what is sport psychology essay

What Is Sports Psychology?

Julia Simkus

Editor at Simply Psychology

BA (Hons) Psychology, Princeton University

Julia Simkus is a graduate of Princeton University with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. She is currently studying for a Master's Degree in Counseling for Mental Health and Wellness in September 2023. Julia's research has been published in peer reviewed journals.

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Saul Mcleod, PhD

Editor-in-Chief for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester

Saul Mcleod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.

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Sports psychology is the study of psychological factors that influence athletic performance and how participation in sports and exercise can affect the psychological and physical well-being of athletes.

Researchers in this field explore how psychology can be used to optimize athletic performance and how exercise can be utilized to improve mood and lower stress levels.

Sports psychologists teach cognitive and behavioral strategies to help athletes improve their experiences, athletic performance, and mental wellness when participating in sports.

They can assist with performance enhancement, motivation, stress management, anxiety control, or mental toughness. They also can help with injury rehabilitation, team building, burnout, or career transitioning.

Sports psychologists don”t just work with athletes. They can work with coaches, parents, administrators, fitness professionals, performers, organizations, or everyday exercises to demonstrate how we can utilize exercise, sport, and athletics to enhance our lives and psychological development.

Types of Sports Psychologists

Educational sports psychologists.

An educational sports psychologist educates clients on how to utilize psychological skills  effectively to enhance sports performance and manage the mental factors of sports.

These skills could include goal setting, imagery, self-talk, or energy management (discussed in more detail below).

Clinical Sports Psychologists

Clinical sports psychologists work with athletes who have mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, eating disorders, or substance abuse.

They utilize strategies from both sports psychology and psychotherapy, helping athletes improve their mental health and sports performance concurrently. Being a clinical psychologist requires a doctoral degree in clinical or counseling psychology.

Commonly Used Techniques

Arousal regulation.

• Arousal regulation techniques involve the control of the overall level of neuronal activity, and thus arousal levels, in the brain. Arousal refers to how emotionally activated an athlete is before or during performance.
• Techniques for arousal regulation could include muscle relaxation, deep breathing, medication, listening to music, or mindfulness.
• The role of a sports psychologist is to assist an athlete in reaching their optimal level of arousal at which their athletic performance is maximized.

Goal Setting

• Goal setting involves planning out ways to achieve an accomplishment and envisioning the outcome you are pursuing.
• These goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, time-based, and challenging.
• You can make outcome goals, performance goals, or process goals.
• Imagery refers to using multiple senses to create mental images of experiences in your mind.
• Athletes use imagery to practice activating the muscles associated with an action, recognizing patterns in activities and performance, making mental recreations of an event or game, or visualizing correcting a mistake or doing something properly.

Pre-Performance Routines

• A pre-performance routine refers to the actions, behaviors, or methods an athlete implements before for a game or performance.
• This could include eating the same foods, putting on clothes in a particular order, listening to a specific playlist of songs, wearing specific clothing, or warming up in a particular way.
• This helps develop stability and predictability, triggering concentration and decreasing anxiety levels.
• Self-talk refers to the inner monologues, whether thoughts, words, or quotes, we say to ourselves.
• Athletes can utilize self-talk to instill optimism, improve focus, manage stress, or inspire confidence.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation

• Progressive Muscle Relaxation is a technique within arousal regulation. It involves alternating between tensing and relaxing target muscle groups.
• This helps with lowering blood pressure, reducing state anxiety, improving performance, and decreasing stress hormones.

Hypnosis involves being in a state of increased attention, concentration, and suggestibility. Sports psychologists sometimes use this strategy to help clients control state anxiety and arousal levels. Most typically, though, it is used among health psychologists to help patients quit smoking.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

• CBT is a type of psychotherapeutic treatment that helps people identify and change destructive thinking patterns, emotional responses, or behaviors.
• While CBT is used by all kinds of people, athletes could especially benefit from its effects.

Biofeedback

• Biofeedback involves using external technology to measure one’s internal physiological processes such as heart rate, brain waves, or muscle tension.
• This information can be used to monitor or control these effects to maximize performance and obtain a more beneficial biological response.

How to Become a Sports Psychologist

Most positions in this field require a master’s or doctoral degree in clinical, counseling, or sport psychology. You are also required to take classes in kinesiology, physiology, sports medicine, business and marketing.

Then, you must practice directly under a licensed psychologist for at least two years. In order to obtain a professional board certification from

The American Board of Sport Psychology, you must pass a qualifying exam. Board certification is not required for a state license, but many employers prefer or require it.

Specialties within this field could include applied sport psychology, clinical sport psychology, or academic sport psychology.

The salaries for sports psychologists vary depending on whether you are in private practice or work within a team or organization.

The American Psychological Association (APA) reports that sport and performance psychologists in university athletic departments can earn $60,000 to $80,000 a year, while salaries working in a private practice can exceed $100,000 annually.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can sports psychologists prescribe medications.

A sports psychologist cannot prescribe medication unless they have a medical degree. If a sports psychologist has this degree, then they are usually referred to as a sports psychiatrist. Sports psychiatrists are medical doctors who serve a similar role as sports psychologists, but they focus more on psychopathology and mental disorders in athletes.

What jobs can I get with a sports psychology degree?

In addition to being a licensed clinical sport psychologist, you could also be a mental performance consultant, a personal trainer, a sports coach, a research specialist, a sports psychology professor, or a physical therapist, to name a few.

Why is sports psychology important?

Mental health and overall well-being are fundamental to athletic competition and performance.

Seeking the support of a sports psychologist can help athletes achieve their overall performance improvement goals.

Sports psychologists can help better one’s attitude, focus, confidence, and mental game, empowering athletes to stay engaged in the sports they love.

How does sports psychology help athletes?

Sports psychology can help athletes and non-athletes cope with the pressures of competition, enhance athletic performance, and achieve their goals.

Mental training alongside physical training is more profitable than physical training alone. Athletes can learn to overcome pressures associated with sporting performance and develop more focus, commitment, and enjoyment.

Where can you study sports psychology?

There are both undergraduate and graduate degrees available in sports psychology. Several colleges and universities offer undergraduate bachelor’s degrees and/or master’s and doctoral degrees in clinical, counseling, or sport psychology.

Depending on the institution, you might also be able to study sports psychology online.

How can sports psychology improve performance?

Sports psychology can improve performance in several ways – reducing anxiety, enhancing focus, improving mental toughness, developing confidence, adopting a healthy level of motivation, or uncovering obstacles that might be limiting an athlete’s performance.

American Psychological Association. (2014). Pursuing a career in sport and performance psychology. American Psychological Association. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/educationcareer/guide/subfields/performance/education-training

Audette, J., & Bailey, A.M. (2007). CHAPTER 23 – Complementary and Alternative Medicine and the Athlete.

Cherry, K. (2022, February 14). An overview of sports psychology. Verywell Mind. Retrieved from https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-sports-psychology-2794906#toc-what-is-sports-psychology

Psychology.org Staff. (2022, February 16). How to become a sports psychologist. Psychology.org | Psychology’s Comprehensive Online Resource. Retrieved from https://www.psychology.org/careers/sports-psychologist/

Sports psychology: Mindset can make or break an athlete. Oklahoma Wesleyan University. (2018, July 5). Retrieved from https://www.okwu.edu/news/2018/07/sports-psychology-make-or-break/

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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.

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• 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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What Is Sports Psychology?

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

Amy Morin, LCSW, is a psychotherapist and international bestselling author. Her books, including "13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do," have been translated into more than 40 languages. Her TEDx talk,  "The Secret of Becoming Mentally Strong," is one of the most viewed talks of all time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sports psychology is the study of how psychological factors influence sports, athletic performance, exercise, and physical activity. Sports psychologists investigate how participating in sports can improve health and well-being. They also help athletes utilize psychology to improve their athletic performance and mental wellness.

As an example, a sports psychologist working with Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal, and Kobe Bryant helps these athletes perform better on the basketball court by teaching them psychological techniques for "being in the flow" and getting in "the zone."

A sports psychologist doesn't just work with elite and professional athletes either. This type of professional also helps non-athletes and everyday exercisers learn how to enjoy sports and stick to an exercise program. They utilize exercise and athletics to enhance people’s lives and mental well-being .

History of Sports Psychology

Sports psychology is a relatively young discipline in psychology ; the first research lab devoted to the topic opened in 1925. The first U.S. lab closed a short while later (in the early 1930s) and American research did not resume in this area until the late 1960s when there was a revival of interest.

In 1965, the International Society of Sport Psychology (ISSP) was established. By the 1970s, sports psychology had been introduced as a university course offered at educational institutions throughout North America.

By the 1980s, sports psychology became the subject of a more rigorous scientific focus. Researchers began to explore how psychology could be used to improve athletic performance. They also looked at how exercise could be utilized to improve mood and lower stress levels .

Types of Sports Psychologists

Just as there are different types of psychologists —such as clinical psychologists, developmental psychologists, and forensic psychologists—there are also different types of sports psychologists.

Educational Sports Psychologists

An educational sports psychologist uses psychological methods to help athletes improve sports performance. This includes teaching them how to use certain techniques such as imagery , goal setting , or self talk to perform better on the court or field.

Clinical Sports Psychologists

Clinical sports psychologists work with athletes who have mental health conditions such as depression or anxiety . This work involves using strategies from both sports psychology and psychotherapy . A clinical sports psychologist helps athletes improve their mental health and sports performance at the same time.

Exercise Psychologists

An exercise psychologist works with non-athlete clients or everyday exercisers to help them learn how to make working out a habit. This work can include some of the same techniques used by other sports psychologists, such as goal setting, practicing mindfulness , and the use of motivational techniques .

Uses of Sports Psychology

Contemporary sports psychology is a diverse field and there are a number of different topics that are of special interest to sports psychologists. Here are a few areas of sports psychology and how they are utilized.

Attentional Focus

Attentional focus involves the ability to tune out distractions (such as a crowd of screaming fans) and focus on the task at hand. This allows athletes to manage their mental focus , even in the face of other things that are vying for their attention.

Common strategies that might be used for this purpose include deep breathing, paying attention to bodily signals and sensations, and mindfulness. All of these can help athletes stay focused on the present moment.

Mental Toughness

Mental toughness has become an area of increasing interest in sports psychology. The term refers to the psychological characteristics that are important for an athlete to reach optimal performance.

Among these characteristics are having an unshakeable belief in one's self , the ability to bounce back from setbacks , and an insatiable desire to succeed. Reacting to situations positively, remaining calm under pressure, and retaining control are a few others that contribute to mental toughness.

Visualization and Goal-Setting

Setting a goal, then visualizing each step needed to reach that goal can help mentally prepare the athlete for training or competition. Visualization involves creating a mental image of what you "intend" to happen. Athletes can use this skill to envision the outcome they are pursuing. They might visualize themselves winning an event, for instance, or going through the steps needed to complete a difficult movement.

Visualization can also be useful for helping athletes feel calmer and more focused before an event.

