Abstract

The physical and psychological demands of sports can place an athlete under a variety of stressors. Subsequently, the way in which athletes deal with such stressors can positively or negatively affect their performance. Flow is defined as a type of experience where one is completely engaged in an activity and optimally functioning. Recently, an increase in mindfulness and acceptance based approaches have been utilized as a means to augment negative emotions in sport and many have suggested a link between mindfulness and flow. Thus, if mindfulness can positively influence flow, perhaps performance can also be positively affected. There has also been a need to determine optimal intervention lengths to successfully teach mindfulness practices within sports teams. The purpose of the current study was to examine the effects of a mindfulness training program on mindfulness scores, dispositional flow scores, and perceived stress scores within a population of Division I female collegiate gymnasts. Results from a repeated measures ANOVA indicated that athletes who participated in the mindfulness training demonstrated a statistically significant difference in the dispositional flow dimensions of loss of self-consciousness and the autotelic experience. These results suggest that mindfulness may influence factors associated with athletic performance.

Keywords

Mindfulness, Flow, Stress, Intervention, Gymnastics,

References

  1. J.P. Whelan, M.J. Mahoney, A.W. Meyers, Performance enhancement in sport: A cognitive behavioral domain, Behavior Therapy, 22(1991, 307-327.
  2. A. Cooper, (1998) Playing in the zone: Exploring the spiritual dimensions of sports, Shambhala Publications, Boulder, Colorado.
  3. M. Csikszentmihalyi, (1990) Flow: The psychology of optimal performance, Cambridge University Press, New York.
  4. M. Csikszentmihalyi, I.S. Csikszentmihalyi, (1992) Optimal experience: Psychological studies of flow in consciousness, Cambridge University Press, New York.
  5. S.A. Jackson, Toward a conceptual understanding of the flow experience in elite athletes, Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 67 (1996) 76-90.
  6. S.A. Jackson, G.C. Roberts, Positive performance states of athletes: Toward a conceptual understanding of peak performance, The Sport Psychologist, 6(1992) 156-171.
  7. W.D. Russell, An examination of flow state occurrence in college athletes, Journal of Sport Behavior, 24(2001) 83-107.
  8. L. Hardy, G. Jones, D. Gould, (1996) Understanding psychological preparation for sport: Theory and practice in elite athletes, Wiley, Chichester, UK.
  9. D. Birrer, G. Morgan, Psychological skills training as a way to enhance an athlete's performance in high?intensity sports, Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 20(2010) 78-87.
  10. F.L. Gardner, Z.E. Moore, A mindfulnessacceptance-commitment-based approach to athletic performance enhancement: Theoretical considerations, Behavior Therapy, 35(2004) 707-723.
  11. F.L. Gardner, Z.E. Moore, Mindfulness and acceptance models in sport psychology: A decade of basic and applied scientific advancements, Canadian Psychology, 53(2012) 309-318.
  12. K.A. Kaufman, C.R. Glass, D.B. Arnkoff, Evaluation of mindful sport performance enhancement (MSPE): A new approach to promote flow in athletes, Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 25(2009) 334-356.
  13. C. Aherne, A.P. Moran, C. Lonsdale, The effect of mindfulness training on athletes' flow: An initial investigation, Sport Psychologist, 25(2011) 177-189.
  14. M. Bernier, E. Thienot, R. Codron, J.F. Fournier, Mindfulness and acceptance approaches in sport performance, Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 3(2009) 320-333.
  15. D. Birrer, P. Röthlin, G. Morgan, Mindfulness to enhance athletic performance: Theoretical considerations and possible impact mechanisms, Mindfulness, 3(2012) 235-246.
  16. Z.E. Moore, F.L. Gardner, (2014) Mindfulness and performance, In Ie A, CT Ngoumen, EJ Langer, (Eds.), The Wiley Blackwell Handbook of Mindfulness, pp. 986-1003, Wiley, Chinchester, UK.
  17. A. Baltzell, V.L. Akhtar, Mindfulness meditation training for sport (MMTS) intervention: Impact of MMTS with division I female athletes, Journal of Happiness and Well-being, 2(2014) 160-173.
  18. S.R. Bishop, M. Lau, S. Shapiro, L. Carlson, N.D. Anderson, J. Carmody, Z.V. Segal, S. Abbey, M. Speca, D. Velting, G. Devins, Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition, Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 11(2004) 230- 241.
  19. S.L. Shapiro, L.E. Carlson, J.A. Astin, B. Freedman, Mechanisms of mindfulness, Journal of Clinical Psychology, 62(2006) 373-386.
  20. J. Jones, L.E. Hardy, (1990) Stress and performance in sport, John Wiley & Sons, Chichester, UK.
  21. R. Wadey, S. Hanton, (2008) Basic psychological skills usage and competitive anxiety responses: Perceived underlying mechanisms, Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 79(3) 363-373.
  22. R.S. Vealey, (2007) Mental skills training in sport. In G. Tenenbaum, & R. C. Eklund (Eds.) Handbook of Sport Psychology (3rd Ed.). 285- 309. Wiley, Hoboken, NJ.
