A2 Sport Psychology

January 2010 D1 - Sitaneeds to improve her running times to ensure selection for a major competition. (i) Describe one psychological technique used to improve sporting performance. (3)

e.g. Imagery Sitacould use imagery to visualise winning the race/eq; Sita could imagine the feeling of winning and receiving a gold medal/eq; Sita could imagine the muscular power/breathing during a good run/eq; Imagery requires visualising and feeling the desired goal/eq; Imagery allows the athlete to put themselves ‘mentally’ into the situation of winning which acts as a motivation/eq; Mental rehearsal of the imagery can increase familiarity and confidence and reduce anxiety/eq; Cognitive general imagery involves the imagining of overall success/eq; Cognitive specific imagery concerns picturing success at a specific skill/eq;

e.g. Goal setting Target/goal setting would involve Sita setting specific targets to achieve in her running/eq; Sita might set a goal of beating her current lap time as it would act as a motivation to succeed/eq; Sita would need to set herself specific laptimes/off the blocks timing as part of this technique/eq; The goal needs to be SMART because unsmart targets could be demotivating for Sita/eq; Goals must be Specific, Measurable, Achievable /attainable/appropriate, realistic and time measured/eq (list mark); Goals can be performance based on a specific skill or outcome based on overall winning/eq; Specific targets should not be vague so that a specific goal can be focused upon eg service hand/eq; Measurable targets allow a benchmark to be set so that improvement can be monitored to show improvement/eq; Appropriate targets are relevant to the sportsperson/eq; Realistic targets are not too difficult or easy so demotivation through underperformance or unachievable aims/eq; Time based targets encourage and sustain motivation for appropriate time [period/eq;

January 2010 (ii) Evaluate the psychological technique used to improve performance that you described in (a)(i). (4)

e.g. Imagery Feltzand Landers (1983) found that overall studies found imagery to be better than no mental imagery at all/eq; Imagery is not a substitute for physical practice/eq; Isaac (1992) found that high imagery trampolinists performed better the low and no imagery groups/eq; Research into imagery has been experimental, so the technique lacks field trials to achieve validity/eq; Imagery is quite specific and may lead to greater physical practice of the skill, which would account for the improvement rather than the imagery itself/eq;

e.g. Goal setting Mellalieu(2005) found that SMART targets set for rugby players showed considerable sporting improvement in those skills compared to the skills that were not targeted/eq; Because self generated targets are most effective, this itself may be intrinsically motivational/eq; Targets that are unrealistic may not be achieved and act as a demotivator/eq; Goal setting, unlike imagery, is more likely to involve physical practice which will improve performance/eq;

January 2010 (b) Sita investigates other psychological techniques to try and improve her performance and to see how they compare to the one she is currently using. Compare two psychological techniques used to improve sporting performance. Comparisons involve looking at similarities and differences. (3)

e.g. Imagery and goal setting (comparison) Goal setting involves practical/physical activity whereas imagery involves mental/cognitive activity/eq; Both techniques allow the athlete to motivate themselves intrinsically through visualising the goal or meeting set targets/eq; The techniques have rarely been experimentally tested with high performing sportspeople, so may only be useful where improvement can be considerable rather than discrete/eq; Both have been tested using field studies so the findings are likely to be valid as they are about actual sporting performance (1st mark). E.g. Boyd and Munroe found differences in imagery use between track and field athletes and climbers/e.q. (second mark); There are other factors that could affect performance, such as audience, fitness etc, it would be difficult to accurately measure the success of either technique on sporting performance/eq; Goal setting requires physical effort compared to the relative lack of effort required in imagery/eq;

January 2010 D2 - (a) Describe the questionnaire as a research method used in sport psychology. (3)

D2 - (a) Describe the questionnaire as a research method used in sport psychology. (3) Questionnaires can be used to gather data on the athletes perception of performance/effectiveness of techniques to improve performance/eq; Unlike experiments, they can be used as an investigative tool without interfering with sporting performance/eq; Questionnaires can be repeated several times to track sporting progress/eq; Questionnaire can be used in meta analysis when they are standardised so repeatable/eq; E.g. Craft et al looked at many studies using the CSAI-2 and used the results of all the studies because they used the same tool/eq; Questionnaires can be a useful probe/precursor to experimental methods/eq; Questionnaires gather self report data using open questions and/or closed questions/eq; Qualitative (open questions) and/or quantitative data (closed questions) can be gathered/eq;

January 2010 (b) Describe the strengths and weaknesses of using questionnaires as a research method in sport psychology. (5)

(b) Describe the strengths and weaknesses of using questionnaires as a research method in sport psychology. (5) Strengths Questionnaires can have test-retest reliability and athletes/sportspeople scores can be checked over time/participants/eq; Pilot studies are typically conducted to ensure the reliability of specific questions/eq; Open questions can gather rich qualitative information/eq; There are many ways of asking the same question, which can check for construct validity/eq; Asking athletes as opposed to inferring from experiments can be seen as more valid/eq; Can be regarded as gaining consent and right to withdraw as declining completion of the questionnaire acts as this/eq; Postal questionnaires can often neglect to fully debrief participants/eq;

(b) Describe the strengths and weaknesses of using questionnaires as a research method in sport psychology. (5) Weaknesses Answers may reflect social desirability of athletes rather than reality because participants respond in a way they think they ought to answer/eq; Respondents/sportspeople may lie if they feel they are being judged on their answer/eq; If a respondent/sportsperson guesses the aim of the study they may answer in a way that reflects the demands of the questionnaire rather than honesty/eq; The response rate for questionnaire is low, so the results may be biased towards volunteers/eq; They might involve slight deception as disclosure of the purpose may lead to demand characteristics/eq;

January 2010 D3 - Describe and evaluate the inverted U hypothesis as an explanation used in sport psychology. (12)

D3 - Describe and evaluate the inverted U hypothesis as an explanation used in sport psychology. (12) Description points (AO1) The inverted U hypothesis is a biological theory that explains sporting performance relating to arousal and anxiety/eq; Arousal is important in sport as it can improve performance/eq; An optimum point is reached where peak performance is achieved/eq; Too much arousal results in a loss of physical performance/eq; According to the Yerkes-Dodson law, moderate arousal results in optimum performance, but it really depends upon the type of sporting activity and experience level of the individual/eq; Fine motor control sports are better performed in a low state of arousal/eq; Complex sports are best performed in a state of low arousal/eq; High strength/power sports are best performed in high state of arousal/eq; Simple tasks are better performed in high arousal state/eq;

D3 - Describe and evaluate the inverted U hypothesis as an explanation used in sport psychology. (12) Evaluation points (AO2) Experienced sportspeople can perform well with high arousal as there is less need to focus on a well practised task/eq; Novices practise tasks using low arousal as concentration is needed in learning a new skill/eq; The catastrophe model points out that increases in anxiety may not result in a gradual drop in performance, as even a modest increase in anxiety can result in a lull in sporting performance following the optimal arousal level/eq; The inverted U hypothesis can be usefully applied to help psyche up or relax a sportsperson to achieve the optimal level of arousal needed for the type of sport and individual/eq; Experimental research to test the inverted U hypothesis has used techniques to relax or psych out an individual (threat or incentive) which may cause anxiety/ego rather than arousal/eq; More recent multidimensional theories have tried to bridge the gap between physical arousal and cognitive factors associated with sporting performance/eq; If skilled sportspeople need higher levels of arousal to perform, this might explain why records are broken more frequently at large important events where pressure is very high/eq; Lowe’s (1974) Little League study found that baseball performance was better in moderate conditions rather than critical or non-critical conditions during a game, supporting optimal performance/eq; A field study by Klavora (1978) followed a basketball team during a competition and found that coaches assessments of performance related to standing in the tournament (high or low standing led to worse performances)/eq; Can explain how an audience can have an effect on performance/eq;

June 2010 D1 - (a) Define the following terms: • Intrinsic motivation • Extrinsic motivation. (3)

D1 - (a) Define the following terms:• Intrinsic motivation • Extrinsic motivation. (3) Intrinsic motivation An inner drive for behaviour/eq; Motivation because of self satisfaction/drive to succeed/eq; A sportsperson may derive pleasure from performance/eq; Extrinsic motivation Incentive for behaviour that is outside an individual/eq; Financial incentive can be an external motivation resulting in a change in behaviour/eq; A sportsperson is motivated by a crowd’s cheer/eq;

June 2010 (b) Ian is a trampolinist who came third in a recent competition and is feeling low. His coach needs to improve his motivation before the next competition. Explain how Ian’s coach would use achievement motivation theory to improve Ian’s motivation. (3)

