Personality profiling of South African rugby union players

This study aimed to investigate whether differences exist in the personality profiles of professional and semi-professional rugby union players. Participants were 73 male rugby players, 52 professional players and 21 semi-professional players. All participants completed the NEO Five-Factor Personality Inventory (NEO-FFI) as part of the WebNeuro Sport online assessment. An independent sample t-test showed a statistically significant difference in neuroticism between the professional and semi-professional players. The magnitude-based inference method confirmed the results of the independent sample t-test with a moderate effect. The potential practical value of these findings is that the Neuroticism scale of the Big Five personality dimensions can be used as a screening tool for indicating which players a team would want to recruit and invest time and money in since these players will most likely be capable of progressing to the top level in their sport.     

Differences in the neurocognitive profiles of professional and semi-professional male South African rugby union players

This study investigated possible cognitive functioning profile differences between professional and semi-professional rugby players. Seventy-nine male rugby union players (professional = 55, semi-professional = 24; age range = 19–37 years) participated in the study. The players completed a battery of neuropsychological functioning tests covering the following domains: memory tasks, attention and behavioural tasks, sensory-motor tasks, executive functioning tasks, verbal tasks, and emotion identification tasks. Results following Fisher’s exact test comparisons revealed no significant group differences in the cognitive functioning profiles.     

The effects of skill-level and playing-position on the anticipation of ball-bounce in rugby union

The ability to anticipate is a defining feature of skilled sports performance. To date, research investigating the information that underpins skilled anticipation has focused on kinematic information from an opponent and contextual factors. However, there has been a paucity of research investigating the influence of ball-flight and spin. Oval shaped balls, despite the seeming random nature, do in fact display specific bounce characteristics based on the nature of ball-flight. We tested the ability of 38 professional (categorised in to 15 ‘backs’ and 23 ‘forwards’ based on their playing position) and 20 less-skilled rugby union players to anticipate ball bounce direction for grubber and chip kicks using a temporal occlusion paradigm to restrict access to different sources of information. We predicted that skilled performers would have become attuned to both advance postural cues and the physical laws of ball flight and spin that govern ball bounce through their extensive practice and exposure to these situations, and so would anticipate more accurately than less-skilled performers. Results supported this hypothesis as skilled participants outperformed less-skilled in all occlusion conditions, however all groups anticipated more accurately with access to later emerging information sources (i.e., ball spin and rotation) with the skill level difference primarily underpinned by earlier available sources (i.e., advance postural cues). There was no difference between anticipation accuracy in professional forwards and backs and no kick type x group interaction, suggesting that the knowledge structures underpinning perceptual-cognitive expertise are not position specific. Findings have implication for models of anticipation and training design and tactics in rugby.     

Psychoendocrine and physical performance responses in male Tunisian rugby players during an international competitive season

The aim was to investigate a follow-up study based on hormonal, physical, and psychological parameters among rugby players who trained during a whole season interspersed with competitions on an international level. Fitness or reciprocally tiredness as well as competitive anxiety were evaluated, respectively, using the French Society for Sports Medicine (SFMS) and the sport competition anxiety test (SCAT) questionnaires. In this study, SFMS and SCAT scores increased respectively over the competitive season. The SFMS score revealed a state of relative tiredness at the end of the season, highlighted by a slight decrement in physical performances. The SCAT score changes are related to the competition context and therefore increased accordingly to the importance of the competition stake. We analyzed the corticotrope and the gonadotrope axis before (T(1)), and at the end of the national and international rugby season (T(2)). Training did not affect the resting salivary cortisol (Csal) levels, but induced a decrease in resting testosterone (Tsal) values, resulting in a dropped T/C ratio. Competition, in both periods (T(1)-T(2)), provoked a significant increase in Csal levels, but the Tsal responses depended on the match stake. Their concentrations increased when the competition generated an important stress and decreased when the psychological conditions remained relatively stable. SFMS is preferentially correlated with resting Csal levels and T/C values measured at 08:00 hr but not with Tsal. SCAT is highly correlated with competitive Csal and Tsal concentrations measured before and after the matches.     

Qualitative analysis of feedback on functional imagery training: A novel motivational intervention for type 2 diabetes

Objective: Effective motivational support is needed in chronic disease management. This study was undertaken to improve a novel type 2 diabetes motivational intervention, (functional imagery training, FIT) based on participant feedback and results from a self-management randomised controlled trial.

Design: Qualitative inductive thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews.

