How an Individual’s Personality Can Impact Sports Performance

Introduction

In this essay, I will be discussing how a variety of aspects can impact sports performance. One of those aspects is an individual’s personality. Personality is the characteristics that make a person unique. Personalities are consistent ways of behaving that are unchangeable over a variety of situations. I will be looking at different types of personalities such as Personality traits, Social learning theory, Interactional Theory, and the tests that impact sports performance.

How an Individual’s Personality Can Impact Sports Performance

To begin my review between personality and sports performance, I am going to review the different dimensions created by Eysenck. Eysenck attempted to define personality by sectioning it into different dimensions. One dimension is between introvert and extrovert personalities, while the second is between stable and neurotic.

Introversion and Extroversion

If you have the personality of an introvert, you are someone who is not actively seeking high levels of arousal during sports. Introverts naturally have high levels of arousal and do not need additional excitement. This relates to the type of sport they would participate in, as performance would be highest when arousal levels are optimal. An example of this is marathons or archery because it provides an environment that does not involve high levels of arousal and allows the athlete to maintain reduced levels of arousal, resulting in optimal performance. This means that their performance levels would be high as they are neither under-aroused nor over-aroused.

The other end of this dimension is an extrovert’s personality type. This is when someone is naturally under-aroused, so they become bored more easily. This means they cannot do tasks which require high levels of concentration and low levels of arousal. Extroverts perform in sports such as football and rugby, which involve other participants and high levels of crowds. Extroverts are drawn to these types of sports because the sports performer is naturally under-aroused and becomes bored easily; football and rugby are both sports that need high levels of arousal and excitement. By surrounding themselves in high levels of arousal, athletes are more likely to reach their optimum level of arousal and would therefore perform better.

Stable and Neurotic Personalities

Personality types are sectioned into different dimensions. The second dimension is between stable and neurotic personalities. Having a stable personality is when someone is easy-going and easy-tempered. This can impact you in sports because it will allow a sporting performer to stay calm during high levels of arousal and remain calm-tempered. An example of this could be when an opposing team is behaving in an aggressive manner towards you; a stable personality type would be able to remain calm and keep arousal levels low. This means that their performance levels during sport will remain high as they do not let high levels of arousal impact performance.

Having a personality of being neurotic is when someone is restless and excitable, with a tendency to become anxious and highly aroused. This can impact you negatively in sports performance as it can cause you to be over-aroused and decrease performance levels. This type of personality would respond in an aggressive manner back to the opposition. This could result in over-arousal and decreased levels of performance.

To overview this theory, you need to understand that the different personality types predict behavior and help understand how this can impact the way sportsmen behave during participation. The understanding of these dimensions can provide valuable insights for coaches and psychologists who aim to enhance performance through tailored approaches.

Conclusion

In conclusion, understanding the impact of personality on sports performance can offer valuable insights for both athletes and coaches. By identifying the personality traits of athletes, training and preparation can be better tailored to optimize performance. Future research could explore how these personality dimensions interact with other factors such as motivation and team dynamics to further enhance our understanding of sports performance.

References

• Eysenck, H. J. (1970). The Structure of Human Personality. Methuen.
• Roberts, G. C., & Treasure, D. C. (2012). Advances in motivation in sport and exercise. Human Kinetics.