The effects of mental interventions on competitive anxiety, stress resistance, cardiovascular activity and sport performance of college athletes

This study investigated the implementation of mental training applications with college athletes. The purpose of the experimental study was to examine the effects of an eight-week mental training program on athletes' anxiety adjustment, stress resistance, cardiovascular regulation, and visualization learning ability in soccer related contests. A total of 56 college soccer players, were randomly assigned to either the experimental or the control group. The athletes completed measurements of cardiovascular activity prior to juggling and shooting contests as well as in the recovery phase after the contests. Posttest measurements included cold pressor tests and questionnaires such as the Sport Competition Anxiety Test (SCAT), the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (CSAI-2), the State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory (STAXI-2) and the Recovery-Stress Questionnaire for Athletes (RESTQ-Sport). The findings suggest that the mental training program generated positive effects on athletes in terms of optimizing cardiovascular activity prior to and after contests (lowering heart rate and activating baroreceptor reflex mechanism) and improving juggling skills (59% improvement in touches and 45% enhancement in time) in comparison to the pretest measurements. One of the recommendations stresses the importance of deep breathing in sport performance.