Main outcome measures: Open-ended questions on participant experiences of the FIT intervention content, process, most/least helpful features, suggestions for improvement and general feedback.

Results: Eight themes emerged. Participants thought FIT promoted autonomy and self-awareness. They found the intervention interesting and helpful in keeping their health on track through accountability provided by regular phone calls. However, boredom with repetitive use of imagery, feeling inadequately equipped to manage unhealthy cravings, and difficulty with the time commitment was reported by some. Supplementary written material was recommended.

Conclusion: Several well-received features of FIT overlapped with those from traditional motivational interviewing. FIT sessions should ensure content is regularly adapted to new health-enhancing goals. After self-management behaviour becomes habitual, imagery practice could be restricted to challenging contexts. Provision of a written rationale and use of mindfulness for cravings is recommended. With these improvements, the impact of FIT on diabetic control may be substantially enhanced.     

The short-term effects of a hostility-reduction intervention on male coronary heart disease patients.

This preliminary study examined the effects of a hostility-reduction intervention on patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). Twenty-two high-hostile CHD men were matched on age and hostility and then randomly assigned to a hostility intervention (N = 10) or an information-control group (N = 12). Patients were reassessed immediately and 2 months posttreatment on hostility (with self-report and structured interview) and resting blood pressure. The intervention's overall effect size was moderately strong (d' = .62). Intervention patients reported at both reassessments and were observed at follow-up to be less hostile than controls. At follow-up, intervention patients had significantly lower diastolic blood pressure (DBP) than controls. Finally, reductions in hostility were significantly and positively correlated with reductions in DBP. Replication with a larger sample and CHD outcomes is recommended.     

Perceived impact of anger and anxiety on sporting performance in rugby players

Objective: The main purpose of the study was to extend the notion of directional perceptions beyond anxiety to anger in order to assess rugby players’ perception of the facilitative or debilitative effects of trait anger symptoms.Design: A cross-sectional study design was employed using normative measures of anger and anxiety.Method: The frequency and direction of symptoms of competitive trait anger were assessed in 197 Italian rugby players together with the intensity and direction of multidimensional trait anxiety.Results: Findings revealed a general tendency of rugby players to experience a moderate frequency of anger symptoms and to interpret their symptoms as facilitative rather than debilitative. Regarding the direction of symptoms, cognitive anxiety was a significant predictor of anger, while self-confidence was a significant predictor of control of anger.Conclusions: Support was provided for assessment of individual's interpretation of anger symptoms.     

The effects of goal setting on rugby performance

Goal-setting effects on selected performance behaviors of 5 collegiate rugby players were assessed over an entire competitive season using self-generated targets and goal-attainment scaling. Results suggest that goal setting was effective for enhancing task-specific on-field behavior in rugby union.     

Studying the effects of self-talk on thought content with male adult tennis players

The current study examined the effects of self-talk on thought content during a tennis forehand crosscourt exercise. 16 adult tennis players (M age = 37.3 yr., SD = 8.31) were randomly assigned to either an experimental or a control group. After completing three baseline assessments, the players of the intervention group developed and implemented self-determined instructional cue words throughout three intervention trials. The participants' thought content was divided into three categories, and repeated-measures analyses of variance indicated a significant group by time interaction for execution-related thoughts and outcome-related thoughts, but not for circumstance-related thoughts. Follow-up comparisons showed that the experimental group players' execution-related thoughts increased and outcome-related thoughts decreased significantly, whereas thought content did not change significantly in the control group. The results of this study provided evidence for the effects of self-talk on players' thought content and supported the idea that self-talk could help athletes to focus on task relevant information.     

The relationship between collective efficacy and precompetitive affect in rugby players: testing Bandura's model of collective efficacy

This study extended research examining Bandura's (1997) proposed model of collective efficacy. Specifically, it examined the relationships between groups' collective efficacy and the precompetitive anxiety and affect they experienced. Prior to a competitive match 66 male Rugby Union footballers from 6 teams (2 university teams and 4 county league teams) completed a single-item measure of confidence in their team winning the forthcoming match, a 10-item measure of confidence in their team performing well in the forthcoming match, the modified Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2, and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule. Stepwise (forward) multiple regression analyses indicated that scores for collective efficacy accounted for only 6.3% of the variance in the intensities of cognitive state anxiety and only 22% of the variance in the positive affect experienced prior to the rugby match. The results indicate that concerns with the team's ability to win a match were associated with high cognitive state anxiety and that doubts regarding the team's ability to perform well were related to low positive affect. Given the magnitude of predicted variances, the findings seem to give some support to Bandura's proposal that the beliefs in collective efficacy of individuals engaged in a team task are related to precompetitive affective reactions and the experience of state anxiety.     