Explain how Ian’s coach would use achievement motivation theory to improve Ian’s motivation. (3) Ian’s coach would exploit his need for praise and offer him encouragement/eq; Self satisfaction can be increased by offering small achievements/goals that can be met during practice/eq; Ian’s coach could assess his need for achievement and challenge him if his need was high/eq; If Ian has high nAch he will not be phased by setbacks so his coach can set high risk challenges/eq; With a high Nac, the coach could set him the challenge of winning the next event to motivate him/eq; To satisfy a high NPow Ian’s coach could set him the challenge of being captain if he wins/eq; Train with a group of trampolinists to satisfy a high Naffill/eq;

June 2010 (c) - Evaluate achievement motivation theory. (4)

(c) - Evaluate achievement motivation theory. (4) The need for achievement is commonly recorded using self reports which may be unreliable/eq; The research is based on a personality trait rather than a feature of sporting competition/interaction between personality and situational factors/eq; Butt and Cox (1992) found higher levels of achievement motivation (N-Ach) in top class US tennis players in the Davis Cup compared to lower level competitors/eq; The theory can be used to develop the need for achievement in sportspeople by coaches/eq; Research suggests that high achievers take on more difficult tasks than low achievers, which is consistent with achievement motivation theory/eq; Without sporting ability, achievement motivation theory is limited in explaining sporting success/eq; The results of projective tests used to judge achievement motivation, are subjectively interpreted/eq;

June 2010 D2 – (a) Outline how qualitative data can be gathered using a questionnaire. (2)

D2 – (a) Outline how qualitative data can be gathered using a questionnaire. (2) One mark per point/elaboration. Answer does not have to relate to sport Open ended questions are used/eq; This gives space to answer freely about attitudes and beliefs/the questions do not force an answer/eq; Sports professionals can be asked to describe their attitude/feelings/performance in their sport/eq; The information gathered is detailed data about opinions, beliefs that can be used to assess a sport or individual/eq; Themes from the responses are recorded/eq; Often several coders are used to ensure themes are valid/eq;

June 2010 D2 (b) Explain why sports psychologists might choose to use qualitative data in their research. (3)

D2 (b) Explain why sports psychologists might choose to use qualitative data in their research. (3) Must refer to sport in one way or max 2 marks overall. Qualitative data is in depth and detailed/eq; Many raters/coders are used to ensure reliability of themes/findings/eq; It allows the sportsperson to self report their detailed opinions/eq; In sports psychology it allows an insight into an individuals perception of their performance/eq; It has been useful when assessing an individuals motivation/eq; Helps psychologists understand sporting performance/competence/attitudes/eq; Allows researchers to develop new themes that would not be discovered with quantitative analysis/eq; Allows coaches to understand the needs and beliefs of sports people so coaching skills can be developed/eq;

June 2010 D2 (c) Describe how the questionnaire as a research method was used in the Boyd and Monroe (2003) study. (3)

D2(c) Describe how the questionnaire as a research method was used in the Boyd and Monroe (2003) study. (3) One mark per point/elaboration.Take care with detail – climbers tested individually and athletes in groups (not other way round). Two questionnaires were given to expert and amateur climbers and field and track sportspeople/eq; Both the SIQ (Sport imagery questionnaire) and CIQ (Climbing imagery questionnaire) were used to assess the function and frequency of imagery use/eq; The questionnaires measured the cognitive (CS & CG) and motivation functions (MG-M, MG-A & MS) of imagery/eq; The questionnaires were used to compare field and track with climbers in term of the used and function of imagery/eq; The questionnaire was also used to compare expert and amateur climbers in terms of the use and function of imagery/eq; Uses 7-point likert scale (rarely-often)/eq;

June 2010 D3 - Describe and evaluate one of the following research studies: Cottrell et al (1968) Koivula (1995) Craft et al (2003). (12) Each one is now divided into a describe slide and an evaluate slide, both worth 6 marks each (12 in total).

Cottrell et al (1968) - Describe (6) Aimed to test the effect of audience on performance/eq; How audience affects performance on competitional and non- competitionaltasks/eq; 132 male undergraduates were given lists of paired associate words to learn/eq; The non-competitional list had strong associations between the paired associated words but not between the word pairs themselves/eq; The competitional list had weak associations between the paired associate words but strong associations between the word pairs themselves, making them more difficult to learn and a higher chance of error/eq; Participants either had to produce two errorless list recalls or the whole set of 30 lists/eq; Audience improved performance on non-competitional tasks in terms of speed of learning/eq; Error rate was highest with an audience on competitiopnal task/eq; Slow learners produced a higher mean error rate on competitional lists than fast learners with an audience, suggesting that audience hinders performance on less proficient individuals/tasks/eq; In the second part of the study, mere-presence and audience was tested by using a blindfolded participant/eq; Mere-presence had little effect on performance but with practice it showed that audience improved performance/eq;

Cottrell et al (1968) - Evaluate(6) The type of performance is cognitive and unlikely to demonstrate real audience effects within sport/eq; It was a laboratory situation which lacks ecological validity and does not represent real life/eq; An audience during sport is more active and encouraging (or not) so affects an athlete more than the audience in this study/eq; The sample of male undergraduates is biased and does not represent all individuals well, particularly as individual differences would have a great effect upon performance with or without an audience/eq;

Koivula (1995) – Describe (6) Aimed to investigate gender based schematic information processing/eq; She wanted to see if participants with a sex typed schema were more likely to stereotype sports as male and female compared to less sex-typed participants/eq; She wanted to look at gender differences in ratings of male and female typed sports/eq; Over 200 participants were used, many were university students and most Caucasian/eq; She used the BSRI to measure the degree to which participants were sex typed/eq; Participants were asked to rate different sports as male or female or neutral/eq; Further questionnaires were given to measure age, ethnicity and other personality measures and attitudes/eq; Most participants were sex typed from the BSRI score/eq; Most participants were stereotypical when rating sports as male or female/eq; Androgynous and undifferentiated participants from the BSRI were less likely to rate certain sports as male or female/eq; Men were more likely to sex type a sport than females/eq; The results support gender schematic information processing/eq;

Koivula (1995) – Evaluate (6) Questionnaires that ask a judgement of gender may encourage traditional views of gender, which may have confounded the results/eq; Despite being instructed to ignore the number of males and females who play a sport, the participants may have used this knowledge and media coverage to make their judgements of male and female sports/eq; The BSRI is a well established sex type inventory with a significant number of filler items to prevent demand characteristics/eq; The sample was large but biased and the attitudes of Swedish, white undergraduates many not be generalised to the general population/eq; Rating scales used by these questionnaires may reflect opinion on the day rather than an enduring attitude/eq;

Craft et al (2003) – Describe (6) Aimed to see if there was a relationship between anxiety and sporting performance/eq; Anxiety involved a series of subscales; cognitive, somatic and self confidence/eq; They conducted a meta-analysis of 29 studies which used the CSAI-2 (IV) and sporting performance (DV)/eq; A positive correlation was expected between self confidence and performance, negative correlation between cognitive anxiety and performance and no relationship between somatic anxiety and performance/eq; They also explored the anxiety – performance relationship using a range of sporting variables such as individual and team sports/eq; They found that only self confidence was a useful indicator of sporting performance and this was marginal/eq; The subscales alone are not useful indicators of performance, but together show a useful interrelationship/eq; They concluded that cognitive and somatic anxiety are interdependent/eq;

Craft et al (2003) – Evaluate (6) Self confidence measured by the CSAI-2 may be more a measure of global confidence rather than sports related activity confidence/eq; The CSAI-2 may not be a useful psychometric measure of anxiety/eq; Like an meta-analysis only comparable groups of athletes/samples/similarity of measures were used but matching for all properties is clearly not possible and variation may distort results/eq; For example some studies administered the CSAI-2 some time before the event and some immediately before/some were administered in groups and some individuals/eq;

Level 4 10-12 marks Candidate has attempted and answered both injunctions in the question very well. Description must include good breadth and depth of knowledge of the study (all of APRC). Evaluation includes appropriate strengths / weaknesses clearly and accurately explained on a range of issues with very good detail and explanation. The skills needed to produce convincing extended writing are in place. Very few syntactical and /or spelling errors may be found. Very good organisation and planning. Given time constraints and limited number of marks, full marks must be given when the answer is reasonably detailed even if not all the information is present.

