Latinjak, Alexander and Hatzigeorgiadis, Antonis (2022) Self-talk: chats that Athletes have with themselves. Frontiers for Young Minds, 10 (681923). pp. 1-7. ISSN 2296-6846

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Abstract

Talking to ourselves is a unique human characteristic, and it makes a big difference to our performance, especially in sports. Sports psychology researchers have examined self-talk and found that athletes often use it to express what they are experiencing mentally and emotionally. This brings athletes’ attention to anything negative that they are thinking or feeling. Once they are aware of these things, athletes can try to talk themselves out of negative thinking to improve their performance. Because this is quite difficult, sports psychologists have developed training for athletes, to help them talk to themselves more effectively. Moreover, sport psychologists have developed techniques in which athletes repeat cue words that help them learn faster, control their emotions, or increase their motivation. Overall, research has shown that self-talk is important for self-control, that it can be improved, and, in the form of cue words, self-talk can enhance attention, motivation, and performance.

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