title: Attention-focusing instructions and training times in competitive youth swimmers.
abstract: This study investigated the effects of three different types of attention-focusing instructions on the training times of 10 competitive youth swimmers. Mean times indicated that conditions emphasising positive imaging and stroke counting led to faster times than a control condition. Instructions to concentrate on technique did not appear to result in faster times. Subjective assessments of effort indicated the swimmers seemed to feel they had not increased their effort significantly in any condition. These results confirm the potentially positive effects of psychological interventions with swimmers and are discussed in relation to previous work in the field and their implications for coaching.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Hull, UK.
authors.forename: D F
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Sewell
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001288:Attention; D003163:Competitive Behavior; D005246:Feedback; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007092:Imagination; D008297:Male; D013550:Swimming / Q000523:psychology*