January 2011 D1 (a) Juan conducted a correlational study to investigate heart rate and sporting performance in professional athletes. Describe the correlational research method as it is used in sport psychology. (3)

Describe the correlational research method as it is used in sport psychology. (3) To look for a relationship/link between two variables/eq; Quantitative measures, such as heart rate/questionnaire scoring, are taken and analysed together/eq; Two data sets are ranked and related to see if one variable changes alongside the other/eq; If both variables rise together it is seen as a positive correlation and if one variable rises and the other falls it is seen as a negative correlation/eq; If no pattern can be found between the variables, then there is no correlation/relationship/eq; Strength of correlations are indicated by a correlation coefficient scoring between -1 0 +1/eq;

January 2011 (b) Evaluate the correlation as a research method. (3)

(b) Evaluate the correlation as a research method. (3) Because the data gathered is quantitative the correlational analysis can be repeated to establish reliable findings/eq; We cannot be sure that the measured variables are causal, cannot show cause and effect/eq; There may be innumerable variables that impacted upon one, other than the variable being measured/eq; The correlation relies upon reliable data, and if gathered by questionnaire/physiological measures, they can change day to day/eq; Correlations can be subject to statistical analysis to ensure a firm relationship is established/eq; Questionnaires used to gather correlational data can be subject to social desirability/eq; Correlations are ethical compared to other research methods such as laboratory, field experiments as ethical issues rarely arise from the use of secondary data/eq; The collection of primary data for a correlation has to consider the ethical issues when using human participants/eq; A strength of correlation is that the can be done where legally, ethically or practically it may not be possible to conduct experimental research/eq; A strength is that previously existing/secondary data can be used to save time and cost of primary research/eq; It is a precursor to experimental research as it is an inexpensive/ethical tool before costly research/eq;

January 2011 (c) Using the same professional athletes, Juan decided to gather qualitative data by conducting interviews. Explain what is meant by qualitative data. (2)

Explain what is meant by qualitative data. (2) Gathered through open questions + narrative not number/eq; Narrative rather than number + indepth beliefs/eq; In-depth beliefs, attitudes, understanding and knowledge gathered + open questions/eq; Often subject to thematic analysis/interpretation/eq; Example: A sports person can be asked about their favourite sport and why they like it is an open question/eq; Open questions, such as why do you play sport, allow detailed answers that are qualitative in nature/eq; Qualitative data in the form of open questions allows free response and therefore does not force an answer/eq;

January 2011 D2 (a) A talent scout noticed that the performance of a young footballer was better when training than in a real match. Explain this difference between training and match performance using one theory of arousal/anxiety/audience effect you have studied. (3)

Explain this difference between training and match performance using one theory of arousal/anxiety/audience effect you have studied. (3) Possible theories include: Inverted U hypothesis, evaluation apprehension theory, catastrophe theory, optimal level of arousal theory, drive theory, there may be others. Considered on next slides:

Explain this difference between training and match performance using one theory of arousal/anxiety/audience effect you have studied. (3) Eg Inverted U hypothesis The footballers performance drop can be explained by the inverted U hypothesis as a consequence of heightened arousal/eq; The footballer was performing at his best/optimal level in training/eq; When in a match his arousal level was too high and this had a deleterious effect on performance/eq; Football can involve fine motor skills which is better suited to low arousal/eq; The footballers skills were new, and high anxiety affected skills that were not well practiced/eq; The inverted U explains how performance increases with arousal up to an optimal level past which it deteriorates/eq;

Explain this difference between training and match performance using one theory of arousal/anxiety/audience effect you have studied. (3) Eg Evaluation apprehension Low performance could be due to evaluation apprehension as the match is an evaluation of performance/eq; Gradually anxiety has built up because he has been criticised during matches in the past/eq; He feared negative evaluation from an audience which was not in training – so performance fell/eq; During the match it tested his skills more than training, and this lead to increase anxiety too/eq;

Explain this difference between training and match performance using one theory of arousal/anxiety/audience effect you have studied. (3) Eg Catastrophe theory (credit inverted U description in addition to below comments). Anxiety increased throughout the match resulting in dramatic deterioration at a critical point during the match/eq; The footballer worried more about his performance during a match than training and this cognitive evaluation led to fret/eq;

January 2011 (b) Describe the findings (results and/or conclusions) of one study you have learned about in sport psychology, other than Boyd and Munroe (2003). (3)

(b) Describe the findings (results and/or conclusions) of one study you have learned about in sport psychology, other than Boyd and Munroe (2003). (3) Possible studies include: Cottrell et al (1968) Koivula(1995) Craft et al (2003)

(b) Describe the findings (results and/or conclusions) of one study you have learned about in sport psychology, other than Boyd and Munroe (2003). (3) Cottrell et al (1968) Non-competitive groups performed better (error rate) on word pair recall than competitive groups irrespective of audience or learning speed/eq; Competitive groups with an audience performed worse (more errors) with an audience than without/eq; Unless they were fast learners who made fewer errors without an audience in the competitive group/eq; Fast learners perform better with an audience than without/eq; Mere presence did not have an effect, the audience had to be in apposition of judgement to have an effect/eq; However, slower learners perform worse with an audience/eq; Audience enhances a dominant response/eq;

(b) Describe the findings (results and/or conclusions) of one study you have learned about in sport psychology, other than Boyd and Munroe (2003). (3) Koivula (1995) ‘sex typed’ individuals were the largest group for both males and females tested (48% and 43% respectively)/eq; Most sports were regarded as gender neutral/eq; Certain sports were regarded as more appropriate for each gender that seemed consistent with social views on sports genders/eq; Gender based schematic information informed choices about what was gender appropriate sports/eq; Sex typed men rated masculine sports as more masculine than other types or women/eq; Koivula believes that male dominated sports reflect male dominated society and validate a male domain in sport/eq; Non-sex typed males and females tend to challenge gender stereotypes beliefs about sport type/eq;

(b) Describe the findings (results and/or conclusions) of one study you have learned about in sport psychology, other than Boyd and Munroe (2003). (3) Craft et al (2003) meta-analysis showed no relationship between anxiety and performance overall/eq; There was a positive relationship between self esteem and performance/eq: Top sporting athletes showed a positive correlation between anxiety and performance which was not evident in lower sporting athletes/eq; Anxiety will not show a correlation if the inverted U hypothesis is true as a theory of anxiety/eq;

January 2011 (c) Evaluate the study you described in (b) in terms of both reliability and validity.(4)

(c) Evaluate the study you described in (b) in terms of both reliability (R) and validity (V).(4) Cottrell et al (1968) R: Other research contradicts the mere presence of the audience as having an effect on performance/eq; V: Sporting performance is far different than word pair recall or recognition tasks, so the findings may not represent sporting performance at all/eq; V: Anxiety and audience is a practiced situation for athletes who are accustomed to such situations within the field of a physical sport/eq; V: The study lacks ecological validity as they are often test on physical skill rather than cognitive skill/eq; R: Independent groups were used to prevent order effects but participant difference may affect results in the competitive/non- competitive and audience groups/eq;

(c) Evaluate the study you described in (b) in terms of both reliability (R) and validity (V).(4) Koivula (1995) V: Asking participants about gendered sports could provoke a gendered schema and result in invalid results/eq; V: Social desirability may have skewed the participants responses into providing either sex typed or non-sexed typed responses/eq; V: The researcher used the participants own gender stereotypes rather than generalised categories, making the results more relevant and valid to the participants used/eq; V: Filler items/distracter questions were used to prevent demand characteristics so the participants could not try and guess the true aim of the study/eq; R: Generalisability of the findings can only be limited to Swedish sporting culture/young/white/students/eq; R: Questionnaires and self ratings are considered unreliable as beliefs and attitudes may differ according to time, mood, experience, etc/eq;

(c) Evaluate the study you described in (b) in terms of both reliability (R) and validity (V).(4) Craft et al (2003) R: The researchers acknowledged that arousal would be likely to yield a zero correlation based on the inverted U hypothesis overall, but failed to validate this with any further statistics/eq; V: Team sports and individual sports were not accounted for in this meta-analysis which needs to refined as audience and arousal would have different effects on each/eq; R: Despite the robust qualifying criteria of studies used in a meta- analysis in terms of similarity, each study would be likely to differ in standardisation, procedure and measurement significantly to make comparison difficult/eq; R: The questionnaire used was a reliable and trustworthy source/eq;

January 2011 D3 - Sophie and Becky are sisters. Sisters share 50% of their genes. Sophie is an excellent athlete winning regional competitions, whereas Becky is not sporty at all. Describe and evaluate two explanations for Sophie and Becky’s individual differences in sporting performance. (12)

Describe and evaluate two explanations for Sophie and Becky’s individual differences in sporting performance. (12)

Describe and evaluate two explanations for Sophie and Becky’s individual differences in sporting performance. (12) Suitable examples include: Personality theory, Reinforcement. The next slides will break down each answer: Other suitable answers are Socialisationand Attribution,

