the effect of a mental training program on state anxiety and competitive dressage performance

Inga A. Wol

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doi:10.1016/j.jv

Journal of Veterinary Behavior (2011) 6, 267-275

RESEARCH

The effect of a mental training program on stateanxiety and competitive dressage performance

Inga A. Wolframma,b, Dominic Micklewrightb

aDepartment of Animal Husbandry, University of Applied Sciences, Van Hall Larenstein, Wageningen, The Netherlands;andbDepartment of Biological Sciences, University of Essex, Colchester, United Kingdom.

KEYWORDS: Abstract The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of mental skills training on precompetitive

mental skills training;precompetitive arousal;
equestrian
anxiety and performance in nonelite equestrian dressage riders. The intervention comprised mentaltraining techniques, such as goal-setting, relaxation techniques, self-talk, concentration training, andimagery, which are commonly used in sports. Ten Dutch nonelite dressage riders were recruited forthe study and used as their own controls. Riders had to participate in an initial competition approxi-mately 6-8 weeks before the beginning of the study. They participated in the second competition ap-proximately 1-2 weeks before the intervention, and in the third, and last, competition upon completionof the 6-week intervention training program. Intervention training took place for 2 hours per week for aperiod of 6 weeks. A one-way repeated measure analysis of variance with post hoc paired samples ttests revealed a significant difference between competitive results before and after the intervention.Findings suggest that mental skills training has a positive effect on competitive dressage performancein nonelite riders.� 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Introduction

Equestrian sports are unique in the sense that performingwell is dependent on the effective interaction between therider and the horse, who arguably have different motivesregarding their interaction. The rider participates in com-petition to achieve somedconscious or unconsciousdgoal.On the contrary, the horse has been trained to performcertain behaviors in response to relevant stimuli, using

framm and Dominic Micklewright have approved the final

reprint requests and correspondence: Inga A. Wolframm,

c, PhD, University of Applied Sciences, Van Hall Laren-

11, 6700 AK Wageningen, The Netherlands; Tel: 10031-

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ee front matter � 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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principles of negative and positive reinforcement(McGreevy, 2007). Yet, evidence suggests that successfulperformance in equestrian sports is more likely when aharmonious relationship between horse and rider exists,and that such a relationship is partially contingent uponthe emotional composure of the rider (Pretty, 2001;Tenenbaum et al., 2002). An important question is whetherthe psychological skills that lead to more facilitative inter-pretations of arousal and better performances in othersports would also be of benefit to the horse–rider dyadand lead to improved equestrian performances.

There is unequivocal evidence demonstrating the use ofpronounced psychological skills among elite and advancedperformers to manage emotional arousal and attain optimalpsychological states (Bertollo et al., 2009; Gould et al.,1993a,b, 2002; Holt and Hogg, 2002; Mahoney and

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268 Journal of Veterinary Behavior, Vol 6, No 5, September/October 2011

