preview

The Problem With Mental Toughness Essay

Decent Essays

Mental toughness is not a new concept in sport, but is generally misunderstood. Coaches design programmes to develop mentally tough athletes, predominately in professional sport, to separate elite performers from good performers (Gould, Jackson, & Finch, 1993) as physical talent itself is not the only component that can lead an athlete to success (Gucciardi, Gordon, & Dimmock, 2008).
The main problems with mental toughness are the inconsistency of its definition, and a lack of research into clearly defining mental toughness and what attributes are required to be mentally tough (Jones et al, 2002). The earliest definition of mental toughness was provided by Cattell (1957), suggesting mental toughness was an important personality trait, supported by Kroll (1967). Loehr (1982, 1986, 1994) attempted to define mental toughness, suggesting “mental toughness is the ability to use energy positively during crises and the possession of positive attitudes towards challenging and demanding situations”, although this definition lacked scientific definition regarding positive attitudes (Crust, 2007).
Jones et al. (2002, 2007) has contributed to the understanding of mental toughness and its definition. Utilising qualitative methods to interview 10 elite athletes in a three-stage process, consisting of a focus group, interviews, and a rank order task. The focus group consisted of three athletes with the goal to define what mental toughness is and identify attributes of what they believed

Get Access