Psychological advice for parents of athletes. What is sports psychology, when and why does an athlete need a psychologist? Question negative statements

25.05.2010 10:55

Athletes of childhood are increasingly coming to the attention of sports psychologists and psychiatrists. It is noted that historically, psychiatrists have not dealt with the developmental features characteristic of children-athletes. The main subject of study has always been the physical and motor aspects of development. But often it is precisely such things as non-inclusion in a team and a drop in self-esteem that have a decisive influence on the future fate of sports. Recently, many specialists have become concerned about the appearance of a negative phenomenon associated with an unreasonably early choice of a "narrow" sports specialization. Increasingly, coaches began to involve too young people and children in elite sports. Athletic professionals recognize the detrimental effects of this early engagement from an ethical, physiological and educational perspective. Indispensability and necessity of physical activity for

the child's life activity is not in doubt, but it is important to remember that there is an optimum for each age. Locomotor activity below the optimum leads to a delay in growth and development, as well as to a decrease in the working and adaptive capabilities of the developing organism, and pronounced hypokinesia leads to changes that relate to pre-pathological and pathological conditions. At the same time, excessive mobility (sports hyperkinesia) can lead to
the emergence of a specific complex of functional disorders and clinical changes, primarily from the central nervous system, neuroregulatory apparatus, cardiovascular, endocrine and immune systems, which requires the termination of sports training and the provision of serious medical care.

To achieve world-class results, the modern athlete needs to turn himself into a training machine that conducts two or three workouts a day, serving these results and minimizing any other activity - study, work, creativity, family. Today's results in all sports have grown so much that only athletes who narrowly specialized at a very early age will be able to achieve the level of highest achievements, especially in team sports. For some sports (for example, gymnastics), the age of 20 is already close to the veteran age. Despite the increase in athletic longevity, a real increase in results after 30 years is possible only in endurance activities. There is a certain constant, a constant value of different training experience in different sports, due to the biological laws of the development of human motor qualities in ontogenesis, different periods of specialization and age ranges of maximum achievements in different types of physical exercises. For gymnastics, swimming, fencing, figure skating, tennis, the optimal age for starting classes is 7-9 years; for basketball, trampoline, skiing and sailing - 9-11 years old; for wrestling, water flooring, volleyball, rowing, speed skating, athletics, diving, modern pentathlon, football, hockey - 10-11 years; for tobogganing, shooting, archery, kayaking and canoeing - 11-12 years old; for cycling, boxing - 12-13 years old. Specialization (educational and training sessions) begins after initial training from 8 to 15 years old, depending on the type of sport. The earliest specialization is in swimming (from 8 years old), gymnastics, tennis, figure skating (from 9 years old), the latest is in boxing, cycling, weightlifting (from 14 years old).

In addition to the negative impact of early specialization, the attention of specialists is attracted by special pathological patterns of behavior that are formed both in the youngest athlete and in his environment. Characterizing the personality of a young athlete, there is an extremely strong dependence of his self-esteem on success or failure in the competition arena. Being almost the only and certainly the leading and dominant type of activity in which the child is involved, sports activity forms a special value structure of the personality, when each failure becomes a significant blow to the young athlete's idea of ​​himself as worth something. Further research requires such urgent problems as cruelty and aggression in children's sports, as well as the study of the course of mental states in children-athletes that are close to pathological, but widespread among children, such as fears, anxiety and other emotional problems, as well as phenomena retardation and acceleration.

Speaking about pathological patterns in the behavior of people around a young athlete, it is necessary to mention the so-called "achievement through an intermediary" - a syndrome that covers a wide range of behavior of parents and coaches, from normal pride to exploitation and cruelty. As an object through which parents and coaches realize their ambitions, expressed in the phrase of one coach “I cannot miss my chance to raise a great athlete”, children bear the burden of responsibility to their environment and are constantly exposed to stress caused by an artificial developmental situation characterized by strict restrictions in those types of activities that are basic for the child, namely play, communication and educational.

