Development of a Program for Regulating the Psychological States of Karate Athletes aged 8-14 Years in the pre-competition Period of Preparation.

Rostovtseva Marina Viktorovna Doctor of Philosophy Professor, Siberian Federal University 660030, Russia, Krasnoyarskii Krai oblast', g. Krasnoyarsk, ul. Vil'skogo, 18a, kv. 58 marin-0880@mail.ru Other publications by this author     Smirnaya Anastasiya Andreevna PhD in Pedagogy Associate Professor, Department of Psychology and Pedagogy, M.F. Reshetnev Siberian State University of Science and Technology 660049, Russia, g.Krasnoyarsk oblast', g. Krasnoyarsk, ul. Mira, 82 nastenasm@yandex.ru Other publications by this author     Novopashina Larisa Aleksandrovna PhD in Psychology Associate Professor, Department of Human Resource Management, Siberian Federal University 660028, Russia, Krasnoyarsk oblast', g. Krasnoyarsk, ul. Svobodnyi, 79 nla@ippd.ru Other publications by this author     Smirnova Anastasia Viktorovna PhD in Pedagogy Associate Professor, Department of English Philology, Krasnoyarsk State Pedagogical University named after V.P. Astafyev 660060, Russia, g. Krasnoyarsk, ul. A. Lebedevoi, 89 anastasyavic@mail.ru Other publications by this author

Ivanov Igor' Anatol'evich Associate professor, Department of Social Sciences and History of Arts, Dmitri Hvorostovsky Siberian State Academy of Arts 660049, Russia, Krasnoyarsk, Lenin str., 42 ivanovia1967@mail.ru

Introduction. All over the world, the regulation of psychological states is recognized as one of the most socially useful and humanistic socio-cultural practices. Emotions are the basis of human activity, they determine the psychological state, which, in turn, affects the effectiveness and productivity of activities. The introduction of the basics of regulating psychological states into sports activities can be productive, both for the moral development of the individual and for building a career of an athlete and coach ^[1].

The relevance of the research topic is also due to the presence in Russia of children's sports institutions that are engaged in the professional training of athletes, but there is no proper psychological support, both the coaching staff and the team of athletes.

Since any child needs positive communication with a close adult in sufficient quantity for full development, whether it is a coach or a teacher, it is advisable to create a program for the development of coaches' skills in psychological regulation of the conditions of karate athletes in the pre-competition period of training ^[3]. First of all, we are talking about reducing the level of anxiety and increasing the motivation to achieve success in a child athlete.

To date, there have been a number of problems in teaching karate for children associated with an increase in the level of anxiety and a decrease in motivation to achieve success, which may be due to the workload of children at school, increased demands of teachers and parents ^{[5; 6]}.

Anxiety is the most common condition in modern children. This is primarily due to the high and intense loads in the educational activities of the child, as well as the high competition of sports sections and children's centers among themselves. Of course, the coach does not just prepare the participant for competitions, but sets up to win them, which can not but worry a child of 8-9 years old, who at this age does not want to let an adult down ^[2].

The development of motivation to achieve success is closely related to the state of anxiety. Often the coach does not notice and does not know that motivating the child to win, he thereby increases his state of anxiety.

To date, many coaches do not have a significant arsenal of methods, technologies and tools to reduce the level of anxiety and increase motivation to achieve success in child athletes, which, in turn, can significantly affect the effectiveness of training and competitive processes, as well as the effectiveness of preparation for competitions ^{[2; 4]}.

In this regard, we have undertaken a study aimed at studying the level of anxiety and the level of motivation to achieve success among karate athletes from 8 to 9 years old during preparation for competitive activities, and developing a psychological program to reduce the level of anxiety and increase motivation to achieve success.

The subject of the study is a program to reduce the level of anxiety and increase the level of motivation to achieve success in karate athletes from 8 to 9 years old.

Theoretical review. The analysis of literary sources devoted to the problem of psychological regulation of negative states of child athletes includes the works of D. Batson, A. Maslow, V.I. Morosanov, A.O. Prokhorov, A.B. Rubin and others. The authors' works consider the role of positive psychological states in the effectiveness of human activity.

The role of anxiety in the effectiveness of preparation for competitions in young athletes is studied by Yeganov A.V. with co-authors ^[2], who writes about the negative impact of anxiety on judo athletes; Nosov S.A. with co-authors ^[8], who conduct research on the effect of anxiety on the effectiveness of competitions and construct a model of psychological and pedagogical support of the training process of adolescents, etc. The influence of the level of motivation to achieve success among young athletes on the effectiveness of sports activities is studied by Gordeeva T.O. ^[9]; Kuntsev T.M.^[6], Krupnov A.I.^[10].

The issues of psychological training of athletes in various sports, including martial arts, are covered in the works of Russian and foreign scientists Weiner, E. N. ^[1], Krupnov, A. I. ^[10], Inagaki, K. ^[11].

Today, as experience and observations show, quite often the activity of a coach proceeds within the framework of subjective categories using outdated recommendations, without clear criteria for evaluating the effectiveness of the training process conducted by them and without taking into account the fact that the successful implementation of sports training largely depends on proper control over the fitness of those involved. We adhere to the principles developed in scientific sources, according to which more attention should be paid to the programs of initial training of young athletes, methods of the pre-competition period, so as to motivate and guide the child to achieve success. This is stated by Kuznetsov V.V. ^[5], Kornilov V.M. ^[4], Ermolaeva S.I. ^[3].

