Thinking Aloud: Stress and Coping in Junior Cricket Batsmen During Challenge and Threat States.

The present study examined stress and coping of cricket batsmen during challenge and threat states using the Think-Aloud method. Ten male elite-level junior cricket batsmen took part in the study. A repeated measures design was implemented, with participants verbalizing while both in (a) a threat state and (b) a challenge state. Participants were required to score 36 runs in 30 balls during the threat and challenge conditions. Verbalizations were subsequently transcribed verbatim and analyzed for stressors, coping strategies, and any other reoccurring themes. A paired-samples t-test was conducted to examine differences in the number of verbalizations made for each theme between conditions. Ten secondary themes were grouped into four primary themes; these included (a) stressors, (b) problem-focused coping, (c) emotion-focused coping, and (d) gathering information. There were significant differences( p⩽0.05) between stressor verbalizations, with significantly more verbalizations made by participants during a threat state. No significant differences were found between any other themes. Thus, during a threat state, participants reported significantly more stressor verbalizations compared to a challenge state, while there were no significant differences in coping strategies reported (p>0.05). This finding offers a potential explanation for why athletic performance diminishes when in a threat state, as athletes then experience a greater number of stressors but do not report engaging in more coping strategies.

Professional development for sport psychology practice.

Applied sport psychology practice and research date back to the late 19th century. During this period investigators have largely examined the interventions practitioners employ to help athletes. More recently, researchers have begun addressing the person employing those interventions, including identifying their attributes and how they develop expertise, in recognition that practitioners are central to effective practice. Research focused on practitioners can inform educational and registration pathways, helping trainees to develop the knowledge, skills, and characteristics needed to meet their clients' needs. In this article major lines of inquiry in this area are reviewed. It is suggested that examining practitioner identity represents novel research that has educational and applied value.

Exploring athletic identity in elite-level English youth football: a cross-sectional approach.

This study is the first empirical investigation that has explored levels of athletic identity in elite-level English professional football. The importance of understanding athletes' psychological well-being within professional sport has been well documented. This is especially important within the professional football industry, given the high attrition rate (Anderson, G., & Miller, R. M. (2011). The academy system in English professional football: Business value or following the herd? University of Liverpool, Management School Research Paper Series. Retrieved from http://www.liv.ac.uk/managementschool/research/working%20papers/wp201143.pdf ) and distinct occupational practices (Roderick, M. (2006). The work of professional football. A labour of love? London: Routledge). A total of 168 elite youth footballers from the English professional football leagues completed the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS). Multilevel modelling was used to examine the effect of playing level, living arrangements and year of apprentice on the total AIMS score and its subscales (i.e., social identity, exclusivity and negative affectivity). Football club explained 30% of the variance in exclusivity among players (P = .022). Mean social identity was significantly higher for those players in the first year of their apprenticeship compared to the second year (P = .025). All other effects were not statistically significant (P > .05). The novel and unique findings have practical implications in the design and implementation of career support strategies with respect to social identity. This may facilitate the maintenance of motivation over a 2-year apprenticeship and positively impact on performance levels within the professional football environment.

An alternative dietary strategy to make weight while improving mood, decreasing body fat, and not dehydrating: a case study of a professional jockey.

Professional jockeys are unique among weight-making athletes, as they are often required to make weight daily and, in many cases, all year-round. Common methods employed by jockeys include dehydration, severe calorie restriction, and sporadic eating, all of which have adverse health effects. In contrast, this article outlines a structured diet and exercise plan, employed by a 22-yr-old professional National Hunt jockey in an attempt to reduce weight from 70.3 to 62.6 kg, that does not rely on any of the aforementioned techniques. Before the intervention, the client's typical daily energy intake was 8.2 MJ (42% carbohydrate [CHO], 36% fat, 22% protein) consumed in 2 meals only. During the 9-wk intervention, daily energy intake was approximately equivalent to resting metabolic rate, which the athlete consumed as 6 meals per day (7.6 MJ, 46% CHO, 19% fat, 36% protein). This change in frequency and composition of energy intake combined with structured exercise resulted in a total body-mass loss of 8 kg, corresponding to reductions in body fat from 14.5% to 9%. No form of intentional dehydration occurred throughout this period, and mean urine osmolality was 285 mOsm/kg (SD 115 mOsm/kg). In addition, positive changes in mood scores (BRUMS scale) also occurred. The client was now able to ride light for the first time in his career without dehydrating, thereby challenging the cultural practices inherent in the sport.

An alternate dietary strategy to make weight improves mood, decreases body fat and removes the necessity for dehydration: A case-study from a professional jockey.

Professional jockeys are unique amongst weight-making athletes as they are often required to make weight daily and in many cases, all year round. Common methods employed by jockeys include dehydration, severe calorie restriction and sporadic eating, all of which have adverse health effects. In contrast, this paper outlines a structured diet and exercise plan employed by a 22 year old professional National Hunt jockey in an attempt to reduce weight from 70.3 to 62.6 kg that does not rely on any of the aforementioned techniques. Prior to the intervention, the client's typical daily energy intake was 8.2 MJ (42% CHO, 36% fats, 22% protein) consumed in two meals only. During the 9-week intervention, daily energy intake was approximately equivalent to resting metabolic rate and consumed as 6 meals per day (7.6 MJ, 46% CHO, 19% fats, 36% protein). This change in frequency and composition of energy intake combined with structured exercise, resulted in a total body mass loss of 8 kg, corresponding to reductions in percent body fat from 14.5 to 9%. No form of intentional dehydration occurred throughout this period and mean urine osmolality was 285 mOs·kg-1 (SD 115 mOs·kg-1). In addition, positive changes in mood scores (BRUMS scale) also occurred. The client was now able to ride light for the first time in his career thereby challenging the cultural practices inherent to the sport.

Anxiety and Ambiguity: It's All Open to Interpretation.

Beck's (1976) theoretical account of emotional vulnerability predicts that individuals who are vulnerable to anxiety will exhibit a cognitive processing bias for the threatening interpretation of ambiguous information. As anxiety direction (Jones, 1995) may best account for individual differences, the aim of this study was to establish whether such processing bias is a function of anxiety interpretation. Anxiety facilitators and debilitators underwent a modified Stroop test by reacting to neutral and ambiguous word types in neutral, positive, and negative mood conditions. A significant 3-way interaction, F(4, 60) = 3.02, p < .05, was evident, with the reaction time of facilitators being slowest for ambiguous words in the positive mood condition and debilitators being slowest for ambiguous words in the negative mood condition. The findings illustrate the important role that anxiety interpretation plays in the mechanism involved in the processing of ambiguous information.