

Why athletes’ skills fail them – and how focusing on memory can help professionals and amateurs perform better

Ray Bobrownicki , The University of Edinburgh and Howie Carson , The University of Edinburgh

Cricket: what happens when an elite player like England’s Jonny Bairstow is ‘in the zone’

Andy M Morley , University of Central Lancashire and Paul John Taylor , University of Central Lancashire

Tokyo 2020: Simone Biles’ withdrawal is a sign of resilience and strength

Jonathan Rhodes , University of Plymouth

Tokyo Olympics: what are the limits of human performance? Podcast

Gemma Ware , The Conversation and Daniel Merino, The Conversation

Cricket: Rishabh Pant’s historic innings against Australia can be explained with psychology

Matthew Smith , University of Winchester and Matt Jewiss , University of Hertfordshire

Self-entitled prima donnas or do they have a point? Why Australian Open tennis players find hard lockdown so tough

Peter Terry , University of Southern Queensland

Let it happen or make it happen? There’s more than one way to get in the zone

Christian Swann , Southern Cross University and Scott Goddard , Southern Cross University

Marcus Rashford: finding purpose off-field can improve sporting performance

Martin J Turner , Manchester Metropolitan University

Coronavirus: why self-isolation brings mental health strain for elite athletes

Jo Batey , University of Winchester and Keith Parry , University of Winchester

How portrayals of the NFL are shaping criminal justice reform

Matt Ventresca , University of Calgary and Kathryn Henne , Australian National University

Why your New Year’s resolution to go to the gym will fail

William Clark , Binghamton University, State University of New York

Running: not so much a liberating hobby as a cult

Carys Egan-Wyer , Lund University

Cori Gauff: the support network behind 15-year -old who beat Venus Williams at Wimbledon

Candice Lingam-Willgoss , The Open University

Sport is full of conspiracy theories – Chris Froome’s horrific cycling crash is just the latest example

Mathew Marques , La Trobe University

Christmas Day: to be a winning host, prep like a sports pro

Nadine Sammy , University of Exeter

A psychological theory to explain how music helps footballers prepare for the pitch

Costas Karageorghis , Brunel University London ; Dr Marcelo Bigliassi , Brunel University London , and Jonathan Bird , Brunel University London

Why football teams who sing their national anthem with passion are more likely to win

Matthew Slater , Staffordshire University

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What Is Sports Psychology? 9 Scientific Theories & Examples

And maintaining focus when your team is behind and heading into the final few minutes of the game requires mental toughness.

Sports are played by the body and won in the mind, says sports psychologist Aidan Moran (2012).

To provide an athlete with the mental support they need, a sports psychologist considers the individual’s feelings, thoughts, perceived obstacles, and behavior in training, competition, and their lives beyond.

This article introduces some of the key concepts, research, and theory behind sports psychology and its ability to optimize performance.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Goal Achievement Exercises for free . These detailed, science-based exercises will help you or your clients create actionable goals and master techniques to create lasting behavior change.

This Article Contains:

What is sports psychology, 4 real-life examples, 5 theories and facts of sports psychology, why is sports psychology important, brief history of sports psychology, top 4 sports psychology podcasts, positivepsychology.com’s helpful resources, a take-home message.

“Sport psychology is about understanding the performance, mental processes, and wellbeing of people in sporting settings, taking into account psychological theory and methods.”

Meijen, 2019

Sports psychology is now widely accepted as offering a crucial edge over competitors. And while essential for continuing high performance in elite athletes, it also provides insights into optimizing functioning in areas of our lives beyond sports.

As a result, psychological processes and mental wellbeing have become increasingly recognized as vital to consistently high degrees of sporting performance for athletes at all levels where the individual is serious about pushing their limits.

Indeed, as cognitive scientist Massimiliano Cappuccio (2018) writes, “physical training and exercise are not sufficient to excel in competition.” Instead, key elements of the athlete’s mental preparation must be “perfectly tuned for the challenge.”

For example, in recent research attempting to understand endurance limits , psychological variables have been confirmed as the deciding factor in ceasing effort rather than muscular fatigue (Meijen, 2019). The brain literally limits the body.

Beyond endurance, mental processes are equally crucial in other aspects of sporting success, such as maintaining focus, overcoming injury, dealing with failure, and handling success.

As psychologists, we can help competitors enhance their performance by “providing advice on how to be their best when it matters most” (Moran, 2012).

Pushing from within

As long ago as 2008, Tiger Woods confirmed the importance of his mental strength and ability to push himself from within (Moran, 2012):

“It’s not about what other people think and what other people say. It’s about what you want to accomplish and do you want to go out there and be prepared to beat everyone you play or face?”

And golf experts agree. While Tiger Woods’s natural gifts are self-evident, you can never count him out when he is losing, because of his robust mindset. He is always prepared and always has a plan (Bastable, 2020).

Vision and the right mindset will overcome

When sports scientist and motivational expert Greg Whyte met Eddie Izzard, the British comedian didn’t even own a pair of running shoes. Yet Whyte had six weeks to prepare her for the monumental challenge of running 43 consecutive marathons.

Vision, belief, science-led training, psychological support, and Izzard’s epic degree of determination were the essential ingredients that resulted in success (Whyte, 2015).

Reframing arousal

When sports psychologist John Kremer was approached by an international sprinter complaining that pre-race anxiety was impacting his races, he took time to understand what he was experiencing and how it felt.

Kremer helped reframe the athlete’s perception of his pounding heart from stress negatively affecting his performance to being primed and ready for competition (Kremer, Moran, & Kearney, 2019).

Visualizing success

Diver Laura Wilkinson broke three bones in her foot in the lead-up to the U.S. trials for the 2000 Olympics.

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Sports psychology is not one theory, but the combination of many overlapping ideas and concepts that attempt to understand what it takes to be a successful athlete.

Indeed, in many sports, endurance in particular, there has been a move toward more multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches, looking at the interactions between psychological, biomechanical, physiological, genetic, and training aspects of performance (Meijen, 2019).

With that in mind, and considering the many psychological constructs affecting performance in sports, the following areas are some of the most widely studied:

• Mental toughness
• Goal setting
• Anxiety and arousal

1. Mental toughness

Coaches and athletes recognize mental toughness as a psychological construct vital for performance success in training and competition (Gucciardi, Peeling, Ducker, & Dawson, 2016).

Mental toughness helps maintain consistency in determination, focus, and perceived control while under competitive pressure (Jones, Hanton, & Connaughton, 2002).

While much of the early work on mental toughness relied on the conceptual understanding of the related concepts of resilience and hardiness, reaching an agreed upon definition has proven difficult (Sutton, 2019).

Mentally tough athletes are highly competitive, committed, self-motivated , and able to cope effectively and maintain concentration in high-pressure situations. They retain a high degree of self-belief even after setbacks and persist when the going gets tough (Crust & Clough, 2005; Clough & Strycharczyk, 2015).

After interviewing sports professionals competing at an international level, Jones et al. (2002) found that being mentally tough takes an unshakeable self-belief in the ability to achieve goals and the capacity and determination to bounce back from performance setbacks.

Mental toughness determines “how people deal effectively with challenges, stressors, and pressure… irrespective of circumstances” (Crust & Clough, 2005). It is made up of four components, known to psychologists as the “four Cs”:

• Feeling in control  when confronted with obstacles and difficult situations
• Commitment  to goals
• Confidence  in abilities and interpersonal skills
• Seeing challenges as opportunities

For athletes and sportspeople, mental toughness provides an advantage over opponents, enabling them to cope better with the demands of physical activity.

Beyond that, mental toughness allows individuals to manage stress better, overcome challenges, and perform optimally in everyday life.

2. Motivation

Motivation has been described as what maintains, sustains, directs, and channels behavior over an extended amount of time (Ryan & Deci, 2017). While it applies in all areas of life requiring commitment, it is particularly relevant in sports.

Not only does motivation impact an athlete’s ability to focus and achieve sporting excellence, but it is essential for the initial adoption and ongoing continuance of training (Sutton, 2019).

