Effectiveness of Guided Mental Imagery Training in the improvement of Reaction Time and Reduction of Competitive State Anxiety in Karate Athletes

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Health Psychology, Kish International Branch, Islamic Azad University, Kish Island, Iran

2 Department of Psychology, Semnan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Semnan, Iran

3 Department of Psychology, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran

Abstract

Background: Pre-match anxiety and its effect on the psychological states and motor skills of athletes is one of the heated topics raised in sports psychology. It is recognized as a major factor affecting athletes' performance, especially at championship levels.
 
Objectives: The study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of guided mental imagery training in the improvement of reaction time and reduction of competitive state anxiety in karate athletes.
 
 Materials and Methods: This quasi-experimental study was of pretest-posttest control group design. The statistical population of the study consisted of all karate athletes in Tehran in 2019. The participants were selected via the convenient sampling method and assigned to the guided mental imagery group (n=15) and control group (n=15) using a simple randomization method. In this study, data were obtained using the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory (1990) and a reaction time meter. Data were analyzed in SPSS software (version 22) using repeated measures of analysis of variance.
 
Results: Based on the results, guided mental imagery training exerted positive effects on the improvement of reaction time (P<0.001) and reduction of competitive state anxiety (P<0.001) in karate athletes.
 
Conclusion: It can be concluded that guided mental imagery training effectively improves reaction time and reduces competitive state anxiety in karate athletes. This training can be used to resolve the psychological problems presented to karate athletes.
 

Keywords

Open Access Policy: This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. To view a copy of this licence, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

References

1. Hagan Jr JE, Pollmann D, Schack T. Elite athletes' in-event competitive anxiety responses and psychological skills usage under differing conditions. Frontiers in psychology. 2017 Dec 22;8: 2280. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.02280
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.02280
PMid:29312103 PMCid:PMC5743917
 
2. Mottaghi M, Atarodi A, Rohani Z. The relationship between coaches' and athletes' competitive anxiety, and their performance. Iranian journal of psychiatry and behavioral sciences. 2013;7(2):68.
 
3. Fernandes MG, Nunes SA, Raposo JV, Fernandes HM. Efeitos da experiência nas dimensões de intensidade, direção e frequência da ansiedade e autoconfiança competitiva: Um estudo em atletas de desportos individuais e coletivos. Motricidade. 2014;10(2):81-9. https://doi.org/10.6063/motricidade.10(2).2930
https://doi.org/10.6063/motricidade.10(2).2930
 
4. Fernandes MG, Nunes SA, Vasconcelos-Raposo J, Fernandes HM. Factors influencing competitive anxiety in Brazilian athletes. Revista Brasileira de Cineantropometria & Desempenho Humano. 2013 Dec;15(6):705-14.https://doi.org/10.5007/1980-0037.2013v15n6p705
https://doi.org/10.5007/1980-0037.2013v15n6p705
 
5. Helm F, Reiser M, Munzert J. Domain-specific and unspecific reaction times in experienced team handball goalkeepers and novices. Frontiers in psychology. 2016 Jun 21;7:882. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00882
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00882
PMid:27445879 PMCid:PMC4915076
 
6. Van Biesen D, McCulloch K, Janssens L, Vanlandewijck YC. The relation between intelligence and reaction time in tasks with increasing cognitive load among athletes with intellectual impairment. Intelligence.2017Sep1;64:45-51. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intell.2017.06.005
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intell.2017.06.005
 
7. Badau D, Baydil B, Badau A. Differences among three measures of reaction time based on hand laterality in individual sports. Sports. 2018 Jun;6(2):45. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports6020045
https://doi.org/10.3390/sports6020045
PMid:29910349 PMCid:PMC6026828
 
8. Wilkerson GB, Simpson KA, Clark RA. Assessment and training of visuomotor reaction time for football injury prevention. Journal of sport rehabilitation. 2017 Jan 1;26(1):26-34. https://doi.org/10.1123/jsr.2015-0068
https://doi.org/10.1123/jsr.2015-0068
PMid:27632871
 
9. Akyüz M, Uzaldi BB, Akyüz Ö, Dogru Y. Comparison of Sprint Reaction and Visual Reaction Times of Athletes in Different Branches. Journal of Education and Training Studies. 2017 Jan;5(1):94-100. https://doi.org/10.11114/jets.v5i1.1987
https://doi.org/10.11114/jets.v5i1.1987
 
10. Zarrouk N, Hammouda O, Latiri I, Adala H, Bouhlel E, Rebai H, Dogui M. Ramadan fasting does not adversely affect neuromuscular performances and reaction times in trained karate athletes. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. 2016 Dec;13(1):1-10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-016-0130-2
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-016-0130-2
PMid:27099568 PMCid:PMC4837563
 
11. .Moscatelli F, Messina G, Valenzano A, Petito A, Triggiani AI, Messina A, Monda V, Viggiano A, De Luca V, Capranica L, Monda M. Differences in corticospinal system activity and reaction response between karate athletes and non-athletes. Neurological sciences. 2016 Dec;37(12):1947-53. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-016-2693-8
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-016-2693-8
PMid:27544220
 
12. Sant'Ana J, Franchini E, da Silva V, Diefenthaeler F. Effect of fatigue on reaction time, response time, performance time, and kick impact in taekwondo roundhouse kick. Sports biomechanics. 2017 Apr 3;16(2):201-9. https://doi.org/10.1080/14763141.2016.1217347
https://doi.org/10.1080/14763141.2016.1217347
PMid:27592682
 
13. Buck DJ, Hutchinson JC, Winter CR, Thompson BA. The effects of mental imagery with video-modeling on self-efficacy and maximal front squat ability. Sports. 2016 Jun;4(2):23. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports4020023
https://doi.org/10.3390/sports4020023
PMid:29910271 PMCid:PMC5968921
 
14. Slimani M, Tod D, Chaabene H, Miarka B, Chamari K. Effects of mental imagery on muscular strength in healthy and patient participants: A systematic review. Journal of sports science & medicine. 2016 Sep;15(3):434.
 
