Motivational Styles: Examining the Impact of Personality on the Self-Talk Patterns of Adolescent Female Soccer Players

Abstract

The purpose of this exploratory study was to (a) examine self-talk dimensions in sport, (b) identify whether motivation styles (MS) are represented in this sample (Burton & Weiss, 2008), and (c) compare profiles on self-talk dimensions and related constructs. A sample of 214 adolescent female soccer players completed a comprehensive questionnaire to identify motivational styles and self-talk patterns. Factor analysis results revealed four self-talk frequency and three effectiveness dimensions, and cluster analysis identified four MSs that generally supported predictions. Finally, multi-variate analyses of variance results found profile differences generally consistent with predictions, although success-outperformed mastery-oriented performers. Discussion focuses on future research directions.

Self-talk: Review and sport-specific model

“…Sport-specific self-talk research involving personal factors has included assessment of skill level, emotional intelligence, trait anxiety, goals and goal orientation, and belief in the effectiveness of self-talk (Burton, Gillham, & Glenn, 2011;Hardy, Oliver, et al, 2009;Theodorakis et al, 2012). Skilled and emotionally intelligent performers tend to use self-talk more than less skilled and less emotionally intelligent performers (Lane, Thelwell, Lowther, & Devonport, 2009;Thelwell et al, 2009), and benefit more than less skilled athletes from instructional self-talk in terms of performance accuracy (Takahashi & Van Raalte, 2010).…”

The Forgotten Self-Talk Attribute: Examining Perceived Effectiveness Profiles and Patterns of Elite Female Junior Soccer Players

“…Each respondent rated items on 7-point Likert type scales, with differing endpoint descriptors for perceived ST frequency (never to always) and effectiveness (very ineffective to very effective). Exploratory factor analysis [36] supported some processrelated function categories but not others, yielding four ST frequency and three perceived effectiveness subscales. Frequency subscales included a 8-item positive ST (e.g., "How often do you use ST to focus on the present rather than past or future?…”

“…Soccer Self-Talk Practices Questionnaire (SSTPQ). The SSTPQ was specifically constructed for this project based on the criteria discussed in the previous section, and a description of the systematic development process of the SSTPQ has been provided elsewhere [36]. Companion items were written for the perceived frequency and effectiveness subscales that were similar in focus but differed on the stem for each ST attribute (i.e., "how often" versus "how effectively").…”

Self-talk does not affect the transfer and retention in the tennis forehand learning in beginners

“…The motivational self-talk would contribute to neutrali-zing and inhibiting anxiety at execution time. On the other hand, of concern in this study, the instructional self-talk would either help an individual to focus on a relevant information regarding the execution of a motor task or not to repeat mistakes of the past (Burton, Gillham, & Glenn, 2011;Hardy, 2006;Hatzigeorgiadis, et al, 2011;Theodorakis, Weinberg, Natsis-Douma, & Kazakas, 2000;Zervas, et al, 2007). Importantly, the aforementioned self-talk effects are closely related to another self-talk category, namely, valence.…”