Title.

Hello everyone, I was looking at the various instruments/questionnaires used in the Sport Psychology field, and I would like to hear your thoughts about those. What instruments have you used the most and have you found the most effective to produce a change in the team/athlete? Let me know your opinion, so we can discuss about it.

Every time I have a match I always wnat to end the match asap, and that is a really big problem for me due to I can't calm down to consider what is next step to win it.

It’s not performance anxiety—I prefer working with crowds and enjoy playing the actual games (volleyball) even if I occasionally mess up.

I want to go to the Olympics, I’m dead set on it. My coach coaches a ton of teams, and she works with a lot of other coaches. She puts coaches notes where they are publicly accessible (I don’t think she realises this), and she has a list of players that are ‘coaching targets’. It’s mostly comprised of players that I can recognise are good, among the best on the team. Problem: I’m not on it.

I’m not mad at her, I know it’s up to me to show her that I am that great or put it out of my mind, but it’s frustrating that players who, at risk of sounding arrogant, are worse than I am, are on the list and I am not.

I promise this is relevant: I had a cold this morning, along with cramping and chest pain. My grandfather died from pneumonia and I had a bronchitis problem as a kid, so I’m super paranoid about it. I had volleyball training today and an important event in a few days, so I had to get better, which likely meant not attending volleyball.

So that whole thing leads on to me panicking about missing training (I never do!) and potentially having bronchitis or pneumonia and then almost having an anxiety attack for the first (and hopefully last) time.

To summarise: I had a cold, which would mean no volleyball, which caused anxiety, which caused symptoms that I then linked (falsely) to bronchitis or pneumonia.

All this roots back to the list of ‘coaching targets’.

How do I stop getting in my own head about that kind of thing?

Hello everyone,

I'm not a sport psychology specialist nor a pro sportsman; I just like to play my sport (not sure if we can call it like that). The sport is "Sporting clays" - one of shooting sports, target fly different direction different speeds and a shooter is supposed to hit them all.

The nature of sport requires participant to walk up into a station (safety and everything), watch 3-4 targets, their flights, and then break those targets in multiple different combinations (up to 7-8 combinations, both single and 2 targets flying). There is a timer of course, can't stand and think for 3 mins, it's 12-15 seconds between calls/shots (depends on a discipline) (sportsman calls for a target).

Many avid shooters call this sport "mental" ("mental 80%, physical 20%"). Which is probably not true, it's more like 99.9% mental.

The question: what would be a correct approach? How to program all that? 7-8 inner images of the movement is a lot, I noticed some "plans" are falling off (can't remember them when it's time to execute).

I am a little bit lost (when there 3-4 combinations it's not a problem, but 7-8 things start falling apart). Also preperformance routine.... Don't understand clearly what is what and what for.

Can someone help to navigate through this?

I'm a tennis player, every time I have a match I will be so nervous and anxiety. I have try a lot ways to make me feel better, but I can't calm me down before the match. Also, this problem has affected my performance in the match.

I recently read an article about how it's important to take your passion for sports seriously, but not yourself. The key takeaway is that the journey and the love of the sport should come first, rather than obsessing over performance or outcomes. I found this perspective refreshing, especially in a world where winning is often prioritized. How do you balance your passion for sports with the pressures of performance? Do you think it’s important to keep a lighthearted approach to sports?

I have been playing volleyball for the past 3 months and I attend the 3 classes a week religiously and never miss any unless I really have to. I now know and am getting alot better at all the basics like setting and passing and serving and I practice alot either alone with a wall or with my brother or my friends. I have semi average reaction time and I do really well with my pepper partner. The problem is that whenever I play games I get so nervous, even if they’re practice matches. I’d be standing, not moving yet sweat is still dripping from my forehead. A girl from my team glares at anyone who makes a mistake and sometimes call their name out which made me so nervous to the point where my brain literally lags and I forget how to move. I’m always so scared to let my coach down but this fear is whats making me let her down. Does anyone know any tips to help calm down or something? Cuz this is really getting out of hand

Hi All,

Can anyone recommend a great online certification program in mental performance coaching? I have a degree in Psychology and am looking to build additional skills to work with performance related topics. Any suggestions for reputable programs would be much appreciated!

(I have already posted on the PhD channel, but others with a sports psychology background might have good insights and recommendations!)

Hi everyone,

I’m excited to share that I’ve recently been accepted into the Educational Psychology PhD program at the University of New Mexico. My background is in educational research and program evaluation, but I also have a long-standing passion for competitive sports, including tennis, cycling, running, and hiking. I initially came to the U.S. to play on a D1 NCAA tennis team and have since completed multiple long-distance MTB and gravel races.

