The Impacts of Psychological Skill Training on Mental Toughness among Male Under 17 Project Football Players in Akaki Kality subcity Addis Ababa Ethiopia

Abstract

Psychological skills training program is effective in enhancing athletes’ performance, positively influencing cognitive and affective states.  The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Psychological skill training on Mental Toughness variables among male Under  17 football project players in Akaki Kality sub-city Addis Ababa Ethiopia. The methodology of the study employed an experimental  research design. Thirty (30) male football player participants in the study were selected for the Mesale football project. The study subjects  were randomly divided into two equal groups, the experimental group (n = 15) and the control group (n = 15). The experimental  group had taken Psychological skill training intervention for 8 weeks with 3 sessions per week, each lasting 30 to 45 minutes. It consists of  goal setting; self-talk, pep talk, imagery, progressive relaxation techniques, arousal regulation, and relaxation response techniques  were given through 3 phases which comprise educational, acquisitions and practical phases by sports psychologists. Both groups had  taken pre- and post-testing and all the subjects participated to response standard questionnaires: mental toughness was measured using Sport Mental Toughness Questionnaires (SMTQ-14). The data collected from the study subjects was analyzed using Statistical Package for  Social Science (SPSS, version 20) software by descriptive statistics, paired t-test and independent t-test at a significant level of 0.05.  Results showed Psychological skill training significantly improved the stated variables of mental toughness in the experimental group at  (p<0.05). Furthermore, no more significant differences were found these variables in the control group (p>0.05). Based on this finding, it  can be concluded that Psychological skill training has a positive impact on the improvement of mental toughness variable. Therefore,  Psychological skill training is suggested for adolescent-age football players to improve psychological preparedness for athletic  performance.