Describe and evaluate two explanations for Sophie and Becky’s individual differences in sporting performance. (12) Description (AO1) Eg. Personality theory Athletes are born with an introverted or extraverted personality This is a biological basis for personality Extroverts have a reduced stimulation of the RAS (reticular activating system) so seek excitement Extrovert therefore have a more outgoing and competitive nature Introverts have an over stimulated RAS resulting in avoidance of sensation Introverts are shy and avoid competition Introverts avoid sport and extroverts seek it out to reach optimal cortical activity Personality theory also considers the role of the environment in terms of conditioning Becky and Sophie should have inherited the same biological basis for their personality, so should be similar in sporting ability

Describe and evaluate two explanations for Sophie and Becky’s individual differences in sporting performance. (12) Description (AO1) Eg. Reinforcement Sporting people are given reinforcement for taking up sport whilst others may not Praise such as trophies and awards can be positive reinforcement for good athletes Intrinsic reinforcement, such as satisfaction, can also explain why some take up sport seriously Social interaction and friends can also provide reinforcement for some to pursue sports Not all athletes receive praise – if they lose – this variable ratio increases persistence Sophie and Becky may have received differing reinforcement from parents/coaches that would explain this situation

Describe and evaluate two explanations for Sophie and Becky’s individual differences in sporting performance. (12) Description (AO2) Eg. Personality theory Physiological measures have shown higher cortical arousal in extroverts than introverts We cannot be sure whether extroversion is a cause or result of cortical arousal There are many other reasons for being sporting than personality – many opt for sport because of family or friends Sophie and Becky are different despite having the same biological basis, so this theory cannot explain their sporting differences

Describe and evaluate two explanations for Sophie and Becky’s individual differences in sporting performance. (12) Description (AO2) Eg. Reinforcement Coaches using positive reinforcement to encourage sporting performance Sports personalities commonly cite a sporting hero as an explanation for their success (SLT) Despite reinforcement, some people are just not very good at sport so do not excel

June 2011 D1 – (a) What is meant by ‘sport psychology’? (3)

D1 – (a) What is meant by ‘sport psychology’? (3) Definition• Is about understanding how people choose certain sports/how sports performance can be improved/what makes someone a good sports person (or not)/eq; Elaboration (theory, research, concepts) For example, Eysenck would suggest that extroverts seek competitive sports as they are sensation seekin/eq; For example, moderate parental involvement leads to likelihood of sporting success in athletes studied/eq; For example, Feltz and Landers found that mental imagery improved performance compared to those who used no imagery/eq; The inverted U hypothesis shows a drop in performance at a critical point/eq; Attribution of success/failure can affect future performance/eq; Climbers and track and field athletes use different forms of imagery/eq;

June 2011 D1 (b) After a team lost an important netball match, the team coach wanted to improve performance before the next game. Explain how the coach might have used achievement motivation theory to improve the performance of this team. (2)

Explain how the coach might have used achievement motivation theory to improve the performance of this team. (2) One mark per point/elaboration. Max 1 for general description of achievement motivation theory – even if linked tentatively at the end ‘the coach should do this’. The coach would exploit the need for praise and offer the netball team encouragement/eq; Self satisfaction can be increased by offering small achievements/goals that can be met during practice/eq; The coach could assess their need for achievement and challenge them if this need was high/eq; If the netball team has high nAch they will not be phased by setbacks so the coach can set high risk challenges/eq;

June 2011 (c) Evaluate achievement motivation theory. (3)

(c) Evaluate achievement motivation theory. (3) The need for achievement is commonly recorded using self reports which may be unreliable/eq; The research is based on a personality trait rather than a feature of sporting competition/interaction between personality and situational factors/eq; Butt and Cox (1992) found higher levels of achievement motivation (N-Ach) in top class US tennis players in the Davis Cup compared to lower level competitors/eq; The theory can be used to develop the need for achievement in sportspeople by coaches/eq; Research suggests that high achievers take on more difficult tasks than low achievers, which is consistent with achievement motivation theory/eq; Without sporting ability, achievement motivation theory is limited in explaining sporting success/eq; The results of projective tests used to judge achievement motivation, are subjectively interpreted/eq;

June 2011 (d) The netball team also lost their next big game, so the coach decided to use a different method to motivate the team. Make two comparison points between achievement motivation and one other theory of motivation you have learned in sport psychology. (2)

Make two comparison points between achievement motivation and one other theory of motivation you have learned in sport psychology. (2) One mark per comparison point. Reject personality theory, the inverted U hypothesis and evaluation apprehension theory as they are theories of performance not theories of motivation. Imagery and goal setting are performance enhancers, but can be used to improve motivation as well as skills. Achievement motivation and self efficacy theory In achievement motivation the underpinning motivation is drawn from the need for achievement whereas in self efficacy it is drawn from self confidence/eq; Self confidence is more likely to predict success than need for achievement/eq; Both rely on an internal mental state to explain achievement/eq; Achievement motivation and cognitive evaluation Achievement motivation has the underpinning motivation arises from a need for achievement whereas cognitive evaluation involves intrinsic and extrinsic motivation (evaluation of this) for achieving/eq; Essentially the extrinsic and intrinsic motivation can be the same as a need for achievement- they can be the same thing/eq; Both involve reward/eq;

June 2011 D2 – (a) Luanne conducted a questionnaire to investigate how sprinters felt after a big race. She collected both quantitative and qualitative data. Explain what is meant by quantitative data. (2)

Explain what is meant by quantitative data. (2) Gathered through closed ended questions/eq; Likert scales can be used to gain judgement/eq; Number rather than narrative /eq; Superficial information is gathered about beliefs and opinions/eq; Often subject to statistical analysis/eq; A sports person can be asked about their favourite sport and rate it/eq;

June 2011 D2 – (b) Explain what is meant by qualitative data. (2)

(b) Explain what is meant by qualitative data. (2) Gathered through open questions/interviews/eq; Narrative rather than number/eq; In depth beliefs, attitudes, understanding and knowledge gathered/eq; Often subject to thematic analysis/eq; A sports person can be asked about their favourite sport and why they like it/eq;

June 2011 D2 – (c) In terms of validity and reliability, evaluate questionnaires as a research method in sport psychology. (4)

(c) In terms of validity and reliability, evaluate questionnaires as a research method in sport psychology. (4) Validity: If a respondent guesses the aim of the study they may answer in a way that reflects the demands of the questionnaire rather than honesty/eq; Answers may reflect social desirability rather than reality so findings are invalid/eq; Respondents may lie if they feel they are being judged on their answer/eq; Open questions can gather rich qualitative information/eq; There are many ways of asking the same question, which can check for construct validity/eq; Asking athletes as opposed to inferring from experiments can be seen as more valid/eq;

(c) In terms of validity and reliability, evaluate questionnaires as a research method in sport psychology. (4) Reliability: Questionnaires can have test-retest reliability and scores can be checked over time/participants/eq; If questions are open ended, this may be subjectively interpreted by researchers/eq; Pilot studies are typically conducted to ensure the reliability of specific questions Some participants may answer in a way they think they ought to answer so results can be unreliable/eq;

June 2011 D3- Describe Boyd and Munroe’s (2003) study of the use of imagery in climbing and evaluate it in terms of both generalisability and practical applications. You must include the aim(s), procedure, result(s) and conclusion(s) in your description. (12)

You must include the aim(s), procedure, result(s) and conclusion(s) in your description. (12) Description points (AO1) Aimed to see if there was a difference in the use of imagery between beginner and advanced climbers Aimed to investigate the difference in imagery use between climbers and track athletes Hypothesised that climbers would be higher on CG and use MG-A more than track athletes Hypothesised that climbers would score low on MS than track athletes because they tend not to focus on extrinsic motivation Hypothesised that beginner climbers would use imagery strategies to reduce anxiety (MG-A) than experienced climbers 38 track athletes and 48 climbers, of which 18 were beginners and 30 experienced climbers, participated in this study The track athletes completed the SIQ and the climbers completed a modified version called the CIQ Track athletes scored higher on average on MS than climbers overall Track athletes scored a higher mean average for MG-M so felt more confident and controlled than climbers, whereas climbers scored lower on MG-A so were able to control anxiety levels There was no significant difference found in the five imagery sub-scales between beginner and advanced climbers Climbers use intrinsic motivation more than extrinsic motivation because there is very little ‘winning’ in climbing compared to track and field sports (audience) Climbers scored low on confidence, which is more necessary in team sports than having outward confidence in an isolated sport

