The purposes of this study were to examine the (a) attentional focus strategies used by high school distance runners, (b) changes in attentional focus across four laps in three 1.6 km runs, and (c) effects of a pre-performance intervention using motivational and instructional self talk on the attentional focus strategies used by and performance of high school distance runners. Participants (N = 42) completed a background and demographic questionnaire, the Cross Country Attentional Focus Inventory (CCAFI), a motivational and instructional statement survey, and the Self-Motivation Inventory. A series of oneway ANOVAs revealed significant differences in the types of attentional strategies used by each group, as well as fluctuations in use of strategies. The experimental group associated more during the each of the 1.6 km trials, whereas the control group dissociated more throughout each trial. A significant group by week interaction was found, with the experimental group maintaining their performance and the control group slowing from week one to week three.

Thesis (M.S.)--Miami University, Dept. of Physical Education, Health, and Sport Studies, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 52-60).

This study examines self-talk within a communication framework and context. The effects of different types of self-talk on emotion are explored. Specifically, this research looks at different types of self-talk based on the language and message aspects of the self-talk including: valence of self-talk (negative vs. positive), and self-talk content (using name vs. second-person pronoun [you] for self-reference). The relative effects of these different types of self-talk on emotion are investigated within the context of interpersonal anger. For control, the study contrasts the effects of self-talk with the effects of thought. Additionally, this study looks at the effects of the different types of self-talk and thought on subsequent interpersonal communication outcomes (perceived satisfaction and effectiveness of written interpersonal communication as well as willingness to communicate interpersonally). Results indicated that valence of self-talk and thought has significant impact on emotional outcomes. Results also indicated an interaction effect between valence and the self-talk/thought manipulation on negative affect. Positive self-talk decreased negative affect more than positive thought. Further results demonstrated a mediated effect of self-talk on subsequent interpersonal communication outcomes. Positive self-talk led to less anger after interpersonal communication which led to greater perceptions of interpersonal communication effectiveness and satisfaction and increased willingness to communicate interpersonally.

I conducted 2 experiments investigating the relations between speaker-as-own-listener cusps and responding to bidirectional or reverse intraverbals. Speaker-as-own-listener cusps include, Naming, Say-Do Correspondence and Self-Talk Fantasy Play. During a pilot experiment, I found the source of the problem in 2 participants’ learning was their deficient speaker-as-own-listener repertoires. Although both participants in the pilot study had the Full Naming capability in repertoire, they lacked Say-Do and Self-Talk. Following a Self-Talk Immersion intervention, Say-Do was induced for both participants and coincidentally, correct responses to bidirectional or reverse intraverbals emerged. In Experiment I, I continued examining relations between the speaker-as-own-listener (SOL) repertoire and intraverbal responding with a statistical analysis of 35 Early Intervention (EI) and Preschool students recruited from CABAS® model schools who functioned at listener and speaker levels of verbal behavior. Findings from Experiment I indicated that the presence of Say-Do Correspondence and Self-Talk were significantly correlated to correct responses to reverse intraverbals. Experiment II was a functional analysis, during which 4 participants were selected from an EI classroom due to their similar levels of verbal behavior, deficient SOL repertoire, and because they could not respond to reverse intraverbals. Results indicated a functional relation between the presence of Say-Do Correspondence and Self-Talk and correct responses to intraverbal probes for all 4 participants.

