Psychology Of Sports

I have had an long term relationship with the media. Over the years I have had a number of interesting converstations with  many reporters and television personnel. Most recently I have found a disturbing trend in that members of the media will contact me with an angle for their story. They present as already having made up their minds about their subject matter and their idea of the psychological aspects that are pertinent. If I disagree, they generally try to convince me of their position despite the fact that either research or practice does not support their position. If I don’t relent I generally do not get quoted in their story which is fine with me. They just move on until they either find someone that appears to agree with them, or they simply make it up, or shape their story to give the appearance of agreement.

If this phenomena is happening with me, then I can only imagine what is occuring with other stories of major importance to our country. Let the reader beware!!

The thinking that young children should only play or master one position is not in the child’s best interests –it is also outdated thinking. This also applies to high school and college players as well. First, for the young athlete the idea that they should master one position does not take into account changes in their overall development. It also deprives them of seeing the field from another perspective and getting a better overall view of the game, as well as perhaps finding a position they might like. All you have to do is look at the professional ranks to see players who have changed positions. The best example of course is baseball where changing positions is very common. Most youth won’t go on to play pro sports, might as well let them play where they can and enjoy themselves. For the advanced athlete the more positions he/she can play the more valuable they are to the team. Simple as that.