While there are several theories of motivation, the Self-Determination Theory (SDT) has proven one of the most popular (Deci & Ryan, 1985; Ryan & Deci, 2017).

Based on our inherent tendency toward growth, SDT suggests that activity is most likely when an individual feels intrinsically motivated, has a sense of volition over their behavior, and the activity feels inherently interesting and appealing.

Optimal performance in sports and elsewhere occurs when three basic needs are met: relatedness, competence, and autonomy (Ryan & Deci, 2017).

3. Goal setting and focus

Setting goals is an effective way to focus on the right activities, increase commitment, and energize the individual (Clough & Strycharczyk, 2015).

Goal setting is also “associated with increased wellbeing and represents an individual’s striving to achieve personal self-change, enhanced meaning, and purpose in life” (Sheard, 2013).

A well-constructed goal can provide a mechanism to motivate the individual toward that goal. And something big can be broken down into a set of smaller, more manageable tasks that take us nearer to achieving the overall goal (Clough & Strycharczyk, 2015).

Athletes can use goals to focus and direct attention toward actions that will lead to specific improvements; for example, a swimmer improves their kick to take 0.5 seconds off a 100-meter butterfly time or a runner increases their speed out of the blocks in a 100 meter sprint.

Goal setting can define challenging but achievable outcomes, whatever your sporting level or skills.

A specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time-bound (SMART) goal should be clear, realistic, and possible. For example, a runner may set the following goal:

Next year, I want to run the New York City Marathon in three hours by completing a six-month training schedule provided by a coach .

4. Anxiety and arousal

Under extreme pressure and in situations perceived as important, athletes may perform worse than expected. This is known as choking and is typically caused by being overly anxious (Kremer et al., 2019).

Such anxiety can have cognitive (erratic thinking), physical (sweating, over-breathing), and behavioral (pacing, tensing, rapid speech) outcomes. It typically concerns something that is not currently happening, such as an upcoming race (Moran, 2012).

It is important to distinguish anxiety from arousal . The latter refers to a type of bodily energy that prepares us for action. It involves deep psychological and physiological activation, and is valuable in sports.

Therefore, if psychological and physiological activation is on a continuum from deep sleep to intense excitement , the sportsperson must aim for a perceived sweet spot to perform at their best. It will differ wildly between competitors; for one, it may be perceived as unpleasant anxiety, for another, nervous excitement.

The degree of anxiety is influenced by (Moran, 2012):

• Perceived importance of the event
• Trait anxiety
• Attributing outcomes to internal or external factors
• Perfectionism – setting impossibly high standards
• Fear of failure
• Lack of confidence

While the competitor needs a degree of pressure (or arousal) and nervous energy to perform at their best, too much may cause them to crumble. Sports psychologists work with sportspeople to better understand the pressure and help manage it through several techniques including:

• Visualization
• Breathing and slowing down
• Sticking to pre-performance routines

Ultimately, it may not be the amount of arousal that affects performance, but its interpretation.

5. Confidence

While lack of confidence is an essential factor in competition anxiety, it also plays a crucial role in mental toughness.

As Gaelic footballer Michael Nolan says, “it’s not who we are that holds us back; it’s who we think we’re not”  (Clough & Strycharczyk, 2015).

Confidence is ultimately a measure of how much self-belief we have to see through to the end something beset with setbacks.

Those with a high degree of self-confidence will recognize that obstacles are part of life and take them in stride. Those less confident may believe the world is set against them and feel defeated or prevented from completing their task (Clough & Strycharczyk, 2015).

Self-confidence also taps into other, similar self-regulatory beliefs such as staying positive and maintaining self-belief (Sheard, 2013). An athlete high in self-confidence will harness their degree of self-belief and meet the challenge head on.

However, there are risks associated with being too self-confident. Overconfidence in abilities can lead to taking on too much, intolerance, and the inability to see underdeveloped skills.

And yet, that can only ever be part of the success story.

Sports place tremendous pressure on the competitor’s mind in competition and in training, and that pressure must be supported by robust and reliable psychological constructs (Kumar & Shirotriya, 2010).

The abilities to maintain focus under such pressure and also control actions during extreme circumstances of uncertainty can be strengthened by the mental training and skills a sports psychologist provides.

Mental preparation helps ready the individual and team for competition and offers an edge over an adversary while optimizing performance.

Not only that, but the skills learned in sports psychology are transferable; we can take them to other domains such as education and the workplace.

Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz (2018) recognized the parallels between achieving “sustained high performance in the face of ever-increasing pressure and rapid change” in the workplace and on the sports field.

Perhaps the earliest known formal study of the mental processes involved in sports can be attributed to Triplett in 1898.

Triplett explored the positive effect of having other competitors to race against in the new sport of cycling. He found that the presence of others enhances the performance of well-learned skills.

In the decades that followed, the focus turned to a range of sports, including archery and baseball, with the first dedicated psychology research center called the Athletic Research Laboratory  set up at the University of Illinois in 1925.

It wasn’t until the 1960s that sports psychology formally emerged as a distinct discipline from psychology, specifically with the International Society of Sport Psychology in 1965. However, it wasn’t until 1986 that sports psychology had its own division in the American Psychology Association (Moran, 2012).

The following recommendations all engage with professional psychologists, coaches, and competitors to provide psychological theory and practical guidance:

• Mental Preparation Secrets of Top Athletes, Entertainers, and Surgeons In this episode of Harvard Business Review’s IdeaCast, Dan McGinn talks about how top performers in sports and the world of business “prepare for their big moments.”
• Science of Ultra A podcast that explores the psychology and physiology of endurance through fascinating conversations with scientists, psychologists, trainers, coaches, and athletes.
• The Sport Psych Show‬‬‬ Sports psychologist Dan Adams takes listeners on a journey to demystify the psychological tools and techniques available to drive sporting participation and performance.
• Sports Psychology Podcast by Peaksports.com‬‬‬ Patrick Cohn helps athletes, coaches, and sports parents understand how to adopt the right mindset to improve confidence and boost performance.

17 Tools To Increase Motivation and Goal Achievement

These 17 Motivation & Goal Achievement Exercises [PDF] contain all you need to help others set meaningful goals, increase self-drive, and experience greater accomplishment and life satisfaction.

Created by Experts. 100% Science-based.

We have many tools and worksheets that can help you or your clients identify and work toward goals, develop resilience, and grow self-confidence:

• Setting SMART+ Goals Capture SMART goals and their accountability to ensure they receive the appropriate focus to ensure completion.
• Confidence Booster Add confidence boosters to your daily and weekly schedule.
• Understanding Self-Confidence Gain insight into your self-confidence and use that understanding to begin to improve your self-esteem.
• 17 Motivation & Goal-Achievement Exercises If you’re looking for more science-based ways to help others reach their goals, this collection contains 17 validated motivation & goals-achievement tools for practitioners. Use them to help others turn their dreams into reality by applying the latest science-based behavioral change techniques.
• Sports Psychology Books Another great way to get a better understanding of Sports Psychology, is to read recommended books. Our article listing the top 20 Sports Psychology Books is the perfect place to start.
• Sports Psychology Techniques & Tips Explore these Sports Psychology techniques and tips that can help athletes up their game, overcome obstacles, and deliver peak performances.
• Sports Psychology Courses Last but not least, to find out where you can study Sports Psychology, this article shares 17 of the best Sports Psychology Degrees, Courses, & Programs .

Becoming an elite performer results from years of careful planning and hard work. The winners get to the top by identifying, defining, and achieving a series of smaller goals along the way to reaching the podium.

But being at that level takes sustainable motivation and the ability to remain calm under considerable pressure. Successful performance requires the right mindset and psychological tools to allow the sportsperson to overcome both defeat and success. Neither of which is easy.

Modern athletes (professional and amateur), coaches, and team managers recognize the challenges within their sport and the competitive edge gained from seeking sports psychologists’ help.

Time-crunched athletes require focused, pragmatic support and solutions that allow them to deliver a consistent high-quality performance.