Avener, 1977; Williams and Krane, 2001). Such skills in-clude, for example, imagery, that is, the skill to visualizeoneself performing a certain activity with as much life-like detail as possible, or goal-setting, which refers to thestructured planning and setting of sporting goals to attaina certain performance outcome (Gould et al., 1993a). Addi-tional skills are thought control, which describes the abilityto only allow performance enhancing, positive thoughts en-ter the conscious mind, and arousal management, whichhelps an athlete to control physiological symptoms of anx-iety (Bertollo et al., 2009). Furthermore, concentration andfocusing skills are considered very important as they allowan athlete to focus only on performance-relevant tasks andactions, rather than getting distracted by other environmen-tal factors (Williams and Krane, 2001). In an early researchstudy investigating factors related to Olympic success,Orlick and Partington (1988, p. 129) stated, ‘‘Of the threemajor readiness factors rated by the athletesdmental, physical, technicaldmental readiness providedthe only statistically significant link with final Olympicranking.’’ The authors further concluded that a large pro-portion of athletes were unable to perform to their full po-tential, as they failed to hold their concentration and focuswhen faced with distraction (Orlick and Partington, 1988).Competitive arousal or anxiety is considered one of themost prominent distracting factors that may differentiatesuccessful athletes from less successful ones (Jones et al.,1994; Jones and Swain, 1995). Furthermore, skilled athletescan experience lower intensities of anxiety (Campbell andJones, 1997; Gal-Or et al., 1986) and more facilitative inter-pretations (Jones et al., 1994) of symptoms commonly as-sociated with competitive anxiety. Cheng et al. (2008)argue that the ability to perceive arousal as facilitative toperformance is largely dependent on whether athletes feelthat they are able to cope with the demands placed onthem during a competition. As early as 1977, Mahoneyand Avener investigated differences between 1976 USAOlympics qualifiers and nonqualifiers for men’s gymnas-tics. It emerged that the gymnasts who indeed qualifiedfor the Olympics had higher levels of anxiety management,were able to recover more quickly from mistakes, and usedmore positive than negative self-talk, which refers to theskill of talking to oneself either openly or covertly using de-risive (negative) or encouraging or motivating (positive)statements. Gymnasts were also found to use internal imag-ery, that is, the ability to visualize oneself from the first-person perspective rather than looking at oneself from anoutsider’s perspective. Even more interesting perhaps wasthe fact that successful gymnasts actually indicated feelingmore anxious before the event than unsuccessful gymnasts.However, during the most important moments of competi-tion, the pattern reversed: unsuccessful athletes had workedthemselves into a near panic through negative self-talk andmentally picturing images of catastrophic failures. The suc-cessful gymnasts, who ended up qualifying for the Olym-pics, had been able to use mental skills to bolster their

performance, effectively interpreting anxiety as ‘‘facilita-tive arousal’’; instead of perceiving the feelings associatedwith anxiety as debilitative to their performance, athleteswere now able to interpret the physiological symptoms asa state of readiness before competing. This early studyinto mental strategies in elite athletes goes a long way tosupport more recent theoretical and empirical findingsthat facilitative interpretations of anxiety play a vital rolein achieving levels of emotional composure conducive toperformance (Jones, 1995).

A number of researchers have investigated the positiveeffect of psychological skills on sporting performances. Forexample, Shambrook and Bull (1996) found that mental im-agery was able to improve free-throw consistency for bas-ketball players, whereas positive self-talk led to anincrease in performance in water polo (Hatzigeorgiadiset al., 2004) and tennis (Hatzigeorgiadis et al., 2009)players. Goal-setting was also found to be beneficial inAmerican football (Ward and Carnes, 2002). Although in-terventions involving a single psychological skill seem tofacilitate improved sporting performance, their effective-ness might be limited by individual differences and prefer-ences (Blakeslee and Goff, 2007). The programs fordevelopment of multimodal psychological skills, which in-corporate several skills as part of the same setting, may infact be more effective in helping athletes develop appropri-ate coping strategies for a variety of situations. Several re-searchers have found that multimodal-based programsincluding goal setting, concentration, imagery, and self-talk led to facilitative interpretations of precompetitivearousal and improved performances (e.g., Hanton andJones, 1999; Mamassis and Doganis, 2004).

A recent study investigated the effect of a multimodalmental skills program on equestrian performance in colle-giate riders. The authors investigated the effects of relax-ation techniques, imagery, goals, and self-talk strategies onthe performance of 17 equestrian riders competing atdifferent levels. Participants were divided into a controland a treatment group and were required to attend 2 horseshows. At the first horse show, preliminary performancedata were gathered. The second horse show took place 4weeks later, during which time the intervention groupreceived psychological skills training. The authors wereunable to find a positive effect on performance improve-ment in the intervention group (Blakeslee and Goff, 2007).However, riders in the treatment group reported later thatthey found the intervention to be helpful. The performanceparameters used in the study related to seat position andjumping style of the rider, rather than indicators of horse–rider interaction. Given that the majority of the equestriandisciplines depend on the effectiveness of the communica-tion between the horse and the rider, further research iswarranted to provide a clearer insight into the effect ofmental skills training on the emotional mind-set of theequestrian rider, and subsequent horse–rider interaction.A study by von Borstel (2007) shows an interactive effect

