Advances in Applied Sport Psychology

Abstract

A glance through applied sport psychology textbooks reveals that self-talk is one technique commonly included in mental-skills training programmes and is proposed by sport psychologists to regulate cognitions, emotions, behaviour and performance (e.g. Zinsser et al., 2006). In addition, research suggests self-talk is one of the common psychological strategies used by athletes, and that coaches believe it helps build performers’ confidence (e.g. Wang et al., 2003; Weinberg et al., 1992). However, some investigators have suggested there is limited, if any, support that self-talk enhances competitive performance (Gardner and Moore, 2006; Martin et al., 2005). One reason for the lack of evidence may be because, traditionally, self-talk has not received as much attention from researchers as compared with other psychological techniques (e.g. imagery, goal setting). In recent years, however, self-talk has been examined more frequently and there now exists a number of empirical attempts to evaluate its usefulness for athletes.

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