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Task Versus Social Orientation Paper

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My big takeaway from this class is the concepts and applications surrounding task versus social orientation. Extreme task orientation might be an athlete who is exclusively focused on athletic objectives. This kind of athlete might only find value in achievement (individual and team), personal statistics, and attaining personal and team goals (Anshel, 2012). An athlete like this may benefit from goal-setting interventions because of the clarity and satisfaction of realizing the objectives. The social component of athletics might be irrelevant or even burdensome to this kind of athlete. The lack of interest in social connections associated with sport may be a drawback to coaches and other team members whom are more socially orientated. Extreme social orientation might be an athlete who derives a …show more content…

There may be a great importance is identifying where on the task versus social orientation spectrum an athlete is. If an SPC is working with a predominately task orientated athlete, they might not respond as well to particular kinds of interventions (team building exercises, for example). The same might be true for a strict socially orientated athlete asked to apply a more task orientated intervention such as independent goal-setting. Recognizing task versus social orientation can be particularly relevant when trying to improve communication between athlete and coaches, athletes and athletes, and coaches and coaches. A socially focused individual might respond negatively to a strict task focused communication construct. For example, “you need to tighten up your routes” may not be the best way to talk with a socially orientated NFL player. This kind of player might respond better to “listen, you’re playing great out there and you are definitely an asset to this team. What do you say we work together and see if we can tighten up your

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