Even in the world outside the sporting arena, we are all competing. Understanding the psychological mechanisms involved in overcoming obstacles, hitting our goals, and achieving success is invaluable.

As academic philosopher David Papineau writes, many have come to realize that “sporting prowess has much to teach us about the workings of our minds” (Cappuccio, 2018).

Review the examples, theories, and approaches introduced in this article, and consider how they can benefit performance at any level of competition and be applied to manage stress, overcome obstacles, and improve performance.

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Goal Achievement Exercises for free .

• Afremow, J. A. (2014). The champion’s mind: How great athletes think, train, and thrive . Rodale.
• Bastable, A. (2020). Secret to Tiger Woods’ success was revealed in these 2 remarkable hours. Golf. Retrieved March 5, 2021, from https://golf.com/news/secret-tiger-woods-success-revealed-2-hours/
• Cappuccio, M. (2018). Handbook of embodied cognition and sport psychology . MIT Press.
• Clough, P., & Strycharczyk, D. (2015). Developing mental toughness: Coaching strategies to improve performance, resilience and wellbeing . Kogan Page.
• Crust, L., & Clough, P. J. (2005). Relationship between mental toughness and physical endurance. Perceptual and Motor Skills , 100 , 192–194.
• Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). The general causality orientations scale: Self-determination in personality. Journal of Research in Personality , 19 , 109–134.
• Gucciardi, D. F., Peeling, P., Ducker, K. J., & Dawson, B. (2016). When the going gets tough: Mental toughness and its relationship with behavioural perseverance. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport , 19 (1), 81–86.
• Jones, G., Hanton, S., & Connaughton, D (2002). What is this thing called mental toughness? An investigation with elite performers. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology , 14 , 211–224.
• Kremer, J., Moran, A. P., & Kearney, C. J. (2019). Pure sport: Practical sport psychology . Routledge.
• Kumar, P., & Shirotriya, A. K. (2010). ‘Sports psychology’ a crucial ingredient for athletes success: Conceptual view. British Journal of Sports Medicine , 44 (Suppl_1), i55–i56.
• Loehr, J., & Schwartz, T. (2018). The making of a corporate athlete. In HBR’s 10 must reads: On mental toughness . Harvard Business Review Press.
• Meijen, C. (2019). Endurance performance in sport: Psychological theory and interventions . Routledge.
• Moran, A. P. (2012). Sport and exercise psychology: A critical introduction . Psychology Press.
• Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2017). Self-determination theory: Basic psychological needs in motivation, development, and wellness . Guilford Press.
• Sheard, M. (2013). Mental toughness: The mindset behind sporting achievement . Routledge.
• Sutton, J. (2019). Psychological and physiological factors that affect success in ultra-marathoners (Doctoral thesis, Ulster University). Retrieved from https://pure.ulster.ac.uk/en/studentTheses/psychological-and-physiological-factors-that-affect-success-in-ul
• Triplett, N. (1898). The dynamogenic factors in pacemaking and competition. The American Journal of Psychology , 9 (4), 507–533.
• Whyte, G. P. (2015). Achieve the impossible: How to overcome challenges and gain success in life, work and sport . Bantam Press.

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What our readers think.

Hello, my name is Ali, and I have a question about something. I graduated last year from the Faculty of Physical Education in my country, Egypt, Helwan University, and I got a bachelor’s degree with excellent grades. I was majoring in sports psychology. I am really interested and very passionate about this field. The articles I read helped me in fact. On this site about this specialization, it increases my desire to stick to work in this field, but I am currently facing a problem, which is I do not know where to start specifically, should I complete postgraduate academic studies in this specialty until I get at least a master’s degree in order to work in clubs As a sports psychologist? Or do I apply directly to one of the clubs and ask to work as a sports psychologist in it? And with which team, in particular, or in what sport? What are the required conditions and qualifications that allow me to work in this field? What are the types of books that I should read in order to improve my cognitive, scientific and applied skills in this field? Thank you very much

Yes, if you want to become a registered psychologist in any discipline, you will need to complete a Master’s degree. You’ll need to do this before you can work as a psychologist in the field. You can learn more about the process in this article , and also in our digital guidebook on becoming a therapist (which also covers what’s involved in becoming a psychologist).

We also have a dedicated blog post full of sport psychology book recommendations here . I imagine once you’ve gone through a sports psychology Master’s program and done further reading, you may discover which specific sports and teams you are most likely to enjoy working with — ultimately that decision is up to you!

Hope these materials help.

– Nicole | Community Manager

Do you think this translates to a 1:1 with digital athletes (like in esports)? Or do you think the physical athlete’s connection with physical exercise during competition may change the way this type of anxiety is dealtwith?

That’s a great question! I can’t give you a clear answer as research in this space is still very much new and emerging. However, at face value, I think many of the components here do equally apply to esports. For instance, it is just as important to set effective goals and manage anxiety/arousal in esports as it is in traditional sports.

As you note, however, mechanisms for effective goal-setting, management of anxiety, etc. may be different from traditional sports, as they may not rely on the mind-body connection in the same way, or draw more on cognitive resources and capabilities.

For a review that sets the stage for research in this space, definitely check out Pedraza-Ramirez et al. (2020) .

Hope this helps a little!

Hi am a Nigerian students of physical and health education my question is what are d criteria to work as a physiotherapist after study physical and health education

Hi Abigial,

The laws re: practicing as a physiotherapist will vary depending on country and state, so could you please let me know where you were hoping to practice? Then I can point you in the direction of some advice.

How can we use sports psychology to motivate people to get moving again outside, especially because of Covid-19? Can the answer/s also encourage society to create new gender neutral sports that keeps players separate without hands or head touching shared equipment? Can the lack of exercise be a big contributing factor why some students are not doing so well with Covid-19 forced remote learning?

Sounds like this post inspired some big questions for you! And I’ve no doubt the nature of sports around the world is likely to change in the wake of the pandemic. Early thinking seems to suggest that the impact of COVID on people’s exercise habits (and flow-on effects to things like study and mental health) depends somewhat on people’s preferred sports. E.g., this article suggests that, due to the nature of restrictions, cyclists, runners, etc. are well catered for, but those used to doing other sports may not be. A search for ‘exercise covid’ in Google Scholar will reveal some other interesting and emerging research in this space if you’d like to read more.

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Sport and Competition

What is a sport psychologist, the field of sport psychology continues to expand..

Updated November 3, 2023 | Reviewed by Tyler Woods

• Sport psychologists operate in a variety of settings, from youth to professional sports.
• Sport psychologists work across the mental health and mental performance services continuum.
• In addition to individual and team work, sport psychologists operate in and serve broader athletic systems.

What do sport psychologists do?

Sport psychologists operate in a variety of capacities, including individual sessions with athletes that may reflect traditional therapy , scheduled performance consultations, or “sideline” interventions (i.e., providing immediate feedback in a natural sport environment). Sport psychologists may also offer crisis management to individuals, teams, and/or broader sport organizations as needed. Sessions with teams, including consultations, workshops, and educational interventions, are also a function of sport psychologists, as is observing teams in their natural practice/ competition environments. Finally, sport psychologists may offer consultation to coaches and staff who work directly with athletes.

How to Identify the Right Provider

Sport psychology is a broad field that includes providers who work across the mental health and mental performance services continuum. These providers can be broadly categorized across licensed mental health providers (e.g., psychologists, psychiatrists, counselors, social workers) and Certified Mental Performance Consultants® (CMPCs), a designation given by the Association for Applied Sport Psychology. Clinically trained CMPCs possess both a mental health license and a CMPC. While clinically trained CMPCs or licensed mental health providers typically work with athletes at low and decreased levels of functioning and performance, CMPCs typically work with athletes that have stable, enhanced, or high functioning and performance. Education , training, license/certification, and continuing education requirements differ across provider designations.

Where Do Sport Psychologists Work?

