N.S. Lesheva¹
T.A. Grineva¹
Professor, Dr.Hab. Y.M. Makarov²
Associate Professor, PhD N.V. Lutkova^2
1Saint-Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering, St. Petersburg
²Lesgaft National State University of Physical Education, Sport and Health, St. Petersburg

Keywords: mentally and emotionally tense game situations, personality qualities, female volleyball players, regression model.

Background. Modern volleyball game techniques are highly demanding to the personal qualities and skills and individual performance standards of the players. Studies to explore personal qualities and skills of top priority in the emotionally tense game situations are indispensable for the competitive fitness rating of female volleyball players [1].

Objective of the study was to identify and rate the skilled female volleyball players’ key personal qualities and skills of highest importance for their performance success in extremely tense game situations.

Methods and structure of the study. Subject to the study were 62 female volleyball players qualified for the Russian national championship. The players’ fitness was rated by 149 criteria that may be broken down into the following five sets of criteria: psycho-physiological, functional, mental, physical and technical/ tactical ones. Personal qualities of the players were rated by 103 psychological condition criteria. Each of the personal quality rating criteria was value-coded and scored by test points.

Study results and discussion. Our analysis of the correlation of the players’ personal qualities and skills with their success rates in the mentally/ emotionally low-tense game situations showed that the success was largely due to the better technical/ tactical skills (r = 0.8409 for the attacks; r = 0.8449 for the serves; r = 0.7932 for the blocks; and r = 0.7921 for the passes), physical fitness rates (r = 0.7704 for the speed-strength skills) and, to a smaller degree, to the personal qualities and other associating factors. Dominance of some female players in the key elements of the game is normally of expressly negative effect on the mental condition of other players. The disadvantaged players’ mindset will show signs typical for a looser, i.e. unhappiness with the equipment/ infrastructure of the competitions (r = 0.6286); unhappiness with the refereeing service quality (r = 0.5786); and poor physical state (r = 0.6236) that makes them behave in an irresponsible and/or disorganized manner at times (r = 0.6274); and, quite naturally, loss of confidence (r = 0.5968). The mentally/ emotionally low-tense game situations are normally due to mostly inadequate physical/ technical/ tactical fitness in particular and inadequate mastery level on the whole in some time intervals of the match/ competitions rather than personal qualities of the female volleyball players.

In the mentally/ emotionally moderate-tense game situations, the team play success still largely depends on the athletes’ technical/ tactical fitness rates, with the players’ psychological factors playing somewhat higher role. The “motivation for goal” criterion rated by r = 0.7404 looks quite reasonable for such situations. It shows close correlation with the anxiety rate of r = 0.7182 and self-confidence rate of r = 0.6430, despite the fact that both criteria are largely opposite – since an increased anxiety rate never improves playing efficiency and unlikely contributes to self-confidence. Furthermore, mentioned among the major contributors to success of the game may be such qualities as determination rated by r = 0.6422; and communication ability rated by r = 0.6404. On the whole, the game success in the moderate-tense situations still notably depends on the physical/ technical/ tactical fitness rates of the players.

In the mentally/ emotionally high-tense game situations, no clear correlation of the physical/ technical/ tactical fitness rates with the game success rates could be found that may be indicative of such situations normally occurring in the cases of the functional/ technical/ tactical fitness rates of the competing female players being relatively even in the specific time interval of the match or competitions. The study data show an increased role played by the personal qualities in such situations that may be due to the higher responsibility for success or loss in every action. As a result, the game performance success depends much on the player’s motivation rate (r = 0.7961), determination rate (r = 0.7358), communication rate (r = 0.7305) and personal focus on success (r = 0.6984). This evidence was interpreted as quite convincing in the players’ motor skills being in correlation with the personal qualities. Therefore, success of the female players in the high-tense game situations is due to the joint contribution of their personal qualities and motor skills. Moreover, a relative parity of the rates was found fairly typical for the mentally/ emotionally high-tense game situations.

