Is known as maintaining the behavior over time and across certain situations?

Hello, my name is Ali, and I have a question about something. I graduated last year from the Faculty of Physical Education in my country, Egypt, Helwan University, and I got a bachelor’s degree with excellent grades. I was majoring in sports psychology. I am really interested and very passionate about this field. The articles I read helped me in fact. On this site about this specialization, it increases my desire to stick to work in this field, but I am currently facing a problem, which is I do not know where to start specifically, should I complete postgraduate academic studies in this specialty until I get at least a master’s degree in order to work in clubs As a sports psychologist? Or do I apply directly to one of the clubs and ask to work as a sports psychologist in it? And with which team, in particular, or in what sport? What are the required conditions and qualifications that allow me to work in this field? What are the types of books that I should read in order to improve my cognitive, scientific and applied skills in this field? Thank you very much

Nicole Celestine, Ph.D. on March 1, 2022 at 11:52

Hi Ali,

Yes, if you want to become a registered psychologist in any discipline, you will need to complete a Master’s degree. You’ll need to do this before you can work as a psychologist in the field. You can learn more about the process in this article, and also in our digital guidebook on becoming a therapist (which also covers what’s involved in becoming a psychologist).

We also have a dedicated blog post full of sport psychology book recommendations here. I imagine once you’ve gone through a sports psychology Master’s program and done further reading, you may discover which specific sports and teams you are most likely to enjoy working with — ultimately that decision is up to you!

Hope these materials help.

– Nicole | Community Manager

Nicole Celestine, Ph.D. on September 22, 2021 at 04:43

Hi Eric,

That’s a great question! I can’t give you a clear answer as research in this space is still very much new and emerging. However, at face value, I think many of the components here do equally apply to esports. For instance, it is just as important to set effective goals and manage anxiety/arousal in esports as it is in traditional sports.

As you note, however, mechanisms for effective goal-setting, management of anxiety, etc. may be different from traditional sports, as they may not rely on the mind-body connection in the same way, or draw more on cognitive resources and capabilities.

For a review that sets the stage for research in this space, definitely check out Pedraza-Ramirez et al. (2020).

Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) started as the Social Learning Theory (SLT) in the 1960s by Albert Bandura. It developed into the SCT in 1986 and posits that learning occurs in a social context with a dynamic and reciprocal interaction of the person, environment, and behavior. The unique feature of SCT is the emphasis on social influence and its emphasis on external and internal social reinforcement.   SCT considers the unique way in which individuals acquire and maintain behavior, while also considering the social environment in which individuals perform the behavior. The theory takes into account a person's past experiences, which factor into whether behavioral action will occur. These past experiences influences reinforcements, expectations, and expectancies, all of which shape whether a person will engage in a specific behavior and the reasons why a person engages in that behavior.

Many theories of behavior used in health promotion do not consider maintenance of behavior, but rather focus on initiating behavior. This is unfortunate as maintenance of behavior, and not just initiation of behavior, is the true goal in public health. The goal of SCT is to explain how people regulate their behavior through control and reinforcement to achieve goal-directed behavior that can be maintained over time. The first five constructs were developed as part of the SLT; the construct of self-efficacy was added when the theory evolved into SCT.

1. Reciprocal Determinism - This is the central concept of SCT. This refers to the dynamic and reciprocal interaction of person (individual with a set of learned experiences), environment (external social context), and behavior (responses to stimuli to achieve goals).
2. Behavioral Capability - This refers to a person's actual ability to perform a behavior through essential knowledge and skills. In order to successfully perform a behavior, a person must know what to do and how to do it. People learn from the consequences of their behavior, which also affects the environment in which they live.
3. Observational Learning - This asserts that people can witness and observe a behavior conducted by others, and then reproduce those actions. This is often exhibited through "modeling" of behaviors.   If individuals see successful demonstration of a behavior, they can also complete the behavior successfully.
4. Reinforcements - This refers to the internal or external responses to a person's behavior that affect the likelihood of continuing or discontinuing the behavior. Reinforcements can be self-initiated or in the environment, and reinforcements can be positive or negative. This is the construct of SCT that most closely ties to the reciprocal relationship between behavior and environment.
5. Expectations - This refers to the anticipated consequences of a person's behavior. Outcome expectations can be health-related or not health-related. People anticipate the consequences of their actions before engaging in the behavior, and these anticipated consequences can influence successful completion of the behavior. Expectations derive largely from previous experience.   While expectancies also derive from previous experience, expectancies focus on the value that is placed on the outcome and are subjective to the individual.
6. Self-efficacy - This refers to the level of a person's confidence in his or her ability to successfully perform a behavior. Self-efficacy is unique to SCT although other theories have added this construct at later dates, such as the Theory of Planned Behavior. Self-efficacy is influenced by a person's specific capabilities and other individual factors, as well as by environmental factors (barriers and facilitators).

Limitation of Social Cognitive Theory

There are several limitations of SCT, which should be considered when using this theory in public health. Limitations of the model include the following:

• The theory assumes that changes in the environment will automatically lead to changes in the person, when this may not always be true.
• The theory is loosely organized, based solely on the dynamic interplay between person, behavior, and environment. It is unclear the extent to which each of these factors into actual behavior and if one is more influential than another.
• The theory heavily focuses on processes of learning and in doing so disregards biological and hormonal predispositions that may influence behaviors, regardless of past experience and expectations.
• The theory does not focus on emotion or motivation, other than through reference to past experience. There is minimal attention on these factors.
• The theory can be broad-reaching, so can be difficult to operationalize in entirety.

Social Cognitive Theory considers many levels of the social ecological model in addressing behavior change of individuals. SCT has been widely used in health promotion given the emphasis on the individual and the environment, the latter of which has become a major point of focus in recent years for health promotion activities. As with other theories, applicability of all the constructs of SCT to one public health problem may be difficult especially in developing focused public health programs.

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