While less common in traditional high school settings, sport psychologists can be increasingly found serving youth clubs and academies. More commonly, sport psychologists are hired by collegiate athletic departments—either as liaisons from university counseling centers or embedded entirely within athletics—to serve student-athlete mental health and performance needs specifically. Sport psychologists also work with professional athletes who are members of professional sport teams or the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC). Those working with professional athletes may do so as internal providers of professional sports teams, or private practitioners who are hired individually by athletes. Finally, sport psychologists can also be found operating as private practitioners in medical centers/hospitals (particularly rehabilitation settings) and in non-athletic settings such as the military, creative arts, and corporations—anywhere that elite performance is relevant outside of sport.

Working With Athletes

Athletes are a unique population that benefit from tailored services because they often perform in the spotlight and/or under a microscope. Athletes experience high levels of pressure to perform and, thus, possess many strengths in navigating high-pressure systems that may be useful in other realms of life. Grit (i.e., passion and perseverance for a long-term goal) is an example of a characteristic common among elite athletes that may translate into other areas of their lives (Thomsen & Olesen, 2020).

Typical Challenges for Athletes

Athletes face challenges related to mental health and interpersonal relationships similar to the general public. However, the unique pressures placed on athletes to perform can exacerbate existing mental health and interpersonal challenges (Reardon, 2019). In addition, athletes face challenges specific to their performance environment, including decreased athlete performance, maladaptive perfectionism , overtraining syndrome, injuries/surgery, and retirement from sport.

The Athletic System

In addition to individual and team work with athletes, sport psychologists operate in and serve broader athletic systems. These systems typically include athletic administrators, compliance officers, and coaching staff. Sport psychologists also often function as multidisciplinary members of sport performance and/or sports medicine teams. Sport performance teams may include strength and conditioning coaches, dieticians/nutritions, and sport scientists, whereas sports medicine teams are often composed of team physicians and athletic trainers. Importantly, each athletic system operates in its own way and may comprise more or less team members than described in this section.

National Collegiate Athletic Association (2022). NCAA student-athlete well-being study. Retrieved from: https://ncaaorg.s3.amazonaws.com/research/other/2020/2022RES_NCAA-SA-We…

Reardon, C. L., Hainline, B., Aron, C. M., Baron, D., Baum, A. L., Bindra, A., ... & Engebretsen, L. (2019). Mental health in elite athletes: International Olympic Committee consensus statement (2019). British Journal of Sports Medicine, 53(11), 667-699.

Thomsen, D. K., & Olesen, M. H. (2020). Elite athletes are higher on Grit than a comparison sample of non-athletes. Scandinavian Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 2, 2-7.

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50+ Research Topics for Psychology Papers

How to Find Psychology Research Topics for Your Student Paper

Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital.

• Specific Branches of Psychology
• Topics Involving a Disorder or Type of Therapy
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• Famous Experiments
• Historical Figures
• Specific Careers
• Case Studies
• Literature Reviews
• Your Own Study/Experiment

Are you searching for a great topic for your psychology paper ? Sometimes it seems like coming up with topics of psychology research is more challenging than the actual research and writing. Fortunately, there are plenty of great places to find inspiration and the following list contains just a few ideas to help get you started.

Finding a solid topic is one of the most important steps when writing any type of paper. It can be particularly important when you are writing a psychology research paper or essay. Psychology is such a broad topic, so you want to find a topic that allows you to adequately cover the subject without becoming overwhelmed with information.

I can always tell when a student really cares about the topic they chose; it comes through in the writing. My advice is to choose a topic that genuinely interests you, so you’ll be more motivated to do thorough research.

In some cases, such as in a general psychology class, you might have the option to select any topic from within psychology's broad reach. Other instances, such as in an  abnormal psychology  course, might require you to write your paper on a specific subject such as a psychological disorder.

As you begin your search for a topic for your psychology paper, it is first important to consider the guidelines established by your instructor.

Research Topics Within Specific Branches of Psychology

The key to selecting a good topic for your psychology paper is to select something that is narrow enough to allow you to really focus on the subject, but not so narrow that it is difficult to find sources or information to write about.

One approach is to narrow your focus down to a subject within a specific branch of psychology. For example, you might start by deciding that you want to write a paper on some sort of social psychology topic. Next, you might narrow your focus down to how persuasion can be used to influence behavior .

Other social psychology topics you might consider include:

• Prejudice and discrimination (i.e., homophobia, sexism, racism)
• Social cognition
• Person perception
• Social control and cults
• Persuasion, propaganda, and marketing
• Attraction, romance, and love
• Nonverbal communication
• Prosocial behavior

Psychology Research Topics Involving a Disorder or Type of Therapy

Exploring a psychological disorder or a specific treatment modality can also be a good topic for a psychology paper. Some potential abnormal psychology topics include specific psychological disorders or particular treatment modalities, including:

• Eating disorders
• Borderline personality disorder
• Seasonal affective disorder
• Schizophrenia
• Antisocial personality disorder
• Profile a  type of therapy  (i.e., cognitive-behavioral therapy, group therapy, psychoanalytic therapy)

Topics of Psychology Research Related to Human Cognition

Some of the possible topics you might explore in this area include thinking, language, intelligence, and decision-making. Other ideas might include:

• False memories
• Speech disorders
• Problem-solving

Topics of Psychology Research Related to Human Development

In this area, you might opt to focus on issues pertinent to  early childhood  such as language development, social learning, or childhood attachment or you might instead opt to concentrate on issues that affect older adults such as dementia or Alzheimer's disease.

Some other topics you might consider include:

• Language acquisition
• Media violence and children
• Learning disabilities
• Gender roles
• Child abuse
• Prenatal development
• Parenting styles
• Aspects of the aging process

Do a Critique of Publications Involving Psychology Research Topics

One option is to consider writing a critique paper of a published psychology book or academic journal article. For example, you might write a critical analysis of Sigmund Freud's Interpretation of Dreams or you might evaluate a more recent book such as Philip Zimbardo's  The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil .

Professional and academic journals are also great places to find materials for a critique paper. Browse through the collection at your university library to find titles devoted to the subject that you are most interested in, then look through recent articles until you find one that grabs your attention.

Topics of Psychology Research Related to Famous Experiments

There have been many fascinating and groundbreaking experiments throughout the history of psychology, providing ample material for students looking for an interesting term paper topic. In your paper, you might choose to summarize the experiment, analyze the ethics of the research, or evaluate the implications of the study. Possible experiments that you might consider include:

• The Milgram Obedience Experiment
• The Stanford Prison Experiment
• The Little Albert Experiment
• Pavlov's Conditioning Experiments
• The Asch Conformity Experiment
• Harlow's Rhesus Monkey Experiments

Topics of Psychology Research About Historical Figures

One of the simplest ways to find a great topic is to choose an interesting person in the  history of psychology  and write a paper about them. Your paper might focus on many different elements of the individual's life, such as their biography, professional history, theories, or influence on psychology.

While this type of paper may be historical in nature, there is no need for this assignment to be dry or boring. Psychology is full of fascinating figures rife with intriguing stories and anecdotes. Consider such famous individuals as Sigmund Freud, B.F. Skinner, Harry Harlow, or one of the many other  eminent psychologists .

Psychology Research Topics About a Specific Career

​Another possible topic, depending on the course in which you are enrolled, is to write about specific career paths within the  field of psychology . This type of paper is especially appropriate if you are exploring different subtopics or considering which area interests you the most.

In your paper, you might opt to explore the typical duties of a psychologist, how much people working in these fields typically earn, and the different employment options that are available.

Topics of Psychology Research Involving Case Studies

One potentially interesting idea is to write a  psychology case study  of a particular individual or group of people. In this type of paper, you will provide an in-depth analysis of your subject, including a thorough biography.

Generally, you will also assess the person, often using a major psychological theory such as  Piaget's stages of cognitive development  or  Erikson's eight-stage theory of human development . It is also important to note that your paper doesn't necessarily have to be about someone you know personally.

In fact, many professors encourage students to write case studies on historical figures or fictional characters from books, television programs, or films.

Psychology Research Topics Involving Literature Reviews

Another possibility that would work well for a number of psychology courses is to do a literature review of a specific topic within psychology. A literature review involves finding a variety of sources on a particular subject, then summarizing and reporting on what these sources have to say about the topic.

