Sports Psychologist

Overview

Who is Sports Psychologist?

India is a country that enjoys sports and there are sports like badminton, cricket, tennis played faithfully here. However, only a few people seem to take serious account of the mind game played in the sportspeople 's minds. Sport psychologists, who are enthusiastic and passionate about psychology as well as sports, are increasingly required in the country.

Sports Psychology studies how diverse psychological aspects impact success, and how sport and exercise activities can affect multiple physical and psychological factors. The sports we see are not just a kinetics game or the muscles that are actively engaged to play the perfect shot. It is a game that is executed in the player's mind several times before hitting the actual ground.

An individual who has won many times in his mind, in diverse ways, will most probably be the winner on the D-day. Also after a defeat, a true sportsman spirals back to practice, and this happens more when he has a sound mental state. A Sports Psychologist understands this type of psychology well and he or she assists the sportsman to attain the ideal state of mind.

Typical day at work

What does Sports Psychologist do?

Sports psychologists primarily work with athletes, coaches, and referees, from amateur to elite level. They help athletes utilize psychology to improve their sports performance and mental well-being. A sports psychologist can also help injured athletes cope better with the pressures associated with returning to a prior level of performance–pre-injury.

• Communicate with consumers to help them gain perspective, identify goals and take action to achieve optimum success in the game
• Utilizing a range of treatment approaches, including psychotherapy, psychodrama, hypnosis, stress management therapy, behavior modification or play therapy
• Advise individuals and groups on issues like substance abuse, stress or family circumstances to alter behaviour, or develop social, financial or vocational adjustment
• Confer with clients about treatment problems
• Write customer reports and preserve necessary paperwork
• Confer with or consult other therapists, doctors or clinicians about patient care
• Obtain and research social, medical, psychological and family history by interviewing families, individuals or couples and examining documents
• Assess the efficacy of therapy or treatments and adjust treatment plans as and when required
• Create and execute individual treatment plans that define the therapy intensity, type, frequency and length
• Refer clients to other professionals, organizations or support services if required
• Maintain current research experience and knowledge
• Review reference sources, like manuals, textbooks or journals to recognise symptoms or improve treatment strategies
• Create, guide and engage in staff and student training programmes
• Observe clients at play to identify symptoms of intellectual weakness, irregular behavior or maladjustment
• Guide, organize and analyse the activities of staff and interns involved in evaluating and treating patients
• Offer administrative or psychological services and guidance about mental health interventions or individual cases to private organizations or government agencies

Abilities & aptitude needed

What are the skills, abilities & aptitude needed to become Sports Psychologist?

This psychology arena is growing globally. In India, with millions of hearts aching to watch a sportsman play, pursuing this career is definitely a smart idea, as a sportsperson is under immense performance pressure.

The sports psychologist uses a variety of techniques to aid the client and thus you should be proficient in at least 1-2 therapy techniques thoroughly and also know about others in general. Educating the client about the process, identifying the main issue of the client and utilizing the technique that will benefit the client most are some of the basic capabilities that you must possess.

This occupation allows indigenous people to interact with the athlete who can better understand their requirements. Therefore, you need to possess developed communication abilities and active listening skills to gauge and understand the problems of the client better.

The office of the psychologist makes many people uncomfortable. Being able to show empathy and help patients withdraw their minds from getting medical attention goes a long way in alleviating worries. Some of them are in severe agony or are afraid of the process in general, and so you need to be thoughtful of their emotions.

Courses

Which course I can pursue?