Wolframm and Micklewright Mental training program on state anxiety and competitive dressage performance 269

of anxiety between the rider and the horse. Different exper-imental conditions designed to induce anxiety in the riderand the horse–rider combination showed that an increasein the heart rate of the rider was correlated to an increasein the heart rate of the equine. The authors conclude thatriders who are better trained to control their anxiety areable to perform in greater harmony with their horses, lend-ing additional support to the notion that mental skills train-ing may assist in improving emotional composure of therider and more harmonious horse–rider interactions. Fur-thermore, the absence of any positive effect in Blakesleeand Goff’s (2007) study was possibly because of a transferof knowledge from the intervention to the control group,seeing that all participants were students and were likelyto engage with each other on a daily basis. We proposethat effects of mental skills training are examined more ef-fectively if subjects serve as their own controls.

The aim of the current study was therefore to test theeffect of a multimodal psychological skills intervention onnonelite dressage performance. It was hypothesized that anintervention incorporating goal-setting, relaxation tech-niques, self-talk, concentration skills, and imagery wouldhave a favorable effect on precompetitive emotional com-posure and horse–rider interaction. To this end, wesuggested that levels of precompetitive arousal and self-confidence were effective markers of emotional composure.Dressage performance scores served as indicators of effec-tive horse–rider interaction.

Method

Participants

Ten Dutch nonelite dressage riders who compete regu-larly in the Dutch amateur levels of B (beginner), L (easy),M (medium), and Z (advanced) were recruited for thisstudy. To improve representativeness of the sample, it wasdecided to include riders from all 4 amateur levels. Of those10 riders (mean age, 23.3 6 2.8), 3 competed at B level, 2at L level, 4 at M level, and 1 at Z level. At level B, therider is required to ride the horse forward into a steady andsoft contact in walk, trot, and canter on straight lines andcircles of 20 m in diameter. At level L, rider and horse areexpected to show the beginnings of collection, with thehorse loading more weight onto its hindquarters and

6-8 weeks (no

intervention)

1- 2 weeks (mental

Initial competition

Pre- intervention competition

Intervention begin

Figure 1 Stud

beginning to lighten its forehand. At level M, the horsemust show more established levels of collection, andperform some simple lateral movements. At Z level, thehorse must show established levels of collection, performlateral movements, as well as single flying changes incanter. All participants signed a written consent form,informing them that all the data collected would be treatedconfidentially and that they could withdraw from the studyat any time. All of the procedures used were approved bythe University of Essex ethics committee and compliedwith the Code of Ethics of the World Medical Association(Declaration of Helsinki).

Design

‘‘Initial performance scores’’ were defined as scoresachieved in competition 6-8 weeks before the beginning ofthe study. ‘‘Pre-intervention scores’’ were scores achievedin competition immediately before the beginning of thestudy, whereas ‘‘post-intervention scores’’ were thoseachieved immediately after the intervention program.

A repeated measures pre-experimental design was usedwhere pre- and post-psychological skills intervention per-formances were compared. To avoid a potential transfer ofknowledge between an experimental and a control group,riders served as their own controls. To allow for results tobe transferable to ‘‘real-life’’ sporting situations, riders wereencouraged to ride their usual competitions, but to simplyplan their competitive participations according to theschedule provided by the study design. Riders wererequired to submit competitive results of another competi-tion from approximately 6-8 weeks before the beginning ofthe study (‘‘initial performance scores’’), in their ownregion and at their usual level. Between 1 and 2 weeksbefore the intervention, all riders competed in a dressagecompetition in their usual area and at their current level(‘‘pre-intervention scores’’). Riders then participated in asport-psychological intervention for 2 hours a week for aperiod of 6 weeks. Approximately 1-2 weeks following theintervention, riders competed again in a competitive eventin their home region and at their usual level (‘‘post-intervention scores’’; refer to Figure 1 for a timeline ofthe study). As all competitions took place under the rulesof the Dutch Equestrian Federation (Koninglijke Neder-landse Hippische Sportfederatie, [KNHS]), all dressagejudges were suitably qualified to judge at the relevant level

6 weeks skills intervention)

1-2 weeks

Intervention end

Post- intervention competition

y timeline.


having completed KNHS judging examinations. All thedressage movements within the test were judged on a scalefrom 0 (not executed) to 10 (excellent). The dressage scorewas the calculated average of scores given to every individ-ual movement throughout the test and finally converted intopercentage points.