Literature reviews are generally found in the  introduction  of journal articles and other  psychology papers , but this type of analysis also works well for a full-scale psychology term paper.

Topics of Psychology Research Based on Your Own Study or Experiment

Many psychology courses require students to design an actual psychological study or perform some type of experiment. In some cases, students simply devise the study and then imagine the possible results that might occur. In other situations, you may actually have the opportunity to collect data, analyze your findings, and write up your results.

Finding a topic for your study can be difficult, but there are plenty of great ways to come up with intriguing ideas. Start by considering your own interests as well as subjects you have studied in the past.

Online sources, newspaper articles, books , journal articles, and even your own class textbook are all great places to start searching for topics for your experiments and psychology term papers. Before you begin, learn more about  how to conduct a psychology experiment .

What This Means For You

After looking at this brief list of possible topics for psychology papers, it is easy to see that psychology is a very broad and diverse subject. While this variety makes it possible to find a topic that really catches your interest, it can sometimes make it very difficult for some students to select a good topic.

If you are still stumped by your assignment, ask your instructor for suggestions and consider a few from this list for inspiration.

• Hockenbury, SE & Nolan, SA. Psychology. New York: Worth Publishers; 2014.
• Santrock, JW. A Topical Approach to Lifespan Development. New York: McGraw-Hill Education; 2016.

By Kendra Cherry, MSEd Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

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Psychological Skills Training for Athletes in Sports: Web of Science Bibliometric Analysis

Associated data.

The data presented in this study are available on request from the corresponding author. The data are not publicly available due to WoS policy.

Psychological Skill Training (PST) for optimal performance in sports has received extensive attention from athletes, coaches, and experts, and numerous studies have been conducted, but despite this interest, it has not been the subject of any bibliographic analysis. The analysis covered 405 articles and reviews that were located in the Thomson Reuters Web of Science (Core CollectionTM) between 1992 and 2021. These papers were published by 1048 authors from 543 different universities across 54 countries in 107 different journals. The fundamental bibliometric calculations and co-word networks were completed. As a result, the following thematic elements were grouped into four clusters: (1) PST for stress, mental toughness, and coping, (2) PST for anxiety, motivation, self-confidence, and self-efficacy, (3) PST for flow and mindfulness, and (4) PST for emotions. From the results of this study, it was confirmed that the topic of PST is converging toward the best performance, with various approaches, such as stress management, anxiety control, and coping as techniques for PST. Furthermore, mindfulness and positive psychology studies emphasize athletes’ quality of life, so coaches and experts should pay more attention to improving athletes’ quality of life in future research.

1. Introduction

In today’s Olympics and international level competitions, the physical, technical, and strategic gaps between top athletes are progressively shrinking. It was amazing to witness that certain athletes performed better than athletes who were more physically talented. Conversely, it was disappointing that some athletes would perform flawlessly during the semi-final and then perform tragically in the final. The massive pressure from this increased performance density has been directly linked to the extensive attention to psychological skills training (PST) in recent. In the early days, coaches and athletes recognized the importance of mental states for optimal performance, but the field of sports psychological training was not flourished because of the misunderstanding that psychological skills are innate properties and lack of knowledge to train these abilities [ 1 , 2 ].

Initially, sport psychology or mental training with athletes emerged in the United States during the late 1970s. Although one of the first works in sport psychology was published in the 1920s by Coleman Griffith [ 3 ], it went through a long hibernation until the 1960s and early 1970s, when systematic studies on sports psychology began [ 1 , 4 ]. In the late 1980s, Vealey suggested that future directions in PST include expanding the target population, refining specific implementation procedures, and differentiating between psychological skills and methods [ 1 ]. During the first 7 years of the 1980s, the premier scientific publications, such as the Journal of Sport Psychology, mainly focused on theoretically based research that emphasized various psychological approaches and research methodologies [ 4 , 5 ]. While several experts acknowledged that applied sport psychology interventions could be effective through their reviews [ 6 , 7 ], they urged greater attention must be given to program evaluation and professional accountability. With these accountability concerns, research evolved and concentrated mainly on evaluating the effectiveness of psychological services to athletes and coaches [ 8 , 9 ]. The Consultant Evaluation Form (CEF) by Partington and Orlick [ 10 ] was the first valid and reliable instrument to evaluate the qualification of psychological consultants and their services. With the efforts to identify the effective sport psychology consultant characteristics [ 8 , 11 ] and the publication of psychological consultant guidelines for athletes [ 12 ], recent studies have focused primarily on interventional research [ 13 , 14 ].

Although the field of PST covering all sports events has produced a copious number of publications, the attempts to gather bibliometric data in a systematic manner to identify research trends and highlight publications that have led to the progress of the field have not been done yet. During the 1980s and early 1990s, there have been few bibliometric studies in sports and exercise science, such as the International Society of Sport Psychology [ 15 ], the Journal of Sport Psychology [ 4 ], and Sport & Exercise Psychology [ 16 ]. However, it was analyzed only within a specific journal and did not include all journals in the related field.

The bibliometric analysis provides information including highly cited authors, publications, the most productive institutions, and countries through the analysis of citation indices. Bibliographic studies emphasize trend-driven authors in the research field and provide information on the current topics; they have been widely applied to a variety of other research areas and have provided valuable insights [ 17 , 18 ]. Thus, it allows researchers to determine the scope of research topics and assists them in planning their research direction and predicting research trends. Several bibliometric studies have investigated the publication trend of sport and exercise science concerning the research output of particular countries or areas [ 19 , 20 ], sub-specialized fields [ 21 , 22 ], or the production of a selection of sport science journals [ 23 ]. To the best of our knowledge, there are no bibliometric analyses that have investigated research regarding PST. This study used bibliometric tools to analyze PST articles retrieved on the Web of Science (Thomson Reuters Company, Toronto, ON, Canada) database and provides a better understanding of how PST research was initiated, organized, progressed, and interrelated throughout the world. In addition, it aims not only to provide insights into future research for experts in the academic field but also to provide practical help in the development of PST programs for coaches and athletes in the sports field.

2. Materials and Methods

The Thomson Reuters Web of Science (WoS) database’s bibliometric data for this study was obtained on 10 November 2021. Prior to data collection, five researchers in the field of sport and exercise psychology were asked to indicate search terms they would use to retrieve publications on PST and elite athletes. For the search, the terms “mental skill*,” “Psychological skill*,” “mental skill training*,” and “psychological skill training*” were used in the topic search field without limitation on the publication year of the documents. In order to retrieve publications that specifically focused on athletes or elite athletes, we refined our search with the following search terms “sport*,” “athlete*,” “elite*,” and “elite athlete*.” The topic field searches the title, abstracts, author’s keywords, and KeyWords Plus ® for the terms provided (keywords automatically assigned by WoS). Boolean operators (AND-OR) were also utilized to enhance the search for associated publications. Only journal articles and reviews were used for the analysis because they attributed the majority of document types and consisted of complete research ideas and results; therefore, 19 meeting abstracts, 14 early access articles, 4 book reviews, 4 proceedings papers, 3 editorial materials, and 2 book chapters were excluded. In the end, a total of 405 related articles and reviews were analyzed in the current research.

For analysis, the data were downloaded from WoS in “Full record and cited references” and “plain text” formats. First, to identify the authors, countries, journals, and institutions with the largest number of articles and citations, HISTCITE 12.3.17 (Thomson Reuters, Philadelphia, PA, USA) software tool was used to analyze the data. Qualitative indexes [global citation score (GCS) and local citation score (LCS)] were considered in this study [ 24 ]. The GCS and LCS metrics quantify the number of citations over the whole Web of Science Core Collection and the identical collection, respectively [ 25 ]. The co-word networks between the keywords were then examined using VOSviewer’s methodology [ 26 ]. The linkages and networks between the keywords were found and analyzed using this program.