I conducted a descriptive study consisting of 30 preschool participants with and without disabilities to examine the relation between the 3 bidirectional operants. The bidirectional operants were speaker-as-own-listener cusps, which included bidirectional verbal operants between people, bidirectional self-talk conversational units, and Bidirectional Naming (BiN). Using previously recorded videos of 10-min of social play (between-people condition) and 10-min of isolated fantasy play (self-talk condition), I recorded each instance of verbal behavior as a vocal initiation (VI), a non-vocal initiation (NI), a vocal response (VR), and a non-vocal response (NR). These initial recordings were further analyzed into the number of unidirectional and bidirectional verbal operants between people, unidirectional and bidirectional self-talk, single topography verbal behaviors, multiple topography verbal behaviors, missed opportunities, initiations, responses, and numbers of verbal episodes. The data collection procedure consisted of identifying each instance of verbal behavior during the between-people and self-talk fantasy play conditions and identifying the rotation in the participant’s role as a speaker and a listener within the verbal episodes to measure the social reinforcement function. For BiN, I measured the number of untaught listener responses (10 selection responses) and the number of untaught speaker responses (10 tact and 10 intraverbal responses) with familiar and unfamiliar novel stimuli following a naming experience in which the participants received 20 opportunities to hear the names of 5 novel stimuli while observing the pictures of the stimuli. Data were statistically analyzed using parametric and nonparametric analyses with Bonferroni corrected p-value. The results of the study were as follow: (1) the participants’ demographic characteristics were independent of their demonstrations of the three bidirectional operants, (2) BiN with unfamiliar stimuli was related to the participants’ emission of the bidirectional verbal operants between people, (3) the components of BiN and the bidirectional self-talk conversational units were independent but the results are inconclusive, (4) the unidirectional verbal operants between people were related to the bidirectional self-talk conversational units, and (5) the participants’ additional communicative verbal behaviors (i.e., vocal and non-vocal verbal behaviors, single and multiple topographies verbal behaviors, initiations, and responses) were independent of their degrees of BiN. The analyses of data suggested that there may be an underlying social reinforcement that is shared amongst the three bidirectional operants. Some may be more observable, such as the shared social reinforcement function between the bidirectional verbal operants between people and BiN with unfamiliar stimuli; whereas some may be less observable, as it may be manifested in a form of an audience control rather than social reinforcement function. Thus, the current study adds to the existing literature on verbal development as it shows the relation between the three bidirectional operants and the importance of social reinforcement not only to engage in conversation with others but to learn names of new unfamiliar objects or to come under audience control.

The primary purpose of this study was to examine the impact of different types of self-talk (i.e., group-oriented self-talk versus individual-oriented self-talk) upon self-efficacy, collective efficacy, and performance of a dart-throwing task in a group setting. The second object was to examine the interaction individuals' between individualistic or collectivistic orientations and self-talk on their perceptions of self-efficacy and collective efficacy. Participants were 80 university students (age, M = 22.25 years, SD = 4.41). A series of 3 (self-talk intervention levels) X 2 (individualism-collectivism levels) between-groups ANOVAs revealed that both self-efficacy and collective efficacy beliefs were significantly higher in the group-oriented self-talk condition than in the control condition. Consistent with efficacy beliefs, significant differences in performance improvement were found between the group-oriented-self-talk and the control condition. However, no interaction between self-talk and individualism-collectivism was found for self-efficacy or collective efficacy. The results suggest that in interdependent contexts, group-oriented self-talk strategies could be more effective in enhancing participants' confidence in their own abilities, their team's abilities, and performance than individual-oriented self-talk strategies. Limitations and implications for the future study of efficacy beliefs within a group performance setting are discussed.

The objectives of this study were to examine: (1) the effects of instructional and motivational self-talk verbalized overtly or covertly on self-efficacy and performance in elite golf players; and (2) the preference of motivational and instructional self-talk and how this relates to performance in elite golf players. Participants were 30 elite golf-players, with a mean age of 17.38 (± 0.94) years. A mixed model repeated measures design was implemented. The self-talk overtness manipulation failed in the overt self-talk group, and baseline differences between the groups were detected. Consequently, the original design could not be implemented. With regards to performance, preference, and self-efficacy in the covert self-talk group no significant results were revealed, although there were potentially interesting patterns within the data. Content analysis of after performance debriefing interviews provided insights into participants‟ self-talk use and experimental experiences. The results are discussed in relation to theory, previous research, and methodological issues. Future research and applications are suggested. / Syftet med föreliggande studie var att undersöka: (1) effekterna av instruerande och motiverande self-talk yttrat overt eller kovert på self-efficacy och prestation hos elit golfspelare; samt (2) preferensen av motiverande eller instruerande self-talk och hur detta är relaterat till prestationen hos elit golfspelare. Deltog gjorde 30 elit golfspelare med en medelålder på 17.38 (± 0.94) år. En mixad design med upprepade mätningar implementerades. Manipuleringen av self-talk overtness i den overta self-talk gruppen misslyckades och skillnader mellan grupperna fanns i baslinjemätningen. Därav kunde inte den ursprungliga designen besvaras. Vad gäller prestation, preferens, och self-efficacy i den koverta self-talk gruppen fanns inga signifikanta resultat, men potentiellt intressanta trender fanns i datan. Kvalitativ innehållsanalys av prestations debriefings intervjuerna gav inblick i deltagarnas self-talk användning och upplevelser av experimentet. Resultaten diskuteras i relation till teoretiska ramverk, tidigare forskning, och metodiken i studien. Förslag på framtida forskning och praktiska implikationer ges.

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Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2009. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains ix, 177 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Psych.Sport&Ex.) - University of Queensland, 2006. / Includes bibliography.