Modified CSAI-2R questionnaire

Before competing in the competitions at the beginningand at the end of the intervention, all participants com-pleted a modified version of the Competitive State AnxietyInventory 2 (CSAI-2R). As riders were required to submitcompetitive results from competitions held at 6 to 8 weeksbefore the beginning of the study, no CSAI-2R scores werecollected for that ‘‘pre-intervention’’ time point.

The CSAI-2R (Cox et al., 2003), a 17-item question-naire, was used to measure perceived intensities of somaticarousal (SA), cognitive arousal (CA), and self-confidence(SC) immediately before the competition. Therefore, theCSAI-2R measures temporal states, rather than stable per-sonality traits. The SA scale is concerned with physiologi-cal symptoms of arousal and is composed of items such as‘‘My body feels tense,’’ whereas the CA scale addressescognitive symptoms of arousal such as ‘‘I’m concernedthat others will be disappointed with my performance.’’The SC rates perceived ability of the athletes to meet thesituational demands, and includes statements such as‘‘I’m confident I can meet the challenge.’’ Each subscalewas composed of the following items: SA 5 1, 4, 6, 9, 12,15, 17; CA 5 2, 5, 8, 11, 14; and SC 5 3, 7, 10, 13, 16.Each CSAI-2R item is rated on a 4-point Likert scaleranging from 1 5 ‘‘not at all’’ to 4 5 ‘‘very much so.’’ Inaddition, a ‘‘direction’’ scale developed by Jones andSwain (1992) was included for all items to determinewhether the symptoms experienced by riders were inter-preted as ‘‘arousal’’ or ‘‘anxiety.’’ If riders consider theirsymptoms to be neutral or facilitative to performance, thesesymptoms should be referred to as ‘‘arousal.’’ If, on thecontrary, riders consider them to be debilitative to perfor-mance, they should be classified as ‘‘anxiety.’’ Riderswere asked to rate each of the CSAI-2R items on a scaleof 23 (very unhelpful) to 13 (very helpful), dependingon how helpful to performance they considered the inten-sity of each item to be. For example, the riders may chooseto rate item 4 ‘‘My body feels tense’’ with an intensity of3 5 moderately. So, if the riders felt that this tension wasvery unhelpful to their performance, they would rate the di-rection of item 4 with 23. If, on the contrary, such tensionwas ‘‘somewhat helpful’’ to their upcoming performance,they would rate it with a 11. To determine the final direc-tion score, intensity and raw direction scores were multi-plied for each individual item. SA, CA, and SC directionscores were then calculated following the original guide-lines provided by Cox et al. (2003).

Intervention

Riders underwent a 6-week sport-psychological inter-vention with a 2-hour group session per week. Riders wereinstructed to spend an additional 15-20 minutes each daypracticing the psychological skills they had learned. Ondays when riders were training their horses, they wereasked to pay particular attention while applying thepsychological skills to their training goals. On days whenthey were not riding, riders were asked to practice psycho-logical skills with both future training sessions and com-petitions in mind.

Participants were introduced to the benefits of psycho-logical training in sports in an introductory session, session1. Further, weekly sessions focused on the topics of goal-setting, relaxation techniques, self-talk, concentration, andimagery, including how these may be applied in equestrianriding sessions (Blakeslee and Goff, 2007). In session 2,goal-setting was used to help participants set long-termgoals related to their competitive aims, and short-term goalsdesigned to help achieve those. Participants were also en-couraged to balance between outcome, performance, andprocess goals. Outcome goals relate to the overall resultof a competition compared with other competitors, suchas final placing. Performance goals refer to goals that re-main within the control of the competitor, such as achievinga certain percentage in a dressage test. Process goals outlinethe sport-specific skills, which competitors would need tofocus on so as to achieve their performance goals. In anequestrian context, process goals would, for example, in-clude keeping a soft contact throughout the test to achievea harmonious performance. Relaxation training was taughtin session 3 using a combination of progressive muscle re-laxation (Jacobson, 1938), and breathing strategies to relaxduring ridden performance (Hogg, 1995). In session 4, pos-itive self-talk was used to combat performance-irrelevantthoughts and help the rider to focus on daily training goals(Hanton and Jones, 1999). Riders were also taught to turnnegative self-criticism into constructive comments to in-crease levels of confidence (Bandura, 1997). Session 5 fo-cused on concentration and maintaining focus.Participants were encouraged to use cue-words related totheir training goals to help keep levels of attention and re-focus themselves following distraction (Dugdale andEklund, 2002). Finally, in session 6, participants weretaught the principles of imagery, with particular emphasison visualizing mastery experiences in real time, using allthe senses (Cohn, 1990). They were encouraged to writean imagery script intended for the competition, wherebythey would vividly describe experiences. Based on thisscript, participants were encouraged to practice visualizingon a regular basis before training and competition.

