Sports Psychology Overview

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What is sports psychology?

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A field that uses psychological skills and knowledge to improve athletes' performance and well-being.

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Who conducted the first research study in sport psychology?

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Norman Triplett in 1898.

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What principle did Norman Triplett's work start the study of?

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Social facilitation.

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What was the focus of Triplett's most well-known experiment?

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The effect of competition on performance.

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What were the three conditions of Triplett's races?

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1. Individual racing against the clock. 2. Individuals racing against the clock with a pacemaker. 3. Competitive race against others.

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What did Triplett refer to as 'dynamogenic factors'?

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The idea that the presence of another rider stimulates competitive instinct and releases nervous energy.

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Who founded the first American sport psychology laboratory?

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Coleman Griffith at the University of Illinois in 1925.

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What happened to Griffith's laboratory in 1932?

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It was shuttered due to a lack of interest and funding.

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What are the titles of Coleman Griffith's foundational books?

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'Psychology of Coaching' (1926) and 'Psychology and Athletics' (1928).

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When did sports psychology become recognized as a distinct discipline?

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During the 1960s and 1970s.