Kirill Smirnov

02.06.2010 10:11

The accuracy of assessing and measuring time intervals depends, in addition to the biological cycles of the body, on the functional state and experience, as shown in the work of M.Yu. Shirokoy, on fitness, as demonstrated in the study of S.G. Gellerstein, on the motivation and conditions of the task, as evidenced by the data obtained by V.A. Sadovy, "from the consistency of the subjective unit of account with the accepted unit of measurement of time."

The use of various methods for assessing the perception of time in a person in professional activity seems to be promising in the diagnosis of fatigue. So for a long time, the measurement of the accuracy of perception and reproduction of micro-intervals of time has been used in sports to assess the emotional tension of an athlete. The test is as follows: the athlete is given a stopwatch and is first asked to measure 7 seconds and at the same time count to himself, checking the pace of his account. After that, no longer looking at the stopwatch, he should measure the time interval equal to 7 seconds. This is repeated several times. Moderate emotional tension is evidenced by the shortening of the measurement by 0.5-1.4 s compared to the results obtained at rest. Stronger acceleration indicates an excessive level of tension. Slowing down of the report by more than 1.4-2 s.

In recent work Igelman presented a block of tests taking into account the peculiarities of the flow of time (TTB - Texas Temporal Battery). It is hoped that a unit of small tests may be effective in testing fatigue, fitness for work, and even brain damage. The fact is that the process of time perception is associated with the work of many areas of the brain, and therefore, even simple tasks for the perception of time can reveal pathology. The tests, developed or modified by Egelman, are based on the principles of the human visual analyzer and include 3 tests that measure 7 different parameters of the brain for the perception of information over time. The first test is for the speed of distinguishing between alternative images. When an image and its negative are presented to a person on the screen at a very fast pace, the person does not see anything. The duration below which two events are perceived as one is called (1) a window of simultaneity. When the brain is fatigued or damaged, the fusion window can increase.

The second test is a simple computer game. On the screen - a 3 * 3 matrix filled with squares. They are all red except for one green. When the subjects click on the green square, it jumps to another position. Sometimes the square jumps to another position even before the subject has clicked on the square. If the subject thinks that the square has jumped to another position before its action, he should have reported this by pressing the spacebar. Thus, the second test measured not only (2) reaction time but also (3) "veto" time- the time between spontaneously jumping over the square and then clicking on the square. Also in this test was measured (4) temporary variable of causality- that is, the time between spontaneous jumping over the square and pressing the key, at which the subjects believe that the movement happened spontaneously, and not through their fault. In an additional series of this test, the square jumped to another position only 200 ms after the subject's action. This is the so-called delayed series. It allows you to measure (5) speed of recalibration of temporal parameters of causality.

The third test is aimed at determining the differences in the assessment of the duration of repetitive and new stimuli. The subject looks at the fixation cross in the center of the screen. Stimuli appear around in turn in different places. Due to the perceptual constancy phenomenon, stimuli that last less than 100ms are perceived as lasting about 100ms. That is why a person perceives on the screen not one stimulus, but several. This number for the same stimuli and different is different and characterizes the characteristics of the subjects. So in a recent study, it was shown that the differences between the perception of the duration of the same and different stimuli are erased in patients with schizophrenia.

To some extent, the first and second tests of this battery are a modification of the standard test for the critical flicker fusion frequency (CFF). The KChSM method has been known and used for a long time. It characterizes the general FS of the body at various levels of general physical load, is an informative, simple and accessible physiological indicator for assessing the performance and intensity of the load. It has been experimentally established that under the influence of physical exertion the CFFF changes, therefore, observation of the CFSP dynamics makes it possible to judge the degree of body fatigue. However, it has been proven that CFFF is a multifactorial indicator of the psychophysiological state, reflecting the current level of CNS activation. A decrease in the CFFF value indicates the development of fatigue in the central nervous system and the body as a whole, an increase in the presence of excitement or stress, therefore, an adequate assessment and interpretation of CFFF requires additional factors to be taken into account. At the same time, it was experimentally revealed that changes in CFFS during fatigue do not exceed 2-3 Hz, and the transition from the visibility of light flashes to their fusion is blurred and constitutes a zone of uncertainty, on average equal to 1 Hz, which determines the low accuracy of the CFFS method. Therefore, there is a need to find more accurate methods to control the development of athlete's fatigue during training. Taking into account these shortcomings, a new psychophysiological method was proposed for determining the temporal parameters characterizing the inertia of vision, in particular, the recovery time of the visual system - the time between the moment the effect of light on the retina ceases and the moment the corresponding visual sensation disappears. To determine the recovery time, the subject is presented with paired light pulses with a duration of t impulses, separated by an interpulse interval t, repeated at a constant time interval T. During the measurement, the duration of the interpulse interval t pores is determined, at which the subject has a subjective sensation of the fusion of two pulses in a pair into one, equal to the recovery time of the visual system. It is assumed that the method for determining the recovery time of the visual analyzer is a more reliable and comfortable method in comparison with the CFFS method. However, this test is not devoid of a share of subjectivity, since it can simply reflect a different criterion for making a decision. Also, this test can be deliberately cheated. All these disadvantages have been overcome in the Texas battery. Thus, the tests of the Texas Temporary Battery have great potential for use in sports psychology.