At the beginning of each session, participants weregiven weekly recording sheets to complete the detailsregarding their psychological practice. The following

Table 1 Content of psychological intervention sessions and monitoring tools

Sessionnumber Content of session Monitoring tool

1 Importance psychological skills: The session outlined theimportance of psychological skills and facilitative attitudesin sports. Participants were encouraged to reflect onwhich attitudes they consider important. They were furtherencouraged to practice displaying chosen attitudes duringridden training sessions. Lastly they should reflect on whetherand how this improved subjective ridden performance.

Self-reflective journal monitoringwhether desirable attributeshad been demonstrated

2 Goal-setting and solution-focused thinking: Principles ofgoal-setting including long- and short-term goals, SMART(e.g., specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, time-bound)goals and differences between outcome, process andperformance goals were explained. Participants wereencouraged to set their own goals for training sessions.

During daily training sessions, riders should focus onsetting process goals which would help with overcomingcurrent specific riding-related problems.

Daily journal monitoring goals set andachieved for ridden training sessions

3 Relaxation techniques: Different relaxation techniquessuch as deep breathing and progressive musclerelaxation were explained and then practiced.

Journal monitoring levels of relaxation priorto and following breathing exercises

4 Cognitive restructuring and self-talk: Principles ofrestructuring thought patterns to become more constructivewere explained. Examples of how negative self-talkmay be restructured into positive instructional ormotivational statements were given.

Diary monitoring negative self-talk duringridden sessions, including rephrasingof negative into positive statements

5 Concentration and focusing skills: Initial explanations relatingto how concentration and focus may impact on performancewere given. Exercises to improve focus were practiced withthe group. The use of cue words and short pre-performanceroutines to enhance concentration was explained.

Self-reflective diary developing appropriatecue words or pre-performance routines

6 Imagery: The theoretical basis of imagery was explainedincluding its role in athletic performance. The importanceof employing all the senses when visualizing was explained.Participants were subsequently encouraged to practiceimaging past experiences of a pleasant nature.

Journal for developing appropriateimagery scripts and monitoringvividness and clarity of images


week experiences of participants with regard to psycholog-ical practice were discussed. Furthermore, throughout eachsession, participating riders were encouraged to share theirexperiences with psychological skills training from theprevious week and to ask for feedback or clarification asrequired. These measures served as manipulation checks toensure that riders were engaged in and practicing relevantpsychological skills. Additional details relating to inter-ventions and monitoring tools are provided in Table 1.

Data analysis

CSAI-2R questionnaires were scored manually and eval-uated using the scoring system provided by the originalauthors. CSAI-2R arousal scores and pre- and postperform-ance scores were tested for relationships using Pearson’sproductmoment correlations. Competitive scoreswere testedfor significant differences using a one-way repeated measure

analysis of variance (ANOVA). Pre- and post-interventionCSAI-2R intensity and direction scores were tested forsignificant differences using within-subjects t tests. An alphalevel of 0.05 was used to indicate statistical significance.

Results

Correlations between CSAI-R scores with pre-and post-intervention dressage performancescores

Pre-intervention performance scores correlated posi-tively with SC intensity scores (Pearson’s product momentcorrelation: P 5 0.83, P , 0.01). The correlation betweendressage performance and SC direction was nearing signif-icance (Pearson’s product moment correlation: P 5 0.58,P 5 0.08).


