Mental preparation techniques of one NCAA intercollegiate baseball batter : a case study

The purpose of this study was to investigate the types of mental preparation techniques used by a collegiate baseball player prior to and/or while batting. The study focused on several aspects: a) did the subject use mental preparation techniques, b) when did the subject employ these techniques, and c) what types of techniques did the subject employ. The subject used in this study was a senior NCAA Division I baseball player. Five open-ended interviews were used to gather data. The first session was conducted to gather background information. The subject participated in four more interview sessions lasting approximently one hour each and was video-taped during two different games. During each interview, except the fourth session, video-tape recall of the game two days before the interview was used in an attempt to assist the subject in recalling what he was thinking about during different time frames. During the second and third interview sessions, the subject watched the video-tape of the first game and was asked to discuss his use of mental techniques during each situation. The subject watched the video-tape of the first game twice and two interviews were conducted to determine the consistency of his reports about his mental preparation techniques. The fourth interview was done after the video-taping of the second game. Without watching the video-tape, the interview focused on mental preparation techniques that he used in that game. The results revealed that the subject used a variety of mental preparation techniques along with other forms of mental preparation. The subject used these techniques the night before the game, in the locker room, in the dugout, in the on-deck circle, and in the batter's box. It was determined that the subject used imagery, self-talk, rituals, strategic/procedural planning and refocusing as ways to prepare himself for the actual physical performance of batting.