What do we know about the effects of mental training applied to combat sports? A systematic review

ObjectivesThis study aimed to investigate the effects of mental training applied to combat sports athletes.MethodsA systematic review was conducted, following the criteria recommended by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement, from inception up to February 2021, with an electronic search in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, and SPORTDiscus databases. As eligibility criteria, this review included original studies that carried out any type of mental training, with or without a control group, acute or chronic, in combat sports athletes, of both sexes, age >16 and < 45 years old, from any competitive level, and evaluated the effect of these interventions on psychological measures. The quality assessment was conducted through the application of the Cochrane Collaboration tool.ResultsIn total, 1921 studies were found and after application of the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 21 articles were included in this review. A total of 417 subjects were investigated from the 21 studies. As results, despite the variations in the type and characteristics of the interventions, studies showed that mental training seems to improve anxiety, mood, self-confidence, emotions, cohesion, emotional balance, and relaxation, in addition to physical and athletic performance.ConclusionsThis systematic review based on the evidence from the selected studies indicates that mental training seems to be beneficial for athletes in combat modalities, while combat sports can benefit from mental training in preparation, competition, and recovery. However, the interpretation of these findings must consider that there is limited scientific production with good quality studies investigating the effects of psychological intervention protocols in athletes of combat sports in different combat modalities.Prospero register numberCRD42020169793.     

The importance of routines for the performance of everyday activities

Whether the weekly frequency with which everyday activities (e.g., taking a shower, running for exercise) are performed is determined by intentions to perform the activities at different frequencies rather than by routines was investigated. Sixty-four subjects participated in an experiment in which self-reported frequency of performance of 10 activities was predicted from indicated intentions as well as from self-reports of the frequency with which the activities were performed a previous week. The results were as expected for a few of the activities, whereas for a majority of them performance was predicted from previous frequency without the mediation of intentions. Consistent with the conclusion that routines played a more important role than intentions, it was also found that intentions failed to predict performance better the following week than it predicted performance the week after that week. Conditions under which intentions may be a more important determinant were discussed.     

DESIGN OF LIVING ENVIRONMENTS FOR NURSING-HOME RESIDENTS: INCREASING PARTICIPATION IN RECREATION ACTIVITIES1

Nursing-home residents have frequently been characterized as unoccupied and disengaged. At the outset of the present study, most residents were to be found in their own rooms, not exhibiting gross motor behavior or social interaction, and not participating in appropriate activities. To modify residents' levels of participation with the environment, a manipulative area was provided in the lounge. Participation in the lounge averaged 20% on days when the activity was not available, but increased to a mean of 74% on days when equipment and materials were given and residents were prompted to participate. When prompts were withdrawn and materials were available only by request, mean participation fell to 25%. The findings demonstrate that manipulative activities can support a high level of participation with the environment, if residents are prompted to use equipment and materials.     

TEAM SPORTS FOR THE SEVERELY RETARDED: TRAINING A SIDE-OF-THE-FOOT SOCCER PASS USING A MAXIMUM-TO-MINIMUM PROMPT REDUCTION STRATEGY

A program to teach three severely retarded adults to use a side-of-the-foot soccer pass was evaluated. A 9-step stimulus-response chain was taught using forward chaining. In contrast to usual practice, intensive physical prompts were provided initially to teach each response component, then systematically faded. Approximately 20 lessons (trials) were presented in 20-min sessions. A multiple baseline across subjects design showed that the three trainees achieved the no-prompt criterion after 24, 29, and 22 sessions, respectively. Subanalyses indicated that successive response components were learned only after training was implemented. Follow-up data were obtained 57 and 276 days later in the training room and in a gymnasium; in both settings, criterion was achieved with fewer than three reinstructions.