Sailing Progression

The 1993 film The Program contained several different situations in which sports psychology could have been applied. Some of these situations include pressure and anxiety, aggression and the effect of injury. All three of these situations were important to this film and all have the underlying need for sports psychology.

Sports—which involve emotion, competition, cooperation, achievement, and play—provide a rich area for psychological study. People involved in sports attempt to master very difficult skills, often subjecting themselves to intense physical stress as well as social pressure. research has expanded into numerous areas such as imagery training, hypnosis, relaxation training, motivation, socialization, conflict and competition, counseling, and coaching. Specific sports and recreational specialties studied include baseball, basketball, soccer,

Sports psychology deals with the mental and emotional aspects of physical performance. It involves describing, explaining and predicting attitudes, feelings and behaviours in an attempt to improve performance. In the film 'Coach Carter,' directed by Thomas Carter, sport psychology is used effectively to enhance the performance of a high school basketball team. However, this improved performance is not limited to the basketball court, it extends into the classroom where the students use goal setting, motivation, concentration and confidence control, ultimately to become accepted into college, avoiding a life of drugs, gangs and prison.

When people go on cruise trips, one of the reasons they intend to enjoy their time off is to experience the sights and sounds of the open sea. In Annie Dillard’s Mornings Like This, she includes in her collection of found poems a poem that instills a similar vivid sense of imagery that one would experience by the ocean. Her found poem, called “The Pathfinder of the Seas,” includes a variety of words and sentences that relate to sailing in the sea. They were extracted from other books related to scientific research of the sky and the sea. The author brings together these distinct elements and structures them in a poem. This gives them a new home and, subsequently, gives the work a new meaning. Her goal for the reader is to question their previous knowledge and find a new perspective on life through the interactions with the sea in her poem.

There are over 450,000 athletes competing at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) level across 24 different sports in the United States (NCAA, 2012). What psychological qualities separate the successful student athlete from the non-successful student athlete (i.e., a student athlete who completes their eligibility and graduates, or gets drafted into the professional level)? We know sport psychology and mental performance training can assist athletes in achieving peak performance by teaching confidence, goal setting, imagery, mental toughness, how to deal with pressure, relaxation, positive self-talk and more (Shemake, 2014). This study aims to identify if certain student athletes posses some of these characteristics without

The field of sports psychology is only beginning. A short while ago in 1898 an experiment that was conducted by Norman Triplett successfully discovered a positive correlation between a biker’s performance and a social component or audience. Since then the only major progress has been the sports psychology lab established at the University of Illinois in 1925. The man responsible for the lab Coleman Griffith has also offered courses that teach the nature of sports psychology. Griffith’s research focuses on the factors that effect athletic performance such as “reaction time, mental awareness, muscular tension and relaxation, and personality”. Fortunately, a new study has surfaced the Psychology

Despite the in-depth analysis of these athletes’ personal narratives, Hurley’s (2014) study also had several limitations. First, the sample size was small. Second, all findings were exclusively obtained from the interviews, as there were no quantitative measures used. Third, no follow-up information was provided. Therefore, Hurley’s (2014) findings are not generalizable to all athletes.

I can not remember a summer when I was not sailing. Every year for eleven years, I eagerly awaited the coming season where I would compete against hundreds of other sailors from all over the world. When I was in 9th grade, I also joined my high school team and quickly became the starting A division crew.

One of the most significant experiences in my life is being a member and volunteer of the Junior Shipmate program, a program that pairs Special Olympic Athletes and able-bodied children and teaches them how to sail. I’ve been apart of this wonderful program for an amazing 14 years, learning life lessons through the sport of sailing. Most of our time is spent on the water stressing safety, teamwork, good seamanship and positive attitude. Not only has this program shaped me into a leader but also a leader in my community and to all those around me as well.

Hoar cites Graham Jones (1991) as proposing the direction dimension of perceived anxiety, which relates to the translation of perceived anxiety to either debilitative or facilitative behaviour. Simply, athletes differ in the way they handle anxiety, some athletes perceive anxiety as a sign of readiness, and others perceive it as a reason to believe they are unable to perform at a high level. Jones’ proposal is highlighted in an article by Martinant and Ferrant (2007) which aims to find meaning groups of athletes based on intensity, direction, and frequency of anxiety.

To this day, I can recall every gruesome detail that happened on that single boat trip. Every smell. Every cry. Every death. Everything. Those days have changed my life. Once a free man living amongst my brothers’ in our home in Africa, to a chained man living amongst my masters.

If I was forced to choose a field in Psychology, I would most likely choose to be a sports psychologist. According to the American Psychologist Association, a sports psychologist will, “Help athletes refine their focus on competition goals, become more motivated, and learn to deal with the anxiety and fear of failure that often accompany competition (American Psychological Association, 2016, para. 2).” This would be my prefered field because I could somewhat connect with my patients since I am very active in sports and other competitive activities. If I was in this field, then I would be able to best help because I have known the intense feelings of stress and anxiety that comes along with a serious sport and I could be able to communicate

This paper was written as an exercise to determine the characteristics of my best and worst performances as an athlete. As an athlete growing up, I never experienced “flow” as described in sport psychology. I grew up before the term sport psychology was common. However, I was a professional athlete as a warrior and fighter pilot flying the most maneuverable fighter jet ever conceived and it is still, to this date, the only jet in history that can sustain 9Gs and accelerate. This was my sport as an athlete for over 17 years of a 23 year career flying fighter jets. I lost a friends and I’ve witnessed three F-16 crashes. I’ve studied human factors and written proactive safety articles to try and find solutions to prevent accidents. In

From a psychological perspective the Melbourne Cup stay served an important role in the development of self-identity and personal empowerment. Optional to attend, the stay was the result of personal choice and provided an opportunity to exercise self-determination and enhance positive self-image (Brown & Brown, 2009, pp. 11, 12). The stay supported psychological health where restricted opportunities for personal growth otherwise exist (Patterson & Pegg, 2009, pp. 388, 392), and through positive social interactions with peers the thoughts,

In addition to my interests in psychology, I will bring my background in swimming to the University. For as long as I can remember, swimming has been a big part of my life, and I have been swimming competitively for over eight years. I plan to continue swimming during my college years. When I toured University?s new sports complex, I was thoroughly impressed by the magnificent Olympic-sized pool. After speaking with the swim coach, I