Motivation and Team-Building

Some sports psychologists work with professional athletes and coaches to improve performance by increasing motivation . A major subject in sports psychology, the study of motivation looks at both extrinsic and intrinsic motivators .

Extrinsic motivators are external rewards such as trophies, money, medals, or social recognition. Intrinsic motivators arise from within, such as a personal desire to win or the sense of pride that comes from performing a skill.

Team building is also an important topic in this field. Sports psychologists might work with coaches and athletes to help develop a sense of comradery and assist them in working together efficiently and effectively.

Professional sports psychologists help athletes cope with the intense pressure that comes from competition. This often involves finding ways to reduce performance anxiety and combat burnout.

It is common for athletes to get nervous before a game, performance, or competition. But these nerves can have a negative impact on performance. So, learning tactics to stay calm is important for helping athletes perform their best.

Tactics that might be the focus of this area of sports psychology include things like relaxation techniques , changing negative thoughts , building self-confidence , and findings distractions to reduce the focus on anxiety.

Burnout can also happen to athletes who frequently experience pressure, anxiety, and intense practice schedules. Helping athletes restore their sense of balance, learn to relax, and keep up their motivation can help combat feelings of burnout.

Rehabilitation

Another important focus of sports psychology is on helping athletes recover and return to their sport after an injury. A sports injury can lead to emotional reactions in addition to physical injury, which can include feelings of anger , frustration , hopelessness , and fear .

Sports psychologists work with these athletes to help them mentally cope with the recovery process and to restore their confidence once they are ready to return to their sport.

Impact of Sports Psychology

Research indicates that using various sports psychology techniques can help improve the performance of all types of athletes, from very young gymnasts (aged 8 to 13) to some of the top Olympians . Sports psychology also has impacts that extend into other areas of wellness.

For example, one study noted that it's common for doctors to have negative reactions when treating acutely unwell patients. Yet, when the doctors used the same psychological routines as athletes, they were able to better control these reactions. It also improved their patient care.

Others suggest that sports psychologists can play an important role in reducing obesity , particularly in children. By helping kids increase their physical activity and their enjoyment of the activity, a sports psychologist can help kids achieve and maintain a healthy weight.

Techniques in Sports Psychology

Some professionals use one specific technique when helping their clients while others use a wide range of sports psychology techniques.

Progressive Relaxation

Relaxation techniques offer athletes many benefits. Among them are an increase in self-confidence, better concentration, and lower levels of anxiety and stress—all of which work together to improve performance.

One of the relaxation strategies sports psychologists use with their clients is progressive muscle relaxation . This technique involves having them tense a group of muscles, hold them tense for a few seconds, then allow them to relax.

Some health professionals use hypnosis to help their patients quit smoking. A sports psychologist might use this same technique to help their clients perform better in their sport of choice.

Research indicates that hypnosis (which involves putting someone in a state of focused attention with increased suggestibility) can be used to improve performance for athletes participating in a variety of sports, from basketball to golf to soccer.

Biofeedback

Biofeedback involves using feedback provided by the body to notice how it feels physiologically in times of stress (elevated heart rate, tense muscles, etc.). This information can then be used to help control these effects, providing a more positive biological response.

One systematic review noted that using heart rate variability biofeedback improved sports performance in more than 85% of the studies. Other research supports using biofeedback to reduce an athlete's stress and anxiety.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is used to help all kinds of people identify and change destructive thoughts and behaviors. Therefore, it would only stand to reason that athletes would also benefit from its effects.

One case study involving a 17-year-old female cross-country skier noted that CBT helped reduce performance anxiety while improving sport-specific behaviors. Another piece of research involved 16 NCAA Division I athletes with severe injuries and found that CBT enhanced their emotional well-being during recovery.

Becoming a Sports Psychologist

Becoming a sports psychologist could be exciting for many psychology students, and it may be a good career choice for those with a strong interest in sports and physical activity.

The American Psychological Association (APA) describes sports psychology as a "hot career," suggesting that those working in university athletic departments earn around $60,000 to $80,000 per year.  

If you are interested in this career, start by learning more about the educational requirements, job duties, salaries, and other considerations about careers in sports psychology .

A Word From Verywell

Sports psychology, or the use of psychological techniques in exercise and sports, offers benefits for athletes and non-athletes alike. It also encompasses a wide variety of techniques designed to boost performance and strengthen exercise adherence.

If you have a passion for sports and psychology, becoming a sports psychologist could be a good career choice. And it offers a few different career options, enabling you to choose the one that interests you most.

Sports psychology offers athletes many benefits, from improved performance to a healthier mental recovery after sustaining a physical injury. It can help these athletes stay engaged in the sports they love. Sports psychology also offers benefits for non-athletes, such as by helping them stick to an exercise program. Getting regular exercise improves brain health , reduces the risk of disease, strengthens bones and muscles, and makes it easier to maintain a healthy weight—while also increasing longevity.

Different sports psychology techniques work in different ways. Some are used to promote self-confidence. Others are designed to reduce anxiety. Though they all have one goal in common and that goal is to help the athlete improve their performance.

Sports psychologists can take a few different career paths. If you want to teach athletes how to improve their performance through psychological techniques, you can do this as an educational sports psychologist. If you want to work with athletes who have a mental illness, a clinical sports psychologist offers this service. If you want to work with the everyday exerciser versus athletes, becoming an exercise psychologist might be a good career choice for you.

A number of colleges and universities offer a sports psychology program. Some are undergraduate programs, offering a bachelor's degree in sports psychology. Others are higher-level programs, providing a master's degree or above. Depending on the educational institution, you may also be able to study sports psychology online.

In some cases, sports psychology improves performance by reducing anxiety. In others, it works by improving focus or increasing mental toughness. A sports psychologist can help uncover issues that might be limiting the athlete's performance. This information is then used to determine which psychological techniques can offer the best results.

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

Christina DeBusk is a personal trainer and nutrition specialist.

Introduction: Sport and Exercise Psychology—Theory and Application

• First Online: 26 February 2023

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• Julia Schüler 5 ,
• Mirko Wegner 6 ,
• Henning Plessner 7 &
• Robert C. Eklund 8  

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The introduction to this textbook gives an overview of the scientific field of the psychology of sport and exercise. It is explained that sport psychologists try to describe, explain, predict, and change human experience and behavior in the area of physical activity. We display how sport psychology is concerned with phenomena in competitive rule-governed physical activities, while exercise psychology rather deals with health-related physical activity. We further show how one and the same phenomenon can be viewed from different theoretical perspectives in each subdiscipline of sport psychology, including cognition, motivation, emotion, personality, development, and social psychology. The present textbook is further divided into a theoretical and a practical part. However, we emphasize that both theory and practice in sport psychology are intertwined and influence each other strongly. Finally, we give a selective overview on the history of sport psychology and organization and institutionalization of the scientific subject of sport psychology.

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Schüler, J., Wegner, M., Plessner, H., Eklund, R.C. (2023). Introduction: Sport and Exercise Psychology—Theory and Application. In: Schüler, J., Wegner, M., Plessner, H., Eklund, R.C. (eds) Sport and Exercise Psychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-03921-8_1

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What is Sport Psychology?

In 1897, an Indiana University psychologist, Dr. Norman Triplett, wrote what was considered the first scientific paper on sport psychology, on the social facilitation behavior of bicyclists.

In the early 1920’s, the first sport psychology laboratory was created in Berlin, Germany, by Dr. Carl Diem. Soon after, sport psychology arrived in America when Dr. Coleman R. Griffith created the first sport psychology laboratory in the U.S., in the state of Illinois. Dr. Griffith also created and taught the first university level courses in sport psychology at the University of Illinois, in 1923. In addition, Dr. Griffith was the first sport psychologist ever hired by a professional sports team, the Chicago Cubs baseball team. For his pioneering efforts, he is considered the father of the science of sport psychology in the United States.

We can define psychology as the study of the human mind, emotions and behavior. Psychology is an academic and applied field. The American Psychological Association (APA) states that sport psychology is the “scientific study of the psychological factors that are associated with participation and performance in sport, exercise, and other types of physical activity.” The most important certifying body in sport psychology, the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP), states that they “promote the ethical practice, science, and advocacy of sport and exercise psychology”.

Virtually every college, national, professional and Olympic sports team has a sports psychologist on staff, and countless individual college, Olympic and professional athletes work closely with sports psychology consultants. Look at a few of the big names in pro golf who have used sports psychology consultants. It’s estimated that well over 300 of the pro game’s players regularly use sports psychologists:

Do these 55 golf professionals convince you that sport psychology is a must to get the mental edge? They play golf for a living and want every edge possible. They are already strong mentally, but want to continue to improve and so seek the services of a sport psychologist. You can benefit too.

Let’s take a look at the field of sport psychology and discover how it can help you as an athlete, parent of an athlete, or as a coach. Here are ten areas that sport psychology studies, and how it applies this knowledge to sport learning and performance.

• Sport Psychology Helps You Understand Yourself As An Athlete. You need to have mental strategies for learning, practice and performance factors. Sport psychology gives you the methods and approaches to become aware of what you need so you and your coach can craft custom interventions.
• Sport Psychology Helps You Work Better With Your Parents. Your parents should be part of your success team, at least at some level. It does not necessarily mean they should coach you, but it would be nice to have a solid relationship with them, and excellent communication skills so they can assist you in your career.
• Sport Psychology Helps You Work Better With Your Coaches. Your coach is perhaps the most important person on your team. You need a great working relationship with this person. Sport psychology can help you create this relationship, and nurture it.
• Sport Psychology Helps You Navigate Your Sport Career. There are many blind alleys, pitfalls and false paths in a sport career. Sport psychology helps you create a vision for success, and goals and objectives, so you can execute that master plan.
• Sport Psychology Helps You Prepare Your Mind. It is critical that you know how to prepare mentally and emotionally for lessons, practices and performances. Sport psychology helps you devise a customized mental readiness process that helps you transition from your normal work, school or social worlds into the special world of competition.
• Sport Psychology Helps You Concentrate So You Can Enter The Zone. Attentional control is psychologist-speak for concentration or focus. Sport psychology helps you create strong control over where and how you place your attention so you can concentrate on the proper attentional cues, and you are able to block out unwanted, distracting cues.
• Sport Psychology Helps You Bounce Back From Set-Backs. It is critical that you become resilient to the inevitable problems and set-backs that competitive sport brings. You need solid mental toughness that helps you refocus, reset and re-energize for what is to come.
• Sport Psychology Helps You Increase Motivation And Drive. Successful athletes who have long careers fuel them with exciting goals, a vision for the legacy they want to leave, and dreams of how they want to play. Sport psychology helps you craft engaging goals that create positive energy within you, so you have huge amounts of drive and determination to achieve your potential.
• Sport Psychology Helps You Handle Stress and Pressure. One of the major ways sport psychology helps you is through stress reduction in learning and performance. While some stress is inevitable and natural, levels of stress that are excessive damage performance. Sport psychology helps you manage stress and turn it into success.
• Sport Psychology Helps You Handle The Paradox Of Success. An issue that every athlete faces at some time is the paradox of success. As you become more successful, there are more pressures and more distractions pulling at you. Sport psychology helps you address these, stay focused, and helps you continue to sustain your best performances.

