title: Brief Online Training Enhances Competitive Performance: Findings of the BBC Lab UK Psychological Skills Intervention Study.
abstract: In conjunction with BBC Lab UK, the present study developed 12 brief psychological skill interventions for online delivery. A protocol was designed that captured data via self-report measures, used video recordings to deliver interventions, involved a competitive concentration task against an individually matched computer opponent, and provided feedback on the effects of the interventions. Three psychological skills were used; imagery, self-talk, and if-then planning, with each skill directed to one of four different foci: outcome goal, process goal, instruction, or arousal-control. This resulted in 12 different intervention participant groups (randomly assigned) with a 13th group acting as a control. Participants (n = 44,742) completed a competitive task four times-practice, baseline, following an intervention, and again after repeating the intervention. Results revealed performance improved following practice with incremental effects for imagery-outcome, imagery-process, and self-talk-outcome and self-talk-process over the control group, with the same interventions increasing the intensity of effort invested, arousal and pleasant emotion. Arousal-control interventions associated with pleasant emotions, low arousal, and low effort invested in performance. Instructional interventions were not effective. Results offer support for the utility of online interventions in teaching psychological skills and suggest brief interventions that focus on increasing motivation, increased arousal, effort invested, and pleasant emotions were the most effective.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Sport, University of Wolverhampton Walsall, UK.
authors.forename: Andrew M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Lane
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Sheffield Sheffield, UK.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Totterdell
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Sheffield Sheffield, UK.
authors.forename: Ian
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: MacDonald
authors.affiliation: Institute of Sport, University of Wolverhampton Walsall, UK.
authors.forename: Tracey J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Devonport
authors.affiliation: Institute of Sport, University of Wolverhampton Walsall, UK.
authors.forename: Andrew P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Friesen
authors.affiliation: Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences, Canterbury Christ Church University Canterbury, UK.
authors.forename: Christopher J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Beedie
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Coventry University Coventry, UK.
authors.forename: Damian
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Stanley
authors.affiliation: Institute of Sport, University of Wolverhampton Walsall, UK.
authors.forename: Alan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nevill
keywords: emotion; intervention; mood; performance; self-regulation