08.06.2010 10:52

Technologies have been developed to improve human life support on the basis of comprehensive genetic and virological testing of athletes of the Olympic reserve, including the analysis of genetic variations. drugs and antidepressants.

25.05.2010 10:53

The term psychophysiology combines two seemingly completely different worlds: the world of physiology, bodily-material, and the world of the soul, psychic. Psychophysiology is a branch of psychology that studies the biological components of mental activity. The applied field of sports psychophysiology is still poorly differentiated. Its main task is to apply the basic knowledge and methods accumulated and developed within the framework of psychophysiology for the needs of sports.

At the very beginning of the Sports Psychology course taught at Stonebridge University, it is argued that understanding the connection between the body and the psyche in sports is key to the preparation of successful athletes. And it is precisely the relationship of the body and the psyche with its application to sports that is the main topic of the study of sports psychology. Sports psychophysiology is trying to reveal the connections between the psyche and the brain and offer its own methods of influencing both physiological and mental processes. Thus, it turns out that without knowledge of sports psychophysiology, competent supervision of athletes is impossible, it is impossible to become an effective sports psychologist.

Moreover, in history there have been cases when it was psychophysiological studies of the brain that led to a change in the rules in sports. So when studying 14 boxers, it was found that among them 6 people have EEG abnormalities, which may be a consequence of brain damage. A few years later, this served as the basis for the introduction of new provisions in the boxing rules. Similar studies have been carried out for football players. They state the potential danger of micro-concussions that occur when the ball is bounced off the head. These studies highlight the important social significance of psychophysiological research in sports.

Promising areas of sports psychophysiology are psychophysiological diagnostics of individual characteristics of athletes and their functional state, as well as the development and application of methods for managing their state by influencing their physiological processes.

In the section "Modules of Sports Psychology" materials of research and experiments in the field of psychophysiology will be posted. The experts of the Center will comment and analyze the topics and problems proposed for discussion.

Olga Sysoeva

02.06.2010 10:20

The question of what the ethical problems of sports psychology are should begin with a description of the concepts of theoretical ethics. Ethics (from the Greek word "ethos" - temper, character) is a branch of philosophy, the object of study of which is morality. The word "morality" comes from the Latin word "moris" and has the same meaning as "morality" in Russian and "Sittlichkeit" in German. It should also be noted that the word "ethics" originally meant the same as "moral", but now it is used to refer to the field of science. Ethical theories are generally divided into three main areas: metaethics, normative ethics, and applied ethics.

Metaethics (analytical ethics) is a direction of ethical research that analyzes ethics itself as a scientific discipline using the methods of logical-linguistic analysis.

Normative ethics aims at more practical goals, which are to achieve moral standards that can regulate right and wrong behavior. In a sense, it is a search for the ideal principle of proper behavior. Before acting, a person must consider their responsibilities (usually in the form of principles or rights) to others in their interactions with them. The normative system of ethical principles is based on a kind of Super-Rule, Super-Due. The Golden Rule of Morality is a classic example of the normative principle: "Do to others as you want to be treated to you." It means that people must act in accordance with a certain rule, a duty, which is obligatory for fulfillment in any circumstances. As an example, we can also cite Kant with his famous categorical imperative - "act as if the maxim of your action through your will were to become a universal law of nature." Thus, normative ethical theory establishes a single principle on the basis of which any action is considered.