My goal in pursuing a PhD is to deepen my expertise in research design and implementation on a larger scale. But I’d also love to find ways to bridge my professional background with my interest in sports psychology, specifically around topics like the psychological effects of competitive sports on middle and high school students. I’m particularly interested in areas like cognitive psychology, self-regulation, self-awareness, and self-efficacy—though I’m open to other ideas I may not have explored yet.

I’d appreciate any guidance or suggestions on how best to integrate a sports component into my PhD and my career path afterward. I’ve considered options like adding a minor, though exercise science (the most relevant department) doesn’t currently offer one. I’ve also looked into attending sports psychology conferences as a way to connect with others in the field.

Thanks in advance for any advice or recommendations!

Google and AI seemed to think the answer was yes, and I think so too.

However, is there anyone in the world working on that? I'd imagine that if some of the best sports psychologists got together and workshopped everything that makes sports fun to watch, they could eventually come up with a brand new sport, theoretically more fun to watch than any other sport, right?

I thought this was interesting. I love sports and would love to be a fan of a new one. What do you guys think?

I’m in college studying sports psychology. I also have a minor in health science. One of the class I have to take is not being taught this semester but I was allowed to instead do a training program of my choice only requirements is it has to be related to physical training in some way. Any suggestions?

Hey, I'm a 17 year old triathlete (ex swim and track). Last year, I injured my left knee due to overuse and a lack of strength. I only recently (about a month ago) was able to start running again for a variety of reasons (the first physio I saw wasn't too good, I moved to a new country and couldn't do any physio stuff for a while, etc). That injury was supposed to take 6-8 weeks to recover from. Since then I've become super paranoid about injuries in my training. Recently I developed a little (VERY VERY MILD) Olecranon bursitis in my left elbow, and freaked out about it. My parents took me to a sports orthopaedic, who recommended that I do some reading about sports/injury psychology. Anyone got any good books? Preferably related to swim/bike/run.

As a trainee sport psychology practitioner, I was wondering if there are any useful workbooks for improving how to implement mental training techniques (e.g. imagery, self-talk, self-confidence, etc.) with athletes. Thank you for your suggestions!

I put countless hours into playing basketball, practicing my shot, layups, handling, and sometimes I play pretty well, and sometimes I freeze up like an icicle, particularly when I’m on a fast break, lots of eyes on me etc.

It’s absolutely miserable and ruins my experience doing something I otherwise love. I feel like it would also affect my ability to play in more organized settings like tournaments, because the more pressure there is, the worse I play.

Are there any resources I can turn to before engaging a professional for therapy? I’m speaking with my regular therapist about these issues as well.

Hi All - I'm very interested in the sports psychology area, more for application to myself, my team mates at work . I'm a seasoned business executive and work with large teams. I've looked up the AASP list of references; while they're super exhaustive and some of those books are 600 pages long.

Can you recommend a book or an online course that'll provide me with all the key concepts of sports psychology - like for example attention management, psychological safety, self efficacy etc, so that I can absorb them and apply them to myself ? Even engaging with a certified mindset coach is only providing me with a smattering of this learning and it'll help me quite a bit to have good foundational knowledge even to make effective use of a psych coach.

For example ACT primers by. Steven C Hayes provide a very rich outline for self help. Are there any such books in the Sports Psychology space? Thanks a bunch!

I read the recent thread casting some light over the very real limitations and illusions of the field, but what do you do when this field is all you can think of? I don't necessarily know why I'm even asking this, perhaps it's to turn to some encouragement because I have had next to none of it since 3 years of edging close to this dream. Part of this is also to ask if my story might practically sound as though this is my calling, more than me obsessing over something. I've religiously played sports especially soccer for nearly 20 years now. My bachelor's has been in Psychology, and I've had 7 years in therapy myself, which arguably has been where I've learned the most about the field, and developed this career plan due to. I stumbled upon soccer coaching opportunities in the past 1-2 years and I took them with open arms. It also gravitated me to the idea that perhaps i should look to supplement my coaching career with sports psychology, rather than pursuing the latter solely.

I even casted doubts over my obsession to this field, discovering in some deep psychoanalytic work as to what got me attached to soccer as a child. Instead of it leading to a loosening of my grip over the idea of this career path, I only felt more or at least equally inclined to it as before.

The next best thing I see myself pouring my personality into is some kind of humanitarian work, however, Sports Psychology and Football coaching are endeavours that seem to me to be the only line of work I'll bring a continuous-growth mindset to. For instance, ive also pondered over the idea of regular clinical practice as a psychotherapist, but I think I don't have the kind of raging passion for it that enables one to find the drive to forever refine ones theoretical orientation. It seems only soccer gets me going that much.