Post-intervention performance scores correlated nega-tively with SA intensity scores (Pearson’s product momentcorrelation: P 5 20.67, P , 0.05). The correlation be-tween dressage performance and somatic anxiety directionscores was nearing significance with Pearson’s product mo-ment correlation: P 5 0.59, P 5 0.07.

Pre- and post-intervention scores

Dressage performance scoreA one-way repeated-measures ANOVA revealed differ-

ences in dressage scores between the trials (ANOVA:Wilks’ Lambda 5 0.42, F(2, 8) 5 5.5, P , 0.05). The ef-fect size was measured as partial eta-squared of 0.58, sug-gesting a large effect size. Post hoc paired-samples t testswere performed using a Bonferroni corrected alpha levelof 0.016 to indicate statistical significance. No differencewas found between initial and pre-intervention percentagescores (paired-samples t test: t(9) 5 1.25, P . 0.05).Differences were found between initial scores and post-intervention scores (paired-samples t test: t(9) 5 22.94,P 5 0.016), and between pre- and post-intervention scores(paired-samples t test: t(9) 5 23.43, P 5 0.008). Dressageperformance scores are presented in Figure 2.

Modified CSAI-2R scorePaired samples t tests for intensity and direction of SA,

CA, and SC revealed no significant differences betweenpre- and post-intervention scores. CSAI-2R outcomes arepresented in Table 2.

Discussion

The current study examined the effect of a multimodalpsychological skills training sessions on emotional compo-sure, determined by precompetitive arousal intensity anddirection, SC scores, and dressage performance, indicativeof horse–rider interaction in nonelite dressage riders. One

Figure 2 Initial, pre-intervention and post-intervention dressageperformance scores.

of the key tenets of the study was clearly supported asdressage riders performed significantly better followingtheir intervention program, both compared with their initialdressage performance and one immediately before theintervention. Seeing that no significant improvements couldbe seen between initial and pre-intervention performance, itis very likely that improved performance results are not dueto horse–rider combinations having benefitted from simplymore hours of training between competitions. Otherwise itis likely that an improvement in scores would have beenseen comparing initial competitions scores to pre-interven-tion scores. Therefore, the study further supports findingsfrom other studies (Hanton and Jones, 1999; Mamassis andDoganis, 2004; Thomas et al., 2007) that multimodal inter-vention designs assist athletes in achieving optimal perfor-mances. More strongly, findings also suggest that mentalskills intervention programs may be beneficial in improvingperformances in equestrian sports, which are, by their verynature, dependent on the effective communication and in-teraction between the rider and the horse. Any improve-ment in emotional composure of the rider because ofmental skills training is likely to have a positive effect onthe horse. A study by von Borstel (2007) showed that anx-iety is likely to induce a fear response in the horses. Theauthors argue that physical tension resulting from increasedlevels of anxiety is detected by the horse, who, in turn, re-acts with physiological symptoms associated with anxietyand fear. Riders who were emotionally composed seemedto be able to transfer that composure to their horses aswell. Mental skills training aimed at improving emotionalcomposure and physical relaxation of the rider is likelytherefore to also have a beneficial effect on the horse.

Research by Tenenbaum et al. (2002) has shown eques-trian sports to be anxiety-inducing (Tenenbaum et al.,2002). Sport psychological interventions that increase per-ceptions of control and decrease levels of anxiety maytherefore be argued to be of benefit to the rider(Blakeslee and Goff, 2007). Somewhat surprisingly, how-ever, current findings from this study indicate no changein intensities of anxiety or directional interpretation ofarousal or SC following the sport psychological interven-tion, thereby contradicting the hypothesized positive effectof mental skills training on levels of anxiety or directionalinterpretations of arousal. The research design aimed to testarousal states, that is, temporal perceptions of arousal in re-lation to each competitive event. However, it may well bethat the intervention period of 6 weeks was not sufficientto alter the individual perception of the riders about theirown ability to cope with the demands of the competitionand subsequent interpretations of arousal symptoms. A lon-ger intervention period or at least regular practice of mentalskills over a longer period might improve arousal and con-fidence scores. The positive changes in ridden performanceare therefore more likely related to other mechanisms influ-encing perceptions of control or relevant coping mecha-nisms in the rider. The multifaceted nature of the

