PhD, Associate Professor D.N. Platonov¹
PhD, Associate Professor Z.N.Platonova^1
1North-Eastern Federal University named after M.K. Ammosov, Yakutsk

Keywords: competitive fitness, combat form, self-mobilizing, mental conditioning, anxiety.

Background. Whatever definition of competitive fitness or combat form we may analyze, it will always prioritize physical, mental/ emotional and intellectual capacities [1], with an optimal competitive fitness implying a high confidence in own physical qualities, skills and mastery level. One of the key elements of any competitive fitness is the pre-start mental conditioning ability that should ideally help relax, get inspired, concentrate and mobilize the energy resource – based on a high competitive motivation.

Optimal combat form (competitive fitness) may be defined as the individual best psychophysical state achieved by well-managed mobilization of own resource and experience to successfully compete however extreme the competitive situation may be. An ambitious athlete willing to win is expected to develop the best competitive fitness prior to the competitive event and maintain it till the end [1].

The personality-shaping impact of any sport may be defined as facilitating the individual progress in specific personality merits including willpower. For the sport performance being fairly stable and dependable, it should be based on the well-mastered semi-automatic skill set and controlled willpower for the athlete to act in the best possible way in any competitive situation as expected and appreciated by the supporter community [3]. Subject to our study herein were sporting adolescents facing special challenges in the efforts to cope with the sport-specific monotony particularly difficult for them in the technical skills training process and forcing many of them lose interest in and motivations for the progress [7].

Objective of the study was to analyze the junior female athletes’ competitive fitness and the ways to improve it.

Methods and structure of the study. Sampled for the study were the 13-16 year old track and field athletes (n=60) evenly split up into an actively competing Experimental Group (EG, n=30) and non-competing Reference Group (RG, n=30). The athletes were tested by the Spielberg State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) test (1976); V.F. Sopov Motivational State Scale (1985); Need for Movement test; Y.A. Kalinin Achievement Motivations Test; and Luscher Color Test. We also applied a psychological support program of our own design [2, 5] for the study purposes. The above tests were run prior to and after the new mental conditioning model testing experiment [4, 6]. 

Results and discussion. The mean arithmetic values of the test data showed insignificant intergroup (EG vs. RG) differences: see Table 1 hereunder. 

Table 1. Anxiety, motivations and need-for-movement self-rates: mean arithmetic values

Tests after the psychological support service showed the average anxiety rate falling by 0.3 and 1.6 points in the EG and RG, respectively, with the RG tested with the optimal anxiety rate on the whole. On the motivations scale, both groups were tested high by the pre-experimental tests, whilst the post-experimental tests found the average motivations in the EG and RG falling by 1.2 and 0.5 points (to the ‘high’ 22.5 points and ‘optimal’ 21.9 points), respectively.

The emotionality tests using the Luscher 8-Color Scale diagnosed 43.3% of the sample with low emotionality (i.e. fatigue) and 20-23.3% with high emotionality (excessive volitional efforts), with the pre- and post-experimental test data being close in both of the groups. We diagnozed most of the sample (43.3-50%) with an optimal emotionality.

The Spearman rank correlation coefficients were indicative of a few significant correlations in the test data arrays. Thus the EG was tested with correlations between the high anxiety rates and low motivations (r=0.464, р≥0.01). In the highly motivated subgroup, we found the high anxiety rates being correlated (r=0.401, р≥0.05) with the high motivations. Furthermore, we found the the high need for achievement directly correlated with the moderate anxiety rate (r=0.548,  р≥0.05). And the high need for achievement was found inversaly correlated with the high anxiety rate (r= -0,418, р≥0.01) – that means that the individuals tested with the high need for movements are less prone to anxiety, and vice versa. The correlation analysis of the both group test data found the high anxiety rates being correlated with the low need for movement.

Conclusion. The individual competitive fitness was found to depend on the mastery level and competitive successes. The study also found that the more intense is the competitive process the higher is the chance to reach an ideal competitive fitness and maintain it at the optimal level on the anxiety and motivations scales.

References

1. Ilyin E.P. Sports Psychology. St. Petersburg: Piter publ., 2008. 352 p. (Ser.: « Masters of Psychology»).
2. Nakhodkin V.V. Mental conditioning of young athletes: psychologist's guide. Yakutsk: SVFU (NEFU) pub. h-se, 2012. 138 p
3. Nebytova L.A. Psychological support of formation of reliability of subject of sports activity. PhD diss. Abtr.. Stavropol, 2004.
4. Platonova Z.N. Sports psychologist. Yakutsk: SVFU publ., 2013. 86 p.
5. Savenkov G.I. Psychological training of athlete in modern sports training system. Study guide. M.: Fizicheskaya kultura publ., 2006. 96 p.
6. Sopov V.F. Mental states in stressful professional activity. M: Akademicheskiy proekt Publ., 2005.
7. Stolova I.I. Athletics. All-around. Sample program of sports training for children and youth sports schools, specialized children and youth schools of Olympic reserve. M.: Sovetskiy sport publ., 2005. 112 p.

Corresponding author: zplatonova@mail.ru

Abstract

Competitive fitness may be defined as the sport-specific optimal individual status measurable by the relevant physical, emotional and thinking capacity rates.

The article analyzes the junior female athletes’ competitive fitness and the ways to improve it. Competitive success is determined by multiple external and internal factors of influence conditional on the individual best competitive fitness. Objective of the study was to analyze the ideal competitive fitness for success using the Anxiety Self-rating Scale, Motivational Background Scale, Achievement Motivation Test method, Sport Motivations Test, as well as Luscher Color Test. The authors developed a mental conditioning model and tested its benefits by the mental status tests prior to and after the experimental program. The new model testing experiment showed its benefits for the training and competitive performance. The individual competitive fitness was found to depend on the mastery level and competitive successes. The study also found that the more intense is the competitive process the higher is the chance to reach the ideal competitive fitness and maintain it at the optimal level on the anxiety and motivations scales.