Applied Ethics is the department of ethics that studies practical moral issues and analyzes specific contentious moral issues. In recent years, the main areas of applied ethics have been divided into groups, such as medical ethics, sports ethics, business ethics, environmental ethics, etc. Here ethics is understood as a system of principles, a set of rules or standards that determine behavior in the field of a certain type of activity. Particular attention is paid to visible deviations from general moral norms, which are dictated by the originality of the profession. For example, in the classical relationship between a psychologist and a patient, the most important responsibility of a doctor is the patient's well-being, but with the emergence of a third stakeholder - a team, a coach, a sponsor, the interests of the patient-athlete may fade into the background, or even not be taken into account at all.

Research into the ethical aspect of the work of a sports psychologist is devoted to the study of issues such as the organizational context in which the work is carried out; relationships with colleagues, with clients; confidentiality of information received by the psychologist; the place of consultation meetings (in the case of a sports psychologist, this does not always happen in a separate specially equipped room). Special attention is devoted to the issues of establishing wages by a psychologist for his services. According to K. Hayes, the annual earnings of sports psychologists vary from $ 0 to $ 300,000, i.e. in this professional field, the variation in payment prices is very large.

When a psychologist works with a sports organization, he is forced to find the optimal balance between the tasks that the organizations set for them and at the same time take into account the interests and needs of each employee individually. A sports psychologist, as a rule, finds himself in a situation of complex interaction with a coach, an athlete, team administrators, etc., whose interests, tasks and actual expectations from a sports psychologist are often very different. Hierarchical relationships in an organization, a sports team can hinder the establishment of trusting contact between a psychologist and employees, athletes. In this case, the psychologist should pay special attention to the issues of maintaining the confidentiality of the information he receives.

A rather difficult situation for a psychologist arises when he is involved in the issues of sports selection, team recruitment. The psychologist should discuss the ethical limitations of his work before committing to work so as not to create false expectations.

Anastasia Soldatova

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Most modern parents want their children to be excellent students and winners in any kind of activity. To do this, they hire many tutors in various subjects and take their children to various circles and sections, for such a child the day is scheduled by the minute, and often, none of the parents thinks about whether the child needs this. in our center will help to deal with the questions:

• How will so many interests affect the personality of the child?
• Why does he need such a variety?

A sports child psychologist will help you deal with all these issues.

How does it help?

In our arsenal there are many tools for working both with children, athletes, and for working with children and their parents, who have not yet decided what is the best way to deal with a child. We will help you competently shape the development of the child, choose the type of additional activity that will lead to a harmoniously developed and successful personality. The best child sports psychologist in Moscow accepts with us, the results of whose work leave parents in no doubt about the correctness of the decision to visit him.

To make childhood happy, and parents to be proud and rejoice at the success of their child, you need:

• correctly determine the abilities and capabilities of the child,
• choose the right kind of sport for the future champion, taking into account his temperament, character and inclinations.

If the child is already doing something, it is necessary to properly motivate and support his interests so that any activity gives him pleasure.

Even V.A. Sukhomlinsky said that sport becomes a means of education when it is a favorite pastime.

Prices:

Sports psychology is an applied branch of psychology that combines several practical areas, including both classical psychotherapy and coaching, trainings, etc. In addition, within the framework of sports psychology, the psychology of an athlete is studied in the context of competitive activity.

What does sports psychology study?

What does sports psychology research? Professional coaches have already noted more than once that it is not the most physically developed person who wins in sports, with a predisposition to one or another occupation, but the most persistent, disciplined and persistent in training. Previously, coaches approached the organization of such desirable behavior intuitively, because of their personality and charisma. Now they have been replaced by a sports psychologist who is responsible for the mental state of the athlete.

Sports psychologists, using professional psychological methods, identify which particular attitudes and personal qualities of an athlete allow him to train hard and In addition, psychology in sports allows teams and the coach to “play” not only on the field or training ground, but also to feel stronger unity and mutual understanding for effective communication. Group dynamics, compatibility, relationships - all these aspects are also in the area of ​​interest for sports psychology.

