Psychological preparation for Archery

1. Psychological preparation for Archery Tsung-Min Hung, Ph.D. National Taiwan Normal University

2. A little bit more about myself • Ph.D. University of Maryland, College Park. Specialize in Sport & Exercise Psychology, 1996 • Professor, Department of Physical Education, National Taiwan Normal University • Pesident, SSEPT • Treasure, ISSP • Member of Sport Science Committee, ITTF • Sport psychologist for Chinese Taipei athletes for Olympic and Asian Games

3. Main topics • Factors affect sport performance • Psychological characteristics of peak performance • Introduction to psychological skill training (stress management, concentration, self-confidence)

4. Physiological factors Technique/Strategy Sport performance Psychological factors

5. Psychological characteristics of peak performance • Loss of fear • Focused on the present • Confident/Optimistic • In control • Enjoyment • Total immersion in the activity • Effortless performance

6. Psychological skill training • Definition:A training process that applies psychological skills to assist athlete’s performance and personal growth. • Philosophy:Improvement = win • Function:perform to your level realize your potentials

7. Psychological skill training • Principles: 1.A long-term training process 2.Education orientation 3.Individualized program 4.Trust and support by coaches and athletes

8. Self-awareness • Be aware of your physiological, psychological, technical, strategic, and environmental conditions. • Understand your strength and weakness for skill development • Understand your emotion states for effective emotion management • Understand your arousal level for appropriate arousal management • Examine your goal for enhancing motivation

9. Conditions lead to stress • Stress: a substantial imbalance b/t demand (physical and/or psychological) and response capability, under conditions where failure to meet that demand has important consequences. • Results of stress: muscle tension and deterioration of coordination Narrowing of attention focus

10. Relationship between arousal and performance

11. Cognitive reconstruction • Unreasonable reasonable thoughts • Self-defeating Self-reinforcement thoughts • Negative Positive thoughts • Passive Active thoughts

12. Relaxation training • Progressive muscle relaxation training • Biofeedback training • Imagery training • Meditation

13. HR biofeedback training

14. Attention in game • Internal distracters: 1.Attending to past events 2.Attending to future events 3.Overanalyzing body mechanics 4.Fatigue

15. Attention in game • External distracters: 1.Visual distracters 2.Auditory distracters 3.Gamesmanship

16. Exercises for improving concentration • Learning to shift attention • Parking thoughts • Learning to maintain focus • Searching for relevant cues

17. Learning to shift attention • Pay attention to what you hear • Become aware of body sensation • Turn attention to your thoughts and emotions • Open your eyes, pick an object directly in front of you, practice zooming in and out.

18. Parking thoughts • This exercise is effective in eliminating negative, intruding thoughts. • Use visualization to identify unwanted thoughts, write it down on paper, and place this paper in some other place(parking). • Upon completion of the performance, the athlete can go back and deal with the issue by “unparking” it.

19. Searching for relevant cues • Searching the number（30/min is good）

20. Tips for improving concentration on site • Use simulations in practice • Use cue words • Establish routine • Develop competition plans • Practice eye control • Stay focus in the present • Overlearn skills

21. Dos for building self-confidence1 • Do maintain a high positive precompetitive environment. • Do have high expectations of all your participants. • Do set realistic but challenging short- and long-term goals..

22. Dos for building self-confidence2 • Do provide lots of contingent, positive feedback and praise. • Do structure the environment to provide early success. • Do try to find individuals doing something right (as opposed to just looking for their mistakes).

23. Don’ts for building self-confidence1 • Don’t use sarcasm and put-downs to motivate people. • Don’t allow teammates or group members to belittle other team or group members. • Don’t criticize individuals for inconsequential mistakes or errors. • Don’t embarrass and criticize individuals at the first sight of a mistake. • Don’t criticize the person, criticize the behavior.

24. Goal setting • Outcome goal: focus on a competitive result of an event, such as winning a game, earning a medal, or scoring more points than an opponent. Vs • Performance goal: Focus on achieving performance objectives independently of other competitors, usually making comparisons with one’s own previous performance.

25. Principles of goal setting • Set specific goals • Set moderately difficult but realistic goals • Set long- and short-term goals • Set performance and outcome goals • Set practice and competition goals • Develop goal-achievement strategies • Evaluate goals

26. Thanks for your attention • Tsung-Min Hung, Ph.D. • Email:ernesthungkimo@yahoo.com.tw • Tel:+886-2-77343202