Reinforcement (positive And Negative) In The Sports Field
Currently, in most matches of any sporting discipline we usually hear a large number of indications that may have a positive or negative tone, from coaches, family members and even the public.
These are those external variables that, although they seem innocuous, can influence the performance of athletes.
He booster is that which increases the probability that a given action or behavior will be carried out more frequently or will be strengthened These are forms of reward that can consist of prizes, such as winning a trophy, receiving a salary at the end of the month or any certification; There are also other types of rewards that are not tangible, such as congratulations from the coach or applause from the public (social reinforcements).
On the other hand, we have verbal punishments, which are probably the ones that cause the most negative consequences, and knowing how to handle them will be essential to have good mental health within any professional sports field. A good example would be criticism from the press or any criticism that the public makes about your performance.
Taking the above into account, some examples would be: “Very good!”, “You did it perfectly” when a player manages to score a goal or performs a good attacking action. Or “that mistake could cost us the game” when faced with a mistake.
It is necessary to correctly manage reinforcers
All those people who surround any sporting discipline tend to react in this very common way. The role of a coach, sports psychologist or even the athlete himself is to know how to manage these reinforcements or punishments in an always positive way, to achieve maximum performance. Praise and criticism are two types of reinforcement in sports, and they have different consequences for the athlete
One of the fundamental objectives of the coach is to ensure that his interaction with the players is dynamic and fluid, so that they manage to strengthen certain patterns of conduct or desirable behaviors and eliminate others that are not. Teach a set of skills to get the most out of the capabilities of each of your players individually, and as a whole, the entire team.
So. In order to get the desired performance from each athlete, it is essential to have the greatest number of instruments. One of them is the management of reinforcements, both positive and negative.
Analyzing the reinforcement
The concept of reinforcement in the sports field is extremely important, since it influences certain intrinsic variables such as self-confidence, which is essential to be able to deploy all the resources available to any athlete.
Positive reinforcement from the coach, at a key moment in the game, It can make the difference between getting a good result or not Therefore, each coach is aware that one of his most important objectives is to effectively teach a set of skills necessary to succeed both individually and collectively using several strategies, including: reinforcements.
Positive reinforcement improves performances
It has been shown in numerous research that positive reinforcement is any consequence that increases the probability of subsequent response occurrence Therefore, a reward applied after an action implies that the individual has acted correctly, which contributes to consolidating the action or response and, consequently, to achieving an improvement in performance and actions.
This is the main objective of positive reinforcements or rewards.
Two important considerations must be taken into account in relation to positive reinforcement
Having said that, It is important to know that in sports practice the most used reinforcements are social reinforcements However, it is not at all conclusive, since there are players who find praise in the presence of others reinforcing, while others would find this situation uncomfortable. This is why it is essential to know the preferences of each athlete to be able to administer reinforcements productively.
Concluding
In summary, The management of reinforcements has a capital influence on the development and performance of a professional athlete
One of the great virtues that high-performance athletes have is managing both the reinforcements and the criticism that can affect them. That is, achieving an ideal balance in the face of these external variables; taking advantage of those reinforcements that contribute something to your game and discarding those that do not. With this strategy they manage to get the maximum performance in any circumstance.
