Sports Psychology Study - Understand more about how to improve performance in sportspeople
Study Sports Psychology to learn more about improving your own coaching ability and helping sports people to improve their performance.
A must for anyone seriously interested in working with, or already works with, amateur and professional sports people.
- To complete the certificate, you are required to complete SIX 100 hour modules.
- There are three CORE modules of - Sports Psychology, Motivation and Nutrition for Sports.
- You then choose THREE ELECTIVE modules from Human Nutrition, Introduction to Psychology, Health and Wellbeing and many more....
- Find out more below -
Modules
Note that each module in the Qualification - Certificate in Sports Psychology is a short course in its own right, and may be studied separately.
Sample Course Notes - WHY SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY IS IMPORTANT
The Study of Sports Psychology is important because:
- To promote greater participation in sport, it is critical to know what motivates or de motivates participation in physical activity.
- The individual's state of mind can have a significant effect upon both their participation and performance in sport.
- Selection, training and achievement of athletes at an elite level in sport is affected by their individual psychology, as much as their physical condition and skill.
Instructors, Trainers, Coaches, Managers and others who work in sports, from an amateur or school level, right through to a professional level, are far more effective when they understand sports psychology.
The things learned in this course may be applied across a broad range of situations, such as:
- Teaching children in schools or amateur sporting clubs
- Conducting sporting activities for elderly, disabled or other demographic groups
- Helping elite athletes and sports persons to develop strategies to deal with competition and training.
- Helping coaches and managers in their communication and interpersonal skills
- Working with health promotion staff to increase the motivation to exercise and maintain the exercise in individuals who are mainly sedentary.
- Using research to maximise practice and fitness regimes.
- Counselling individuals who have been injured.
- Advising younger sports persons on how to deal with family, problems, disappointment, homesickness etc.
Learn to Manage the Psychology as well as the Performance
Managing individuals, teams and events in a sporting context can often involve understanding and responding appropriately to the psychology of those involved.
Participants and spectators can both sometimes take sporting activities too seriously. You may often hear people say "It's just a game"; but in reality, the state of mind of some individuals may not see sport as "just a game".
Sporting competition can generate anxiety, anger, stress, depression, elation and many other types of emotions.
Healthy anger is just as normal as any other human emotion, and those who deny angry feelings are usually projecting them onto other people, who are then unjustly accused of aggressive behaviour. Anger resulting from failure or frustration can have a negative effect on a sportsperson’s performance. For example, if a rugby player is grabbed by another player, they may become angry and try to retaliate by trying to hit the opponent. Retaliation can result in an automatic shift of attention from the game to the opponent. There is a break in concentration, increased arousal and consequently performance suffers. Athletes need to learn more concentration strategies to prevent breaks in concentration or help them refocus when concentration breaks.
Here are some comments on anger, and how to deal with it constructively:
- Anger is created by the desire or expectation that things should be different/better. Our anger is usually directed at persons, groups or things that we believe block these expectations.
- Trying to change other people can create anger. Similarly, anger can often be eased if we stop trying to change others.
- Anger is sometimes used to hide less acceptable feelings such as fear or hurt.
- As with any other behaviour, dealing with anger becomes easier with practice.
What do our students think of the course?
Mario Rimati, a Football Coach and Physical Education Teacher said "The course was useful for my goalkeeper coaching practices. (It) met my expectations and gave me some good insights. I liked the way the course was structured, especially the way I could work at my own pace WITHOUT any pressure. the course has specifically helped with ideas for motivating players."
Who Should Study This Course?
This course is suitable for anyone who is interested in sport -
- professional and amateur coaches
- professional and amateur athletes and sportspeople
- physical education teachers
- health and fitness specialists
- people interested in improving their own performance
Why Study This Course?
This course -
- Will improve your knowledge of use of psychology in sports performance and coaching
- Is a must for anyone who is serious about improving their knowledge of sports psychology.
- Improve your coaching techniques
- Improve your sporting performance
- A great addition to your CV/resume
- Improve your job and career prospects in sports, coaching and health and fitness
Any Questions?