Evaluation of a mental toughness training program for youth-aged Australian footballers: I. A Quantitative Analysis

Daniel Gucciardi, Sandy Gordon, James Dimmock

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    90 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of two different psychologicalskills training (PST) packages in enhancing mental toughness among three youth-aged (under15 years old) Australian football teams. We compared a program targeting the keys to mentaltoughness identified previously (Gucciardi,Gordon,&Dimmock, 2008) with a more traditionalPST program targeting self-regulation, arousal regulation, mental rehearsal, attentional control,self-efficacy, and ideal performance state as well as a control group. Overall, both interventiongroups reported more positive changes in subjective ratings of mental toughness, resilience,and flow than the control group. Similar ratings for mental toughness were reported by theparents and coaches. Both PST packages appeared to be equally effective in enhancing mentaltoughness.
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)307-323
    JournalJournal of Applied Sport Psychology
    Volume21
    Issue number3
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2009

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