Psychological resilience in sport performers: a review of stressors and protective factors

Abstract

Psychological resilience is important in sport because athletes must utilise and optimise a range of mental qualities to withstand the pressures that they experience. In this article, we discuss psychological resilience in sport performers via a review of the stressors athletes encounter and the protective factors that help them withstand these demands. It is hoped that synthesising what is known in these areas will help researchers gain a deeper profundity of resilience in sport, and also provide a rigorous and robust foundation for the development of a sport-specific measure of resilience. With these points in mind, we divided the narrative into two main sections. In the first section, we review the different types of stressors encountered by sport performers under three main categories: competitive, organisational and personal. Based on our recent research examining psychological resilience in Olympics champions, in the second section we discuss the five main families of psychological factors (viz. positive personality, motivation, confidence, focus, perceived social support) that protect the best athletes from the potential negative effect of stressors. It is anticipated that this review will help sport psychology researchers examine the interplay between stressors and protective factors, which will, in turn, focus the analytical lens on the processes underlying psychological resilience in athletes.     

Analysis of the relation between academic procrastination, academic rational/irrational beliefs, time preferences to study for exams, and academic achievement: a structural model

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relations between academic rational/irrational beliefs, academic procrastination, and time preferences to study for exams and academic achievement by using the structural equation model. The sample consisted of 281 undergraduate students who filled in questionnaires at the 7-week-long summer course. Students responded to questionnaires assessing their levels of (a) academic procrastination, (b) academic rational/irrational beliefs, and (c) time preferences to study for exams and demographic information sheet. In general, the results showed that rational academic beliefs have a direct impact on academic procrastination and time preferences to study for exams. Academic rational beliefs also have an impact on academic achievement indirectly by mediation of academic procrastination and time preferences to study for exams. The results also showed that academic procrastination has an impact on academic achievement both directly and by mediation of time preferences to study for exams. This study suggested that there is a relation between academic procrastination and rational academic beliefs, which should be addressed further in counseling intervention. Knowledge about the role of irrational academic beliefs and their relations with academic procrastination may assist school/ college counselors to develop interventions for students that suffer from delaying behaviors that negatively affect academic success.     

Application of automated image analysis to the identification and extraction of recyclable plastic bottles

An experimental machine vision apparatus was used to identify and extract recyclable plastic bottles out of a conveyor belt. Color images were taken with a commercially available Webcam, and the recognition was performed by our homemade software, based on the shape and dimensions of object images. The software was able to manage multiple bottles in a single image and was additionally extended to cases involving touching bottles. The identification was fulfilled by comparing the set of measured features with an existing database and meanwhile integrating various recognition techniques such as minimum distance in the feature space, self-organized maps, and neural networks. The recognition system was tested on a set of 50 different bottles and provided so far an accuracy of about 97% on bottle identification. The extraction of the bottles was performed by means of a pneumatic arm, which was activated according to the plastic type; polyethylene-terephthalate （PET） bottles were left on the conveyor belt, while non-PET bottles were extracted. The software was designed to provide the best compromise between reliability and speed for real-time applications in view of the commercialization of the system at existing recycling plants.     

Decomposition method for solving parabolic equations in finite domains

INTRODUCTION The decomposition method was introduced by Adomian(1989;1994)in the1980’s for solving linear and nonlinear functional equations(algebraic,dif-ferential,partial differential equations(PDEs)and systems,integral,differential-delay,integro-differen-tial equations,etc.)(Adomian,1989;1994;Guellal and Cherruault,1995;Adomian et al.,1996;Laffez and Abbaoui,1996;Ndour et al.,1996;Guellal et al.,1997;Abbaoui and Cherruault,1999;Adjedj,1999).This method leads to computable,accurat…     

Alternative views of the solar system among turkish students

This study examines middle-school students’ alternative frameworks of the earth’s shape, its relative size and its distance from the sun and the moon. The sample was selected in the province of Giresun in Turkey. Sixty-five 14-year-old students participated in the research. A structured interview consisting of open-ended questions was employed to reveal students’ ideas. The students’ verbal responses were scrutinized and categorized according to their level of understanding. The results showed that the students had many alternative frameworks with regard to astronomical concepts. Implications and recommendations were made for teachers, textbook authors, teaching materials developers and researchers for future research to remedy students’ alternative frameworks.     