Table 2 Mean values including standard deviations for pre- and post-intervention CSAI-2 scores

Pre-intervention SD Post-intervention SD t P

SA intensity 17.18 66.02 15.66 66.39 0.732 0.483CA intensity 18.20 6636.00 16.60 64.00 1.018 0.335SC intensity 21.70 65.40 29.80 620.54 21.209 0.257SA direction 9.54 6168.45 47.31 6179.73 20.655 0.529CA direction 273.20 6141.77 231.40 6114.47 21.084 0.306SC direction 130.0 6143.63 248.80 6235.18 21.237 0.248

SA, somatic arousal; CA, cognitive arousal; SC, self-confidence; CSAI-2, Competitive State Anxiety Inventory 2.


intervention meant that riders may have been able to ad-dress and optimize different aspects of physiological andpsychological states before competing.

The mental skills of goal-setting, self-talk, and focusingskills all aim at increasing task-relevant focus and decreas-ing the danger of distracting thoughts. Goal-setting isthought to enhance task-specific focus as it allows theathletes to map out their plan of action through short-termgoals, and increases motivation by enabling them tocontinuously assess progress (Locke and Latham, 1985).A number of researchers suggest that self-talk helps tocombat negative, task-irrelevant thoughts that tend to in-crease under conditions of high cognitive load (Dugdaleand Eklund, 2002). Such conditions may include dressagecompetitions in which the riders have to remember theirdressage test, the time schedule, and preparation routinesfor their horses. Affirmative statements with task-specificor motivational content have been shown to inhibit interfer-ing thoughts and facilitate performance in both precisionand power tasks (Hatzigeorgiadis et al., 2004). In eques-trian sports, where precision in the application of aids isof vital importance to ensure effective horse–rider commu-nication, positive self-talk is likely to be of tremendousbenefit. Finally, the application of relevant cue words hasbeen shown to increase attentional focus as verbal cuescan assist in redirecting attention towards task-specific ac-tions (Landin, 1994; Johnson et al., 2004). Therefore, thecombination of the mental skills of goal setting, self-talk,and attentional focus is likely to increase the task-relevantconcentration and attentional focus of the rider. Indeed, pre-vious research into precompetitive focus and mental skillsin equestrian sports has shown that riders who are moreskilled exhibit greater information-processing skills(Wolframm and Micklewright, 2010b) and greater levelsof concentration (Meyers et al., 1999). As evidenced inthe current study, the application of a mental skills packageis therefore likely to assist, in particular, the more noviceequestrian in improving levels of concentration, and, as aresult, equestrian performance.

The additional mental skills of relaxation coupled withimagery might have helped riders to regulate physiologicalarousal as well as experience optimal bodily responses,such as relaxed shoulders, forearms, and wrists, and feelingcalm, during imagery. Research by Weinberg et al. (1981)

showed that athletes using a combination of progressivemuscle relaxation, mental practice, and imagery wereable to perform significantly better than imagery-only orcontrol groups. Previous research by Wolframm andMicklewright (2009, 2010b) showed that elite riders appearto experience lower levels of SA and higher levels of SCcompared with nonelite riders. One of the most importantelements in equestrian sports is the quality of interactionbetween the horse and the rider. Riders communicatewith their horses through a combination of seat, legs, andhands, giving predefined aids that the horse has learned torespond to through principles of classic and operant condi-tioning (McGreevy, 2002, 2007). To be able to perform ‘‘asone,’’ the aids given by riders should be as subtle and re-fined as possible, demanding considerable levels of finemotor control and accuracy. Oxendine (1984) suggestedthat low levels of arousal are probably advantageous, par-ticularly in sports requiring fine motor control. The in-creases in muscular tension, respiratory rate, and heartrate are all likely to affect the rider’s ability: first, to trans-mit an aid, and second, to release the aid again as quickly aspossible afterward. Especially in times of increased physi-ological arousal, even if the symptoms are not interpretedas anxiety, riders may tend to ‘‘hold on’’ too tightly to thereins, or block the horse with their seat, as higher musculartension would prevent them from relaxing the relevant mus-cle groups (von Borstel, 2007). Yet, the horse should havebeen trained to respond to a short cue. If the horse is not‘‘allowed’’ to respond, as the cue is not released, it may be-come tense and stiff in response. It would appear that post-intervention dressage riders were able to manage levels ofphysiological arousal better, having been taught relevant re-laxation and imagery skills. This, in turn, led to more re-fined horse–rider interaction and a subsequent increase indressage scores.

