| The purpose of this study was to design and implement an imagery training program aimed at affecting imagery ability, competition anxiety, and performance among youth alpine ski racers (13-14 years). The study also investigated which aspects of the intervention were most successful among this population. All participants (n=31) completed pre and post-test measures of the VMIQ (Vividness of Movement Imagery Questionnaire), MIAMS (Motivational Imagery Ability Measure for Sport), and the SCAT-C (Sport Competition Anxiety Test for Children). In addition, performance data were compared at the beginning and end of the intervention. Study group participants (n=19) met for 15 minutes for 9 weeks and engaged in 9 imagery training sessions. An ANCOVA revealed a significant difference for imagery ability between groups on the "self" subscale of the VMIQ, F(1, 29)=5.77, p=0.023. Both the "other" subscale score and the total VMIQ score did not reach significance ( p=0.168 to p=0.064). No significant difference was found between the two groups on either the MG-A or the MG-M subscale of the MIAMS (p>.05). No significant gender differences were found on either of the VMIQ subscales, the VMIQ total score, or the MIAMS subscales (p>.05). Analysis on the SCAT-C scores indicated no significant differences between groups (p>.05). A significant difference between males and females was found on the SCAT-C scores, F(1, 29)=5.86, p=0.02. No significant performance differences were found between both groups at the beginning and the end of the intervention, F(1, 29)=0.214, p=0.647. Key findings include the importance of athlete buy-in, coach, parent, and practitioner presence, peer support, group consistency and size, location and environment, and session length and frequency. Recommendations are made for increasing athlete buy-in and coach, parent, and practitioner presence in an effort to increase program adherence. Results suggest that successful outcomes may occur if interventions are implemented in a distraction free setting, to small gender specific groups, while using a design that encourages autonomy. Results are discussed in terms of challenges and solutions for designing and implementing a program to 13-14 year old athletes. |