You must include the aim(s), procedure, result(s) and conclusion(s) in your description. (12) Evaluation points (AO2) Generalisability The sample sizes of each group were small and limited to one university track team and one indoor climbing group which makes generalisability difficult and may account for the small difference in trends between the data sets The questionnaire (SIQ) has been used before and found to be reliable in testing the subscales of imagery use with sportspersons so the findings should be generalisable to other sports people Practical applications Climbers should use Cognitive General as an imagery technique to practice their climbing skill as a strategy for an outside climb with no clear route marked for them Track athletes should use Motivational Specific as an imagery strategy to increase motivation for winning Track athletes should use Motivational general Mastery to increase confidence and belief in their ability to win, whereas climbers already have self confidence so don’t need this technique specifically Imagery is a useful technique that all athletes could use but it does not substitute physical practice

January 2012 D1 (a) Define the term ‘arousal’ as it is used in psychology. (2)

D1 (a) Define the term ‘arousal’ as it is used in psychology. (2) Arousal is a physiological state involving the autonomic nervous system/eq; The sympathetic division of the ANS increases arousal (fight or flight)/eq; The parasympathetic division of the ANS depresses arousal to return to a normal physiological state of functioning/eq; In sport psychology arousal may be necessary for sporting activities that involve physical exertion/eq; In sport psychology high levels of arousal are undesirable and can cause exhaustion or lack of concentration/eq;

January 2012 D1 (b) Sarah was training for the Olympic archery team. She often used the target practice field after everyone else had left for the day. She felt she was making progress, but when asked to train in front of her team mates she did not perform as well.

January 2012 D1 Using psychological research you have studied in sport psychology, explain why Sarah may not have performed as well in front of an audience. (4)

Using psychological research you have studied in sport psychology, explain why Sarah may not have performed as well in front of an audience (4) Sarah may have suffered from higher levels of arousal beyond the optimum level according to the inverted U hypothesis/eq; The concentration needed for archery is high so she requires only slight arousal/eq; Sarah may be less experienced than other archers, so high levels of arousal due to being watched would have affected her more than the more advanced archers/eq; Cottrell (1968) stated that unsupportive audience can lead to evaluation apprehension and this would affect her performance/eq; Aiello and Kolb found that audience affected less skilled workers, supporting the notion that Sarah may not be as proficient at archery and the audience is reducing her performance/eq;

January 2012 (C - i) Identify one study you have learned about in sport psychology. (1)

(C - i) Identify one study you have learned about in sport psychology. (1) Boyd and Munroe (2003) Imagery and climbing study. Cottrell et al (1968) audience effect study. Koivula (1995) Gender and sporting participation study. Craft et al (2003) Anxiety and sport performance correlation study.

(C – ii) Outline one strength of the study you identified in (c)(i). (2) Boyd and Munroe (2003) Imagery and climbing study. Koivula(1995) Gender and sporting participation study. Both covered on next slides:

January 2012 (C – ii) Outline one strength of the study you identified in (c)(i). (2) Boyd and Munroe (2003) Imagery and climbing study. A standardised questionnaire was used to ensure each sports person experienced the same questions/eq; (one mark) The SIQ has been tested for consistency in research and reliable findings can be made with the same questionnaire as comparison/eq; (2 marks)

January 2012 (C – ii) Outline one strength of the study you identified in (c)(i). (2) Koivula(1995) Gender and sporting participation study. The questionnaire used is standardised and established as a consistent measure of sex typing/eq; (1 mark) The questionnaire included filler questions to ensure participants did not guess the aim of the study and alter their answers/eq; (1 mark) The questionnaire is standardised and established as a consistent measure of sex typing, using filler questions to avoid demand characteristics/eq; (2 marks)

January 2012 D2 During your course you will have conducted a practical investigation on a topic in sport psychology using either a content analysis or a summary of two article sources. What was the aim/purpose of your practical investigation? (2) A summary or a content analysis require different methods of gathering information to produce data. They also involve different ways of analysing/ summarising the findings. Describe how you went about gathering and analysing/ summarisingthe data for your practical investigation. (3)

What was the aim/purpose of your practical investigation? (2) 2 marks A clear aim/account of purpose so that the examiner can clearly identify and understand what was being done. Aims are realistic. e.g. to see whether sports people self report the use of imagery as a performance technique

Describe how you went about gathering and analysing/ summarising the data for your practical investigation. (3) Gathering data can involve the planning and sourcing of materials/information (one or all parts can be given full credit equally). It also covers the procedure, sampling, apparatus, controls, coding/theme decisions and justifications given in order to gather the data, keywords used in search for finding sources, research tool (Internet) used, websites reviewed, narrowing of sources, selection and rejection decisions (appropriateness, bias, timeliness, credibility), devising coding units and tallying. Analysing/summarising can involve qualitative and/or quantitative measures such as theme analysis, interpretation, shortening, reviewing, reading, taking down main points, looking for comparisons, totalling, graphs and tables, statistics.No credit for conclusions.

January 2012 (C) Explain the findings (results and/or conclusions) you have drawn from your practical investigation. You must use psychological concepts (e.g. research and/or theories) that you have studied. (4)

(C) Explain the findings (results and/or conclusions) you have drawn from your practical investigation. You must use psychological concepts (e.g. research and/or theories) that you have studied. (4) 4 marks Thorough, clear and detailed comments about results and/or conclusions. There will be a good/detailed explanation of the findings with reference to research, theories and/or concepts drawn from the approach.

January 2012 D3 - To prepare for the 2012 Olympics, the Head Coach is trying out new techniques with the team to improve their sporting performance. Describe and evaluate one psychological technique that the Head Coach might use with the team to improve their sporting performance. As part of your evaluation you must compare your chosen technique with a different technique that can also be used to improve performance. (12)

As part of your evaluation you must compare your chosen technique with a different technique that can also be used to improve performance. (12) If more than one technique credit the best.Suitable techniques include imagery, goal setting, attribution retraining, learning theories. There are others.

Description (AO1) e.g. Imagery The coach could use imagery to visualise winning a match. The coach could imagine the feeling of winning and receiving a gold medal. The team could imagine the muscular power/breathing during a good match. Imagery requires visualising and feeling the desired goal. Imagery allows the athlete to put themselves ‘mentally’ into the situation of winning which acts as a motivation. Mental rehearsal of the imagery can increase familiarity and confidence and reduce anxiety. Cognitive general imagery involves the imagining of overall success. Cognitive specific imagery concerns picturing success at a specific skill.

Description (AO1) e.g. Goal setting Target/goal setting would involve the coach setting specific targets to achieve in the sport. The coach might set a goal of the team beating their current time as it would act as a motivation to succeed. The goal needs to be SMART because unsmart targets could be demotivating for the team. Goals must be Specific, Measurable, Achievable /attainable /appropriate, realistic and time measured. Goals can be performance based on a specific skill or outcome based on overall winning. Specific targets should not be vague so that a specific goal can be focused upon eg service hand. Measurable targets allow a benchmark to be set so that improvement can be monitored to show improvement. Appropriate targets are relevant to the sportsperson. Realistic targets are not too difficult or easy so demotivation through underperformance or unachievable aims. Time based targets encourage and sustain motivation for appropriate time period.

Evaluation (AO2) e.g. Imagery Feltz and Landers (1983) found that overall studies found imagery to be better than no mental imagery at all. Imagery is not a substitute for physical practice. Isaac (1992) found that high imagery trampolinistsperformed better the low and no imagery groups. Research into imagery has been experimental, so the technique lacks field trials to achieve validity. Imagery is quite specific and may lead to greater physical practice of the skill, which would account for the improvement rather than the imagery itself.

Evaluation (AO2) e.g. Goal setting Mellalieu (2005) found that SMART targets set for rugby players showed considerable sporting improvement in those skills compared to the skills that were not targeted. Because self generated targets are most effective, this itself may be intrinsically motivational. Targets that are unrealistic may not be achieved and act as a demotivator. Goal setting, unlike imagery, is more likely to involve physical practice which will improve performance.

Comparisone.g. Imagery and goal setting Goal setting involves practical/physical activity whereas imagery involves mental/cognitive activity. Both techniques allow the athlete to motivate themselves intrinsically through visualising the goal or meeting set targets. The techniques have rarely been experimentally tested with high performing sportspeople, so may only be useful where improvement can be considerable rather than discrete. Both have been tested using field studies so the findings are likely to be valid as they are about actual sporting performance Boyd and Munroe found differences in imagery use between track and field athletes and climbers. There are other factors that could affect performance, such as audience, fitness etc, it would be difficult to accurately measure the success of either technique on sporting performance. Goal setting requires physical effort compared to the relative lack of effort required in imagery.