Now that this article has provided you with the big picture about sport psychology, you can gain more information and perspective from these helpful links in the psychology of sport:

Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) http://appliedsportpsych.org/

The International Society of Sport Psychology (ISSP) http://www.issponline.org/

The European Federation of Sport Psychology (FEPSAC) http://www.fepsac.com/

The North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity http://www.naspspa.org/

International Society for Sports Psychiatry (ISSP) http://www.theissp.com/

Directory of Graduate Programs in Applied Sport Psychology http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1885693109/atheltinsightheo

Whether you are interested in sport psychology from a coaching, athlete or parent perspective, I suggest you investigate this fascinating field more in depth. Sport psychology can help in so many ways, and it makes sense to get every advantage you can get.

About the author:

Bill Cole, MS, MA , a leading authority on peak performance, mental toughness and coaching, is founder and CEO of William B. Cole Consultants, a consulting firm that helps organizations and professionals achieve more success in business, life and sports.

hello could you please tell me some relif technique to me for relax mind.

Try to focus in the present moment rather then on previous performances or end results. Focus on your mental preparation (what you need to do before a competition to perform successfully) Keep your expectations in check by applying process goals (see articles on the formula for success and process goals) Listen to music and establish a routine that helps you relax your mind before games. During games let go of the last play and stay focused on what you need to do in the present moment to perform successfully. Try positive self-talk and positive affirmations. Eliminate irrelevant thoughts (things that will not help you perform) such as doubts, play your game!

Breath in for six seconds, hold for two seconds, breath our for 7 seconds..repeat this to slow heartrate and accept the fact that your choking when you are. and fix it.

Hello, i find myself i always recognized a person stopped at my web site therefore i arrived at gain this desire? . I am trying to find what you should develop my site! I guess its ample to utilize a number of ones principles!

Sport Psychology helps for more then just sports it, I have used that to get my self ready for big events in my life.

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

Marc Lochbaum

1 Department of Kinesiology and Sport Management, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, United States of America

2 Education Academy, Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas, Lithuania

Elisabeth Stoner

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

Tristen Hefner

Sydney cooper.

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

Andrew M. Lane

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

Peter C. Terry

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

Associated Data

All relevant data are within the paper.

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.

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.

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 ]).

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).

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.

Note. k = number of effects, N.S. = non-significant, n/a = not applicable.

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, 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.

Funding Statement

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

Data Availability

• PLoS One. 2022; 17(2): e0263408.

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PONE-D-21-31186Sport psychology and performance meta-analyses: A systematic review of the literaturePLOS ONE

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Reviewer #1: The paper entitled: “Sport psychology and performance meta-analyses: A systematic review of the literature” aimed to synthesize the extant literature to gain insights into the overall impact of sport psychology on athletic performance. The paper is well written and has a great and strong methodology. However, the introduction and discussion are not persuasive enough that the findings make a significant contribution to the literature and could therefore override these limitations. I include some comments below related to this summary for consideration.

1. In relation to the contribution of the study to the literature, I did not get a sense from the article that the findings revealed anything other than what we already know. Please clarified that;

2. The introduction of the paper was very descriptive, it did not situate the current study in literature or highlight what the gap in the literature is that this study is trying to address. At least, the authors should situate better the main purposes of this study;

3. The discussion is very descriptive and any statements about the contribution and conclusions of the study are not new. At least this moment. Please clarified better and justified your choices.

4. Overall, the paper has conditions for be accepted in PLOS ONE, however the authors should clarified the points above.

Reviewer #2: The submitted work presents a very interesting approach to summarize the results of systematic reviews/meta-analysis regarding sport psychology and performance. I must say that it is rare as a reviewer to find a so relevant and well developed study (particularly a review of literature) in which I can add and help so little. The authors are to be commended for the excellent work developed.

Given this, I can make 1 or 2 remarks in some sections, although I do not believe they are needed to ensure a final quality of the developed work. I believe this work can be published as it is, and my comments should only be considered if the authors feel they are noteworthy.

Lines 99 to 102. Given that several examples were presented before (e.g., journals), why the inclusion of only one book? Several examples could be given here, thus maintaining the line of reasoning presented before.

In method, why report PRISMA 2009, 2015 and 2020 guidelines? As stated in the Page et al (2020) reference used: "The PRISMA 2020 statement replaces the 2009 statement and includes new reporting guidance that reflects advances in methods to identify, select, appraise, and synthesis studies". Won't the 2020 reference be enough?

As a last remark, I wonder if a discussion (or a comment in the discussion/limitations) regarding mood, and particularly POMS, is needed. In this work and in some of the cited works (e.g., Lochbaum et al., 2021, EJIHPE) no discussion regarding the issues of POMS as an assessing tool for mood is presented. As mentioned by several researchers (e.g., Ekkekakis, 2013), POMS do not assess mood, at least not in a global domain. This do not impact directly this work, as generally only each of the six distinct states are explored. However, when interpreting figure 2 and extracting mood results, perhaps some clarification would frame the readers on this issues and respective interpretation of results.

Ekkekakis, P. (2013). The measurement of affect, mood and emotion. Cambridge University Press.

I am sorry I can not help any further with my comments. Thank you for your work.

Best regards

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Reviewer #2:  Yes:  Diogo S. Teixeira

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Author response to Decision Letter 0

13 Dec 2021

Response to Reviewers

Thank you to both reviewers for taking time to review and comment on our manuscript. We addressed all comments.

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

Author response: Thank you to the reviewers for their positive comments.

________________________________________

Reviewer #1: No

Author response: All pertinent data are found in Table 1 – 2 and in Figure 1.

Author response: Reviewer 1’s concerns have been addressed below.

Reviewer #1

The paper entitled: “Sport psychology and performance meta-analyses: A systematic review of the literature” aimed to synthesize the extant literature to gain insights into the overall impact of sport psychology on athletic performance. The paper is well written and has a great and strong methodology. However, the introduction and discussion are not persuasive enough that the findings make a significant contribution to the literature and could therefore override these limitations. I include some comments below related to this summary for consideration.

• Author response: We have amended the paper to address the three concerns below.

Comment 1. In relation to the contribution of the study to the literature, I did not get a sense from the article that the findings revealed anything other than what we already know. Please clarified that;

• Author response: We have expanded on the gap in the knowledge that we addressed on lines 115-121 on the revised manuscript.

Comment 2. The introduction of the paper was very descriptive, it did not situate the current study in literature or highlight what the gap in the literature is that this study is trying to address. At least, the authors should situate better the main purposes of this study;

• Author response: Currently, sport psychology practitioners wishing to use evidence-based strategies are faced with inconsistent evidence about the efficacy of sport psychology techniques. Our paper addresses this inconsistency by assessing the effectiveness of techniques collectively. This is explained on lines 115-121 and with some small modifications on lines 125-128.

Comment 3. The discussion is very descriptive and any statements about the contribution and conclusions of the study are not new. At least this moment. Please clarified better and justified your choices.

• Author response: As suggested, a stronger summary of the contribution of the paper is provided on lines 371-375. We would also argue that the recommendations section for improvements to future studies also represents a significant contribution to the body of knowledge. If the information provided is already well known, as the reviewer suggests, then we would question why previous investigators have not implemented it in their studies.

Comment 4. Overall, the paper has conditions for be accepted in PLOS ONE, however the authors should clarified the points above.

• Author response: We thank you for your comments, which have served to improve our paper.

Reviewer #2

The submitted work presents a very interesting approach to summarize the results of systematic reviews/meta-analysis regarding sport psychology and performance. I must say that it is rare as a reviewer to find a so relevant and well developed study (particularly a review of literature) in which I can add and help so little. The authors are to be commended for the excellent work developed.

• Author response: Many thanks for your extremely positive comments.

Comment 1. Given this, I can make 1 or 2 remarks in some sections, although I do not believe they are needed to ensure a final quality of the developed work. I believe this work can be published as it is, and my comments should only be considered if the authors feel they are noteworthy.

• Author response: As suggested, we have added some additional references to books on lines 99-104 and added them to the reference list on lines 523-524 and 527-529.

Comment 2. In method, why report PRISMA 2009, 2015 and 2020 guidelines? As stated in the Page et al (2020) reference used: "The PRISMA 2020 statement replaces the 2009 statement and includes new reporting guidance that reflects advances in methods to identify, select, appraise, and synthesis studies". Won't the 2020 reference be enough?

• Author response: As suggested, we have removed reference to the PRISMA guidelines published in 2009 and 2015.

Comment 3. As a last remark, I wonder if a discussion (or a comment in the discussion/limitations) regarding mood, and particularly POMS, is needed. In this work and in some of the cited works (e.g., Lochbaum et al., 2021, EJIHPE) no discussion regarding the issues of POMS as an assessing tool for mood is presented. As mentioned by several researchers (e.g., Ekkekakis, 2013), POMS do not assess mood, at least not in a global domain. This do not impact directly this work, as generally only each of the six distinct states are explored. However, when interpreting figure 2 and extracting mood results, perhaps some clarification would frame the readers on this issues and respective interpretation of results.

• Author response: It was not our intent to critique the construct validity of the measures used in the meta-analyses we reviewed. Nevertheless, as suggested, we have added a note that the POMS and its derivatives do not measure all aspects of the global domain of mood (see lines 364-366).

I am sorry I cannot help any further with my comments. Thank you for your work.

• Author response: We are delighted to know that you thought so highly of our paper.

Submitted filename: Response to Reviewers.docx

Decision Letter 1

19 Jan 2022

PONE-D-21-31186R1

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Acceptance letter

25 Jan 2022

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Article contents

Psychological imagery in sport and performance.

• Krista J. Munroe-Chandler Krista J. Munroe-Chandler The University of Windsor
•  and  Michelle D. Guerrero Michelle D. Guerrero The University of Windsor
• https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190236557.013.228
• Published online: 26 April 2017

Imagery, which can be used by anyone, is appealing to performers because it is executed individually and can be performed at anytime and anywhere. The breadth of the application of imagery is far reaching. Briefly, imagery is creating or recreating experiences in one’s mind. From the early theories of imagery (e.g., psychoneuromuscular) to the more recent imagery models (e.g., PETTLEP), understanding the way in which imagery works is essential to furthering our knowledge and developing strong research and intervention programs aimed at enhanced performance. The measurement of imagery ability and frequency provides a way of monitoring the progression of imagery use and imagery ability. Despite the individual differences known to impact imagery use (e.g., type of task, imagery perspective, imagery speed), imagery remains a key psychological skill integral to a performer’s success.