To create a visualized map for the bibliographic analysis, we imported the downloaded data into VOSviewer. It enables us to select and adjust settings in accordance with various analytic objectives and data sources, as data cleaning is frequently required when producing maps based on web data. As a result, the following criteria are established for this study. (a) It is possible to combine or ignore certain terms when creating mappings based on text data by using the thesaurus files supplied by VOSviewer. For instance, for a more precise clustering analysis, the terms “coping,” “coping skill,” and “coping skills” were combined using the thesaurus file, while terms irrelevant to this study that were not explicitly filtered out, such as “coping skill therapist,” were not omitted. (b) The strength of the connection between normative items was determined using the association strength method [ 26 ], which was deemed to be the most consistent with the normalized technique. (c) Following testing, the layout with the parameter of attraction set to 2 and the parameter of repulsion set to 0 (producing a map of the co-word network) produced the best visual results. Additionally, the default settings for the other options.

Figure 1 denotes the step-by-step processes of this study: (Step 1) The topics and keywords related to PST/mental skill training and athlete/elite were identified, and then the search was defined. (Step 2) We refined the searched items and eliminated the irrelevant items. Finally, 405 articles were included. (Step 3) We sorted the papers into categories according to the year, author, number of citations, journal, country, and institution. (Step 4) The co-word map was generated. The information in the networks was examined in Step 5 to determine the outcomes.

Schematic process of the bibliometric analysis.

After the data were refined for this analysis, a total of 405 papers from 107 different journals between 1992 and 2021 were examined. As seen in Figure 2 , publications increased steadily between 2007 and the present, with 83.45% ( n = 338) of the total papers appearing in the previous fifteen years (2007–2021), while only 67 articles (16.54%) had been published from 1992 to 2006. In some research fields, the era of an extremely low number of articles (Since 1992, five articles on average have been published per year) might cause it to be regarded as a “niche” academic field [ 27 ]. The number of publications peaked in 2019, while the number of published articles in 2020 decreased by 35% compared to the previous year ( Figure 2 ).

Number of articles published per year (1992–2021).

Based on the results, PST in sports has recently drawn the interest of academics and professionals; however, it is impossible to tell for sure whether this trend will continue in the future. According to Price’s law [ 28 ], the research process, however, goes through four stages: (i) pioneers begin publishing on a specific research field, (ii) due to the interest of many academics in the study topic, there is exponential development, (iii) a concentration of information and research on the subject, and (iv) a decrease in publications. It may be argued that PST is now a topic of interest for academics and professionals due to the aforementioned procedure. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced coaches and athletes to train remotely and restrict the chance to meet a sport psychologist and practitioner, may have contributed to the decrease in publications in recent years, despite the fact that the number of related publications has decreased compared to 2019. The data acquired demonstrate that the number of publications in 2021 increased compared to the previous year, and the topics of PST-related research are becoming more diverse [ 29 , 30 ].

3.1. Authors and Number of Citations

There were a total of 1048 authors across the 405 publications that this study examined, hailing from 54 countries and 543 different institutions. Table 1 lists the authors who have published the most on PST in the sports area. The maximum number of publications to identify an author’s output in the topic area was the criteria used to rank the entries in Table 1 and Table 2 , and (ii) the highest number of citations, which are widely used to evaluate the significance [ 31 ] of articles and researchers.

Authors with the highest number of citations (>350).

No.: number of articles, LCS: local citation score, GCL: global citation score.

Authors with the highest number of publications (>5).

As a result, Andrew M. Lane, who has thirteen papers and a total of 411 citations in WoS, was named the most productive author (GCS). This author has published articles mainly related to emotion regulation and emotional intelligence for athletes in sports: develop a questionnaire and intervention regarding emotion regulation for the performance of endurance athletes. Second, Dave Collins has published ten articles with a total of 295 citations in WoS. The author developed the Psychological Characteristics of Developing Excellence Questionnaire. Finally, Tracey J. Devonport has published nine articles with a total of 294 citations and also explored the emotional regulation of athletes.

Even though some authors are more productive than others, this field of study can be considered fragmented because there is no clear “reference author”. Thus, Table 2 presents the most prominent authors, taking into account the number of citations, with publications related to PST in sports partially consistent with the highest number of authors. Despite the relatively small number of publications, Patrick R. Thomas recorded a high citation score and developed the Test of Performance Strategies to evaluate the strategies and psychological skills used by athletes [ 32 ]. Daniel Gould’s Studies examining the influences of mental skills and strategies on Olympic performance are also listed because they have a large number of citations.

3.2. Institutions

PST has been covered in articles by 543 different institutions. The institution is the one to which the researcher is affiliated at the time the article is published. More than 88% (481 out of 543) of the institutions have published only one or two articles. Moreover, institutions that published more than three articles but fewer than seven accounted for less than 2% (53 out of 543) of the total. The nine institutions that are presented in Table 3 have published more than seven articles.

Number of publications by Institutions.

Secondly, the University of Wales Institute Cardiff stands out in first place among institutions with the most citations across the whole WoS (GCS = 472), followed by Wolverhampton University (GCS = 432). Interestingly, although it did not list in Table 4 because of a small number of articles, Griffith University (GCS = 457) and the University of Western Ontario (GCS = 323) published four papers that recorded a high citation score and took second and fourth place, respectively. As confirmed by the number of citations and authors, research institutes in the UK are actively conducting research related to PST.

Journals by the Number of Publications and Citation Received (LCS and GCS) and Impact Factor (JCR).

3.3. Journals

At least one paper on this subject has been published in 107 different journals. Journals accounting for more than 56% (60 out of 107) of the total have only published one paper, whereas journals making up more than 20% (22 out of 107) of the total have published two or three. Table 4 . lists journals that have published more than 10 articles. Sport Psychologist, the most traditional journal in the PST field, published 58 articles and recorded the highest number of publications and GCS scores, but the recently reported impact factor was low at 1.45 (Q4). On the other hand, despite the small number of articles and low GCS scores, the Frontiers in Psychology and Journal of Sports Science and Medicine were reported as high-impact factors, which reflects the latest publishing trend that shows the option of open-access and a broad aim and scope of the journal.

3.4. Co-Word Analysis

In the field of research, keywords play a crucial role since they can be used to track the development of a specific area of knowledge. [ 33 ]. In the current study, 1076 keywords (both those chosen by the authors and by ISI WoS) were found, although only 428 (39.77%) of them co-occurred or showed up more than once. Of these, 60.22 % (or 648) were repeated just once. The term “co-word analysis” denotes a close association between the ideas and is defined as “a content analysis approach that employs the words in documents to identify relationships and develop a conceptual structure of the domain” [ 34 ]. Figure 2 shows the main co-occurrence connections found in the articles under investigation.

The most cited keywords are listed in Table 5 ; the most cited keyword was performance (GCS = 3333), followed by psychological (GCS = 2298), sport (GCS = 2157), and skill (GCS = 2121; Table 5 ). The keywords in Table 5 were chosen based on the following criteria: global citations in WoS (GCS) equal to or higher than 1000 citations for the most cited keywords and a frequency of presence in the search collection equal to or greater than 50 times for the most common keywords. However, compared to the most frequently used keywords, the keywords that receive more citations are slightly different.

Most frequent keywords.

f : frequency; LCS: local citation score; GCL: global citation score.

Currently, powerful analytic tools such as VOSviewer allow for the systematic identification, analysis, and representation of keywords. Based on bibliographic information, a map was made to display a co-word network. The “association strength” method, the “Visualization of Similarities” (VOS) approach, was used to graphically organize each term on the map after the “association strength” method was used to standardize the association values of the keywords [ 35 , 36 ]. Finally, the VOSviewer method offers the option to incorporate several resolution settings in order to detect the various clusters. The keywords picked by the authors and those picked by the ISI WoS, as well as every other term in the whole list of keywords, were taken into consideration while conducting the thematic analysis. The cut-off point was established in 10 or more occurrences of these keywords. In this study, we ultimately settled on 45 keywords, and we assessed the overall strength of the co-occurrence links with other keywords. According to the analysis, the leading four different clusters of keywords were found. Figure 3 displays a graphical depiction of the co-occurrence of keywords or co-words.

Co-word network created by VOSviewer.

