In spite of the perceived general understanding of sport psychology and the mental side of the game, I find that many people have little understanding of what we do. Perhaps it is one of those phrases that we hear so often, we assume we understand it, but eventually realize we don't.
Regardless, sport psychology generally teaches that improving one's mental skills – such as confidence, resilience, calm under pressure and much more – will lead to better performance. However, it covers so much more than just performance enhancement.
Acknowledging that I will certainly miss some uses for sport and performance psychology, here are some of the many ways sport psychology professionals work with teams, individuals and cultures (Note: I'll be using the terms "sport psychology professional" and "performance consultant" interchangeably here. "Sport psychologist" only refers to someone with a Ph.D in psychology or sport psychology and does not encompass everyone working in the profession).
This is the crux of the field. A sport psychology professional is a great fit for anyone who wants to get better. One common misconception regarding sport psych is the notion that it is only for mentally weak athletes. That couldn't be farther from the truth. To me, that's akin to saying that the only people who should lift weights are physically weak people. Maybe only bad passers should work on their technique and only bad shooters should get extra reps in.
The reality is that extra practice, greater self-awareness, new and refined mental skills and all the other things one learns working with a sport psych consultant can help anyone, regardless of the mentality they're starting with.
Further, this can occur on a team or individual level. A coach may use a sport psychology professional to teach a skill to the entire team or work on one aspect of the culture. An athlete, however, might work also with a mental
performance consultant individually to improve their confidence. Ideally, a team is able to use a consultant for both teamwide and individual work. Either way, performance enhancement is the name of the game!
In some sports, mental work is built into the curriculum that all coaches use to teach. In many sports, the mental side gets ignored. If your sport ignores the mental side of the game, consider taking matters into your own hands by working with a sport psychology professional yourself.
Positive Youth DevelopmentPositive youth development uses sports to build resilience, and other life skills, in young athletes. Much like the father in
this Calvin and Hobbes comic strip, PYD focuses less on pristine performance and more on character development. Positive youth development programs come in all forms and are easily accessible through local community centers and gyms. You'll often find sport psych professionals around them. They create the programs in addition to ensuring the targets are being met and work directly with the young athletes. These programs provide mentorship, a safe place to exercise and build friendships, opportunities for leadership development, resilience training and much, much more.
Additionally, a mental performance consultant can likely help build some of these tenants into a high school or other competitive sport program.
Mental Health of AthletesThe flip side of improving performance, and often related, is working with athletes on mental health. Many organizations now hire therapists with backgrounds in athletics or sport psychology to help their athletes with depression, eating disorders and much more.
This is a different role than performance enhancement. Simplified, therapy centers on helping someone return to normal performance from subnormal, while sport psychology focuses on turning normal performance into excellent performance.
To continue the metaphor about strength and conditioning, a general therapist is more like a physical therapist, helping someone through an injury, while a mental performance consultant is like a strength coach, improving an athlete's baseline. Both are extremely important, and the rise of mental health awareness in sport has increased the role for therapy and counseling.
However, note that differences exist.
Health and WellnessA growing field, as people tend to enjoy being healthy these days. Mental performance consultants offer a unique perspective to health and wellness, as their tips for healthy living often involve altering thoughts, changing mindsets, advanced goal setting, motivational tricks and more.
Most should have basic knowledge of other sport sciences and can work in conjunction with ATs, nutritionists, PTs and other sport figures. Thus, a sport psychology professional can add a mental component to an offseason health program or general in-season health guidelines.
Other WorkYou may find a sport psych professional working on organizations and culture, either in or outside of sports. Trained to think in terms of optimizing success, it is not uncommon for sport psych professionals to bring their same lessons to companies in consulting roles. You may also spot them conducting mental performance work with other types of performers, like speakers, musicians, actors, students and more.
I often encourage athletes I work with to utilize their skills in other walks of life, such as using a breathing technique during a test. I'd be remiss if I didn't acknowledge researchers, writers, coaches, athletic trainers and many other people who work with sport psychology professionals, as well.
Connor Hartley is a mental performance consultant from Tacoma, Washington. He teaches mental skills to athletes, musicians, students and other types of performers, including elite athletes in soccer, basketball and golf. Hartley has a master’s degree in mental health counseling with a focus in sport psychology from Boston University and a bachelor’s in psychology from Loyola Marymount University. Reach him on Facebook (Hartley Performance) Twitter (@connorhartleySP) or via email at chartley@bu.edu.