• mental imagery
• imagery ability
• imagery theories
• imagery models
• imagery perspective
• law enforcement

Introduction

All individuals, regardless of age, gender, or skill level, are capable of using imagery as a means to enhance cognitive, behavioral, and affective outcomes. In the sport domain, athletes use imagery in training, competition, and rehabilitation. Elsewhere, imagery has been widely utilized by other performers including military personnel, surgeons, and musicians.

Everything I make as a producer, I visualize it as a DJ first. And all those beats, I test them as a DJ. (David Guetta) I have a system of ridding my mind of negative thoughts. I visualize myself writing them down on a piece of paper. Then I imagine myself crumpling up the paper, lighting it on fire, and burning it to a crisp. (Bruce Lee)

The breadth of the application of imagery is far reaching, as demonstrated by these quotations from famous musician David Guetta and legendary martial artist Bruce Lee, illustrating that imagery can be used in different disciplines and for different functions. An often cited definition of imagery is:

an experience that mimics real experience. We can be aware of “seeing” an image, feeling movements as an image, or experiencing an image of smell, tastes, or sounds without actually experiencing the real thing. Sometimes people find that it helps to close their eyes. It differs from dreams in that we are awake and conscious when we form an image. (White & Hardy, 1998 , p. 389)

As just described, imagery is multisensory such that it can include the sense of sight, taste, sound, smell, and touch. This description provides insight into why the term imagery is used instead of “visualization,” which denotes only the sense of sight. In addition, the individual is awake and consciously aware when imaging and as such not dreaming. In essence, imagery is creating, or recreating, the entirety of an experience in one’s mind.

From early theories of imagery to more recent imagery models, the ways in which imagery is used to enhance performance will be explored. Measurement of imagery ability and frequency, which has been assessed primarily through the use of self-report, will be discussed, along with various factors influencing imagery use, including ability, speed, age, skill level and perspective. The uses of imagery in sport, exercise, and performance domains will be examined and avenues for future research suggested.

Theories and Models

For many years, researchers have been interested in the way in which imagery is used and applied by individuals. When individuals image they first retrieve information from memory to create or recreate an experience in their mind (Morris, Spittle, & Watt, 2005 ). Through a combination of imagery sub-processes, such as image transformation (e.g., rotation of an image), scanning (e.g., detecting details of an image), and maintenance (e.g., sustaining an image for some time), vivid and controllable images are generated. Despite the appeal of the simplistic explanation, a deeper understanding of how imagery works is necessary. As such, several theories have been proposed (psychoneuromuscular, bioinformational, triple code). Notwithstanding support and criticism of each of these theories, together they provide a foundation that continues to guide the development and refinement of imagery research and therefore warrant exploration and explanation. The most commonly discussed theories in sport, exercise, and performance psychology are presented along with an overview on the conceptual models of imagery.

The psychoneuromuscular theory (Jacobson, 1930 ) notes that when an individual mentally imagines a skill, the activated neural pathways are identical to those activated when physically performing the skill. The feedback one receives from the muscle innervation of the imagined skill enables the individual to make adjustments in motor behavior. Through measurement of electromyographical (EMG) activity, wherein the innervations when imaging are much smaller in magnitude than when physically performing, empirical support for the psychoneuromuscular theory has been found. Despite this, Hall ( 2001 ) has noted the failure of the psychoneuromuscular theory to examine the various types of imagery and Feltz and Landers ( 1983 ) have criticized the validity of this theory because of methodological concerns.

In bioinformation theory, Lang ( 1979 ) suggests that mental images comprise both stimulus proposition and stimulus response. Stimulus proposition refers to the content or characteristics of the image, such as a competitive swimmer imagining her surroundings and her opponents. Stimulus response, on the other hand, refers to the physiological and affective reaction experienced by the individual imaging. For example, that same swimmer may feel tightness in her shoulders due to the anxiety experienced when imagining the swim meet or she may neglect external stimuli such as the crowd cheering after imagining a personal best time. Images that contain both stimulus proposition and response are most effective in enhancing performance. Although not often acknowledged, Lang introduced the concept of meaning to the image, enhancing the relevance of the theory. Research supporting the bioinformational theory has found that imagery scripts containing more frequent use of response propositions, compared to stimulus propositions, elicit greater physiological reactions (Bakker, Boschker, & Chung, 1996 ). Although an improvement over earlier theories, the bioinformational theory lacks explanation regarding the motivational types of imagery (Hall, 2001 ).

Elaborating upon the bioinformational theory’s stimulus proposition and response characteristics, Ahsen’s ( 1984 ) tripe code theory added a third characteristic—the meaning of the image. Ahsen argued that no two people would have the same imagery experience even if provided with the same imagery instructions. Individuals bring their own unique set of experiences with them and view these experience through their individual lenses, thereby allowing for a different meaning of the image to emerge. As such, the most effective images are those that are realistic and vivid, evoke psychophysiological responses, and impart significance to the individual. However, as noted in the literature (Morris et al., 2005 ), this model neglects the cognitive effects of imagery, which is an important consideration for skill acquisition and learning.

The aforementioned concepts provide theoretical underpinning for imagery use; however, exploration of this topic also requires an examination of the different models of imagery, which are also essential for furthering our understanding of imagery use. Indeed, most of the recent performance imagery research (e.g., sport, exercise) has developed as a result of Paivio’s ( 1985 ) analytic model. It is well established that imagery has cognitive and motivational functions that operate at a general or specific level. The cognitive general (CG) function entails imaging strategies, game plans, or routines (e.g., a fast break in basketball), whereas the cognitive specific (CS) function involves imaging specific skills (e.g., follow through on a free throw). The motivational general (MG) function of imagery involves imaging physiological arousal levels and emotions (e.g., staying calm when taking a penalty shot), and the motivational specific (MS) function of imagery includes imaging individual goals (e.g., winning the championship). In an extension of Paivio’s work, Hall, Mack, Paivio, and Hausenblas ( 1998 ) further divided the motivational general function into a motivational general–arousal (MG-A) function, encompassing imagery associated with arousal and stress, and a motivational general–mastery (MG-M) function, representing imagery associated with being mentally tough, in control, and self-confident.

Guided by Paivio’s ( 1985 ) model, Martin, Moritz, and Hall ( 1999 ) developed the Applied Model of Imagery Use in Sport (AMIUS) to explain the way in which athletes use imagery to improve athletic performance. According to AMIUS, the sport situation influences the types of imagery used, which are then associated with various cognitive, affective, and behavioral outcomes. Further, the relationship between the imagery type (five functions of imagery as noted: CS, CG, MS, MG-A, MG-M) and the outcome is moderated by various individual differences, such as imagery ability.

As a model of imagery use, the AMIUS offers several benefits. From a research perspective, the AMIUS provides simple, practical, and testable relationships. From an applied perspective, the model offers guidance for imagery interventions. There is ample support for the AMIUS such that the type of imagery should match the desired outcome, or as summarized by Short, Monsma, and Short ( 2004 ), “what you see, is what you get” (p. 342). That is, if a performer wishes to improve his confidence, he should engage in MG-M imagery. However, some researchers (e.g., Bernier & Fournier, 2010 ; Nordin & Cumming, 2008 ) have found that images can serve multiple functions for an athlete and have argued that function (why athletes image) and content (what athletes image) are not identical and therefore should be separated. Indeed, the original belief that the type of imagery should match its intended outcome is not as clear as was once thought.

Drawing on the AMIUS, Munroe-Chandler and Gammage ( 2005 ) developed an applied model for exercise settings. The exercise model differs from the AMIUS in that the antecedents include factors beyond the physical setting (e.g., exerciser’s goals and experiences), efficacy beliefs mediate the function-outcome relationship, and the individual differences that moderate the relationship extend beyond imagery ability (e.g., frequency of exercise, age). This model has allowed for the refinement and development of exercise imagery research (e.g., Andersson & Moss, 2011 ; Najafabadi, Memari, Kordi, Shayestehfar, & Eshghi, 2015 ).

With over a decade of research guided by the AMIUS, Cumming and Williams ( 2013 ) proposed a revised model of deliberate imagery use applicable for many performers (e.g., athletes, dancers, musicians). The revised model considers “who” is imaging (age, gender, competitive level), “what” is being imaged (the type), and “why” performers use imagery (the function). Most important, however, the revised model recognizes the personal meaning as the link between the imagery type and function. Cumming and Williams note that the types of imagery are often combined to achieve a specific outcome (e.g., cognitive and motivational types of images are important sources of confidence; Levy, Perry, Nicholls, Larkin, & Davies, 2014 ), and therefore offers a more flexible framework than the original AMIUS.

Apart from the previously mentioned models, some sport psychology researchers have called for models of imagery to be grounded in neuroscience; the PETTLEP is one such model (Holmes & Collins, 2001 ). The PETTLEP model was developed to guide imagery interventions and is based on functional equivalence, which suggests that processes that occur in the brain during imagery mimic the processes that occur during actual movement. Seven key factors are identified to help guide imagery interventions; physical, environment, task, timing, learning, emotion, and perspective. Although there have been some studies examining the model’s components in isolation (e.g., O & Munroe-Chandler, 2008 ), more research is needed testing multiple elements of the model (cf., Smith, Wright, Allsopp, & Westhead, 2007 ) and in different contexts. Sophisticated neuroimaging techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imagery (fMRI) and positron emission tomography (PET), as well as mental chronometry (informs about the temporal coupling between real and simulated movements), have allowed researchers to test functional equivalence and to gain a greater understanding between imagery and movement.

Measurement

The measurement of imagery ability and imagery frequency have often been assessed in the sport, exercise, and performance imagery research. Given that imagery is an internal mental skill, its assessment has typically relied on the self-report questionnaires allowing individuals to subjectively report their imagery use and ability. More recent research, however, has combined self-report with other indices of imagery experiences such as chronometry or functional magnetic resonance imagery (fMRI) (Guillot & Collet, 2005 ).

As noted in the Applied Model of Imagery Use in Sport (AMIUS), imagery ability is one of the most important factors impacting imagery effectiveness. One’s ability to image includes various dimensions such as vividness, controllability, and maintenance (Morris, Spittle, & Watt, 2005 ). Although some performers may initially be better imagers than others, imagery is a skill that can be improved with practice (Rodgers, Hall, & Buckolz, 1991 ). From an applied perspective, the measurement of imagery ability is important as it leads to more individualized, and therefore effective, imagery interventions. Further, the measurement of imagery ability can be used as an imagery intervention screening procedure, thereby ensuring adequate imagery ability prior to the commencement of the intervention. Although there are numerous imagery ability questionnaires, the focus will be on the two most commonly used in the performance (sport) domain due to their inclusion of both movement and visual imagery.