June 2012 (For question D1 (a), put a cross in the correct box to indicate your answer. If you change your mind, put a line through the box and then put a cross in another box.) D1 Yusef is a key player in his team. The team has qualified for the Olympic Games. Which of the following is the best example of intrinsic motivation? A Yusef wants to win for his family. B Yusef wants to win for his own fulfilment. C Yusef wants to win a medal for his team. D Yusef wants to win to be on television.

June 2012 (b) Yusef has noticed that his team is nervous when anyone mentions the Olympic Games. Yusef believes this is affecting their performance. Describe how Yusef might go about researching this issue with his team. Make it clear which research method Yusef might use and the procedure he might follow. (4)

Describe how Yusef might go about researching this issue with his team. Make it clear which research method Yusef might use and the procedure he might follow. (4) Questionnaires can be used to gather data on the athletes perception of performance when the games are mentioned Yusef can repeat the questionnaires several times to track sporting progress when talking about the games or not as a comparison of anxiety Questionnaires can gather self report data using open questions and/or closed questions to investigate the teams feelings Yusef can gather Qualitative (open questions) and/or quantitative data (closed questions) to analyse He might have to question the team individually to prevent others influencing answers Anonymous questionnaires would help prevent social desirability

June 2012 (C) Yusefconducted further research into the issue of his team’s performance. In this study he collected quantitative data. Outline what is meant by quantitative data. (3)

Outline what is meant by quantitative data. (3) Data that is numerical as it is gathered by closed ended questions/ranked scales/eq; Can be presented in tables/graphs/can be analysed using a statistical test/eq; Is not discourse/open to interpretation/eq;

June 2012 (D) Explain why quantitative data might be better to use than qualitative data in sport psychology. (2)

(D) Explain why quantitative data might be better to use than qualitative data in sport psychology. (2) It can be subject to statistical analysis so that probability can be tested and generalisations to sporting performance for example made with confidence/eq; It is easier and quicker to analyse compared to lengthy interpretation/eq; More objective and less chance of subjective interpretation or bias/eq; Larger sample base can be achieved quickly/eq; Large data sets about sporting performance can be used by coaches to improve their own teams performance/eq;

June 2012 D2 (a) Using your understanding of achievement motivation theory, define the term ‘need for achievement’ (nAch). (2)

Using your understanding of achievement motivation theory, define the term ‘need for achievement’ (nAch). (2) An individual’s desire to achieve at a particular task/eq; High need for achievement is for wanting to achieve the most and take on difficult challenges/eq; Those with low need for achievement aim lower and take on easy challenges/eq;

June 2012 D2 (b) Explain how a coach might use achievement motivation theory to improve the performance of her football team. (2)

Explain how a coach might use achievement motivation theory to improve the performance of her football team. (2) The coach would exploit a need for praise and offer encouragement/eq; Self satisfaction can be increased by offering small achievements/goals that can be met during practice/eq; The coach could assess the teams need for achievement and challenge them if their need was high/eq; If the football team members have a high nAch they will not be phased by setbacks so the coach can set high risk challenges/eq; With a high nAch, the coach could set them the challenge of winning the next event to motivate the team/eq; To satisfy a high NPow the coach could set individual team members the challenge of being captain if he/she scores a goal/eq; Train as a whole group to satisfy a high Naffill/eq;

June 2012 D2 (c) Evaluate achievement motivation theory. (4)

Evaluate achievement motivation theory. (4) The need for achievement is commonly recorded using self reports which may be unreliable/eq; The research is based on a personality trait rather than a feature of sporting competition/interaction between personality and situational factors/eq; Butt and Cox (1992) found higher levels of achievement motivation (N-Ach) in top class US tennis players in the Davis Cup compared to lower level competitors/eq; The theory can be used to develop the need for achievement in sportspeople by coaches/eq; Research suggests that high achievers take on more difficult tasks than low achievers, which is consistent with achievement motivation theory/eq; Without sporting ability, achievement motivation theory is limited in explaining sporting success/eq; The results of projective tests used to judge achievement motivation, are subjectively interpreted/eq;

June 2012 (D3) - James disliked sport and never wanted to take part in games at school. His best friend Jasper participated in sport a lot and won many races. During your course you will have studied one of the following explanations for individual differences in sporting participation and performance: socialisation attribution reinforcement. Describe and evaluate one explanation from the list. In your answer use the explanation to account for the differences between James’s and Jasper’s participation in sport. (12)

Describe and evaluate one explanation from the list. In your answer use the explanation to account for the differences between James’s and Jasper’s participation in sport. (12) Description - Socialisation Jasper may have been raised in a sporting family and internalised the values of his parents. Jasper may be modelling his parents behaviour as it is an expected norm. Socialisation is the cultural transmission of values, customs and beliefs, and such emphasis on Jasper’s sport may reflect these values. Cultural transmission occurs via primary socialisers such as Jaspers parents and teachers that may be sporting themselves.

Describe and evaluate one explanation from the list. In your answer use the explanation to account for the differences between James’s and Jasper’s participation in sport. (12) Evaluation - Socialisation There are sporty children from non sporty backgrounds and non sporty children from sporty backgrounds, so socialisation cannot be the only determinant of this behaviour. This theory ignores the role of reinforcement into sporting behaviourand the role of biological factors. Socialisation can explain why the majority of females and male choose to do gendered sports. Koivula found that sports are largely gender typed, supporting the idea of socialisation.

Describe and evaluate one explanation from the list. In your answer use the explanation to account for the differences between James’s and Jasper’s participation in sport. (12) Description - Reinforcement Jasper may have been encouraged to do sports by his parents/teachers. Jasper could have gained reinforcement from winning trophies. Jasper may have reinforcement from intrinsic motivation to perform at his personal best. During training he receives reinforcement through the social aspects of team sports. James has never received any reinforcement from his parents/teachers. James took part in a sport but came last which provided no reinforcement to do well.

Describe and evaluate one explanation from the list. In your answer use the explanation to account for the differences between James’s and Jasper’s participation in sport. (12) Evaluation - Reinforcement Not all sports people receive rewards as they cannot win every time. This theory ignores personality traits and biological sporting ability as an explanation of individual differences. It is difficult to establish cause and effect between reinforcement and sporting ability and performance in every day life. Many people are encouraged to participate in sport, but not all desire to or do well.

January 2013 D 1 - Sports psychologists use questionnaires to investigate why people choose to participate in certain sports. Questionnaires use different types of questions to gather qualitative and quantitative data. (a) Explain one strength of quantitative data. (2)

Explain one strength of quantitative data. (2) It is easy to analyse as it is numbers rather than narrative/first mark/eq; it can be easily subject to a statistical test to determine significance 2nd mark/eq; It is not open to interpretation like qualitative data 1st mark/eq;It is objective and therefore more scientific 2nd mark/eq;

January 2013 (b) Explain why qualitative data might be of greater value to sports psychologists than quantitative data. You must refer to sport psychology in your answer. (3)

You must refer to sport psychology in your answer. (3) It gathers more rich and detailed information to help understand the psychology of sport better than quantitative data/eq; It allows sports psychologists to understand reasons behind choices which goes deeper than quantitative data/eq; It allows respondents to respond freely about their sporting preference/ability without constraints of closed ended questions/eq; It allows sports psychologists to explore topics in greater depth compared to quantitative data/eq; Subtle information may be achieved that cannot be achieved with preset answers/eq; It helps explore hypotheses in sport psychology that may lead to more experimental research/eq; It can be gathered via interview which may go some way to avoiding social desirability and demand characteristics compared to preset question on a questionnaire/eq;

January 2013 (C) A sports psychologist was interested to see if there was a relationship between sporting performance and anxiety. Explain how the sports psychologist might gather and/or analyse correlational data to investigate this relationship between sporting performance and anxiety. (3)

Explain how the sports psychologist might gather and/or analyse correlational data to investigate this relationship between sporting performance and anxiety. (3) They would first gather numerical data on performance and anxiety/eq; Anxiety could be measured with a closed ended questionnaire and performance as the number of wins/eq; The results of the questionnaire/number of wins are calculated and quantified into one score for each measure of anxiety and performance/eq; Each score is ranked for each individual and compared to the scores of other participants/eq; The scores are placed in a scattergraph to visually detect any link/eq; If the points on the graph rise together it is a positive correlation and if the points decline it is a negative correlation, random points can suggest no correlation/eq; A line of best fit would be used to judge the deviation of points from a trend analysis/eq: A (Spearman’s rho) statistical test is used to find the correlation coefficient/eq; The coefficient is used to determine the relationship as positive, negative or no correlation/eq; -1 indicates a perfect negative correlation, 0 indicates no correlation and +1 indicates a perfect positive correlation/eq; Coefficients between +/-1 but not 0 show some/weak/moderate degree of correlation/eq; Scattergraphs can be used to uncover curvilinear relationships (as in the inverted U)/eq;

January 2013 D 2 - Two physical education teachers, Jim and Sonia, noticed that some students in their classes avoided sports, while others were keen to take part, and some students were better at sports than others. Jim believed that these individual differences were due to personality traits. Sonia, however, disagreed with this biological explanation. Describe one explanation that Sonia might use to help understand the individual differences in sporting participation and/or performance in her class. Do not use a biological explanation. (3) Evaluate the explanation of sporting participation and/or performance you have described in (a). (4) Explain why the personality trait theory that Jim favours might better explain individual differences in sporting participation and/or performance than the explanation you described in (a). You may wish to use research evidence in your answer. (3)

Describe one explanation that Sonia might use to help understand the individual differences in sporting participation and/or performance in her class. Do not use a biological explanation. (3) The focus is on participation and performance, arousal, anxiety, audience. Accept ‘motivation’ to pursue a sport e.g. achievement motivation, as a theory of performance.