This provides a generalized description of the knowledge or concepts found in previous works of literature [ 37 ]. Various sizes and colors of circles serve as representations for the analysis of the terms. A given keyword’s frequency is determined by the size of the circles; the larger the circle, the more times the term appears in the titles and abstracts of the publications under examination [ 38 ]. The clusters identified by the study correspond to the circles that can be distinguished by color. The distance between the circles (keywords) provides crucial information about how they are related; the weaker the relationship, the further apart the circles are. This connection is established by the frequency with the terms co-occur in the titles and abstracts [ 39 ]. According to the subject area, the VOSviewer identified four distinct clusters that could be differentiated by four distinct colors:

• Red cluster—“PST for stress, mental toughness, and coping”: This cluster is the largest and is composed of sixteen items as follows; stress, mental toughness, self-regulation, coping, and achievement. This cluster is associated with interventions regarding stress and coping skills and includes a perception of mental toughness for performance enhancement and questionnaire development;
• Green cluster—“PST for anxiety, motivation, self-confidence, and self-efficacy”: This cluster is the second largest and consists of fourteen items as follows; anxiety, athletic performance, motivation, attitude, self-confidence, and strategies. This cluster relates to a mental training program for anxiety and self-confidence of athletes in a variety of sports fields and a motivational climate for athletic performance;
• Blue cluster—“PST for flow and mindfulness”: the third cluster includes 11 keywords as follows; flow, imagery, intervention, mindfulness, and performance enhancement. This cluster refers to the implementation of mindfulness intervention for performance enhancement and the study of the relationship between flow, mindfulness, and PST;
• Yellow cluster—“PST for emotions”: the last cluster is composed of four items as follows; competition, emotions, model, and sports. This cluster mainly relates to emotional regulation and emotional intelligence in sports and athletic performance.

3.4.1. Cluster 1—Red: PST for Stress, Mental Toughness, and Coping

Primarily, this cluster accumulates publications related to the major role of PST, stress management, or developing mental toughness for peak performance. Nevertheless, we found three key approaches in this cluster. First, categorized studies that include the process of identifying the source of stress and measuring it through the development of a questionnaire [ 40 , 41 , 42 ]. The second academic approach identified in this cluster is coping strategies and responses to the various sports settings and populations (e.g., soccer, volleyball, CrossFit, football, etc.) [ 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 ]. The last approach of the analyzed studies related to the development and maintenance of mental toughness for performance enhancement [ 47 , 48 ] and examining the relationship between mental toughness and other psychological skill in a variety of elite athletes [ 49 , 50 ].

Sources of stress in the sports setting are diverse. Specifically, Kroll [ 51 ] categorized five psychological stress that was encountered by adult athletes; fear of failure, feelings of inadequacy, loss of internal control, guilt, and current physical state. Whilst sources of stress are considerably different across individuals, related studies of a variety of populations have confirmed the generalizability of Kroll’s idea. Studies focused on soccer players [ 52 ] and basketball teams [ 42 ] consistently reported sources of stress include fear of failure, concern about the expectations of others, making mistakes, the media, and unforeseen events. The most apparent application of these results seems to be that in order for performers to have any chance of putting on a relatively stress-free performance, they must have complete confidence in their goals, their organization’s system, and their event preparation.

Although stress can be viewed as both demanding and anxiety-inducing, the approach of PST literature on stress and performance has mostly concentrated on the use of coping strategies in various events. A study investigating the strategies for table tennis players coping with their anxiety level reported that the coping strategies include PST techniques such as positive self-talk, breathing techniques, and visualization to enhance their performance [ 53 ]. In the same year, Vidic and colleagues [ 42 ] published a mixed methodology study investigating the PST intervention effect on women’s NCAA division basketball player’s perceived stress and athletic coping skills. Both quantitative and qualitative results showed a progressive decrease in stress and an increase in athletic coping skills across the study. Moreover, their study opened up new possibilities for future research by incorporating mindfulness into the PST program.

Since the early 2000s, this area of knowledge has attracted the interest of sports psychologists, coaches, and professionals, as mental toughness is an essential aspect of success in sports. In the early stage of the mental toughness research, based on the studies that identify the mental toughness of athletes in various sports events [ 48 , 54 ], the development and validation of inventory to measure and maintain mental toughness continued [ 55 , 56 ]. Currently, mental toughness is a frequently studied topic, along with other topics such as anxiety, psychological skills, and mindfulness. For instance, a prior study in our search collection examined the psychological skills, mental toughness, and degree of anxiety of female football players in relation to their skill level [ 57 ]. The psychological skills of the athletes did not differ according to skill level, but in terms of mental toughness and anxiety, the national team scored highest and lowest, respectively. Similarly to this, Wu and colleagues [ 58 ] explored the connection between psychological skills, dispositional mindfulness, and mental toughness among collegiate athletes. The authors discovered a beneficial relationship between mindfulness, mental toughness, and psychological skills in relation to sports performance, and they offered potential directions for future studies to improve both athletic performance and quality of life.

3.4.2. Cluster 2—Green: PST for Anxiety, Motivation, Self-Confidence, and Self-Efficacy

Cluster 2, represented by the green color, includes 14 keywords. This cluster consisted of publications related to the PST interventions that athlete’s anxiety and motivation climate in various sports events. The papers that fit into our cluster can be classified into two distinct groups: (i) influence or relationship between anxiety and self-confidence in athletic performance and (ii) motivational climate and self-efficacy in athletes.

Goal setting, self-talk, pre-shot routine, relaxation, and imagery are the most popular mental techniques employed by professional athletes to improve their performance [ 59 ]. In terms of the techniques employed by the coaches to promote their players’ self-efficacy beliefs, according to Weinberg and Jackson [ 60 ], they were promoting positive self-talk, acting as a role model for confidence, and verbal praise and persuading. Ultimately, these techniques are based on the basic hypothesis that PST modulates anxiety and confidence to a certain degree in athletes. However, regarding the extent to which these programs can be successful in assisting athletes in controlling their anxiety and confidence, there was a lack of empirical evidence. Since then, through the two decades, numerous study has presented scientific evidence on the effect of PST on the control of self-confidence and anxiety. As a representative study, Terry, Coakley, and Karageorghis [ 61 ] studied the relevance of matching hypotheses for anxiety interventions in junior tennis players. The finding rejected the matching hypothesis and demonstrated that, while all techniques were effective in decreasing cognitive anxiety and increasing self-confidence, centering was the most effective treatment for lowering cognitive anxiety, while mental rehearsal was more successful in decreasing somatic anxiety. The only trait for which the combined intervention outperformed either centering or mental rehearsal alone was self-confidence. Furthermore, Thomas et al. [ 62 ] asserted that anxiety symptoms vary depending on personal interpretation. They measured the associated anxiety symptoms of facilitators (i.e., a performer with a positive interpretation of both cognitive and somatic symptoms) and debilitators across the dimensions of intensity, direction, and frequency throughout the 7-day competition cycle. The results showed that facilitators, interpreting their anxiety symptoms as positive toward performance, experienced higher self-confidence throughout the pre-competition period.

In general, the term “motivational climate” refers to the psychological environment that coaches, parents, and teammates primarily create for their athletes when they train and compete. Most studies on the motivational climate in sports settings have emphasized the importance of the coach in creating a positive sports environment [ 63 ]. Young athletes may improve their skill level, increase performance efficiency in competition, and develop not just as athletes but as people in a positive motivational environment [ 64 ]. According to athletes’ perceptions of the accomplishment environment, which are based on the Achievement Goal Theory (AGT), a related study confirmed two main motivational climates. The task- and ego-involving environments described by AGT can coexist or be combined [ 65 ]. Ames claims that the term “motivational climate” refers to how athletes understand the context-specific cues, rules, and expectations that enable the dissemination of task- and ego-involving motivational cues that support the formation of certain goal orientations.