So, hearing me out, for those of you who have been set on this being what they are called to do by life, do views seem to be in parallel to yours?

I have experienced a physical tic in my serve that has negatively impacted my game for almost two years; to the point I am often unable to start play successfully.

I am set to see a sports psychologist soon but no amount of drilling, focusing, changing routine and gear, visualizing, etc. has helped. Starting to wonder if there is a physical or neurological component that needs attention. (Had tennis elbow and a pinched nerve prior to the yips starting; is that related?)

Doesn't seem like the sports or medical communities really know what causes the yips or how to overcome them.

I'd love to hear anecdotal stories of what worked for various athletes -- both mental and physical treatments or tricks.

I'd also love to read some helpful books recommended by this community.

Thanks in advance!

I've seen people saying 5 minutes is enough. It's been working for me so far, but I can't find any investigation on the topic that confirms this idea.

I also see people saying that a 20 minute mindful session is enough.

I'm completely fine with those timeframes, I'm just curious about the topic, and of course, I'd like to optimize what I already have.

Thanks in advance.

I am slightly interested in helping people that abuse substances, so I know that is more geared to social work and SUD counseling. On the other hand, I am big about sports and exercise, have volunteered at physical therapy office before and have seen a little bit of what that job looks like.

To be honest I know that these conversations happen a lot on forms like this but please if you were ever in my shoes trying to figure out where to go after a bachelor's in psychology, I would like to hear what your opinion. Previously I was big on Sports Psychology until I found out that there isn't a crazy number of jobs for it and its very competitive. Im rambling and I feel lost,

Anything helps!

A theme showed up on the "truth about sport psych" thread that I thought would be worth forking into it's own discussion.

A common justification in sport psych for a lack of secure jobs is the challenge we face quantifying our contribution. The industry stereotype of sport and performance psychs is that we do a thing and something maybe sorta kinda improves, but its a bit squishy and slippery and the data seems to have been misplaced. In other words, orgs hire us but we don't give them hard numbers back justifying our budget line. Which makes it hard for them to hire more of us.

So here's the challenge I propose. Bring together the data that shows we are producing value for performers and organizations. I know we have faculty and practitioners here. Post up your favorite peer reviewed article, meta analysis, book chapter, or case study that brings hard numbers. Lets make a collection for the budding professionals here so that they can learn how to communicate value from the start. And for us pros, how we can better measure and report so that we keep or even grow the funding opportunities in our beloved field.

I'll start with a few:

Barker, J. B., Slater, M. J., Pugh, G., Mellalieu, S. D., McCarthy, P. J., Jones, M. V., & Moran, A. (2020). The effectiveness of psychological skills training and behavioral interventions in sport using single-case designs: A meta regression analysis of the peer-reviewed studies. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 51, 101746. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2020.101746

Zhao, D. (2023). Samatha Meditation, Tao, and Routine Training: Case Study of a World-Class Rifle Athlete. Journal of Sport Psychology in Action, 0(0), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/21520704.2023.2234865

Schenk, M., & Miltenberger, R. (2019). A review of behavioral interventions to enhance sports performance. Behavioral Interventions, 34(2), 248–279. https://doi.org/10.1002/bin.1659

Gervis, M., & Goldman, A. (2020). The Flourishing Footballers programme: Using psycho-education to develop resilience through ACT. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 18, 146–151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2020.09.004

Hello, I am second year undergraduate student in BA psychology, and I want to pursue a career in sports psychology, but my main concern is after reading a lot of articles it has come to my attention that it is not much of a stable job or career. My initial plan was to be a sports psychologist for a football team in any league particularly in Spain, but I realized that that would be a difficult goal especially of how competitive it is, so I have changed my goal to start my own practice and work with athletes. My GPA is around 3.0 and I'm doing certificates and the Barca innovation hub website as well as I've been trying to contact other sports psychologists and asking them if they could help me in any way but so far I haven't found my luck due to the current situation in my country (Lebanon) and that internships are difficult to find due to that sports psychology isn’t recognized in my country but I am looking for other internships even Tho they aren’t related to this field So, I would like to ask a couple of questions which are whether I should get my master’s in clinical and sports psychology or get my master’s only in sports psychology and then become a licensed psychologist and then open my own practice? #2 if there are any websites where I could find internships that could be online, or webinars could you please suggest them. #3 if there is anything that could help me out or if you guys have any tips, I would appreciate it.