Impacts of a university–school partnership on middle school students' fractional knowledge: A quasiexperimental study

In this quasiexperimental study, the authors investigated the effects of university within school partnership model, within which faculty members acted as teacher-researchers to improve fractional knowledge among middle school (Grades 5–8) students. Students in nine Grade 6 mathematics classes from two public middle schools in Turkey were assigned to two conditions: University within school model instruction and traditional instruction. Pre- and posttest data showed that the students exposed to instruction through the university within school partnership model significantly outperformed their traditional instruction peers on the fractions test. Results indicated that students made significant gains in fractional knowledge in the experimental classrooms and in different subgroup populations. It was suggested that a substantial amount of mathematical infusion through partnership could have a positive impact on middle school students' fractional knowledge. The educational implications of the study were also discussed.     

The effect of using augmented reality and sensing technology to teach magnetism in high school physics

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of MagAR, an instructional material for teaching magnetism using augmented reality and sensing technology, on students’ academic achievement and learning process, and to identify students’ views about augmented reality. An embedded mixed-method approach was employed in this study. The study’s results suggest that AR learning environments are effective in teaching physics, and facilitate learning by adding visual and textual components to the learning process. In learning activities integrated with AR, the students were observed to participate more, appeared more comfortable, were able to answer questions related to the subject more easily, had increased self-confidence and exhibited higher academic achievement levels in physics. The results suggest that AR should not be considered as an independent learning environment for the teaching of physics, but would be more effective as supplementary to the laboratory environment.     

A Study on Teaching Gases to Prospective Primary Science Teachers Through Problem-Based Learning

The aim of this study was to compare the achievement of prospective primary science teachers in a problem-based curriculum with those in a conventional primary science teacher preparation program with regard to success in learning about gases and developing positive attitudes towards chemistry. The subjects of the study were 101 first year undergraduate students, who were in two different classes and who were taught by the same lecturer. One of the classes was randomly selected as the intervention group in which problem-based learning (PBL) was used, and the other as the control in which conventional teaching methods were used. The data were obtained through use of the gases diagnostic test (GDT), the chemistry attitude scale (CAS), and scales specific to students’ evaluation of PBL such as the peer evaluation scale (PES), self evaluation scale (SES), tutor’s performance evaluation scale (TPES) and students’ evaluation of PBL scale (SEPBLS). Data were analysed using SPSS 10.0 (Statistical Package for Social Sciences). In order to find out the effect of the intervention (PBL) on students’ learning of gases, independent sample t-tests and ANCOVA (analysis of co-variance) were used. The results obtained from the study showed that there was a statistically significant difference between the experimental and control groups in terms of students’ GDT total mean scores and, their attitude towards chemistry, as well as PBL has a significant effect on the development of students’ skills such as self-directed learning, cooperative learning and critical thinking.     

Field experiences in teacher education: the perceptions and qualities of written reflections

This study aimed to evaluate the Pre-service Teachers’ (PSTs’) field experience-related perceptions and the qualities of their written reflections. Two thousand four hundred journal entries written by 75 teacher candidates were analyzed to classify their qualities. In addition, semi-structured interviews were conducted with all of the subjects. The results showed that the largest proportion of the written entries was classified as technical. Only a small percentage of the subjects reached the highest level of reflection called as transformative. During the field experiences, the PSTs had mainly self, cooperating teachers, and student-related issues and perceptions. At the end of the field experiences, they recommended to start the practicum courses from the first year of the faculty and to increase the weekly hours of these courses. It is important to note that the PSTs need additional knowledge and practices about the reflection, reflective writing, and the qualities of reflection.     

Täuschungshandlungen im Sport

Experimental studies on the head fake in basketball showed that participant’s responses in a pass direction identification task were delayed for incongruent compared to congruent directions of the players gaze and pass (so-called head fake effect). In these studies on the head fake effect, static pictures were presented and responses on the pass direction were given with a simple key press. The present study examines whether an increase in the response complexity affects the head fake effect and whether it can also be transferred to the presentation of dynamic stimuli. In experiment 1, participants were presented with static pictures of a basketball player who passes a ball to the left or to the right. The player’s gaze direction was either oriented in the direction of the intended pass or in the opposite direction (i.?e., a head fake). The participants were asked to respond as quickly as possible to the pass direction and to ignore the gaze direction. Participants gave responses by pressing a key (simple response) or by executing a quasirealistic defense movement (complex response). Response complexity was blocked. In experiment 2, videos replaced the static stimuli. The responses were only given with the complex, full body movement. Results show that the head fake effect is independent of response complexity and that it can also be found when presenting dynamic stimuli.