Archive for “Pygmalion Effect” Tag

How To Shape Speed Training – Part 2

Posted on: December 28th, 2009 by IYCA 3 Comments

Speed Training

A coach or trainer must possess a firm grasp of applied pedagogical science and have the ability to convert that knowledge into its practical art form.

Gone are the days of the ‘one size fits all’ approach to working with athletes. You cannot assume nor expect a given group of athletes, with their varying personalities and temperaments, to relate and respond to a singular style of coaching.

The aristocratic and authoritarian coaching style, long considered the most effective means of handling a group of athletes, is in actuality, a surefire way to negate the potential benefits of a lesson or training session.

From an ease of coaching perspective, it would be a wonderful scenario for us to only to work with those athletes whom were supremely motivated and exceptionally gifted, but in reality, this is seldom the case.

In any given group setting you have to accept the notion that your athletes will be divided in terms of both ability and motivation, and represent an eclectic cross-section of the following potential personalities:

– High Motivation/High Skill
– High Motivation/Low Skill
– Low Motivation/ High Skill
– Low Motivation/Low Skill

Each one of the sub-classifications above represents an athlete in need of a particular coaching style in order to gain and retain your speed and movement shaping lessons optimally.

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Setting Goals and Expectations for Young Athletes

Posted on: July 28th, 2009 by IYCA 4 Comments

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Young Athletes Goals

The Pygmalion Effect can either elevate a workers productivity or entirely undermine it. For instance, workers who receive continuous verbal praise for their efforts, while being supported by non-verbal means, will aspire and ascend to even more productivity. In contrast, if a worker receives less praise or even communication from management than their peers or co-workers, although nothing is being conveyed verbally, the worker feels as though they are under-appreciated and will see a lapse or decrease in productivity.

Livingston substantiated this point –

“If he (the manager) is unskilled, he leaves scars on the careers of the young men and women, cuts deeply into their self-esteem and distorts their image of themselves as human beings. But if he is skillful and has high expectations of his subordinates, their self-confidence will grow, their capabilities will develop and their productivity will be high. More often than he realizes, the manager is Pygmalion”

Now, apply these realities to the world of youth sports and coaching young athletes.

If inappropriate managerial skills, in the form of limited positive affirmations or feedback, can effect an adult to the degree that they will have "scars… cuts deeply into their self-esteem and distorts their image of themselves as human beings", what do you think happens to children under the pressure of inappropriate coaching?

In understanding the relevancy and practicality of the Pygmalion Effect, answer these questions for yourself:

Why doesn’t a "one size fits all" coaching approach work?

Do coaches treat all of their young athletes the same, or do they every so subtly play favorites?

What would happen to the ability and self-esteem of young athletes if their coaches and parents demonstrated great pride in their efforts and positively voiced a level of expectation, based entirely on the notion that the coach "knows" the young athlete could achieve this?

Should we make our young athletes more concerned about the results of a game or training session, or spend our energy with heaping positive praise and expectation on them because we know that they are capable of anything?

Here is a list of Pygmalion-based coaching strategies for you to use with your young athletes:

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Much More than Training Young Athletes…

Posted on: June 23rd, 2008 by IYCA No Comments

Training Young Athletes goes a lot deeper than you might think.

I had an exceptional time this past weekend.

Training Young Athletes

I got a chance to hang out with one of the best and most unique
minds in our industry – Paul Taylor.

Paul owns and operates ‘PT Academy’ in Australia – which is the
largest and most well-known certification organization in that
part of the world.

What makes Paul so unique and ‘visionary-like’ is his
understanding of human behavior, cognitive function and its
connection to both fitness and sport training.

Now I don’t mean your standard run-of-the-mill sport psychology,
either.

Paul’s understanding of mental/emotional science and the way
stressors, stimulus and regressive beliefs actually serve to
shape our ‘who we are now’ realities is absolutely astounding.

And as always, I was listening intently and learning everything
I could during our conversation.

I was also incredibly happy to see that so many of my thoughts
pertaining to youth fitness and sports training were valid
from a scientific level.

Here’s a recap of what I learned from Paul –

:: The key toTraining Young Athletes is to connect fitness with fun.
This develops a positive correlation in the brain at the
neuro-transmitter level and leads to a favorable and habitual
pattern for years.

:: Over-training is a great sin. Stress at large punishes the
delicate balance of the endocrine system and can lead to
extremely problematic health-related issues. Infusing fun and
following a ‘teaching model’ of athletic development is the
best and most effective way of working with young athletes.

:: The Pygmalion Effect truly is a critical factor in working
with youngsters. Placing positive and constructive expectations
on kids is essential for optimal development.

:: Language is absolutely critical – calling kids ‘fat’, sending
them to ‘Fat Camp’ or always telling them that ‘they should
be faster’ are surefire ways of establishing that exact
slant in their minds. Essentially, the stigma you place on
them is what they will begin to believe about themselves and
eventually create habits around fulfilling (i.e. they will
become exactly that).

:: Although teaching and training young athletes to ‘think positively’ is
key, you must also teach them to create habits around those
positive thoughts. Thoughts don’t change things – habits do.
Positive thought processes must lead to or be accompanied by
positive habitual patterns. When combined, the road to change
begins.

All in all, absolutely fascinating stuff!

Very much like my stance on the Art of Coaching…

Training is the SCIENCE.

But Coaching is the ART.

To be truly effective in what we do, we must understand how
the mental and emotional science of our work connects with the
physical portion.

‘Till next time,

Brian