KINE/PSY 443-01 Sport Psychology
Vanguard University of Southern California
College of Arts and Sciences
Department of Kinesiology
Instructor: Lauren Walker, M.S.
Natural Science and Mathematics Bldg, #16 Office 100
lauren.walker@vanguard.edu
Office Hours: MW 10-1050am; Others by appt.
Text/Readings: Weinberg, R. & Gould D. (2007). Foundations of Sport and Exercise Psychology. Human Kinetics. Champaign:IL ISBN: 0736064672
Catalog Description: This course is designed to introduce students to the psychological aspects of sport and physical activity. From the sport perspective, emphasis will be placed on mental preparation of teams and individuals for competition. From the exercise perspective, group dynamics, motivation and exercise adherence will be covered.
Course Format: The class format includes lectures, class discussions, and student oral presentations. The evaluation process includes, exams, written and oral assignments that are evaluated by the teacher.
Vanguard University Educational Targets
Standards: Objectives/Learning Outcomes Activities (*
indicates field-based activity)
Performance assessment
Intellectual engagement
Acquire an understanding of
psychological principles related to sport and exercise participation and
performance.
Explore the unique psychological demands of the profession of coaching. Explore the coach/athlete relationship in
relation to using psychological skills training to improve performance. Explore the coach/athlete relationship in
relation to using psychological skills to improve this unique relationship.
Lecture/ discussion Classroom
learning experiences Research paper Journal
Written Exams Psychological
Skills Training Program
Research paper- Article summary Instructor
Evaluated
Sociocultural responsiveness
Understand the sociocultural and psychological differences that exist in individuals and the sport and exercise world.
Understand how these differences affect participation and performance.
To learn to integrate diversity into sport performance plans.
Lecture/ discussion
Psychological Skills Training Program
Kinesiology Program Learning Outcomes
PROGRAM LEARNING OUTCOMES: Graduates from the Department of Kinesiology will be prepared to meet the following learning outcomes
1. Identify critical issues relevant to the field of Kinesiology and educate others about the relevance of these issues to their overall health.
2. Be able to administer assessments and interpret movement and performance data from lab, clinical, and field experiences to create effective, scientifically based physical activity and sport programs that address individual, community, and society needs.
3. Enable students to read, evaluate, and synthesize information from the research literature relevant to the discipline of Kinesiology.
4. Demonstrate relevant, marketable knowledge, skills, and dispositions to successfully enter the work force, graduate programs, and the lifelong learning process
Course Requirements:
1. Assigned Readings: Read the assigned material from the text. Participate in class discussions. 2. Demonstrate knowledge on written quizzes relative to course work assigned.
3. Psychological Skills Training Project and Presentations 4. Journal article review
5. Research Paper
Evaluation:
5 Exams @ 50pts. each 250 pts
4 Article Reviews @ 15 pts. each 60 pts
Social Reinforcement Observation and Paper 20 pts Psychological Skills Training program & presentation 50 pts
In-Class Assignments/Labs 20 pts
Research paper 100 pts
Oral presentation of paper 10 pts extra credit
` 500 points
Grading: percentage of total points
A = 93%-100% A- = 90-92% B+ = 88-89%
B = 83-87% B- = 80-82% C+ = 78-79%
C = 73-77% C- =70-72% D+ =68-69%
D = 63-67% D- = 60-62% F= 59 % and below
Expectations:
All papers/assignments must be typed or computer generated and double-spaced. Papers are due at the beginning of class on the due date. Late papers will receive a 2 point penalty per day. Should the student miss class, it is the responsibility of the student to determine what was missed and be prepared for the next class period.
Students should turn off all phones prior to class, if you can’t remember then don’t bring it at all.Cell phone abuse (includes text messaging in class) will result in a loss of 2 pts from the final grade for every incidence.
Absences:
According to University policy, you may not miss more than 20% of all class sessions or your resulting grade will be Failure. This includes excused or non-excused absences. More than 8 absences whether excused or non-excused will result in an automatic F. Excused absences are for University-sponsored functions, extreme illness, other situations approved by the instructor. An excused absence allows for the make-up of missed assignments or work.
Students with 0-1 absences will receive 5 pts added to their final point total.
Tardiness: students are expected to arrive to class on time and will be dismissed on time. Excessive tardiness will be dealt with as an absence.
Disability Statement:
For students with documented medical or psychological disabilities, documented temporary illness that requires missing 1 week of classes, or documented chronic illness please contact Beth Lorance, the Coordinator of Disability Services, to request reasonable accommodations. The Coordinator of Disability Services is located in the Counseling Center on the second floor of the Scott Academic Center and can be reached at extension 5256 or by email at disabilityservices@vanguard.edu.
For students with a documented learning disability who would like to request appropriate
accommodations, please contact Barbi Rouse, the Director of Learning Skills, located upstairs in Scott Academic Center at extension 2540 or by email at barbi.rouse@vanguard.edu.
Journal Article Review (60 points total, 15 pts each):
Through the library’s journal sources, find a journal article on a sport psychology topic. Each student will carefully read the article (you may need to do several readings to fully understand it). Note the rationale for the study, its purpose, the basic method used, the results, and the discussion of the results. Unless you've had advanced statistical courses, the results section may be difficult to understand, but try to understand as much as you can. Notice that the article's abstract and the discussion section often emphasize the major findings. Answer these questions about the study:
What was the purpose of the study?
How was the study conducted? (Who were the subjects? What did the subjects do?) What was found in the study?
What are the limitations of the study?