In the mentally/ emotionally extremely-tense game situations, the correlation was found to be dominated by the personal qualities of the players. The extremely-tense game situations always claim maximal physical and mental efforts, and unless this condition is met, the extremity is never achieved. For success in such a situation, the player needs to mobilize an additional source of energy in the internal reserves of the personal qualities. The success-focused behaviour of the female players in such situations is dominated by extra motivation for success (r = 0.8863); expressed demonstrativeness (r = 0.8768); high determination rate (r = 0.8334); and verbal aggression rate (r = 0.8264) geared to add fuel to and mobilize oneself in the situation; and increased confidence rate (r = 0.8122). The resultant mental state of the players, conditional on their high technical/ tactical mastery, is designed to give them an edge in the critical time interval of the game.

The study data and analyses gave us the means to design a summarized model of competitive success in variable mentally/ emotionally tense game situations (see Table 1 hereunder).

Table 1. Regression model of game performance success in variable mentally/ emotionally tense game situations for the 16-18 years old female volleyball players

The correlation analysis gave the means to find fair correlations of some of the study rates – that may be presented in mathematical terms as a regression model, with its statistical meaning being rated. Determination ratio was used to rate the adequacy of the model. In the multiple regression equations, rate p ≤ 0.05 was characteristic of the regression equation being significant. The general trend of the identified regression was interpreted as characteristic of the increased requirements to the players’ personal qualities depending on the tension rates of the game situations.

As provided by the resultant regression equations, in the mentally/ emotionally low-tense game situations the performance success is dominated by the following rating criteria: ЕР = 86.5799 + 1.25089*R + 0.261062*FP2 + 0.32036*PSF11 + 0.692437*PSF6; and EN = 22.2167 + 1.04593* KU3+ 0.183788*SZO1. In the mentally/ emotionally moderate-tense game situations the performance success is dominated by the following rating criteria: ЕВ = 44.1007 + 0.0190469*PSF5 + 0.678014*PSF6 + 0.374121*FP2 + 2.27879*PSF11+1.713347*R; and EN = 64.0853 + 2.30391*K12 + 0.463133*KU3 + 2.89019*K15 + 0.331242*SZ01+ 2.47916*K6 + 0.258513*Y – i.e. dominating are the physical/ technical/ tactical fitness rates plus the height-weight rates (with the determination ratios of 81.0% and 72.4%, respectively). In the mentally/ emotionally high- and extremely-tense game situations, the performance success is dominated by the following rating criteria: EPR = 138.374 + 6.52164*S7 +5.35156*K15 + 1.28533*P5 + 1.06739*K7 – 14.4161*K12 + 1.2677*R7; and EN = 103.338 + 0.635813*K7 +1.32411*LP5; and EP = 41.6791 + 0.723431*L7 + 1.02501*K6 + 0.194076*S5 + 0.839637*P5 + 1.422*KU3 + 0.804718*T1. It should be noted that success of the technical and tactical actions is secured by 13 of the 19 rating criteria.

Conclusion. The higher is the game competitiveness and tension, the higher is the role and contribution of the personal qualities of the female volleyball players. The technical and tactical skills performance success in the highly- and extremely-tense game situations was found to directly depend on the mental qualities and skills of the female volleyball players.

References

1. Makarov Yu.M. Differentsiatsiya psihoemotsionalnoy napryazhennosti igrovyih situatsiy v sorevnovatelnoy deyatelnosti kvalifitsirovannyih voleybolistok (Differentiation of stress in game situations in competitive activity of skilled players in women's volleyball) / Yu.M. Makarov, N.V. Lutkova, K.S. Solomenina // Uch. zapiski un-ta im. P.F. Lesgafta. – 2014. – № 3 (109). – P. 96-100.

Corresponding author: nataliya_lutkova@mail.ru

Abstract. The article explores correlations of the skilled female volleyball players’ personal qualities with their performance success rates in mentally and emotionally tense situations. The study methodology was based on an analysis of correlations of the women’s rated personal (psycho-physiological, functional, mental, physical, technical and tactical) qualities and skills with their performance success rates in mentally and emotionally tense situations. The objective of the study was to identify the skilled female volleyball players’ key personal skills and qualities of highest importance for their performance success in extremely tense game situations. The researchers applied a regression model to the skilled female volleyball players’ education, training and competitive process to find the best methodological and practical tools to shape up the top priority mental qualities and skills in the athletes. The study data and analyses may be beneficial for the relevant adjustments to the skilled female volleyball players’ education, training and competitive process.