The Movement Imagery Questionnaire (MIQ; Hall & Pongrac, 1983 ) assesses both visual and kinesthetic imagery. Although it was readily used for some time as a measure of imagery ability, Hall and Martin ( 1997 ) revised the MIQ (Movement Imagery Questionnaire–Revised; MIQ-R), reducing the number of items and thus minimizing the amount of time needed to complete the questionnaire. Those completing the MIQ-R are instructed to physically complete the movement sequence (i.e., knee raise, arm movement, waist bend, and jump) and then resume the starting position and recreate the experience using visual imagery, and finally using kinesthetic imagery. Participants are then asked to rate the quality of imagery on a 7-point Likert scale from 1 ( very easy to picture/feel) to 7 ( very difficult to picture/feel) . Given that the MIQ and MIQ-R did not distinguish between internal and external visual imagery perspective, Williams et al. ( 2012 ) developed the MIQ-3 to more fully capture an individual’s imagery ability. The MIQ-3 assesses external visual imagery (e.g., looking through your own eyes while performing the movement), internal visual imagery (e.g., watching yourself performing the movement), and kinesthetic imagery (e.g., feeling yourself do the movement). Although the MIQ-3 has shown to be a reliable and valid measure (Williams et al., 2012 ), because of the recentness of its development, more research is warranted using this measure.

The Vividness of Movement Imagery Questionnaire (Isaac, Marks, & Russell, 1986 ) assesses one’s ability to use visual imagery. It requires the participant to rate the 24 items on the vividness of imagery from 1 ( perfectly clear and as vivid as normal vision ) to 5 ( no image at all; you only know that you are thinking of the skill ). The revised VMIQ-2 (Roberts, Callow, Hardy, Markland, & Bringer, 2008 ) assesses the vividness of both visual and kinesthetic imagery. The 12-item VMIQ-2 scale asks respondents to imagine a variety of motor tasks (e.g., running, kicking a stone) and then rate the image on two perspectives of visual imagery (external and internal), as well as kinesthetically. All items are measured on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ( perfectly clear and as vivid as normal vision ) to 5 ( no image at all; you only know that you are thinking of the skill ). The VMIQ-2 has shown adequate reliability as well as adequate factorial, concurrent, and construct validity (Roberts et al., 2008 ).

All measurement tools are subject to criticism, and the imagery ability measures are not exempt. The instructions from the VMIQ-2 ask participants to draw on their memory of common movements, whereas the MIQ-3 requires participants to execute a movement first prior to imagining it, thereby relying on short-term memory. It may be argued that imaging a common movement (kicking a ball; VMIQ-2) may be easier for the participant than imaging a less common movement (raising your knee as high as possible so that you are standing on your left leg with your right leg flexed [bent] at the knee; MIQ-3). Conversely, a more common movement such as running up the stairs may elicit varying interpretations from the participant, thus leading to discrepancies in imagery content.

Gregg and Hall ( 2006 ) developed the Motivational Imagery Ability Measure for Sport (MIAMS) to assess motivational imagery abilities, which had yet to be included in any previous imagery ability measure. The MIAMS assesses the ability of an athlete to use MG-A and MG-M imagery, wherein the participant images the scene and then rates the image on an ease subscale 1 ( not at all easy to form ) to 7 ( very easy to form ) and an emotion subscale 1( no emotion ) to 7 ( very strong emotion ). Psychometric properties of the questionnaire have proved favorable, with acceptable model fit and adequate internal consistencies for the subscales (Gregg & Hall, 2006 ).

Of course, the various measures of imagery ability can be employed together to provide a more comprehensive assessment of an athlete’s overall imagery ability. Individuals who are more adept at imagery are more likely to engage these practices, and greater imagery use will likely result in enhanced imagery ability (Gregg, Hall, McGowan, & Hall, 2011 ). This is significant because research conclusively demonstrates that individual differences in imagery ability will have an impact on the effectiveness of imagery, and that high imagery ability leads to the ultimate goal: improved performance on a variety of motor tasks (Hall, 2001 ).

In addition to imagery ability, measuring a performer’s use of imagery allows researchers, and practitioners, to determine one’s frequency of a specific type of imagery and also enables them to see changes from pre- to post-intervention. The various questionnaires assessing the frequency of imagery use in sport, exercise, and active play will be addressed.

The Sport Imagery Questionnaire (SIQ; Hall, Mack, Paivio, & Hausenblas, 1998 ; Hall, Stevens, & Paivio, 2005 ) is the most widely used measure of imagery frequency in the sport domain (Morris et al., 2005 ). It is a general measure of imagery used for athletes of any sport at any competitive level. The self-report questionnaire comprises 30 items assessing the five functions of imagery (CS, CG, MS, MG-A, MG-M). All items are scored on a 7-point Likert scale anchored by 1 ( rarely ) and 7 ( often ). The SIQ has shown strong psychometric properties (i.e., reliability, validity) for athletes 14 years and older (Hall et al., 2005 ).

Given the research evidence supporting young athletes’ use of imagery (e.g., Munroe-Chandler, Hall, Fishburne, & Shannon, 2005 ), the Sport Imagery Questionnaire for Children (SIQ-C; Hall, Munroe-Chandler, Fishburne, O, & Hall, 2009 ) was developed for those young athletes aged 7–14 years. The SIQ-C includes 21 items, which assesses the same five functions as those identified in the adult version (CS, CG, MS, MG-A, MG-M). The items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale anchored at 1 ( not at all ) and 5 ( very often ), making it more appropriate for young children. Since its development, the SIQ-C has reported adequate internal consistencies for all subscales (Hall et al., 2009 ).

For researchers in the field of exercise imagery, two questionnaires have dominated: the Exercise Imagery Questionnaire (EIQ; Hausenblas, Hall, Rodgers, & Munroe, 1999 ) and the Exercise Imagery Inventory (EII; Giacobbi, Hausenblas, & Penfield, 2005 ). The nine-item EIQ was developed from qualitative responses from exercisers reporting their use imagery for three main purposes: appearance, energy, and technique. Exercisers are asked to rate their imagery use on the three aforementioned subscales using a 9-point scale, anchored by 1 ( never ) and 9 ( always ). Strong reliabilities are reported for all three subscales (Hausenblas et al., 1999 ; Rodgers, Munroe, & Hall, 2001 ).

The EII was developed as a result of qualitative evidence indicating exercisers’ use of imagery for purposes beyond those of appearance, energy, and technique. In fact, exercisers were found to use imagery for the following purposes: appearance or health, exercise technique, exercise self-efficacy, and exercise feelings. As a result of these findings, the EII includes questions that assess appearance, energy and technique imagery as well as exercise self-efficacy and exercise feeling imagery. The EII is a 19-item self-report measure of exercise frequency rated on a 7-point Likert scale (1 = rarely and 7 = often ). Support for the four-factor model across a variety of samples has been reported (Giacobbi et al., 2005 ).

The revised version of the EII (EII-R; Giacobbi, Tuccitto, Buman, & Munroe-Chandler, 2010 ) measures the same four subscales of the original version, in addition to exercise routines. This modification allowed for the measurement of the five functions of imagery, which were suggested in the applied model of exercise imagery use (Munroe-Chandler & Gammage, 2005 ). Results from a confirmatory factor analysis for the EII-R has demonstrated good fit indices (Giacobbi et al., 2010 ).

The Children’s Active Play Imagery Questionnaire (CAPIQ; Cooke, Munroe-Chandler, Hall, Tobin, & Guerrero, 2014 ) assesses the frequency of imagery use in children during their active play. The measure consists of 11 items, each rated on a 5-point Likert scale from 1 ( not at all ) to 5 ( very often ), assessing one of the three subscales (capability, fun, and social). Capability imagery refers to the practice of movements, social imagery refers to the engagement of active play activities either by oneself or with others, and fun imagery refers to feelings of satisfaction. The items were developed from active play research as well as qualitative focus groups with children examining their use of imagery during their leisure time physical activity (Tobin, Nadalin, Munroe-Chandler, & Hall, 2013 ). The CAPIQ has demonstrated adequate internal consistencies for all three subscales (Cooke et al., 2014 ) and contributes to the measurement of imagery use in a physical activity setting other than organized sport.

Factors Affecting Imagery

Researchers have identified a wide range of factors that have been found to influence imagery effectiveness, including imagery ability, image speed, age, skill level, and perspective.

Both Martin, Moritz, and Hall ( 1999 ) and Munroe-Chandler and Gammage ( 2005 ) have proposed that the relationship between imagery use and desired outcome is moderated by various individual differences, especially the ability to image. That is, better imagery ability leads to better performance on a variety of motor tasks (Hall, 2001 ). This was supported in an applied study wherein tennis players with better imagery ability showed greater improvements in tennis serve return accuracy than those athletes with lower imagery ability (Robin et al., 2007 ). Individual differences in imagery ability has been noted in early imagery research (cf., MacIntyre, Moran, Collet, & Guillot, 2013 ). Some have noted that novice performers may not be as skilled at imagining given their lack of ability to develop knowledge of the spatial and kinesthetic requirements of the task (Driskell, Copper, & Moran, 1994 ). Regardless of individual differences in imagery ability, there is sufficient evidence to show that imagery ability can improve with practice (Cooley, Williams, Burns, & Cumming, 2013 ).

Cumming et al. ( 2016 ) developed a structured, imagery exercise known as layered stimulus and response training (LSRT) designed to improve imagery ability. By generating images in a layered fashion, starting with a simple image and gradually incorporating additional information in subsequent layers, imagery ability improves. After each layer, the individual evaluates the image by reflecting on various aspects of the image. For example, what aspects were strong, easy, vague, or difficult to image? Earlier studies have implemented LSRT in a single imagery session, with the intent of enhancing individuals’ imagery ability prior to receiving an imagery intervention (e.g., Cumming, Olphin, & Law, 2007 ), and more recently for improving actual motor skill performance (Williams, Cooley, & Cumming, 2013 ).

Image Speed

Regarding the Timing element of the PETTLEP model, Holmes and Collins ( 2001 ) have recommended that athletes image primarily in real-time speed, due to the accurate representation of movement tempo and relative timing duration in one’s images. In a large-scale study examining athletes’ voluntary use of image speed (O & Hall, 2009 ), both recreational and competitive athletes reported using three image speeds depending on the function of imagery being employed and the stage of learning of the athlete. Real-time images were used most often by athletes regardless of imagery function or stage of learning. However, when learning or developing a skill or strategy, slow-motion images were used most often (which supports recent findings with novice golfers; Shirazipour, Munroe-Chandler, Loughead, & Vander Laan, 2016 ), and when imaging skills or strategies that had been mastered fast-motion images were used most often. Subsequent qualitative research by O and Hall ( 2013 ) substantiated those findings and defined voluntary image speed manipulation as that which “occurs when an athlete consciously and purposefully selects a speed at which to image” (p. 11).

