Date of Award

10-2017

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Department

Kinesiology

First Advisor

Paul Wright

Second Advisor

Scott Richmond

Third Advisor

Chad Kerksick

Abstract

Psychological skills training continues to grow in popularity amongst athletes and coaches of various levels. However, there is still a lack of research in different populations on the benefits of psychological skills training. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a psychological skills training program on the hitting performance and Athletic Coping Skills Inventory-28 of elite youth baseball players.

A total of 27 participants completed a baseline, pre-test, and post-test hitting test along with pre-test and post-test ACS[-28 measures. A 6-month follow up ACSI-28 and focus group was conducted with 17 of the original participants. The psychological skills training program consisted of a 30-minute session each week for 8 weeks.

Following analyses, a positive correlation was found between the psychological skills training program with hitting performance and ACSl-28 scores. Specifically, a significant increase was found for the subscales: concentration, confidence and achievement motivation, goal setting and mental preparation, and peaking under pressure. At the 6-rnonth follow up, all subscales remained similar with the exception of peaking under pressure, which returned to pre-test values. While limited by no control group, this study provides preliminary evidence that a psychological skills training program may increase baseball hitting performance and different psychological skills as well as have long-term benefits for the athletes.

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