Describe one explanation that Sonia might use to help understand the individual differences in sporting participation and/or performance in her class. Do not use a biological explanation. (3) Socialisation The cultures may differ in her class and each culture may view sport as desirable or not/eq; Family and peers may encourage some students to engage in sport more than others/eq; Some families may be actively engaged in sport themselves, which normalisesand motivates sport in their family/eq; Sport may be nurtured with positive reinforcement and parental involvement/eq;

Describe one explanation that Sonia might use to help understand the individual differences in sporting participation and/or performance in her class. Do not use a biological explanation. (3) Reinforcement Some children may be coached with positive reinforcement such as praise/eq; Similar to successive approximation, the level of performance must be increased to achieve the same praise/eq; Extrinsic reinforcers such as trophies can be used to encourage performance/eq; The sense of achievement felt when performing well is a strong intrinsic reinforcement/eq;

Describe one explanation that Sonia might use to help understand the individual differences in sporting participation and/or performance in her class. Do not use a biological explanation. (3) Attribution Some of her classmates might believe the cause of a sporting failure is due to incompetence (internal attribution) so not perform well in sports/believe that a sporting success was due to a refs decision (external attribution) so not perform well in sports/eq; Some of her classmates might believe they won a race due to good skills (internal attribution) so participate and perform well/believe that a failure in sport was due to poor equipment (external attribution) so not blame themselves and perform well in future sports/eq; If the cause of a success or failure is in the control of the individual it can determine whether they believe they are responsible for the success or failure and therefore how they participate and perform in the future/eq; Lack of control and failure can lead to learned helplessness which can affect future performance/eq;

Evaluate the explanation of sporting participation and/or performance you have described in (a). (4) Socialisation Koivula found gender schema associated with certain sports indicating gender socialisation/eq; It is difficult to prove that socialisation affects performance or participation as there may be biological (trait, skill) differences that make the socialisation more likely to happen/eq; Most research is correlational, so cause and effect cannot be established/eq; There are definite cultural norms and values associated with participation in certain types of sport/eq; Socialisation cannot account for performance directly, some people are just not good at sport despite being brought up around sporting people/eq;

Evaluate the explanation of sporting participation and/or performance you have described in (a). (4) Reinforcement Coaches using positive reinforcement to encourage sporting performance, and the whole sporting world uses prizes and financial incentive to participate and perform well – this suggests reinforcement is considered effective/eq; Sports personalities commonly cite a sporting hero as an explanation for their success (vicarious reinforcement)/eq; Despite reinforcement, some people are just not very good at sport so do not excel/eq; It ignores biological reasons for sporting performance and participation that is better explained by trait theories/eq;

Explain why the personality trait theory that Jim favours might better explain individual differences in sporting participation and/or performance than the explanation you described in (a). You may wish to use research evidence in your answer. (3) 3 mark answer: Good reason why the biological explanation is better, well detailed and explained OR more than two brief and basic reasons OR one done well and another briefly/done well e.g., the biological explanation is based on more scientific evidence than social explanations as physiological evidence can show reasons why some do well in those sports, over others. For example Gale (1983) found a higher level of arousal amongst extraverts as measured by EEG linking to why they may participate in sports compared to introverts. Indicative content. There is scientific physiological evidence that supports a biological explanation of performance. Gale (1983) found a higher level of arousal amongst extraverts as measured by EEG, physiological evidence not found in other theories. Extroverts tire more easily as they require greater levels of arousal to stimulate their RAS which is scientific evidence for this theory compared to social theories. Biological theories are more scientifically testable than social theories.

January 2013 D3 - The inverted U hypothesis has been useful in understanding sporting performance. Describe and evaluate the inverted U hypothesis. Your evaluation must include at least one comparison with a different theory of the effect of arousal, anxiety and/or the audience on performance. (12)

Your evaluation must include at least one comparison with a different theory of the effect of arousal, anxiety and/or the audience on performance. (12) Description The inverted U hypothesis is a biological theory that explains sporting performance relating to arousal and anxiety. Arousal is important in sport as it can improve performance. An optimum point is reached where peak performance is achieved. Too much arousal results in a loss of physical performance. According to the Yerkes-Dodson law, moderate arousal results in optimum performance, but it really depends upon the type of sporting activity and experience level of the individual. Fine motor control sports are better performed in a low state of arousal. Complex sports are best performed in a state of low arousal. High strength/power sports are best performed in high state of arousal. Simple tasks are better performed in high arousal state.

Your evaluation must include at least one comparison with a different theory of the effect of arousal, anxiety and/or the audience on performance. (12) Evaluation Experienced sportspeople can perform well with high arousal as there is less need to focus on a well practised task. Novices practise tasks using low arousal as concentration is needed in learning a new skill. The catastrophe model points out that increases in anxiety may not result in a gradual drop in performance, as even a modest increase in anxiety can result in a lull in sporting performance following the optimal arousal level. The inverted U hypothesis can be usefully applied to help psyche up or relax a sportsperson to achieve the optimal level of arousal needed for the type of sport and individual. Experimental research to test the inverted U hypothesis has used techniques to relax or psych out an individual (threat or incentive) which may cause anxiety/ego rather than arousal. More recent multidimensional theories have tried to bridge the gap between physical arousal and cognitive factors associated with sporting performance. If skilled sportspeople need higher levels of arousal to perform, this might explain why records are broken more frequently at large important events where pressure is very high. Lowe’s (1974) Little League study found that baseball performance was better in moderate conditions rather than critical or non-critical conditions during a game, supporting optimal performance. A field study by Klavora (1978) followed a basketball team during a competition and found that coaches assessments of performance related to standing in the tournament (high or low standing led to worse performances). Can explain how an audience can have an effect on performance. The inverted U does not take into account variables associated with the audience and expectation of being viewed as evaluation apprehension theory does. Like evaluation apprehension it believes that arousal affects performance.

June 2013 D1 (a) Alan, a sports psychologist, is planning to conduct a questionnaire into motivation in sport by collecting quantitative data from a sample of sports people. Describe how Alan might go about gathering and analysing quantitative data for his questionnaire. (4)

Describe how Alan might go about gathering and analysing quantitative data for his questionnaire. (4) 4 marks Very good detail of how quantitative data might be gathered in sports psychology using a range of ideas expressed well. Replication possible given time constraints of exam. Must refer to gathering data on sporting motivation.

June 2013 (b) - Alan found a difference in motivation between different sports people. He wanted to investigate these differences further to gather more detailed information, such as how the different sports people felt about their sport. Explain how Alan might go about gathering and analysing more detailed information from the sports people. (4)

Explain how Alan might go about gathering and analysing more detailed information from the sports people. (4) 4 marks Very good detail of how qualitative data might be gathered in sports psychology using a range of ideas expressed well. Replication possible given time constraints of exam. Must refer to gathering data on sporting motivation.

