Preparation factors
Psychological factors are the mental factors that help or prevent sportspeople from being in the right 'frame of mind' to perform well.
In sport, an athlete has to want to perform and to improve their performance. Their determination to do this is called motivation. The intensity of it is called arousal.
An athlete explains the importance of mental preparation
Case study 鈥 Preparing mentally for a game at home
In the run up to the Glasgow Commonwealth Games in 2014, Team Scotland focused on helping Scottish athletes to manage the additional pressure of performing in front of a home crowd. The team recognised that this could be a positive factor but that it could also raise athletes' levels of anxiety. They used a combination of science to measure brain activity and practical, simple tools to help athletes cope. It worked - Scotland won 53 medals during the Games, compared to 26 in the 2010 Games, in Delhi, India.
