Regulating Preperformance Psychobiosocial States with Music
in The Sport PsychologistClick name to view affiliation
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The purpose of the study was to investigate the effects of music on swimmers’ preperformance psychobiosocial states. A purposeful sample of competitive swimmers (N = 17) participated in a 5-week intervention grounded in the individual zones of optimal functioning (IZOF) model. Findings showed that (a) preperformance psychobiosocial states differentiated between best and worst performances, (b) swimmers improved their ability to regulate preperformance states through the use of music, and (c) the use of music had a positive impact on swimmers’ perceived effectiveness of preperformance routines. Furthermore, swimmers’ qualitative reports indicated that music use was made more purposeful due to the introduction of a music intervention. The current study provides preliminary evidence in support of the use of music during preperformance routines as an effective tool to regulate athletes’ preperformance states. Athletes are encouraged to engage in the process of carefully selecting music in accordance with individualized profiles related to optimal performance states.
Middleton and Ruiz are with the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyvaskyla, Jyvaskyla, Finland. Robazza is with the Dept. of Medicine and Aging Sciences, G. d’Annunzio University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy.
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