On the other hand, the impact of various motivational climates on emotional, cognitive, and motivational processes has received a lot of scientific attention. Improvements in enjoyment, effort, perceived competence, and self-efficacy were connected to adaptive cognitive and emotional processes in a mastery setting. A performance climate, on the other hand, was linked to less adaptive behavior, including increased performance anxiety and concern [ 66 ]. In one of the earliest investigations into the relationship between motivational climate and self-efficacy, Wood and Bandura [ 67 ] found that a task-involving climate was linked to higher levels of self-efficacy and performance when people encountered difficulty as opposed to an ego-involving climate.

3.4.3. Cluster 3—Blue: PST for Flow and Mindfulness

In cluster 3, represented by the color green, there are eleven keywords, such as flow, mindfulness, and performance enhancement. This cluster included papers that examine specific links between psychological skills and strategies, mental state of flow, and optimal performance, as well as the relationship between flow and mindfulness. The investigation of these relationships serves the aims of expanding the research of antecedent of flow state in sports, as well as examining the relationship between mindfulness and quality of athletic performance.

Research on flow in sports increased in the early 1990s [ 68 , 69 ], and Csikszentmihalyi [ 70 ] encouraged the application of flow theory to sports settings, where some of his early flow research began. Theoretically, flow, as an optimal mental state, is expected to be related to optimal athletic performance, as well as delivering an optimal experience. A preliminary study that examines the conditions or factors that are positively associated with athletes being able to attain flow failed to identify the relationship between psychological constructs and attainment of flow in recreational sports settings [ 71 ]. However, more recently, Jackson et al. found positive and negative associations between flow and intrinsic motivation, perceived ability, and cognitive anxiety, respectively [ 72 ]. Flow is typically viewed as a peak performance state, and there is some evidence to support this assumption [ 68 ]. Nonetheless, further study is required to investigate the link between flow and performance in sports.

There has been little research investigating the relationship between mindfulness and the adoption of mental skills in sports. In the initiation of mindfulness study among athletes, Gardner and Moore [ 73 ] reported two case studies illustrating the potential efficacy of their mindfulness-based intervention program, which they named the Mindfulness-Acceptance-Commitment approach. The author claim that planned self-regulation of present-moment awareness training that includes mindfulness awareness of breath and bodily movements enhanced participants’ athletic performance and enjoyment. In particular, the acceptance of negative thoughts reduced worrying, improved enjoyment, concentration, and persistence are some of the beneficial results of Gardner and Moore’s mindfulness-based intervention program. Starting with Gardner and Moore’s study, theoretical and methodological considerations regarding mindfulness have been made, and the scope of research is expanding to strength training [ 74 ], the sports field [ 42 ], and brain science [ 75 ]. More recently, efforts to increase mental toughness and psychological well-being through mindfulness programs have continued [ 76 ], and mindfulness programs are being used as a way to protect athletes from psychological distress, especially during COVID-19 [ 77 ]. Unfortunately, there is also a lack of research examining the relationship between flow and mindfulness. Although Clark [ 78 ] examined the impact of mindfulness training on the time spent in flow based on a non-athlete sample, there is only one study conducted on an athlete sample in this search collection.

3.4.4. Cluster 4—Yellow: PST for Emotions

This area of study is mainly related to emotional regulation or emotional intelligence during sports performance and emotional regulation strategies. Research on emotion in the field of sports was initiated in the late 2000s, and vigorous research has been conducted since 2010.

Emotional Intelligence (EI) indicates individual responses to intrapersonal or interpersonal emotional information and includes the recognition, expression, comprehension, and modulation of personal and other’s emotions [ 79 ]. There is a growing body of research that suggests that EI has a crucial role in athletic performance and physical activity [ 80 ]. To enhance sports performance or exercise adherence, a critical understanding of EI constructs is especially important to practicing consultants targeting the implementation of evidence-based intervention. Specifically, two studies that had investigated EI as it relates to psychological skill usage [ 81 , 82 ] in this search collection. A higher trait EI was shown to be related to more frequent use of psychological skills. In one study, high trait EI was associated with more use of task-oriented coping methods, and task-oriented coping is frequently characterized as the most effective coping style for successful sports performance [ 80 ]. Furthermore, stronger athletic success motivation (the capacity to efficiently push oneself toward sports performance) has been linked to higher trait EI [ 82 ]. A more direct examination of psychological skill utilization among athletes discovered that higher scores on trait EI components were associated with more frequent use of self-talk, imagery, emotional regulation, goal setting, activation, and relaxation strategies in practice and competition [ 81 ]. A recent study examined the relationship between EI and anxiety, motivation, and leadership in athletes using a structural equation model. The study shows a strong and direct relationship between EI and anxiety and between EI and motivation, but the direct relationship between EI and leadership is not identified [ 83 ].

The automatic or purposeful use of strategies to elicit, preserve, change, or express emotions is known as emotion regulation [ 84 ]. If an athlete believes that controlling their emotions will help them perform better, they are more likely to attempt. Athletes build meta-beliefs about the emotions necessary for peak performance, and these beliefs are important for emotion control during competition [ 85 ]. Specifically, many athletes like feeling nervous before a competition and will up-regulate that emotion accordingly [ 85 ]. A recent study that investigated emotion regulation strategies used in endurance athletes reported that meta-emotion beliefs that methods targeted at raising anxiety and/or anger would benefit performance, and they utilized techniques to raise the strength of those emotions; that is, they tried to make themselves feel angrier or anxious in order to improve performance [ 86 ]. Furthermore, athletes use many thoughts and behaviors to regulate their emotions. Robazza et al. [ 87 ] found that athletes utilized various emotion regulation strategies, such as self-talk and imagery. An advantage of using the Individual Zone of Optimal Functioning (IZOF) approach in sports (i.e., unpleasant but helpful for achieving success in competition) is that it facilitates detailed analysis of specific instance of real-world experience that has practical value as well as facilitate how theory can be observed in an ecologically plausible environment. In the research field of emotion regulation in sports, various theoretical approaches are being attempted to gain the broadest possible understating of the psychological and behavioral aspects of athletes.

4. Conclusions, Limitations, and Future Research

Our understanding of the existing situation and evolution of PST in sports is assisted by the study’s findings. This information is significant because it gives a comprehensive view of the publications, authors, institutions, and journals with the greatest number of publications and citations, as determined by an examination of 405 total articles. In this study, thematic areas where PST-related studies are flourishing in sports were identified through bibliographic analysis. Basically, traditional topics such as stress management, anxiety control, and coping were the main psychological techniques for optimal performance. In addition, confidence, self-efficacy, and mental toughness were identified as major topics for psychological factors for optimal performance. In addition, to improve athletes’ quality of life, PST programs include mindfulness, emotions, and positive psychology. This study allows not only to determine the topics and areas of interest for authors and academics but also to figure out future research associated with the development and state of each cluster.

It is important to acknowledge any potential limitations of this study. Although the Web of Science database was utilized for the search, which was commonly used in earlier research [ 22 , 88 ] and is extensively used for academic searches, not all of the pertinent material may have been covered in our investigation. Similarly, a qualitative analysis was conducted to decide which papers to include or omit in this study. Although this process may have taken into account the authors’ biases, it enhanced the credibility of the study results by removing studies that mentioned PST for firefighters., surgeons, and military soldiers and including only those referring to PST in sports/elite athletes. For future research, a comparison of these results is recommended with those from other databases such as Scopus, EBSCO, or Google Scholar. In addition, it is suggested to conduct a qualitative analysis of the search results so that useful information can be obtained for academics and experts. These types of studies can provide detailed information about gaps in the existing literature. Sport, especially in the field of PST, is going through a phase of change from a consumer-centric perspective, so it is important to focus attention on theoretical and empirical developments.

Funding Statement

This research received no external funding.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, I.P. and J.J.; methodology, I.P.; software, I.P.; validation, I.P. and J.J.; formal analysis, I.P.; investigation, I.P.; resources, I.P.; data curation, I.P.; writing—original draft preparation, I.P.; writing—review and editing, J.J.; visualization, I.P.; supervision, I.P and J.J. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Institutional Review Board Statement

Not applicable.

Informed Consent Statement

Data availability statement, conflicts of interest.

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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