Did the author(s) acknowledge the limitations of the study? Did the results and discussion seem consistent? Explain. What implications do the study's findings have for us?
If you were conducting research in this area, what would be the next study you would conduct based on the outcome of this study? That is, where do we go from here?
Remember the following about doing a critique of this study: This is not an ARTICLE SUMMARY, it is a CRITIQUE!
In your critique, don't just focus on the negative aspects of the study. Rather, try to present a balanced view of the study's strengths and limitations.
Psychological Skills Training Program and Presentation (50 points)
Each group will select one aspect of psychological skills training (arousal regulation, imagery,
self-confidence, goal setting, concentration) and develop a program to teach and implement their specific skill for a sports team. Each presentation should be 15-20 min and should include visual aids. A 5 page paper must be turned in to accompany the presentation reviewing applicable literature (5 sources) and describing the methods used in their psychological skills training program.
Social-Reinforcement Observation and Paper (20 pts.)
This assignment provides experience in these areas: (a) observing instruction of a group's physical activity and then coding an instructor's behavior using the Coaching Behavior Assessment System (CBAS); (b) describing and evaluating the instructor's behavior; and (c) integrating and applying your knowledge of sport and exercise psychology to a practical setting. Specifically, this project consists of an observation-coding session and a written paper, as follows.
Select a physical activity instructor (teacher, coach, fitness leader, or athletic trainer) to observe working in a group setting (the instructor should be working with four or more individuals during your observation period). Explain to the instructor that you must observe a group or a team for a university class you're taking. Arrange with the instructor a date and time to observe an entire activity session. During this session you'll code the instructor’s behavior for at least 25 minutes.
Become very familiar with the CBAS before attending your observation session! At the session, review the categories before you attempt to code behavior. Try to get a feel for the behaviors before you begin your coding. Position yourself so you can both see and hear the instructor. Use the CBAS coding sheet (also see p. 211 of the textbook) to record the instructor's behavior toward the individuals she or he is working with.
For each behavior, place a mark next to the appropriate category. Become familiar with each category so that you recognize the behavior and immediately code it. If you deliberate too long, you may lose track of other behaviors. Code these categories:
Specific positive reinforcement: when an instructor positively reinforces a single player or student General positive reinforcement: when an instructor positively reinforces the team or class
Specific negative reinforcement: when an instructor negatively reinforces a single player or student General negative reinforcement: when an instructor negatively reinforces a team or class
Specific technical instruction: when an instructor instructs a player or student General technical instruction: when an instructor instructs the team or class
Keeping control: when an instructor has to correct misbehavior or other breaches of discipline, other than class- or game-related behaviors
Organization: when an instructor instructs players or students concerning organizational chores (e.g., pick up bats or take a particular formation)
After you have completed your observation session, tally the totals in each of the categories. Record each category total as well as the grand total. Use these totals to determine the percentages for each behavioral category. Turn in your recording sheet with your paper.
Based on your observation and what you have learned about reinforcement principles, write a three- to five-page paper, typing double-spaced pages with 1-inch margins. Include the following four sections in your paper:
1. An introductory paragraph describing the situation, activity, age group, skill or ability level, and any other pertinent circumstances of the instructional environment you observed.
2. Discussion of the types and frequencies of responses given by the instructor toward the participants' behaviors; use your discretion in organizing this portion, but the discussion should be clear and should be based on the data you obtained (i.e., I should know what the instructor was like without looking at the coding sheet). In writing up your discussion, consider these questions:
What behaviors did you observe most frequently? Why? What were the least frequent behaviors? Why?
Based on the activity-level index, was this instructor effective? What was the ratio of positive to negative reinforcements? What was the ratio of specific to general reinforcements?
You might choose to add many other comparisons and questions. Be sure to support all of your points with data from your observations (in percentages).
3. Recommendations regarding the instructor's reinforcement behaviors; given your knowledge of sport and exercise psychology and your professional knowledge, what would you tell this instructor about his or her style of offering feedback?
4. A summary paragraph that ties the whole paper together.
Sport Psychology Project: (120 pts; 10 possible points extra crediting for presenting project in class) Each student must create a course project. The topic and type of project is up to the discretion of the student, but must be approved by course professor no later than March 2.
Examples of projects are as
follows:
Write a research paper on an athlete that overcame psychological problems: Case Study approach. If you know the person, then interviews should be conducted.
Write a report on the psychological skills training program used in an Olympic or Professional athletic program.
Choose a psychological theory not covered in the book and write about how it would apply to working with athlete. Utilize this theory in designing a counseling program.
Choose one of the non-performance enhancement related topics and write a research paper on the topic and a suggested intervention program for the issue (i.e. aggression, character development, eating disorders, use/abuse of drugs; use/abuse of performance enhancing drugs; recovery from injury; youth sport issues/competition; burnout in coaching or athletes; others…)
Typical Topics:
Individuals & Team Development:
Personality Motivation
Feedback, Reinforcement Self-fulfilling Prophecy
Goal orientation & self-regulation Group Dynamics
Group Cohesion Leadership skills Communication skills
Performance Enhancement:
Arousal, Stress, Anxiety
Psychological Skills Training programs Pre-performance routines
Arousal Regulation Imagery
Self-confidence
Goal Setting
Concentration & Attention
Performance inhibition:
Choking; self-handicapping; procrastination & perfectionism; learned helplessness
Athletic injuries & psychology
Addictive behaviors: eating disorders, performance enhancers When to refer athletes for counseling
Aggression
Burnout and overtraining
General:
Exercise behavior and adherence Youth development
Character development
Career transition among athletes Gender, ethnic, & cultural differences
