Self-Talk and Sports Performance: A Meta-Analysis

Area of Science:

• Sport Psychology
• Motor Learning
• Performance Enhancement

Background:

• Self-talk, the internal dialogue, is recognized for its influence on human actions and performance.
• Previous research suggests self-talk strategies can direct and facilitate performance in various domains, including sports.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a meta-analytic review of self-talk interventions' effects on task performance in sports.
• To identify potential moderators influencing the effectiveness of self-talk in athletic contexts.

Main Methods:

• A meta-analysis was performed on 32 studies, encompassing 62 effect sizes related to self-talk interventions in sports.
• Moderator analyses were conducted to examine task type (fine vs. gross motor) and task familiarity (novel vs. well-learned).

Main Results:

• A moderate positive effect size (ES = .48) was found, indicating self-talk generally enhances sports performance.
• Self-talk interventions were more effective for fine motor tasks than gross motor tasks, and for novel tasks over well-learned ones.
• Instructional self-talk proved more beneficial for fine motor tasks compared to motivational self-talk or gross motor tasks.

Conclusions:

• This meta-analysis confirms the efficacy of self-talk as a strategy to facilitate learning and enhance performance in sports.
• Self-talk training components within interventions further amplify their effectiveness.
• Findings support the broader application of self-talk in athletic training and suggest avenues for future research.