Chapters 15-16 (LeUnes): Personality and Psychological Assessment in Athletes

1. Chapters 15-16 (LeUnes):Personality and Psychological Assessment in Athletes Psychology of Sport Oct 12-16, 2009 Classes #19-21

2. Personality Testing • Does one of these individuals have a better “brain type” to become an NFL QB???

3. He told them to draft Manning… • Manning went on to become one of the best QB’s ever while Leaf has taken up golf

4. How about Dennis?

5. The Science of Personality • we are: • different from anyone else (uniqueness) • remain ourselves across situations (consistency) • These differencesare measurable • Likert Scales • Thurstone Scales • Semantic Differential scales • Personality research: study of measurable individual differences – but what are they? • Situation-free dispositions (i.e. aggregated across time) vs situationally hedged dispositions = conditional and interactive with the situations in which they are expressed(Mischel, 2004)

6. Back to Dennis... • Rodman and Keown (1996) • Ex-NBA star Dennis Rodman was always just as bubbly and eccentric on the basketball court as he has been off it • Seemed to remain himself across situations

7. Is it the Person or is it the Situation? • Internal and External influences: • Internal • Inner personality • External • Specific situational factors • What's more influential insofar as prediction of a person’s behavior is concerned?

8. Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) • The MMPI is one of the most frequently used personality tests in mental health • The test is used by trained professionals to assist in identifying personality structure and psychopathology

9. Raymond Cattell (1905-1998) • His definition of personality: • That which a predicts what a person will do at a certain situation • Started the actual measurement of personality • Developed 16 PF • The 16 factors are NOT orthogonal • Orthogonal: a unique category (factor) by itself • Oblique orthogonal: related with other factors

10. Cattell’s Approach • Measured many different aspects of personality • Identified 16 “source traits” or basic dimensions of personality • Based on this model of personality, he created “16PF” • He used self-reports, observer ratings, and objective tests to help determine a person’s traits • Used statistics, formulas, probabilities, etc. • He called this his multivariate approach

11. Personality & Sport • Compared to non-sport playing controls on 16PF, national level competitorsare (Williams, 1985): • higher emotional stability • greater mental toughness • more self-assured • more trusting • Getting into an Olympic squad in wrestling (Silva et al., 1985) linked to (16PF) sociability, boldness, emotional stability and apprehension

12. Mood States and Performance • Morgan & Hammer (1974) - Terry (2000) better performing athletes display more positive mental states: • less anxious • less depressed • less fatigued • less confused • more vigorous (and extroverted)

13. Mental Health Profile • Positive Mental Health Profile: (Morgan & Johnson, 1978) found lower levels of psychopathology (MMPI) in more successful University oarsmen • However: hardly any replication • e.g. Brown, Morgan & Kihlstrom (1989) found no significant associations between MMPI profiles of collegiate athletes and their athletic success

14. Big Five Factors • Extraversion • Bold versus timid • Outgoing versus introverted • Talkative versus silent • Agreeableness • Friendliness versus indifference to others • A docile versus hostile nature • Compliance versus hostile noncompliance • Conscientiousness • Responsible versus irresponsible • Hardworking versus lazy • Cautious versus rash

15. Big Five Factors • Neuroticism • Adjustment versus anxiety • Level of Emotional stability • Dependence vs. independence • Openness • Reflection of an inquiring intellect • Flexibility versus conformity • Rebelliousness versus Subduedness

16. Personality and success • Piedmont, Hill & Blanco (1999): coach ratings of performance and game stats linked to the Big Five profiles of elite soccer players: • Neuroticism / emotional stability • Conscientiousness / «will to achieve» • acceptance of criticism: «coachability», in turn linked to higher self-esteem

17. Personality and success • Piedmont, Hill & Blanco (1999) • Coach ratings of performance and game stats linked to the Big Five profiles of elite soccer players: • Neuroticism / emotional stability • Conscientiousness / «will to achieve» • Acceptance of criticism: «coachability», in turn linked to higher self-esteem

18. Personality Testing • Athletes do differ from non-athletes (e.g., athletes are usually more confident) • Why?

19. Team sports vs. Individual sports? • Different personalities???

20. POMS • A test designed to measure certain psychological traits. Profile Of Mood States (POMS) is a popular tool among sport psychologists who have used it to compare the prevailing moods of elite athletes and non-athletes. Six mood states are used in POMS:• tension• depression• anger• vigor• fatigue• confusion

21. POMS • Elite athletes from different sports (including runners, rowers, and wrestlers) tend to score below average for negative states such as tension, depression, fatigue, and confusion; and score well above average on vigor • When presented on a graph, the POMS profile for these elite athletes assumes a characteristic shape that has been called the ‘iceberg’ profile; the better the athlete, the more pronounced the profile

22. Iceberg Profile • Elite athlete is viewed as mentally healthy with all negative moods falling below the population norm and vigor score falling well above the norm • See next slide 

23. Iceberg Profile • The iceberg profile of a successful x-c skier is formed by vigor being above the mean of the population and tension, depression, anger, fatigue, and confusion being below the mean of the population • In contrast, less successful elite athletes have a flat profile, scoring at or below the 50th percentile on all psychological factors

24. Benefits of Understanding the Personality Profile of Athletes • 1. Helps assess the fit between persons and sports and even positions on a team • 2. Helps athletes and coaches value their strengths and become more aware of those areas in which development may be warranted • 3. Helps coaches and athletes in a strained relationship analyze the source of the conflict and build a strategy to reduce it • 4. Can lead to motivated and committed behavior • 5. Useful for the athlete and sports professional in career and life planning, self-management (such as stress/time management) and interpersonal skills areas • 6. Many applications in team building and management training

25. Athletic Motivation Inventory • An inventory designed to measure personality traits thought to be related to athletic ability • These traits include aggression, coachability, conscience development, determination, drive, emotional control, leadership, mental toughness, responsibility, self-confidence, and trust • Although the inventory is much used, its ability to predict athletic success has been seriously questioned

26. TAIS • Nideffer (1976) • Two dimensions: • Attentional Width • Attentional Direction

27. TAIS • Broad-External • Broad-Internal • Narrow-External • Narrow-Internal

28. Credits • http://www.americanboardofsportpsychology.org/Portals/24/APAsymp04AIDMAN.ppt#273,1,The Role of Personality in Sport: Conceptual and Methodological Challenges • http://btc.montana.edu/olympics/physiology/pp01.html