Show Notes
Professor Sophia Jowett's has conducted a lot of research into understanding the interpersonal dynamics between coaches and athletes and is instrumental in raising awareness and changing attitudes around the reciprocity of the relationship and the importance of relational qualities including mutual trust, respect, appreciation, commitment, loyalty, co-operation and collaboration. In today's episode, part 4 of David's investigation into ChatGPT's and its response to the question "What Can I Expect When Working With A Sport Psychologist" he goes on to discuss supporting a coach who receives negative feedback from athletes or players. The aim is to aid your understanding of applying psychological skills training (PST) techniques such as self- talk, relaxation and visualisation to improve the quality of the coach-athlete relationship, and in turn, positively impact both coaches' and athletes' performance and wellbeing. There are connections between the points discussed and Jowett's work. Enjoy tuning in! Key Learning Points: Coaches can benefit from being supported by Sport Psychologists too, not just athletes. As a coach understanding your own emotions and why they occur can benefit your relationships with athletes or players. When you experience negative emotions as a coach does your self-talk become judgemental? Instructional self-talk can benefit coaches to manage situations better. Allowing your self some space to breathe as a coach is useful and can help your behaviour management, as can improving your visualisation skills. Connect with David Charlton Sign Up to The Mental Edge Join David @ The Sports Psychology Hub Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIN To Listen to Related Podcasts To Help You Improve Your Understanding of Sports Psychology Ep161: Paul Phillips – How to Create a Culture of High Performance in Professional Rugby Union Ep166: Mark Bennett MBE – How To Help Athletes and Coaches Reflect On Their Performances Ep180: David Charlton – How To Work With Team Units To Improve Culture In Teams Ep209: Felix Lehmann – How To Create Better Decision Makers On The Football Pitch Ep249: Dr Edward Hall - Understanding Workplace Collaboration In Coaching In Team Sports Relevant Blogs And Resources To Help You Improve Coach Athlete Relationships Online Course for Sports Coaches developed by Professor Sophia Jowett – Empowering the athlete: The coach-athlete partnership The Mental Edge - Enhancing Coach-Athlete Relations Blog: Why You Should Recognise The Power of Your Words Blog: How to Stay Calm as a Coach in Big Matches Blog: Helping Confident Coaches Progress
More from Demystifying Mental Toughness
To end a recent series on the coach-athlete relationship, in this bonus episode of the Demystifying Mental Toughness Podcast, David Charlton is joined by Dr John Perry, Head of Department of PE and Sports Sciences at the University of Limerick, researcher, former coach and performance analyst, to explore how coaches can better support athletes through the lens of mental toughness.
In this episode David concludes the eight-part series exploring the coach–athlete relationship by focusing on a powerful concept within the Challenge pillar of the 4Cs model of Mental Toughness, learning orientation. Learning orientation reflects how willing athletes and coaches are to reflect on mistakes, setbacks and difficult experiences in order to improve. Without this mindset, progress in sport can stall and with it, challenges become powerful opportunities for development.
Description Today, David Charlton explores another dynamic within the coach–athlete relationship: differences in risk orientation (a sub-measure of Mental Toughness). He discusses a common scenario in sport, a coach who prefers structure, routine and predictability working alongside an athlete who thrives on experimentation, creativity and challenge. While structured environments can provide stability and clarity, athletes high in risk orientation often crave variety, stimulation and opportunities to explore different solutions.
In this episode of the Demystifying Mental Toughness Podcast, David Charlton explores an often overlooked aspect of confidence in sport, interpersonal confidence. He discussed a common dynamic seen in sporting environments: a coach with very high interpersonal confidence working alongside an athlete who struggles to speak up. Highly confident coaches often communicate clearly and persuasively. They lead conversations, provide direction and bring strong conviction to their coaching. Yet when this confidence dominates the interaction, quieter athletes can become increasingly passive, hesitant and disengaged.
Today, David Charlton explores a powerful but often misunderstood dynamic in sport: the highly confident coach working with an athlete who lacks confidence in their ability.