The cognitive development of the individual, most often distinguished by age, is another factor influencing imagery use. Much of the research conducted by Kosslyn and colleagues (e.g., Kosslyn, Margolis, Barrett, Goldknopf, & Daly, 1990 ) in the general psychology domain notes differences in imagery use between children and adults. More specifically, it is not until age 14 that children are able to image similarly to their adult counterparts. Age differences also holds true in the sport, exercise, and active play domain. For example, child-specific imagery measures have been developed to adequately assess their use of imagery in various domains (i.e., SIQ-C, CAPIQ). Findings from an imagery intervention study (Munroe-Chandler, Hall, Fishburne, Murphy, & Hall, 2012 ) did identify age-related results, such that only the younger athletes (7–10 years) performed faster on a soccer task, when compared to the older athletes (10–14 years). Noted age differences are also evident in the active play setting such that only the older age cohorts (11–14 years) reported picturing themselves playing alone rather than with others (Tobin, Nadalin, Munroe-Chandler, & Hall, 2013 ). In the exercise domain, Milne, Burke, Hall, Nederhof, and Gammage ( 2006 ) found that younger exercisers ( M age = 22 years) reported using more appearance imagery than the older exercisers ( M age = 71 years). Although these findings offer some preliminary evidence for age differences, further research is needed in order to truly understand the effects of age on performers’ use of imagery.

Skill Level

One of the most consistent findings from the performance imagery literature is that higher skilled performers report using imagery more often than lower skilled performers (Cumming & Hall, 2002 ; Hall, Mack, Paivio, & Hausenblaus, 1998 ; Hausenblas, Hall, Rodgers, & Munroe, 1999 ). In the sport domain, although it had been suggested that novice athletes should use imagery more frequently than elite athletes, simply for the purposes of the learning, and development, of new strategies and skills (Hall, 2001 ), research supports benefits for highly skilled athletes (e.g., Arvinen-Barrow, Weigand, Thomas, Hemmings, & Walley, 2007 ). This finding is consistent in the exercise imagery field, wherein experienced exercisers use imagery more often than less experienced exercisers (Gammage, Hall, & Rodgers, 2000 ), and in the performing arts field wherein higher level ballet dancers report using more imagery than their lower level counterparts (Nordin & Cumming, 2008 ). Moving forward, researchers should consider other ways to assess skill level. Currently, skill level has been dichotomized as novice vs. elite or experienced vs non-experienced. This is problematic given the self-report nature of this dichotomy and the possibility that minimal differences in skill may exist between those two groups (Arvinen-Barrow et al., 2007 ). In the revised model of deliberate imagery use, Cumming and Williams ( 2013 ) suggest that in addition to the skill level of the athlete, other relevant individual characteristics to consider are experience with and confidence using imagery.

Imagery Perspective

Morris and Spittle ( 2012 ) noted that imagery perspective is a key factor impacting an athlete’s use of imagery. Indeed, a special issue of the Journal of Mental Imagery ( 2012 ) was dedicated solely to imagery perspective. Performers can image the execution of a skill from their own vantage point (internal imagery) or they can view themselves from the perspective of an external observer, as if they were a spectator in the stands watching a performance (external imagery). Early sport imagery researchers advocated the use of an internal perspective (Vealey, 1986 ), while others have found the perspective to be dependent upon the task. That is, tasks relying heavily on the use of form (e.g., gymnastics) are most effective when imaged from an external perspective (White & Hardy, 1995 ). Some researchers (Munroe, Giacobbi, Hall, & Weinberg, 2000 ; Smith, Wright, Allsopp, & Westhead, 2007 ) support athletes using a combination of internal and external perspectives. In the academic domain, Vasquez and Buehler ( 2007 ) found that students demonstrate increased motivation when they imagine the task from a third-person perspective. In a study examining imagery in five different disciplines (i.e., education, medicine, music, psychology, and sport), imagery was most often performed from an internal perspective (Schuster et al., 2011 ).

Other Factors

Scholars have recently acknowledged the scant research assessing the influence of personality characteristics on imagery use and its effectiveness (Roberts, Callow, Hardy, Woodman, & Thomas, 2010 ). In an effort to fill this gap, Roberts et al. ( 2010 ) examined the interactive effects of imagery perspective and narcissism on motor performance. Given that narcissists enjoy looking at themselves from the point of others, it was hypothesized that those high in narcissism would score higher on external visual imagery and better on their motor performance when compared to those low in narcissism. This hypothesis was supported using two independent samples. As such, it seems as though personality characteristics (i.e., narcissism) may influence the effectiveness of psychological skills and thereby require additional investigation.

Another factor that has recently been examined within the imagery domain is emotion regulation. Anuar, Cumming, and Williams ( 2016 ) believed that athletes’ emotion regulation may be associated with their imagery ability given that both imagery and emotion regulation are linked with emotions and memory. Indeed, their results indicated that athletes who change how they think about a particular situation scored higher on imagery ability. This study is the first of its kind, and future research examining individual characteristics and imagery is warranted.

Imagery as a Means to Improving Performance

Drawing on the various imagery models and empirical support, athletes use imagery for various motivational purposes (i.e., motivational general–mastery [MG-M], motivational general–arousal [MG-A], motivational specific [MS]). Most of the motivational imagery interventions have targeted the MG-M imagery function, and results from these studies are promising. In one study, a MG-M imagery intervention was implemented with four elite junior badminton players (Callow, Hardy, & Hall, 2001 ). The imagery scripts were designed to elicit images of being focused and confident, and included both response and stimulus propositions. Following the completion of the intervention, all but one badminton player showed significant improvements in their sport confidence. Other researchers employing single-subject multiple-baseline designs have found that MG-M imagery improved young squash players’ self-efficacy (O, Munroe-Chandler, Hall, & Hall, 2014 ) and high-performance golfers’ flow states (Nicholls, Polman, & Holt, 2005 ). Recently, MG-M imagery sessions were delivered to young athletes with an intellectual disability in an attempt to increase their perceptions of their sport competence (Catenacci, Harris, Langdon, Scott, & Czech, 2016 ). Results indicated that perceptions of sport competence improved from baseline to post-intervention for three of the five athletes, with two of the three athletes maintaining these changes upon commencement of the intervention. The benefits of MG-M imagery have also been underscored in several cross-sectional studies, providing evidence for a positive link between MG-M imagery and performance, state and trait sport confidence, self-efficacy, collective efficacy (see Cumming & Ramsey, 2009 , for review), and mental toughness (Mattie & Munroe-Chandler, 2012 ).

Imagery has also been used as a means to achieve desirable somatic and emotional experiences associated with sport-related stress, arousal, and anxiety (MG-A imagery). It is generally argued that MG-A imagery may be more beneficial for athletes who experience debilitative interpretations of pre-competitive anxiety as opposed to those who experience facilitative interpretations (Martin, Moritz, & Hall, 1999 ). For example, a female fencer who is feeling unusually sluggish prior to competition might use MG-A imagery to psych herself up, while a male mixed martial arts fighter who is abnormally restless before the start of a competition might use MG-A imagery to reduce his anxiety. Though MG-A images have been negatively associated with athletes’ self-reported cognitive and somatic anxiety (Monsma & Overby, 2004 ), few studies have examined the direct effects of MG-A imagery on competitive anxiety. Investigators of past studies have typically delivered multicomponent interventions, which have included MG-A imagery along with other psychological skills (e.g., relaxation, breathing; Thomas, Maynard, & Hanton, 2007 ). Adopting a multicomponent psychological skills package makes it virtually impossible to determine precisely how much MG-A imagery contributed to any observed changes. Nevertheless, findings from other studies have contributed to researchers’ existing understanding of the MG-A imagery–competitive anxiety relationship (Cumming, Olphin, & Law, 2007 ; Mellalieu, Hanton, & Thomas, 2009 ). Specifically, imagery scripts that contained MG-A images (psyching up imagery, anxiety imagery, and coping imagery) led to greater increases in athletes’ heart rate and anxiety intensity (Cumming et al., 2007 ), while individualized MG-A imagery scripts led to more facilitative interpretations of symptoms related to competitive anxiety (Mellalieu et al., 2009 ).

Within the sport psychology literature, few interventions have focused exclusively on goal-based images (MS imagery). This is likely because goal- or outcome-based images (e.g., qualifying for a competition, winning a medal) are least often used by athletes. Rather, coaches and sport practitioners often encourage their athletes to focus on process goals (e.g., completing stretching exercises prior to competition) rather than outcome goals. In a sample with beginner golfers, participants who imaged executing the perfect stroke as well as sinking the golf ball (performance and outcome imagery group) had better performance and set higher goals for themselves compared to participants who imaged executing the perfect stroke only (performance group) and the participants who received no intervention (control group; Martin & Hall, 1995 ). Additionally, athletes who used MS imagery more frequently also reported greater goal achievement, state and trait sport confidence, and self-efficacy (Cumming & Ramsey, 2009 ).

In addition to motivational purposes, athletes have reported using imagery for cognitive purposes (i.e., cognitive specific [CS] and cognitive general [CG]). Using cognitive imagery to enhance skill acquisition and performance (CS imagery) has received the most attention among researchers (Morris, Spittle, & Watt, 2005 ). Investigators examining the positive effects of CS imagery have found significant improvements in young soccer players’ time to complete a soccer task (Munroe-Chandler, Hall, Fishburne, Murphy, & Hall, 2012 ) as well as adult equestrian riders’ performance and self-efficacy for a specific skill (Davies, Boxall, Szekeres, & Greenlees, 2014 ). In another study, 7- to 10-year-old athletes who imaged the proper execution of a table tennis serve significantly improved their serve accuracy and quality (Li-Wei, Qi-Wei, Orlick, & Zitzelsberger, 1992 ). Furthermore, CS imagery has been positively associated with gymnasts’ performance at competition (Simonsmeier & Buecker, 2017 ) and trait confidence (Abma, Fry, Li, & Relyea, 2002 ).

Evidence for imagery as a means to learn and improve execution of strategies, game plans, and routines (CG imagery) has been equivocal (see Westlund, Pope, & Tobin, 2012 , for review). For instance, while improvements in basketball athletes’ strategy execution were observed following a CG imagery intervention (Guillot, Nadrowska, & Collet, 2009 ), soccer athletes who participated in a seven-week CG imagery intervention showed no improvements in strategy execution from baseline to post-intervention (Munroe-Chandler, Hall, Fishburne, & Shannon, 2005 ). However, researchers adopting correlational-based studies have shown that athletes who used CG imagery reported higher levels of confidence, self-efficacy, imagery ability, and cohesion in team sports (Westlund et al., 2012 ).

Imagery has long been recognized as a viable psychological technique that can directly modify exercise-related cognitions. Self-efficacy is a particularly good example of one cognition that continues to receive attention in literature. Weibull, Cumming, Cooley, Williams, and Burns ( 2015 ) examined whether a brief (one week) imagery intervention could increase barrier self-efficacy among a group of women who were interested in becoming more active. Findings indicated that participants who performed daily imagery for one week (experimental group) reported greater increases in barrier self-efficacy compared to those who did not perform imagery (control group). Note, however, that when preexisting exercise levels were controlled, there were no significant differences in barrier efficacy between groups. Nevertheless, findings from this study support the notion that imagery can have an influential effect on barrier self-efficacy in a short time frame. Evidence for the effectiveness of using imagery to increase exercise self-efficacy has also been found in other intervention studies, including Duncan, Rodgers, Hall, and Wilson ( 2011 ).