Results also demonstrate that the correlation betweenpost-intervention dressage performances and facilitativeinterpretations of SA were nearing significance. Chenget al. (2008) argued that being able to interpret arousal asfacilitative is largely dependent on athletes’ assessment oftheir own coping resources. The multimodal interventionprogram is likely to have provided riders with new and im-proved coping resources, which may have allowed them tointerpret their arousal symptoms as more facilitative to


performance. Emphasizing once again the important role ofphysical communication between the horse and the rider, itstands to reason that riders who are able to view their phys-iological symptoms as facilitative to performance are alsolikely to be able to ‘‘channel’’ their physical power cor-rectly. Instead of exerting pressure on the horse by givingan aid for too long, that is, not releasing quickly enough,riders would now perhaps give a more refined aid, allowingthe horse to react more quickly. Such a refined aid woulddemand considerable physical control and thus be physi-cally demanding, as the rider would have to make sure tobe in full control of all muscular functions, so as to applyand release an aid at the desired time. Especially at compe-tition, a horse may be more aroused, and therefore bequicker to respond to an aid. A heightened awareness ofthe type and strength of aid that needs to be applied mightresult in a more harmonious performance, gaining highermarks for the horse–rider combination. Practical implica-tions are that in equestrian sports in general, and in thediscipline of dressage specifically, attention needs to bepaid to the development of mental skills that supportthe facilitative interpretation of arousal on the one handand increase perceptions of control on the other. On thebasis of the results presented, sport psychology practi-tioners when working with individual equestrian ridersmay also assess appropriate strengths and weaknesses oftheir clients, and tailor the intervention package to individ-ual needs.

Yet, the small number of participants may be considereda limiting factor to the results. It is most likely that moreparticipants would have led to a significant time effect onintensity and direction of arousal and SC. Furthermore, thefact that dressage is a subjective sport is another aspect thatneeds to be taken into account when interpreting the results.As riders were asked to follow their normal competitionschedule, they competed at different local competitionswith different judges. Although all judges are qualifiedaccording to the judging system of the Dutch NationalEquestrian Federation, individual differences and prefer-ences for certain types of horses may have distorted someof the scores given, which may account for the significantdifferences in performance results. Finally, the success ofan intervention study depends on the participants adheringto the requirements of the study. In this case, participantswere required to engage in daily practice of the mentalskills taught. Despite monitoring tools, such as reflectivediaries (Table 1), it is difficult to be certain that participantsindeed engaged in regular practice. Any performance im-provements could also be attributed to the fact that partic-ipants felt valued and appreciated. Farber and Lane(2002) noted that ‘‘positive regard’’ from the therapistwas an important contributing factor to therapy success.Regular weekly meetings may have contributed to creatingan atmosphere of ‘‘positive regard,’’ which, in turn, mayhave positively influenced performance results, ratherthan the practice of mental skills.

In summary, it may be argued that the current studyprovides further evidence that intensity and direction of SApresents a major determinant of horse–rider performance(Wolframm and Micklewright, 2009, 2010a,b). Seeing thathorse–rider performance largely depends on effective com-munication of the physical aids of seat, legs, and hand, theability to control levels of physiological arousal is likely tohelp achieve more harmonious horse–rider interactions.Psychological skills training may be particularly beneficialin developing relevant coping resources in novice or inex-perienced riders, allowing them to manage precompetitiveemotional states more effectively. Subsequent improvedperformances of the horse–rider dyad are then most likelyto be linked to an increase in relevant coping resourcesand the feeling of perceived control.

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