What is Performance Profiling in Sport

Performance profiling (Butler, 1989, Butler & Hardy, 1992) enables a performer to identify areas in their game that can be improved.  These may be either physical skills or mental skills.  

Performance profiling can be a useful tool for athletes who want to improve their performance in their respective sports. By using performance profiling, athletes can gain a better understanding of what areas they need to improve on.

Performance profiling is typically used by sport psychologists when working with an athletes but it can also be used by other sports professionals such as coaches, or fitness trainers. The image shows a complete performance profile of a cricket batsmen who was working with a sport psychologist. 

Example of Performance Profile 

First the batsman identified those qualities he needed to succeed. He then identified the importance of these qualities for success. Then he ranked where he felt he currently was on each of those qualities. Areas to improve or develop with the greatest discrepancy score were then identified. The discrepancy score was a combination of the importance of the attribute and difference between the ideal self-rating and current self-rating.  The completed performance profile is shown in in the image and he identified that from a psychological perspective the attributes that he needed to improve on were:

• Body language when batting
• Coping with Pressure
• Confidence
• Being Relaxed when batting
• The ability to ignore mistakes (e.g., playing and missing)
• Maintaining concentration at important times during an innings

Why a Performance Profile Can Be Useful

Firstly, athletes can use performance profiling to identify their strengths and weaknesses. By understanding which mental skills they excel at and which ones they struggle with, athletes can work to improve their weaker areas and build on their strengths.

Secondly, performance profiling can help athletes set goals for themselves. By identifying their weaknesses, athletes can set goals that target those areas and work towards improving them. For example, if an athlete struggles with anxiety control, they can set a goal to practice relaxation techniques before competitions.

Thirdly, athletes can use performance profiling to monitor their progress over time. By taking the performance profile at different points throughout their training, athletes can track their improvement and see the impact of their efforts. This can provide motivation and encourage athletes to continue working on their mental skills.

Lastly, athletes can use performance profiling to work with coaches and trainers to develop a training program that addresses their specific needs. Coaches and trainers can use the results of the performance profile to design targeted interventions and provide support to athletes as they work on improving their mental skills.

In conclusion, performance profiling can be a valuable tool for athletes who want to improve their performance. By identifying strengths and weaknesses, setting goals, monitoring progress, and working with coaches and trainers, athletes can use performance profiling to develop a comprehensive plan for improving their mental skills and achieving their goals.

Setting Goals Based on the Performance Profile

Based what areas have been identified in the Performance profile setting effective goals to work on psychological skills can be a helpful way to improve an athlete's mental performance. Here are some tips for setting effective goals:

• Be specific: Goals should be specific and clearly defined. For example, instead of setting a vague goal like "improve confidence," set a specific goal like "I will practice positive self-talk before every game to boost my confidence."
• Be measurable: Goals should be measurable so that progress can be tracked over time. For example, if the goal is to improve anxiety control, the athlete could track the frequency and intensity of their anxiety using a scale.
• Be challenging but achievable: Goals should be challenging enough to motivate the athlete, but also achievable. Setting overly ambitious goals that are unlikely to be achieved can be demotivating and counterproductive.
• Set both short-term and long-term goals: Setting short-term goals that can be achieved in the near future can provide a sense of accomplishment and motivation, while long-term goals can help to maintain focus and motivation over time.
• Write down goals: Writing down goals can help to solidify them in the athlete's mind and make them more tangible. It can also help to review and adjust goals as needed.
• Make goals relevant to the athlete's performance: Goals should be relevant to the athlete's specific sport and performance. For example, a basketball player may set a goal to improve their ability to concentrate during free throws.
• Incorporate feedback: Coaches and trainers can provide feedback on the athlete's performance and help to set goals that are tailored to the athlete's needs.

By setting effective goals that are specific, measurable, challenging but achievable, relevant, and incorporating feedback, athletes can work on improving their psychological skills and ultimately enhance their overall athletic performance.

Overall, performance profiling can be an effective tool for improving athletic performance. By identifying an athlete's strengths and weaknesses and providing targeted interventions and training, performance profiling can help athletes develop the mental skills they need to perform at their best.

References

Butler, R. J. (1989).  Psychological preparation of Olympic boxers. In J. Kremer and W. Crawford (Eds.), The psychology of sport: Theory and practice. (pp. 74-84).  Leicester. BPS.

Butler, R.J. & Hardy, L. (1992) The Performance Profile: Theory and Application. The Sport Psychologist, 6, 253-264.