Stress and coping

Home > Human physical performance and recreation > Sports psychology > Stress and coping

The strategies and interventions that athletes use to manage stress and deal with anxiety and pressure during competition.

Stress theories: Various theories explain what stress is, how it affects individuals, and how they cope with it.
Stressors in sport: Different stressors can impact athletes, including physical, psychological, and environmental stressors.
Coping strategies: Athletes use various strategies to cope with stress, such as problem-solving, emotion-focused, and avoidance coping.
Psychological skills training: Athletes are trained in various psychological skills such as goal setting, visualization, relaxation, and self-talk to help them manage stress and anxiety.
Personality and stress: Personality traits such as anxiety, perfectionism, and optimism can influence an athlete's stress levels and coping strategies.
Burnout: Chronic stress, combined with inadequate coping skills, can lead to burnout, an athlete's loss of interest, and decreased performance.
Mindfulness: Mindfulness is a mental training technique that can help athletes manage stress, improve focus, and enhance performance.
Psychological interventions: Various psychological interventions such as counseling, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and relaxation training can be used to help athletes cope with stress and anxiety.
Stress and injury: Athletes may experience stress when dealing with the physical and emotional effects of an injury, and coping strategies can help them recover and return to sport.
Social support: Athletes often rely on a network of social support, including coaches, teammates, and family, to help manage stress and cope with adversity.
Acute Stress: This type of stress occurs due to a specific event or situation, such as a critical competitive game, an injury or a final exam.
Chronic Stress: Chronic stress arises from long-term demands, challenges, and pressures that may cause continuous wear and tear on an athlete's body and mind.
Episodic Acute Stress: This type of stress occurs when athletes experience a repeated occurrence of acute stressors over an extended period.
Traumatic Stress: Traumatic stress may occur due to a significant incident witnessed or experienced, such as a severe injury, accident or death of a loved one.
Hypostress: Hypostress involves a lack of stimulation or challenge, which can decrease motivation levels.
Eustress: Eustress is a positive form of stress that can empower athletes to perform at their peak level, often known as "good stress.".
Overtraining Stress: Overtraining occurs when athletes train too hard or too often without adequate recovery time, leading to physical and mental exhaustion.
Coping Mechanisms: Athletes may use various coping strategies to manage stress, such as positive self-talk, visualization, relaxation techniques, cognitive restructuring, and social support.
Common Coping Strategies: Several coping strategies include breathing exercises, meditation, stretching, deep muscle relaxation, and regular mental and physical recovery practices.
Problem-Focused Coping: When an athlete focuses on addressing the specific problem causing their stress, such as setting achievable goals to improve their performance, they are engaging in Problem-focused coping.
Emotion-Focused Coping: Emotion-focused coping involves managing the emotions that come with stressful events, such as adjusting your mindset or trying to reduce the emotional impact of an event experienced.
Social Support Coping: An athlete seeking help from coaches, teammates or family and friends can reduce stress and improve their resilience.
Seeking Professional Help: This involves seeking help from medical or mental health professionals, such as sports psychologists or licensed therapists, whose role is to help athletes identify and manage stressors.
Quote: "Sport psychology was defined by the European Federation of Sport Psychology (FEPSAC) in 1996, as the study of the psychological basis, processes, and effects of sport."
Quote: "Otherwise, sport is considered as any physical activity where the individuals engage for competition and health."
Quote: "It involves the study of how psychological factors affect performance and how participation in sport and exercise affect psychological and physical factors. Sport psychology is recognized as an interdisciplinary science that draws on knowledge from many related fields including biomechanics, physiology, kinesiology, and psychology."
Quote: "Sport psychologists teach cognitive and behavioral strategies to athletes in order to improve their experience and performance in sports."
Quote: "A sports psychologist does not focus solely on athletes. This type of professional also helps non-athletes and everyday exercisers learn how to enjoy sports and stick to an exercise program."
Quote: "In addition to instruction and training of psychological skills for performance improvement, applied sport psychology may include work with athletes, coaches, and parents regarding injury, rehabilitation, communication, team building, and career transitions."
Quote: "Sport psychology was defined by the European Federation of Sport Psychology (FEPSAC) in 1996..."
Quote: "It involves the study of how psychological factors affect performance and how participation in sport and exercise affect psychological and physical factors."
Quote: "Sport psychology is recognized as an interdisciplinary science that draws on knowledge from many related fields including biomechanics, physiology, kinesiology, and psychology."
Quote: "A sports psychologist does not focus solely on athletes. This type of professional also helps non-athletes and everyday exercisers learn how to enjoy sports and stick to an exercise program."
Quote: "Sport psychologists teach cognitive and behavioral strategies to athletes in order to improve their experience and performance in sports."
Quote: "Applied sport psychology may include work with athletes, coaches, and parents regarding injury, rehabilitation, communication, team building, and career transitions."
Quote: "It involves the study of how psychological factors affect performance..."
Quote: "Otherwise, sport is considered as any physical activity where the individuals engage for competition and health."
Quote: "Sport psychologists teach cognitive and behavioral strategies to athletes in order to improve their experience and performance in sports."
Quote: "It involves the study of how participation in sport and exercise affect psychological and physical factors."
Quote: "Sport psychology is recognized as an interdisciplinary science that draws on knowledge from many related fields including biomechanics, physiology, kinesiology, and psychology."
Quote: "Applied sport psychology may include work with athletes, coaches, and parents regarding injury, rehabilitation, communication, team building, and career transitions."
Quote: "A sports psychologist does not focus solely on athletes. This type of professional also helps non-athletes and everyday exercisers learn how to enjoy sports and stick to an exercise program."
Quote: "Applied sport psychology may include work with athletes, coaches, and parents regarding injury, rehabilitation, communication, team building, and career transitions."