Importance of Mental Toughness in Sport

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Introduction to Mt in sport

Top level sport is characterized by a demand to excel at optimal levels while performing under conditions that are considered extremely demanding. The pursuit for performance excellence in sport encompasses the continuing development of four key facets of performance, namely physical, technical, tactical, and mental skills. However, when physical, technical, and tactical skills are evenly matched, which commonly occurs in competition especially at the highest level , performers who possess more of what is commonly referred to as ‘‘mental toughness’’ appear to prevail more often than those with less mental toughness (Gucciardi, Gordon, & Dimmock, 2008). Psychological attributes such as self-confidence and
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mental toughness in sport is a somewhat new and growing area of sport psychology research, having caught the imagination of both the general sporting public and the academic community. In fact, there are currently only a handful of peer reviewed studies which have examined this psychological construct (Bull, Shambrook, James,& Brooks, 2005; Fourie & Potgieter, 2001; Jones, Hanton, & Connaughton, 2002, 2007; Thelwell, Weston, & Greenlees, 2005). Although impressive and providing some insight into the complexity of this phenomenon, research on this apparently desirable construct has been inadequate as it has focused only on describing the key characteristics and outcomes of mental toughness (Gordon, Gucciardi, & Chambers, 2007). To enable both conceptual and applied advancements, more research was needed to better understand both mental toughness outcomes and processes. For example, research has failed to understand when these characteristics are required, what they enable a mentally tough athlete to do, and what overt behaviours mentally tough athletes characteristically exhibit
(Gucciardi & Gordon, 2008). (Has this issue been addressed??)

Defining mt in football
There have been very few studies into mental toughness in football, recently Thelwell and Weston (2005) sought to define mental

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