Hey Hockeybuzzards!
I’m foregoing the Hump Day Jersey Review today as a result of a late worknight and hyperactive kids not going to bed when I got home! It’ll be back next week with a look at the jersey history of the Las Vegas Thunder of the defunct IHL.
In its place I thought I’d dig up an article I wrote about two years ago here that delves into my actual mortgage paying work: psychology. I think this article becomes quite relevant at this time of the year when we start evaluating who is under or over-performing, especially in the case of the rookies and sophomore players. The specific question in this regard is: To what extent does psychological arousal impact a player’s ability to perform at an elite level. Let’s look at three different players:
Player One
He tore it up in the Juniors with little to no real effort involved. It was all on pure talent. He’s been touted as a sure-fire number one pick in the draft for years, and all the while has had people around him telling him how great he is. He believes it, not necessarily because he’s cocky or arrogant, but because the results show he’s just that good! He goes number one (as predicted) and comes into camp with little to no stress about making the team, foresees a seamless transition into the NHL, and is thinking only of the success that awaits him once the season begins and the hardware he’ll pick up at season’s end. What happens? To put it bluntly: He s**ts the bed…
Player Two
He tore it up in the Juniors with little to no real effort involved. It was all on pure talent. He’s been touted as a sure-fire number one pick in the draft for years, and all the while has had people around him telling him how great he is, but also reminding him that he cannot rest on past accomplishments. He knows he’s good, but also knows you’re only as good as your last game, and as such keeps himself attentive and alert to his game, things he’s doing right and wrong, and adjusting his approach along the way. At the same time he maintains a perspective that allows him to remain confident in his abilities in spite of needing to tweak things along the way. He goes number one (as predicted) and comes into camp with excited about the prospect of making the team (something that’s admittedly somewhat stressful for him), recognizes that there is the need to work on his transition into the NHL, while aiming for a successful season and the possible results of his hard work. What happens? He’s a standout rookie in the league.
Player Three
He tore it up in the Juniors with little to no real effort involved. It was all on pure talent. He’s been touted as a sure-fire number one pick in the draft for years, and all the while has had people around him telling him how great he is. He believes it, not necessarily because he’s cocky or arrogant, but because the results show he’s just that good! However, he saw what happened the year before to Mr “Oops I crapped my pants!” (he of the first description), and vows that will not happen to him. He becomes obsessive about his game, trying to fine-tune it to the most precise detail, in an attempt to become the overall player he thinks he should be. In the process, he also increasingly stresses himself out. He goes number one (as predicted) and comes into camp over the top obsessed with making the team, stressing about what would happen if he didn’t, and worrying ahead to what obstacles will present themselves once the season begins (of course, that is, IF HE MAKES THE TEAM!!!!!). What happens? He vapour locks under pressure and is not able to perform to his potential which, in turn, kills his confidence (and the cycle is set in motion for future attempts…)
We’ve all seen these players over the years, and not just in this particular situation. The same type of thing can apply to players coming into the first year of a big contract, those coming into their free agency year, playing levels in the regular season versus the playoffs, and on and on. What is it that comes into play here that contributes to such differences between players when these situations arise? Well, when we look at the different examples above we can see many different outlooks, influences, expectations, emotions and a bevy of other factors that can and do exert some type of influence on the outcome. Rather than dealing with them all individually, however, it is helpful to look at all of these factors as impacting on an individual’s AROUSAL level, which in laymans terms pertains to the amount of behavioural, emotional and psychological energy someone will invest into some type of action.
What has been demonstrated for some time in psychological research is the relationship between arousal and performance. Before we move on, lets just take a break so we can all get rid of the juvenile laugh we’re having talking about “arousal” and “performance” in the same statement………..That enough time? No. Feel free to have a “Beavis and Butthead” moment before we continue……..(I’ll even provide a visual of how you should be reacting to help out)
Ok, back to the relationship between arousal and performance. The benchmark piece of research on this was by Donald Hebb in 1955, in which he proposed what it now known as the Yerkes-Dodson Principle. In a nutshell, this principle uses an inverted U-shaped curve (see the graph below) to explain the relationship between arousal and stress.
This principle essentially states that: a) at low-levels of arousal (i.e., low levels of alertness, interest, focus, motivation, attention, emotion, stress) behavioural efficiency is low; b) at moderate levels of arousal (the peak, or optimal level on the inverted curve) behavioural efficiency is highest; and c) at high levels of arousal, behavioural efficiency is again low. In terms of the rookies we talked about, expecting a cake-walk, or conversely an overwhelming experience, negatively impact one’s ability to perform. What’s best? The rookie who was able to balance their arousal particularly in the case of offsetting both their stress and confidence.
Think about it in terms of an exam. If you’re not concerned at all about it you’re likely not to study as much and run the risk of doing poorly. If you’re too worried about it you become overly stressed during the exam, or freeze up when trying to study/write. When do you perform best? When you’re able to manage the stress at a level where it motivates you to prepare for the exam at a level where you’re confident with what you’ve taken in and can write the exam without being overstimulated. Clear?
Will there be exceptions? Sure there will. Whenever we talk about human behaviour there are no real steadfast rules. This will apply in the majority of performance-based situations though. A player squeezing the stick? Thinking too much about scoring or possibly too stressed about a recent scoring drought. That perennial playoff performer (ala a Claude Lemieux)? The pressure of the playoffs raised his arousal to a more optimal level and had him making choices and decisions that he might not have during the regular season. An Alexander Daigle? Probably a lot of things, but I’d hazard a guess there was some under-arousal there at first that likely swung into an over-arousal later on.
These are but a handful of examples, but they hopefully drive home the point. It’s really about balance when it comes to how aroused we become in terms of our actions, motivations, and emotions. We need it, yes. But it is a delicate balance as to whether it will help or hinder one’s game.
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National Hockey Card Day Prizes!
I was speaking with Chris Carlin from Upper Deck yesterday and he gave me an update as to the swag he will be sending along as prizes for the NHCD contest we’ve got going down here. He has requested the following be sent out to cover the 5 winners:
2 boxes 2007-08 NHL Upper Deck Series 1
3 boxes 2008-09 NHL O-Pee-Chee
2 boxes 2008-09 NHL Legends Masterpiece
1 Mitchell & Ness Toronto Maple Leafs Jersey
A variety of single game-used and autograph cards
Great stuff, and some of it could land in your hands. All you have to do is send me a short blurb on your hockey card memories, or where you think the hobby should be heading in the future. A pretty simple task with a great payoff! Just click on
this link to get all the details and fire off an entry! There will be a winner each day from February 17th to the 21st here at Hockeybuzz, and why couldn’t it be you?
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There are two ongoing Monday Box Break contests also. One is open until Saturday, February 14th, so if you’d like to be a winner head over to my
08-09 UD Artifacts Video Box Break, watch the break and answer the contest question to be entered into the draw for one of three chances to win a card of your choice from the box! The other is open until the 21st, and for a shot at that head over to the
2008-09 Upper Deck Series One Box Break, watch it, answer a few easy questions, and enter to win a card of your choice from this break!
Good luck to you all!
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