Biometric, psychiatric and motor expertise characteristics of mental abilities in Sport Psychology. A preliminary study.

Abstract Mental abilities are essential features in motor performance achievement [4], however, in literature only few studies investigated the association between biometric, psychiatric and motor expertise characteristics and mental abilities. Aim of this study is to investigate the characteristics related to the goodness of such mental abilities that may act as protective or risk factors influencing their development and coachability. Participants were 85 italian young adults, 35 males and 50 females (age mean=24,22 and SD=2,78). For each mental ability they were divided into two groups according to the scores measured with “Inventario Psicologico della Prestazione Sportiva 48” [2], therefore distinguishing between those who use each mental ability well and badly. We also investigated the hours of the different motor experiences of participant's life, body mass index and psychological problems measured with “Symptom Checklist 90-Revised” [3]. We than performed an ANOVA, establishing as independent variable the group factor (good and bad) of each mental ability. The significant differences we found between the two groups for each mental ability are as follows: a) Motor Imagery: BMI (p=0,047), phobic anxiety (p=0,029), psychoticism (p=0,050) and total amount of motor practice hours (p=0,035); b) Self-Talk: interpersonal sensitivity (p=0,041), anxiety (p=0,031) and phobic anxiety (p=0,037); c) Concern: somatization (p=0,004), interpersonal sensitivity (p=0,027), anxiety (p<0,001), phobic anxiety (p=0,039), global severity index (p=0,009) and hours of competitive sport currently practiced (p=0,021); d) Confidence: hours of non competitive sport currently practiced (p=0,013); e) Goal Setting: phobic anxiety (p=0,042); f) Control of Arousal: somatization (p=0,010), depression (p=0,006), anxiety (p=0,005), phobic anxiety (p=0,024), global severity index (p=0,016) and hours of competitive sport currently practiced (p=0,004). The most interesting results seem to be those linked to Motor Imagery, especially with regard to the BMI (significantly higher in goods) and the psychoticism (significantly higher in goods). The first, could be related to better or greater cortical representation of proprioception associated with increased muscle mass; the latter to the high creative ability, ease and vividness with which people with this trait are able to associate and repeat their thoughts and movements in mind [1]. REFERENCES [1] Abraham, A., Windmann, S., Daum, I., Güntürkün, O. (2005). Conceptual expansion and creative imagery as a function of psychoticism. Consciousness and Cognition, 14, 520-534. [2] Robazza, C., Bortoli, L., Gramaccioni, G. (2009). L'Inventario Psicologico della Prestazione Sportiva (IPPS-48). Giornale Italiano di Psicologia dello Sport, 4, 14-20. [3] Derogatis, L.R. (2011). Symptom Checklist-90-R. Giunti O.S.: Firenze. [4] Weinberg, R.S., Gould, D. (2011). Foundations of Sport and Exercise Psychology. (5th ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.