In general terms, the subject of interest in sports psychology can be described in the following categories:

• motives of sports activities;
• psychological diagnostics of inclinations and abilities;
• psychomotor skills;
• training and education of athletes;
• features of training athletes from the point of view of psychology;
• special personality traits of athletes, coaches, sports judges and fans;
• psychological climate in sports teams;
• regulation of the athlete's internal state;
• styles of sports behavior;
• characteristics of various sports.

A sports psychologist for a child plays a special role in achieving sports success. In children, the psyche is especially mobile and vulnerable, and sport is a competitive activity in which defeats on the way to success cannot be avoided. Failures are especially traumatic for children, so it is important to guide and motivate them in time to avoid deep frustration and depression.

Many practicing psychologists, even if sports psychology is not their narrow professional activity, possess techniques that will smooth out negative factors in the early stages. Sports psychology in its basic manifestations is included in the list of training of psychological faculties.

What tasks does a sports psychologist solve?

The sports psychologist acts as a “family psychotherapist” for the team. In professional sports, a consultant of this profile is assigned to each team, thereby sharing with the coach the responsibilities for the psychological preparation of the team. There are also specialists who advise athletes individually: this mainly occurs in cases where an athlete experiences difficulties and discomfort that prevent him from achieving sports heights, but at the same time arising from personal problems.

Based on the previously listed areas of interest in sports psychology, we will designate the leading tasks that a sports psychologist performs in his practice:

• sports career guidance. A child sports psychologist helps to determine a child's propensity for a particular sport, based on the type of nervous system, personality orientation and motivation;
• preparation for the competition. Depending on the current situation in the team or in the psyche of a particular athlete, the psychologist can eliminate anxiety, help in finding the athlete's inner resource, motivate him to win, etc .;
• development of strategies during the competition. The psychologist, working together with the coach, provides information about the performed psychodiagnostics and the identified personality traits of specific athletes, as well as analyzes their rivals. Based on the data obtained, two specialists develop the most effective victory strategy;
• rehabilitation after the competition. Contrary to popular belief, this point is necessary in the event of a team victory. Competitive activity requires high mental stress, it is associated with expectation and focus on victory, and reaches its peak by the outcome of the game. In case of defeat, the athlete is deeply frustrated and does not find the strength to compete, or even live on. In the event of a victory, participants may experience emptiness and apathy or prolonged euphoria, which prevents them from concentrating on further training;
• identification and crises occur in all people - this is the normal course of mental processes due to age. In athletes, crisis conditions occur more often, and the risk of their unfavorable course is higher. This is due to the fact that people in professional sports "go into circulation" young, quickly lose their relevance, and experience defeat hard. The help of a psychologist is necessary to balance a person's personal and professional life in sports and help him become not only a successful athlete, but also harmonious, confident and happy.

Depending on the specifics of the work and specialization, the work of a sports psychologist can be directed to other tasks. Above were listed only the main practical tasks that are faced by almost all specialists in this branch of psychology.

Coach or Psychologist?

Due to the fact that the psychology of an athlete has only recently emerged into a separate area of ​​work and is slowly gaining popularity in Russia, many underestimate the role played by a sports psychologist for the team and each participant individually. Traditionally, the psychological functions for athletes were assigned to the coach and completely depended on his vision of life, natural gift of persuasion and the tactics that he himself chose to interact with the charges.

In turn, the psychologist has professional knowledge in matters of the mental life of each side of the sport. Based on the data collected with the help of a large empirical experience (incomparably greater than that of each particular coach individually), the psychologist develops various strategies of behavior and changes them as needed. allow timely identification and prevention of oppressed and crisis states, and they are resolved using reliable scientific methods, in contrast to the everyday suggestion of a coach.

Of course, these features do not diminish the role of the coach for the team. Coaches feel the psychology of a winner in sports and master it intuitively. It's about collaboration and flexible division of responsibilities. A psychologist and a coach create a close tandem in which the coach guides the athletes, relying on his personal and professional experience, and the psychologist makes this interaction effective, optimizing it and eliminating negative factors.

Thus, the psychology of sports and the specialists practicing in this direction do not run counter to the interests of the coach. These are friendly forces that complement each other.