SUPERSTITIOUS BEHAVIOR: THE INVINCIBLE AND INVISIBLE PHENOMENON IN BASKETBALL SPORTS

The present study was aimed to identify the role of superstitious behavior in performance of basketball players. For this purpose, sixty female basketball players of 19 to 25 years of age were selected. All the subjects, after having been informed about the objective and protocol of the study, gave their consent and volunteered to participate in this study. They were divided into three groups; (i.e., N1=20; District, N2=20; State and N3=20 National). To measure the level of superstitions behaviors of the subjects, the superstitions beliefs and behaviour scale constructed by Bleak and Frederick (1998) was administered. One Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was employed to compare the three groups of basketball. Where F values were found significant, LSD (Least Significant Difference) Post-hoc test was applied to find out the direction and degree of difference. For testing the hypotheses, the level of significance was set at 0.05. Summarizing from the above findings we can say that insignificant differences were found in basketball players on the sub-variables of Clothing and Appearance, Fetish, Preparation, Game/Competition, Team Ritual, Prayer, Coach and superstitions behavior.  Article visualizations

DIURNAL VARIATION ON THE PERFORMANCE OF COORDINATIVE ABILITIES OF SOCCER PLAYERS

The purpose of the study was to investigate the “Diurnal variation on the performance of coordinative abilities of soccer players”. The study was conducted on 50 male soccer players of Punjabi University Patiala, Punjab India, and age ranging from 17 to 24 years. The subjects were selected from soccer match practice group. The data was collected by administration of Coordinative Ability test as suggested by Peter Hirtz (1985). The subjects were tested two times (one time in morning (between 7 AM to 9 AM) and one time in evening (between 5 PM to 7 PM)). The Coordinative abilities includes Orientation ability, Differentiation Ability, Reaction Ability, Balance Ability and Rhythm Ability which was measured by Numbered Medicine Ball Run Test, Backward Medicine Ball Throw Test, Ball Reaction Exercise Test, Long Nose Balance Test and Sprint at the given Rhythm Test respectively. It was hypothesized that diurnal variation would significantly affect the performance of the subjects on Coordinative abilities. The data collected on Coordinative abilities was analysed by dependent “t” test. The level of significance for testing the hypothesis was set at 0.05 level of confidence. The mean values of Orientation ability in morning and evening were 7.44 seconds and 7.30 seconds respectively. Significant time of day (diurnal variation) effect was found for the Orientation ability (tcal=2.42>ttab=1.99). The mean values of Reaction ability in morning and evening were 166.60 Centimetres and 160.70 Centimetres respectively. Significant time of day (diurnal variation) effect was found for the Reaction Ability (tcal=4.56>ttab=1.99). The mean values of Balance ability in morning and evening were 7.26 seconds and 7.01 seconds respectively. Significant time of day (diurnal variation) effect was found for the Balance Ability (tcal=4.15>ttab=1.99). The mean values of Rhythm ability in morning and evening were 0.51 seconds and 0.44 seconds respectively. Rhythm Ability (tcal=5.50>ttab=1.99) shown significant time of day (diurnal variation) effect among soccer players whereas the mean values of differentiation ability in morning and evening were 15.14 seconds and 14.80 respectively. No significant time of day (diurnal variation) effect was found for differentiation ability (tcal=1.04<ttab=1.99) among soccer players. The result showed that diurnal variation significantly affect the performance of soccer players on Orientation ability, Reaction Ability, Balance Ability and Rhythm Ability  whereas differentiation ability showed insignificant diurnal effect among soccer players.  Article visualizations

A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF FLOW STATE IN BASKETBALL PERFORMANCE: A PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBE

Purpose: The present study was conducted to examine the flow state in basketball performance. Materials: The investigator had selected Forty Five (N=45) female basketball players of 19 to 25 years of age to act as subjects. They were divided into three groups; (i.e., N1=15; District, N2=15; State and N3=15 National). The purposive sampling technique was used to select the subjects. All the subjects, after having been informed about the objective and protocol of the study, gave their consent and volunteered to participate in this study. Statistical Analyses: To measure the level of dispositional flow state of the subjects, the flow state battery constructed by Jackson & Eklund (2004) was administered. One way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was employed to find out the intra-group differences. Where F values were found significant, LSD (Least Significant Difference) Post-hoc test was applied to find out the direction and degree of difference. For testing the hypotheses, the level of significance was set at 0.05. Results & Conclusion: The results revealed no significant differences were found among female basketball players on the sub-variables of Dispositional Flow Scale-2 i.e., Challenge Skill Balance, Action-Awareness Merging, Clear Goals, Unambiguous Feedback, Concentration on the Task at Hand, Sense of Control, Loss of Self-Consciousness, Time transformation and Autotelic experience

EFFECT OF IMAGERY INTERVENTION ON PERFORMANCE OF THE SOCCER PLAYERS

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