Imagery has also been used to modify individuals’ motivation toward exercise. Duncan, Hall, Wilson, and Rodgers ( 2012 ) implemented an eight-week imagery intervention and found that participants who listened to guided imagery scripts showed significantly greater increases in self-determined motivation than those who listened to health information sessions. In another study, imagery scripts combined with peer-mentoring led to significantly greater increases in self-determined motivation to exercise at the end of the intervention compared to those whose participation was limited to peer-mentoring only (Giacobbi, Dreisbach, Thurlow, Anand, & Garcia, 2014 ). Additional benefits of employing imagery in an exercise domain include increased revitalization and post-exercise valence (Stanley & Cumming, 2010 ) and implicit attitudes toward exercise (Markland, Hall, Duncan, & Simatovic, 2015 ).

Beyond changing individuals’ attitudes toward exercise, imagery can also significantly impact exercise behavior. For example, audio-administered imagery scripts led to significantly greater increases in self-reported exercise behavior in both adult (Andersson & Moss, 2011 ) and older adult (Kim, Newton, Sachs, Giacobbi, & Glutting, 2011 ) samples. Chan and Cameron ( 2012 ) also tested the effects of different imagery content on physical activity participation by looking at imagery’s impact on a group of inactive adults. Their findings indicated that imagery scripts linking images of participation in physical activity with achievement of goals were most effective in increasing self-reported physical activity as well as greater increases in goal orientation, intentions, and action planning.

Although few imagery interventions have utilized objective measures of physical activity, the research that has been conducted in this area illustrates positive impact of imagery. In a sample of adolescent girls, Najafabadi et al. ( 2015 ) developed imagery scripts that focused on benefits obtained from exercise (e.g., improved appearance, enhanced energy). Following the intervention, significantly greater levels of physical activity (as measured by accelerometers) and physical self-concept were found among females in the imagery group compared to those in the control group. In a separate study, school-aged children who were assigned to an imagery group showed greater levels of active play and self-determined motivation following a four-week intervention compared to children assigned to a control group (Guerrero, Tobin, Munroe-Chandler, & Hall, 2015 ).

The effects of mental imagery with video-modeling on front squat strength and self-efficacy was recently examined in a sample of adults (Buck, Hutchinson, Winter, & Thompson, 2016 ). From pre-test to post-test, participants who received the imagery script and video-modeling showed significant increases in their self-efficacy and front squat performance compared to those who received no intervention. In a recent systematic review examining the effects of various cognitive strategies (e.g., imagery) on strength performance, imagery was found to positively influence maximal strength (Tod, Edwards, McGuigan, & Lovell, 2015 ).

Performance

Along with sporting arenas and fitness facilities, researchers have explored the effects and application of imagery in other performance domains. For example, in musical settings, imagery use coupled with physical practice increased pianists’ and trombonists’ movement timing, music memorization, and self-efficacy (see Wright, Wakefield, & Smith, 2014 , for review). Imagery use, in the absence of physical practice, has also shown to have promising effects on performance. In this respect, auditory practice (listening to an audio recording and imagining finger movements) led to significantly fewer errors in pianists’ performance than with those who did not engage in auditory practice (Highben & Palmer, 2004 ). More recently, Braden, Osborne, and Wilson ( 2015 ) tested the effectiveness of a multi-component, preventative skills-based program in reducing musical performance anxiety. The intervention program in this study comprised various components, including psychoeducation, cognitive restructuring, relaxation techniques, identification of strengths, goal-setting, positive self-talk, and imagery. Students who received the eight-week program reported significantly less musical performance anxiety than participants who did not receive the program.

In medical settings, researchers have employed imagery interventions to improve two primary outcomes: skill acquisition and levels of stress. With respect to skill acquisition, researchers found that medical students who received two imagery sessions demonstrated greater skill in performing surgery on live rabbits than students who had studied a textbook (Sanders et al., 2008 ). Similar findings were established in a study with gynecology residents, with those in the imagery group showing significantly better performance of cystoscopies as well as higher self-perceived level of preparedness compared to those in the control group (Komesu et al., 2009 ). In another study, student nurses who received PETTLEP training performed significantly better on a psychomotor skill (i.e., blood pressure measurement) than those who did not (Wright, Hogard, Ellis, Smith, & Kelly, 2008 ).

Given its successful use in the medical context, it is perhaps unsurprising that imagery has also been shown to be an effective stress management technique for other healthcare professionals (Arora et al., 2011 ) who also experience high levels of performance stress (Prabhu, Smith, Yurko, Acker, & Stefanidis, 2010 ). Compared to their control counterparts, novice surgeons who received imagery training demonstrated reduced self-reported stress as well as decreased objective stress (heart rate and salivary cortisol; Arora et al., 2011 ). In a very recent intervention study, Ignacio et al. ( 2016 ) developed, implemented, and evaluated an imagery intervention designed to improve nursing students’ clinical performance and reduce stress. Although no changes in subjective or objective stress were found, participants did significantly improve their performance from pre- to post-test.

Similar to healthcare professionals, police officers are often faced with a variety of stressors and potentially traumatic events, making imagery an appropriate psychological technique for members of law enforcement. Arnetz, Arble, Backman, Lynch, and Lubin ( 2013 ) implemented a 10-week imagery and relaxation intervention designed to help police officers develop effective coping skills. Compared to those in the control group, participants who received imagery training reported better general health and problem-based coping as well as reduced stomach problems, sleep difficulties, and exhaustion. Similarly, an imagery training program with rookie police officers led to significantly less negative mood and stress compared to standard police training (Arnetz, Nevedal, Lumley, Backman, & Lubin, 2009 ). Additionally, participants who received imagery training also demonstrated better performance during a live critical incident simulation (Arnetz et al., 2009 ).

Future Directions

That imagery is a powerful psychological technique is undeniable. Imagery allows individuals to search through, skip over, and select images from their memories in order to re-experience past events. Imagery also allows individuals to travel through time to create and manipulate never-experienced events. As illustrated, there is ample evidence documenting the effectiveness of imagery in sport, exercise, and performance settings. However, less is known about the potential negative consequences of imagery. For instance, engaging in self-generated imagery of a task requiring physical self-control (i.e., handgrip squeeze) led to performance decreases in a subsequent handgrip task for those who performed imagery compared to those who rested quietly (Graham, Sonne, & Bray, 2014 ). Furthermore, under certain conditions, imagery has been shown to have a negative effect on golf putting performance (Beilock, Afremow, Rabe, & Carr, 2001 ) and levels of aspirations and academic performance (Pham & Taylor, 1999 ). Together these findings indicate that there may be a dark side to imagery that should be explored to ensure that potential deleterious practices do not counteract the positive benefits associated with imagery use. Thus, future research should specifically explore possible negative effects of imagery on behavior and cognitions, including whether specific types of imagery should be avoided in certain environments and, if so, whether this caveat would hold true for all performers (e.g., professional dancer vs. surgeon)? While some researchers have begun to answer these questions (e.g., Nordin & Cumming, 2005 ), a more thorough examination of when and what imagery types facilitate or hinder performance would certainly contribute to the existing imagery research.

Along similar lines, there is a considerable gap in the imagery research investigating the impact involuntary, intrusive images have on performance. Imagery is considered to be intrusive as it can capture attention, cause distractions, and provoke unpleasant physiological and emotional reactions (Brewin, Gregory, Lipton, & Burgess, 2010 ). Indeed, there is some evidence indicating that performers do experience intrusive images (e.g., Nordin & Cumming, 2005 ; Parker, Jones, & Lovell, 2015 ). For instance, professional dancers reported experiencing irrelevant images, which may be intrusive, spontaneous, and debilitative (Nordin & Cumming, 2005 ). More recently, a small percentage of university students who participated on either recreational, university, county, or national competition levels reported experiencing intrusive visual imagery (Parker et al., 2015 ). Clearly, more research is needed in order to develop a greater understanding of the existence and effect of intrusive imagery within performance settings.

While the body of literature on imagery in performance settings continues to grow, more research exploring the usefulness and applicability of imagery among diverse performers is needed. Virtually all individuals, regardless of their occupations, are required to perform at some point or another. Successful lawyers need to deliver persuading and emotionally moving closing statements to the members of the jury; stand-up comedians are required to provide entertainment by mastering the pace and timing of every joke. Individuals of such occupations could undoubtedly benefit from imagery. Furthermore, as eSports (online competitive gaming) and competitive eating continue to gain popularity, exploring the potential for imagery as a performance enhancement technique for competitive gamers and eaters appears timely. Competitive gamers could use imagery to learn or improve their ability to make crucial decisions and to effectively cope with pressure, whereas competitive eaters could use imagery to improve execution of new strategies and maintain motivation during a contest.

Further Reading

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Open Access

Peer-reviewed

Research Article

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.

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• 3. Chroni S, Abrahamsen F. History of Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology in Europe. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Psychology. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2017 Dec 19. https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190236557.013.135
• 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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What sports psychology can teach us about mental fitness

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What is sports psychology?

Sports psychology: a brief history, why is sports psychology so important, training requirements for sports psychologists, key topics in sports psychology, how rest benefits physical and mental performance, sport psychology blends peak performance and mental fitness.

Sports psychology looks at how physical activity and mental well-being intersect. Sports psychologists help athletes maintain high levels of performance by prioritizing mental fitness . They also look at sports participation in relation to skills like teamwork and emotional regulation .

The field of applied sports psychology emerged in the early 20th century. Scientists became interested in how athletes like Babe Ruth achieved such outstanding results.

Their studies rapidly expanded from physical skill to the ways cognitive skills like memory, perception, attention, and focus affected athletic performance.

Since then, the field of sports psychology has developed into a field of study in its own right. Now several colleges offer graduate programs and coursework leading to licensure.

Only a few of us need the kind of physical endurance that high-level Olympic, collegiate, and elite athletes do. But we can still learn a lot from exercise psychology about mental performance. After all, there's a reason sports metaphors are so common in business and leadership books . Participating in competitive sports — whether in childhood or as an adult — can develop skills to succeed in any area of life.

Competitors are under immense physical and emotional stress . They feel the pressure of coaches and their teams and the pressure they put on themselves. This kind of chronic stress can distract competitors from their goals . And, if left untreated, it can lead to harmful mental and physical health issues.

Sports psychologists take a holistic approach to each client's health. They consider an individual's physical abilities alongside their mental roadblocks. They then look for ways to improve mental toughness and athletic performance simultaneously. 

Sports psychology benefits the whole person by encompassing both psychology and physical performance.

Some benefits of sports psychology include:

• Reduced anxiety
• Effective stress-management techniques
• Increased drive
• A healthier perspective of self and one's abilities
• Improved athletic performance

Sports psychologists go through rigorous training. However, the exact process depends on the individual's career and any standing licenses they already have. 