15. Carrasco DG, Cantalapiedra JA. Effectiveness of motor imagery or mental practice in functional recovery after stroke: a systematic review. Neurología (English Edition). 2016 Jan 1;31(1):43-52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nrleng.2013.02.008
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nrleng.2013.02.008
 
16. Curtin KD, Munroe-Chandler KJ, Loughead TM. Athletes' imagery use from a team-level perspective and team cohesion. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology. 2016 Oct 1;14(4):323-39. https://doi.org/10.1080/1612197X.2015.1036096
https://doi.org/10.1080/1612197X.2015.1036096
 
17. Slimani M, Chamari K, Boudhiba D, Chéour F. Mediator and moderator variables of imagery use-motor learning and sport performance relationships: a narrative review. Sport Sciences for Health. 2016 Apr 1;12(1):1-9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11332-016-0265-1
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11332-016-0265-1
 
18. Taheri, M,. Ghanbari, N,. Sharifzade, M,. The effectiveness of mental imagery training on reducing competitive anxiety. The Third National Conference on Sports Science and Physical Education of Iran. (2016). 2 (3): 25-41.
 
19. Posner, M. I. Brief meditation training induces smoking reduction. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. (2017).110(34), 13971-13975. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1311887110
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1311887110
PMid:23918376 PMCid:PMC3752264
 
20. Martens R, Vealey RS, Burton D. Competitive anxiety in sport. (1990).
 
21. Farahani A, Torabi F, Aghaei G. Perceived motivational climate's relationship with competitive anxiety and self-determination among Iranian pro league handball players. International Journal of Sport Studies. 2013;3(8):822-7.
 
22. Kosslyn SM. Mental imagery. Visual cognition: An invitation to cognitive science. 1995;2:267-96. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/3965.001.0001
https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/3965.001.0001
 
23. Tsitsi T, Charalambous A, Papastavrou E, Raftopoulos V. Effectiveness of a relaxation intervention (progressive muscle relaxation and guided imagery techniques) to reduce anxiety and improve mood of parents of hospitalized children with malignancies: A randomized controlled trial in Republic of Cyprus and Greece. European Journal of Oncology Nursing. 2017 Feb1;26:9-18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejon.2016.10.007
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejon.2016.10.007
PMid:28069156
 
24. Charalambous A, Giannakopoulou M, Bozas E, Paikousis L. A randomized controlled trial for the effectiveness of progressive muscle relaxation and guided imagery as anxiety reducing interventions in breast and prostate cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine: eCAM. 2015;2015. https://doi.org/10.1155/2015/270876
https://doi.org/10.1155/2015/270876
PMid:26347018 PMCid:PMC4545275
 
25. Lim G, Krohner RG, Metro DG, Rosario BL, Jeong JH, Sakai T. Low-fidelity haptic simulation versus mental imagery training for epidural anesthesia technical achievement in novice anesthesiology residents: a randomized comparative study. Anesthesia and analgesia.2016May;122(5):1516. https://doi.org/10.1213/ANE.0000000000001260
https://doi.org/10.1213/ANE.0000000000001260
PMid:27007077 PMCid:PMC4840058
 
26. Velikova S, Nordtug B. Self-guided positive imagery training: Effects beyond the Emotions-A loreta study. Frontiers in human neuroscience. 2018 Jan 9;11:644. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2017.00644
https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2017.00644
PMid:29375344 PMCid:PMC5767265
 
27. Aghababaei S, Yazdannik AR, Keshvari M. The impact of guided mental imagery on the sleep quality of the elderly after having heart attack. Annals of Tropical Medicine and Public Health. 2017 Sep 1;10(5):1328. https://doi.org/10.4103/ATMPH.ATMPH_204_17
https://doi.org/10.4103/ATMPH.ATMPH_204_17
 
28. Blackwell SE, Westermann K, Woud ML, Cwik JC, Neher T, Graz C, Nyhuis PW, Margraf J. Computerized positive mental imagery training versus cognitive control training versus treatment as usual in inpatient mental health settings: study protocol for a randomized controlled feasibility trial. Pilot and feasibility studies. 2018 Dec;4(1):1-4. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40814-018-0325-1
https://doi.org/10.1186/s40814-018-0325-1
PMid:30123524 PMCid:PMC6091085
 
29. Sit HF, Hall BJ, Wang Y, Zhang Y, Ju Q, Gan Y. The effect of positive mental imagery training on Chinese University students with depression: A pilot study. Current Psychology. 2020 Jun 27:1-4. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-020-00867-1
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-020-00867-1
 
30. Murphy SE, O'Donoghue MC, Blackwell SE, Nobre AC, Browning M, Holmes EA. Increased rostral anterior cingulate activity following positive mental imagery training in healthy older adults. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience. 2017 Dec;12(12):1950-8. https://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsx120
https://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsx120
PMid:29069519 PMCid:PMC5716192
Razavi International Journal of Medicine
Volume 10, Issue 2
April 2022
Pages 71-76

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics