Colm O’Donoghue, a sports psychology expert, joins David Charlton to discuss the challenges faced by a 16-year-old swimmer struggling with online comparison to his rivals. They delve into social comparison theory and its impact on motivation and self-esteem. The duo offers practical strategies, including developing a pre-race routine and setting SMART goals, to foster personal growth. They highlight the importance of self-talk and emotional awareness, providing a roadmap to help young athletes shift focus from rivals to self-improvement.
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insights INSIGHT
Impact of Social Comparison Theory
Comparing yourself to rivals can either motivate or hurt your self-esteem depending on how you interpret their success.
Paul suffers from negative social comparisons by focusing on others' best online moments, not the full picture.
insights INSIGHT
Negative Cycle of Online Fixation
Excessive focus on rivals online triggers negative emotions and future anxiety, harming performance readiness.
This mental overload drains focus, leading to slower reactions and distracted performance.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Manage Online Rival Checking
Monitor your emotions when obsessively checking rivals and evaluate if it helps or harms you.
Set specific time limits to check rivals before competitions, then avoid it to reduce anxiety and negative feelings.
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Today, the case study that David Charlton and his colleague Colm O’Donoghue discuss is connected to a 16-year-old swimmer who spends a lot of time online checking his rivals out, be that on social media or reviewing stats and results. The implication is that his motivation and focus when training fluctuates and negative emotions such as jealousy and anxiety are triggered. As well, potential challenges with his own self-esteem and how he feels about himself can be evident.
David and Colm offer some ideas to shift his focus so that he is able to enhance his motivation and feel better in himself.
Key Learning Points:
Social comparison theory, proposed by Leon Festinger, suggests that individuals evaluate their own abilities, opinions, and accomplishments by comparing themselves to other people. This theory suggests that we have an natural drive to evaluate ourselves, and social comparison is a primary method we use to do so.
Develop a pre-race routine to get into the right mindset, consider when you want to be online and not especially as the race draws closer.
Set SMART goals focused on personal improvement.
Review your emotional experience and self-talk when your online, how does it make your feel? What are you telling yourself about situations that you come across?
Demystifying Mental Toughness