June 2013 D2 - (a) During your course you will have learned about one of the following studies: Cottrell et al (1968) Koivula (1995)Craft et al (2003) (i) Describe the findings (results and/or conclusions) of one study from the list. (3) Study ................................................................................. Findings

(i) Describe the findings (results and/or conclusions) of one study from the list. (3) Koivula(1995) Most participants were sex typed from the BSRI score/eq; Most participants were stereotypical when rating sports as male or female/eq; Androgynous and undifferentiated participants from the BSRI were less likely to rate certain sports as male or female/eq; Men were more likely to sex type a sport than females/eq; The results support gender schematic information processing/eq;

(i) Describe the findings (results and/or conclusions) of one study from the list. (3) Cottrell et al (1968) Audience improved performance on non-competitional tasks in terms of speed of learning/eq; Error rate was highest with an audience on competitionaltask/eq; Slow learners produced a higher mean error rate on competitionallists than fast learners with an audience, suggesting that audience hinders performance on less proficient individuals/tasks/eq; In the second part of the study, mere-presence and audience was tested by using a blindfolded participant/eq; Mere-presence had little effect on performance but with practice it showed that audience improved performance/eq;

(i) Describe the findings (results and/or conclusions) of one study from the list. (3) Craft et al (2003) They found that only self confidence was a useful indicator of sporting performance and this was marginal/eq; The subscales alone are not useful indicators of performance, but together show a useful interrelationship/eq; They concluded that cognitive and somatic anxiety are interdependent/eq;

June 2013 (ii) Evaluate the study you have described in (a)(i) in terms of either reliability or ethics. (3)

(ii) Evaluate the study you have described in (a)(i) in terms of either reliability or ethics. (3) Koivula(1995) Reliability Questionnaires that ask a judgement of gender may either encourage traditional or modern views of gender so results may be unreliable/eq; Despite being instructed to ignore the number of males and females who play a sport, results may be unreliable as social desirability may have been in play regarding different sports/eq; The BSRI is a well established sex type inventory with a significant number of filler items to prevent demand characteristics/eq; The sample was large but biased and the attitudes of Swedish, white undergraduates many not be reliable/eq; Rating scales used by these questionnaires may reflect opinion on the day rather than an enduring attitude/eq;

(ii) Evaluate the study you have described in (a)(i) in terms of either reliability or ethics. (3) Koivula(1995) Ethics Questionnaires are voluntary and rarely raise any ethical issue regarding consent/eq; The nature of the investigation was partly masked so informed consent was not established/eq; Asking questions about sex roles and sport is not likely to lead to issues of distress/eq; Confidentiality is maintained as questionnaires can be completed and submitted anonymously/eq;

(ii) Evaluate the study you have described in (a)(i) in terms of either reliability or ethics. (3) Cottrell et al (1968) Reliability The type of performance is cognitive and unlikely to demonstrate real audience effects within sport so findings will be unreliable in comparison to real sporting performance/eq; An audience during sport is more active and encouraging (or not) so affects an athlete more than the audience in this study/eq; The sample of male undergraduates is biased and does not represent all individuals well, particularly as individual differences would have a great effect upon performance with or without an audience/eq; Laboratory based research such as this is highly controlled and repeatable to show whether the results are reliable/eq; The measures taken were objectively taken and quantifiable so avoids subjective interpretation/eq;

(ii) Evaluate the study you have described in (a)(i) in terms of either reliability or ethics. (3) Cottrell et al (1968) Ethics The participants were put under stress as some performed under audience conditions and felt they were being pressured to perform/eq; Participants were not informed about the true nature of the study/eq; The competitive groups suffered more stress as they had to make no mistakes compared to the non-competitive groups/eq;

(ii) Evaluate the study you have described in (a)(i) in terms of either reliability or ethics. (3) Craft et al (2003) Reliability The CSAI-2 may not be a useful psychometric measure of anxiety as it is context dependent so unreliable in different contexts/eq; Like any meta-analysis only comparable groups of athletes/samples/similarity of measures were used but matching for all properties is clearly not possible and variation may distort results/eq; For example some studies administered the CSAI-2 some time before the event and some immediately before/some were administered in groups and some individuals so findings may be unreliable/eq;

(ii) Evaluate the study you have described in (a)(i) in terms of either reliability or ethics. (3) Craft et al (2003) Ethics A meta analysis does not directly gather data from participants so ethical issues are minimised/eq; There was no need to gain informed consent or right to withdraw as participants had already agreed to these stipulations in the original study/eq; Meta analysis does not distress participants as secondary data is used/eq;

June 2013 (b) You have conducted a practical investigation (a content analysis or a summary of two article sources) into a key issue in sport psychology. Imagine you have been asked to present the conclusions of your practical investigation at a student conference. Explain your conclusions about the key issue using concepts, theories and/or research drawn from sport psychology. Key issue (4)

Explain your conclusions about the key issue using concepts, theories and/or research drawn from sport psychology. Key issue (4) 4 marks Thorough, clear and detailed comments about results and/or conclusions of the practical investigation concerning a key issue in sports psychology. There will be a good/detailed explanation of the findings with reference to research, theories and/or concepts drawn from the approach.

June 2013 D3 – Following a lecture on achievement motivation theory, Bella discussed alternative theories of motivation in sport with her friends. Bella explained that there were reasons for sporting motivation other than a high need for achievement. Describe one theory, other than use to explain sporting motivation to her friends and evaluate this theory. You must refer to Bella in your answer. (12)

Describe one theory, other than use to explain sporting motivation to her friends and evaluate this theory. Self efficacy (Bandura, 1977) Description Self efficacy is the belief in being able to do well that encourages self motivation. Belief in one’s ability/competence is a cognitive motivation. Self efficacy/self confidence will be sport specific. Self efficacy is dependent on past performance in a sport, so failures lower it and successes improve it, based on probability of success. Self efficacy is dependent on vicarious experience, the modellingof successful role models and belief that they can do equally well. Self efficacy is dependent on social persuasion, when coaches and others persuade /give favourable feedback concerning performance is a motivating factor. Self efficacy is dependent on perception of physiological state, which the sports person sees prematch nerves as inability compared to normality. Self efficacy is related to perceived control over destiny and performance, so low control and performance lowers motivation and vice versa. Individuals with high self efficacy will try out tasks that are above their level, persist in tasks but not prepare enough and externally attribute failures.

Describe one theory, other than use to explain sporting motivation to her friends and evaluate this theory. Self efficacy (Bandura, 1977) Evaluation Jourdenet al (1991) found that self efficacy was raised when success was attributed to individual effort rather than innate ability. Practical application suggests that athletes should be exposed to successful role models. Practical application suggests that praise and encouragement from coaches should be optimised to improve self efficacy. Schunk (1989) found that self efficacy can be improved on measures of reinforcement, modelling and goal setting in mathstasks, which has application to sports psychology. Vicarious learning is not an adequate explanation as sports requires motor skills which may not be possible. Much of the available data on self efficacy is via self report data, which may not be reliable. Correlational studies do not establish cause and effect between self efficacy and motivation/performance.

Describe one theory, other than use to explain sporting motivation to her friends and evaluate this theory. Cognitive evaluation theory (Deci and Ryan, 1985) Description CET explains the influence of external factors on internal motivation to perform well. External factors either promote or undermine intrinsic motivation. External motivators, such as prizes, increase intrinsic motivation through enhanced belief in competence. The theory explains that verbal praise over tangible rewards (which are controlling and lead to the perception of loss of control) increases intrinsic motivation. Athletes use information available from an event to judge competence and causality (eg, difficulty of race, strength of competition, conditions of race) and if they did well, based on this information, it increases intrinsic motivation. Athletes assess the controlling factor of the situation, if control was external to the athlete (eg referee decisions, team tactics) it can have a negative impact on intrinsic motivation.

Describe one theory, other than use to explain sporting motivation to her friends and evaluate this theory. Cognitive evaluation theory (Deci and Ryan, 1985) Evaluaiton The theory explains the variability in intrinsic motivation based on external factors that other motivational theories neglect to explain. The application of the theory can be used to promote intrinsic motivation through specific external rewards to promote intrinsic motivation/encouraging autonomy/engaging in activities for intrinsic reasons. Deciand Ryan’s research on puzzle solving showed increased performance when completing the puzzle for pleasure than reward. Goudas et al (1994) supports the theory by finding that children reported higher levels of intrinsic motivation when given decision making choices in a PE class compared to those classes that were teacher led decisions. Vallerandand Reid (1984) found that positive feedback over negative feedback improved college students’ performance. Kruglanskiet al (1982) studied the motivation of fifth grade children when playing games and found that tangible rewards decreased intrinsic motivation, furthermore only 2 of the children cited reward as a reason for game playing one week later. Carton refutes the negative impact of rewards and criticises the research for not controlling factors (such as temporal continuity and number of rewards given), arguing instead that rewards are legitimate and operant conditioning theory still applies. Phillips and Lord (1980) found only changes in perceived competence but not intrinsic motivation following receipt of rewards. The theory does suggest that competition (as a highly controlled activity) will have a negative impact upon intrinsic motivation, but as most sport is competitive, it is hard to apply this theory well to sporting performance.

A2 Sport Psychology