According to the American Psychological Association (APA), most sports psychology positions require a graduate or doctoral degree from an accredited college. Along with a degree in sports science, sports medicine, psychology, or a related area, sports psychology takes additional certification. Both new/recent graduate students and practicing licensed professionals can earn this certificate.

Though requirements vary from state to state, most regions require a period of supervised practice (often two years).

Sports psychologists don't just focus on what happens on the field. They examine all of the factors affecting game day performance and the athlete's well-being. Sports psychology programs often include skills training in the following areas:

Goal setting

Setting and achieving goals — both personally and as part of team goals — are a constant area of focus for athletes. It's not enough to just pick a goal and throw it out there, though.

Damian Vaughn, former NFL athlete and Head of Programs at BetterUp, says that "When we try to overcompensate for the lack of urgency, we tend to set goals with phony deadlines in the hopes of stirring up excitement." Without anchoring them in a real motivator or to the bigger picture, employees only hit these "stretch goals" about 10% of the time.

Visualization

Positive mental imagery has long been a key part of pre-game preparation for athletes . In fact, many elite players attribute their success to first visualizing a positive outcome .

Visualization activates many of the same parts of the brain — and even the muscles — associated with the successful action. It also boosts mindfulness and cognitive control, critical components of mental fitness.

Pressure and anxiety

Few jobs are as inherently stressful as playing professional sports. Athletes are under intense physical strain, both internal and external pressure, and can worry about losing their jobs. Learning to deal effectively — and still perform — under this kind of stress is challenging for any athlete.

Ultimately, this pressure can be the cause of both anxiety and depression . 

Rehabilitation

Injuries are hard enough to deal with when your entire career doesn't ride on your physical well-being . For athletes, they have to contend with the fear of potentially having to end their careers due to getting hurt.

Sport psychologists help athletes cultivate learned optimism and motivation as they recover. This not only aids rehabilitation but also ensures that they're less likely to re-injure themselves by rushing back to the field.

Attention and focus

An athlete has to be able to tune out timers, teammates, the crowd, and their inner critic . They can't afford distractions, whether they're in practice or playing in the Superbowl. A lack of attention could cost them the game, the match, or even lead to injury.

Teamwork and motivation

Many competitive sports involve playing as part of a team. So sports psychologists help athletes develop interpersonal relationships, increase energy and motivation , and mediate conflicts. Building these connections is an essential part of mental fitness.

From a very young age, athletes are drilled on the importance of practice. However, if you want to be great, practice doesn't mean just doing the same thing over and over again.

You have to engage in deliberate practice – the kind of effort intended to help you master a skill. An article in Harvard Business Review defines this deliberate practice as " practice that focuses on tasks beyond your current level of competence and comfort ."

Most of us don't engage in deliberate practice because, most of the time, it feels like we're getting further away from success when we do. Deliberate practice isn't fun and generally lacks immediate gratification. That is, opposed to delayed gratification . It takes humility and careful attention to unlearn something you're used to doing – especially when you're at the top of your game.

However, what separates professional sports performance is the way an athlete approaches practice. That includes realizing that what got them to the top of their sport is no longer working for them. At that point, learning new techniques helps them stay at the top of their game .

An often overlooked component of human performance is deliberate rest . Both our brains and muscles need adequate time to rest between bouts of effortful focus.

But when your body is resting, it's doing more than just "taking a break." Exercise science teaches us that rest days are critical for developing muscle. The micro-tears created during physical strain are repaired and strengthened during rest days. Just as our bodies rely on that downtime, our brains need rest too.

Research shows that the brain is far more active during periods of rest than it is far more active during rest periods than during focus periods. The default mode network (DMN) is activated when we take a break. This network is associated with memory, emotional regulation, and performance on cognitive tasks.

We know that athletes need to practice to prepare for a game and that they need to take care of themselves to recover. But when we borrow sports metaphors for inspiration in the world of work, we never talk about "resting like an athlete."

Just as we admire their strength and discipline, we should also learn from their self-care "game" too. These professionals have entire teams dedicated to their rest and recovery. That is because it's a key part of performance enhancement and essential to preventing burnout .

Why does the world love to watch professional athletes do their thing? It's because – on a cellular level – we see ourselves in the game. We identify with the teams and athletes we watch. We revel in both the love of the sport and the person who was able to turn that love into a career. And we draw that inspiration back to our own lives.

Perhaps that points to the real source of inspiration – self-efficacy . A cornerstone of both social and performance psychology, self-efficacy – our belief that we can do something successfully – is considered to be the key mental skill that determines an athlete's performance. 

According to Albert Bandura's social cognitive theory , there are four critical components to developing self-efficacy. These are past experience, social modeling, encouragement, and emotional well-being. When we watch sports, we see success modeled for us, and we draw parallels from sports science and apply them to other contexts. When we do so, they become a universal language, even for those who aren't all that into sports.

Because, really, it's not about the game. It's about the psychological principles of the inner games we all play. It's about setting a goal, visualizing a positive outcome, managing your self-talk, and doing your best.

What we have to be careful to remember, though, is that it's just as much about rest, recovery, and developing the support system that allows you to keep your eye on the ball – and your head in the game.

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Allaya Cooks-Campbell

With over 15 years of content experience, Allaya Cooks Campbell has written for outlets such as ScaryMommy, HRzone, and HuffPost. She holds a B.A. in Psychology and is a certified yoga instructor as well as a certified Integrative Wellness & Life Coach. Allaya is passionate about whole-person wellness, yoga, and mental health.

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Growth Mindset

What is manifestation science-based ways to manifest, here's what the research says about manifestation..

Updated December 3, 2023 | Reviewed by Jessica Schrader

What is manifestation?

The word " manifestation " means to turn an idea into a reality. Usually, we want to manifest things that improve our happiness and well-being (take this well-being quiz to check your current level of well-being). People generally talk about manifestation as the process of using thoughts, feelings, and beliefs to bring something into reality, but given the science behind manifestation, it seems important to also include actions as a key part of the manifestation process.

What does manifestation really mean?

Manifestation has become popular thanks to books like The Secret and The Law of Attraction . Unfortunately, most psychological scientists will tell you that these books are based on pseudoscience—they claim to be scientific and factual, but they're not actually based on scientific evidence.

So as a psychological scientist I can't, in good conscience , recommend these books. However, I feel like many psychologists throw out the baby with the bathwater when it comes to the idea of "manifestation." They'll often say it's junk science. But I say: Of course we can manifest positive things in our lives—if we couldn't then what would be the point of therapy , wellness interventions, or any of the tools we use to help people?

So what does the science actually say about manifestation ? How can we take a goal or idea we have in our heads and make it real?

What is the science behind manifestation?

There actually is science behind the idea of manifestation—that is, turning an idea into a real thing. Here are some areas of research and how they lend support to manifestation:

A growth mindset can help you manifest your dreams and reach your goals

Research by Dr. Carol Dweck clearly shows that believing you can do something makes it more likely that you'll successfully do it. That means that our beliefs about our ability to learn, grow, and succeed—our growth mindset —can indeed affect whether we effectively manifest what we desire.

Importantly, this research suggests that if we truly believe we can achieve something, we are willing to do the hard work to achieve it. This is in contrast to law-of-attraction style manifestation which suggests that belief alone is enough to bring about manifestation. Ultimately, the science suggests that our beliefs bring about behaviors (and responses from others) that lead to the outcomes we desire.

Self-fulfilling prophecies may explain manifestation

Research shows that our expectations, positive or negative, tend to be confirmed. This is what is known as a self-fulfilling prophecy. So if we expect to bring our idea to life or reach our goal, we're more likely to.

For example, if you don't think you can succeed in some goal, let's say getting your dream job, you'll set in motion events that will actually make it more likely that you won't get your dream job. Maybe you'll be cold or grumpy during a job interview. Maybe you'll engage in negative self-talk with someone who could help you. Or maybe you'll just feel angry and not spend the necessary time required to reach your goal. Your beliefs set in motion circumstances that affect your ability to manifest an outcome.

Negativity bias may explain perceptions about manifestation

Research shows that if we're already feeling bad, we're more likely to interpret neutral circumstances in a negative way. It may be that someone with a more positive attitude just pays more attention to the ways in which they have successfully manifested parts of their dreams. Another person with a more negative outlook may experience the exact same things and only see where they failed to manifest what they desired. That's how bias may affect manifestation .

Upward spirals of positive emotion may explain manifestation success

Dr. Barbara Fredrickson's research has also shown that positive emotions enable us to think more creatively. Similarly, Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky has shown that happiness leads to success and not the other way around. People who are generally happy and positive attract more opportunities, have better relationships, and seem to be able to manifest what they set their minds to more easily.

It makes sense when you think about it, right? We prefer to be around positive, optimistic people. And being around people with a negative attitude? It's off-putting and doesn't lead us to want to help these people.

How do we use science to manifest what we want?

1. Get clear on what you want to manifest

What do you actually want? Spend some time focusing to get clarity on your manifestation goal. Mindful meditation can be a useful tool for this—it quiets the mind and helps increase self-awareness . Or, you could talk to a friend. Sometimes just talking can help you gain the clarity you need to manifest something.

2. Manifest what matters to you

When deciding what to manifest, ask yourself a few reflection questions:

• Will this make me happy and fulfilled?
• Does it feel right for me? (Or is there something or someone influencing me?)
• Will this do any harm to myself or others?

By asking yourself these questions you can choose the right things to manifest—things that you will be more likely to believe in, things that you have positive expectations about, and things that make you feel more positive. As a result, you'll be more likely to manifest them.

3. Visualize your manifestation to generate positive emotions

Visualizing what you desire can help you feel positive emotions related to it more strongly. And those emotions can help you believe in yourself more. Just close your eyes, take a few deep breaths, and imagine a scene from your future life as you desire it. Here's a future visualization exercise if you need more help.

Created with content from The Berkeley Well-Being Institute.

Tchiki Davis, Ph.D. , is a consultant, writer, and expert on well-being technology.

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Class of 2024 Spotlight: Kinesiology

Brian Gonzalez – M.S. in Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology 

One of the main challenges during his first semester in graduate school Brian says was coming to terms with ending his career as a collegiate athlete after completing undergrad.

“I did my best to keep an open mind and try new things that I had previously never given myself an opportunity to do.” 

Brian participated in research projects, held a job at the Bickerstaff Academic Center for Student-Athlete Services as a peer mentor and a job with BUILD as a graduate mentor. He also participated in events held by the Sport and Exercise Club and went to the REC center to workout. Brian also immersed himself in his hobbies, which include playing the guitar and reading. 

“As a result, I found new passions in life and that involved doing research, and it now has become something that I want to pursue and see myself having a career in. I think the most important thing I learned was that it’s okay to be scared of doing certain things. There’s a chance it can be messy the first time, but with the new experience you’ll be able to build from it and get better.” 

Brian says that he considers himself to be very fortunate to have been connected with the people in his cohort and the faculty that are part of the graduate program. “Having that support system helped me navigate the program successfully, develop as a person, and overall have a great experience that I will cherish forever.” 

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