Dimensions of achievement goal orientation and coping in South African wheelchair rugby players with quadriplegia

This study investigated the relationship between dispositional achievement goal orientation (task and ego) and coping ability in wheelchair rugby players with quadriplegia. The sample consisted of 16 (15 males and 1 female) players between the ages of 25 and 44 (M=33.7 years; SD=8.7) who were selected for South Africa's national training squad in preparation for the 2011 International Wheelchair Rugby Federation (IWRF) Asia-Oceania Championship. Players self-reported on their perception of success and athletic coping skills. The data were analysed for correlational associations between dimensions of achievement goal orientation and psychological skills associated with coping in sport. Findings revealed that players have both high task and fairly high ego orientation of which task orientation was significantly correlated with coping ability.     

The effects of position in a display upon problem solving

Sixty-four subjects, aged between 15 and 72 years were told how to carry out a problem-solving task, whose difficulty could be varied by changing the position of an index card in relation to a display and control.

The outstanding feature, particularly of the older group's performance was the repetition of the same two kinds of mistake. Their failure seemed mainly due to an inability to rid themselves of their wrong “solutions,” in spite of the constant information indicating the mistake at each position. Whilst these differences between the age groups were hot pronounced at the easiest task, they were at the most difficult.

It is suggested that: Firstly, the procedure of giving a subject the solution to a problem and observing how he reconciles his information with it, though only operating in a circumscribed area of problem-solving, is a genuine example of thinking, and, particularly where certain kinds of mistake can be predicted, it enables the experimenter to gain a more exact impression of what a subject is doing. Secondly, the manipulation of spatial contiguities lends itself to flexible and fairly precise measurement, and the principle might usefully be extended to other variables such as size, time intervals, colour, etc.     

The effects of rational emotive behavior therapy and motivational interviewing on emotions,automatic thoughts,and perceived performance of elite female volleyball players

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to examine the effect of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy intervention alone (REBT-A) or with motivational interviewing (REBT + MI) on the emotions, automatic thoughts, and perceived performance of elite female volleyball players.Designand method: Single-case, staggered multiple-baseline AB and ABC designs were adapted in the study. Five female volleyball players participated in the study, of which three players participated in the REBT-A and two players participated in the REBT + MI. The athletes were competing in the national volleyball league (M_age = 28, SD = 5.52). All participants were elite athletes with at least ten years of sports experience. Three scores (T1, T2, T3) were calculated for the athletes' perceived performance, emotion, and automatic thoughts. T1 was the baseline score calculated before the sessions. T2 was calculated after the first two sessions (the first three sessions for REBT + MI) and T3 was calculated after the last three sessions. In the data analysis, percentage changes, effect size, and visual analyzes were used in the T1, T2, and T3 scores.ResultsREBT-A and REBT + MI interventions increased perceived performance, positive emotions, and positive automatic thoughts, and decreased negative emotions and negative automatic thoughts. REBT + MI was more advantageous than REBT-A in increasing positive emotion, positive automatic thought, and perceived performance.ConclusionsAs a result, REBT alone or with motivational interviewing has a positive effect on perceived performance, emotions, and automatic thoughts, but REBT + MI has greater potential to increase positive constructs.     

The effects of a wisdom intervention in a Christian congregation*

Psychological research on the topic of wisdom is limited in its incorporation of religion and spirituality. This gap in psychological literature may serve to limit a thorough understanding of wisdom. Positive psychology may allow for some rapprochement in wisdom and spirituality. In collaboration with leaders of a local Friends (Quaker) congregation, two studies investigated the effects of a spiritually informed wisdom intervention delivered in the context of a faith community. Participants for Study 1 consisted of 27 young adults (24 completed both the pre and post questionnaire) and a comparison group consisting of 32 young adults. The intervention was designed to increase participants’ abilities in cognitive, affective and moral domains. Significant group by time interaction effects were found among measurements of practical wisdom, post-formal thinking and subjective well-being, with those in the experimental group showing changes in the expected direction. Study 2 involved qualitative analyses of interviews with 15 of the wisdom participants regarding their changing views of wisdom. Themes emerging from the interviews included a multiple-perspectives view of wisdom, the relational nature of learning wisdom, the importance of taking a reflective perspective, and congruence between what one knows and how one lives. Implications for studying wisdom alongside religion and spirituality are considered.