  23. Z.E. Moore, Theoretical and empirical developments of the mindfulness-acceptancecommitment (MAC) approach to performance enhancement, Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 3(2009) 291-302.
  24. R.W. Thompson, K.A. Kaufman, L.A. De Petrillo, C.R. Glass, D.B. Arnkoff, One year follow-up of mindful sport performance enhancement (MSPE) with archers, golfers, and runners, Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 5(2011) 99- 116.
  25. L. Schwanhausser, Application of the mindfulness-acceptance-commitment (MAC) protocol with an adolescent springboard diver, Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 3(2009) 377-395.
  26. A. Gooding, F.L. Gardner, An investigation of the relationship between mindfulness, preshot routine, and basketball free throw percentage, Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 3(2009) 303-319.
  27. F.R. Goodman, T.B. Kashdan, T.T. Mallard, M. Schumann, A brief mindfulness and yoga intervention with an entire NCAA division I athletic team: An initial investigation, Psychology of Consciousness: Theory, Research, and Practice, 1(2014) 339-356.
  28. A. Baltzell, N. Caraballo, K. Chipman, L. Hayden, A qualitative study of the mindfulness meditation training for sport: Division I female soccer players’ experience, Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 8(2014) 221-244.
  29. L.A. De Petrillo, K.A. Kaufman, C.R. Glass, D.B. Arnkoff, Mindfulness for long-distance runners: An open trial using mindful sport performance enhancement (MSPE), Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 25(2009) 357-376.
  30. A. Ivarsson, U. Johnson, M.B. Andersen, J. Fallby, M. Altemyr, It pays to pay attention: A mindfulness-based program for injury prevention with soccer players, Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 27(2015) 319-334.
  31. F.L. Gardner, Z.E. Moore, (2007) The psychology of enhancing human performance: The Mindfulness-Acceptance Ccommitment (MAC) approach, Springer Publishing, New York.
  32. M. Smrdu, U. Kordeš, (2016) Integrating mindfulness and flow in gymnastics, In M.B. Pajek, M.S. Pavletic, (Eds.), Proceedings from the 3rd International Scientific Congress Slovenian Gymnastics Federation, 40-46, Slovenian Gymnastics Federation, Portoroz, Slovenia.
  33. G. Privette, Peak experience, peak performance, and flow: A comparative analysis of positive human experiences, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 45(1983), 1361-1368.
  34. S.A. Jackson, M. Csikszentmihalyi, (1999) Flow in sports, Human Kinetics, Champaign, IL.
  35. R. Neil, S. Hanton, S.D. Mellalieu, D. Fletcher, Competition stress and emotions in sport performers: The role of further appraisals, Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 12(2011) 460- 470.
  36. S.D. Mellalieu, S. Hanton, D. Fletcher, (2009) A competitive anxiety review: Recent directions in sport psychology research. In S. Hanton & S.D. Mellalieu (Eds.) Literature reviews in sports psychology, 1-45, Hauppauge, Nova Science Publishers, New York.
  37. T. Woodman, L. Hardy, The relative impact of cognitive anxiety and self-confidence upon sport performance: A meta-analysis, Journal of Sports Sciences, 21(2003) 443-457.
  38. D. Fletcher, & S. Hanton, Sources of organizational stress in elite sports performers, The Sport Psychologist, 17(2003) 175-195.
  39. T. Woodman, L. Hardy, A case study of organizational stress in elite sport, Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 13(2001) 207-238.
  40. N.L. Holt, J.M. Hogg, Perceptions of stress and coping during preparations for the 1999 women’s soccer world cup finals, The Sport Psychologist, 16(2002), 251-271.
  41. S. Hwang, Y. Choi, Data mining in the exploration of stressors among NCAA student athletes, Psychological Reports, 119(2016) 787- 803.
  42. R.A. Baer, G.T. Smith, J. Hopkins, J. Krietemeyer, L. Toney, Using self-report assessment methods to explore facets of mindfulness, Assessment, 13(2006) 27-45.
  43. R.A. Baer, G.T. Smith, E. Lykins, D. Button, J. Krietemeyer, S. Sauer, E. Walsh, D. Duggan, J.M. Williams, Construct validity of the five facet mindfulness questionnaire in meditating and nonmeditating samples, Assessment, 15(2008) 329-342.
  44. S.A. Jackson, R.C. Eklund, Assessing flow in physical activity: The flow state scale–2 and dispositional flow scale–2, Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 24(2002) 133-150.
  45. S. Cohen, T. Kamarck, R. Mermelstein, A global measure of perceived stress, Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 24(1983) 385-396.
  46. S.A. Jackson, Factors influencing the occurrence of flow state in elite athletes, Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 7(1995) 138-166.
  47. S.A. Jackson, S.K. Ford, J.C. Kimiecik, H.W. Marsh, Psychological correlates of flow in sport, Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 20(1998) 358-378.
  48. Y.H. Kee, C.J. Wang, Relationships between mindfulness, flow dispositions and mental skills adoption: A cluster analytic approach, Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 9(2008) 393- 411.
  49. S. Cathcart, M. McGregor, E. Groundwater, Mindfulness and flow in elite athletes, Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 8(2014) 119-141.
  50. K.W. Brown, R.M. Ryan, The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(2003) 822-848.