Research methodology. The present study was conducted with 22 karate athletes aged from 8 to 9 years on the basis of the youth "Technical Design Center" in the city of Krasnoyarsk. All subjects are male. Training experience – three to four years. We have proposed a program aimed at organizing work with model situations in which karate athletes aged 8-9 years can detect psychological difficulties associated with motivation to achieve success and anxiety, as well as finding ways to resolve difficulties together with a coach, during which there will be an increase in motivation to achieve success and a decrease in anxiety ^{[7; 8]}. The diagnosis of psychological conditions in athletes was carried out using the A.A.Rean questionnaire "Motivation for success" (adaptation by N.V. Sosnovskikh), the Lavrentiev G. P. and Titarenko T. M. questionnaire to identify the level of anxiety.

The scientific novelty of the study is due to the fact that the proposed program to increase motivation to achieve success and reduce the level of anxiety in child athletes is based on exercises developed by the authors. We have proposed a program aimed at organizing work with model situations in which karate athletes of 8-9 years old can discover psychological difficulties themselves related to motivation to achieve success and anxiety, as well as to search together with the coach for ways to resolve difficulties, during which there will be an increase in motivation to achieve success and a decrease in anxiety.

Study. The study was conducted in three stages.

At the first stage, a ascertaining experiment was conducted to determine the level of psychological states in karate athletes aged 8-9 years.  

At the second stage, a formative experiment was conducted, which consisted in conducting special exercises to regulate the psychological states of karate athletes in the pre-competition period of preparation.

At the third stage, a control experiment was conducted to determine changes in the level of psychological states in karate athletes aged 8-9 years.

The respondents were divided into 2 groups of 11 people: control and experimental. As a result of the study, we obtained the following data presented in the diagrams (Figure 1, Figure 2).

Figures 1 and 2 show the diagnosis of the level of motivation to achieve success in karate athletes aged 8-9 years before the study in the control and experimental groups. Figure 1 shows that 66.6% (7 people) of the experimental group of subjects revealed an average level of motivation to achieve success; 33.4% (4 people) revealed a low level - they consider it important to avoid trouble and mistakes rather than try to achieve results in their activities. There were no athletes with a high level of motivation to achieve success in the group (0%).

 Figure 1 - The level of motivation to achieve success in the experimental group before the study

Figure 2 shows the diagnosis of the level of motivation to achieve success in karate athletes aged 8-9 years before the study in the control group.

The figure shows that 30% (3 people) of respondents have a low level of motivation, 70% (7 people) have a high level. There were no athletes with a high level of motivation to achieve success in the group (0%).

 Figure 2 - The level of motivation to achieve success in the control group before the studyFigure 3 shows the diagnosis of anxiety levels in karate athletes aged 8-9 years before the study in the experimental group.

The diagram shows that 58% have increased anxiety; 42% have an average level of anxiety. There were no athletes with a low level of anxiety in the group (0%).

 Figure 3 - Anxiety level in karate athletes aged 8-9 years before the study (experimental group)Figure 4 shows the diagnosis of anxiety levels in karate athletes aged 8-9 years before the study in the control group.

The diagram shows that 50% (5 people) have increased anxiety; and 50% (5 people) have an average level of anxiety. There were also no athletes with a low level of anxiety in the group (0%).

Figure 4. - Anxiety level in karate athletes aged 8-9 years before the study (control group)

 The forming experiment was conducted for 6 weeks, before training. Each lesson lasted 30 - 40 minutes. Specialists – psychologists of MBOU "Secondary school No. 12" of Krasnoyarsk were involved in conducting exercises and trainings of the program. After the study, changes occurred in 83.3%. We received the following results, presented in the diagrams (Figure 5, Figure 6).Figure 5 shows the dynamics of changes in the level of motivation to achieve success among karate athletes 8-9 years after conducting a formative experiment in an experimental group.

17% with an average level of motivation to achieve success and 83% with a high level were identified. Athletes with a low level of motivation to achieve success were not identified. The level of most athletes has increased.

 Figure 5 - Dynamics of changes in the level of motivation to achieve success among karate athletes from 8 to 9 years after conducting a formative experiment in an experimental groupThere were no significant changes in the level of motivation in the control group.

Only one child's motivation level decreased.

Also, after the study, the level of anxiety in the experimental group decreased. This can be seen in the following diagram (Fig.6). Seven out of 11 people have a low level of anxiety, 4 people have an average level. Athletes with a high level of anxiety were not identified.

Figure 6 – The level of anxiety in the athletes of the experimental group after the implementation of the program.

The level of anxiety in the athletes of the control group did not change significantly.

In order to determine the statistical significance of the differences in the results of the two diagnostics, we used the criterion ? ².

Let's assume that testing a specially designed program has an effect on reducing anxiety and increasing motivation. For calculations based on criterion ? ², we present the data obtained for the level of anxiety in the following form (see Table 1).

Table 1 – Calculation table (anxiety level) according to criterion ? ^{2 Factorial feature}

The number of degrees of freedom is 2. The value of the criterion ? ² is 11.882. The critical value ? ² at the significance level p= 0.01 is 9.21. The relationship between the factorial and effective signs is statistically significant at the significance level p<0.01. The significance level p=0.002.

The value obtained by us confirms the hypothesis of a connection between the effective testing of a specially developed program and a decrease in the level of anxiety.

For calculations based on criterion ? ², we present the data obtained for the level of motivation in the following form (see Table 2).

Table 2 – Calculation table (motivation level) according to criterion ? ^{2 Factorial feature}

The value of the criterion ? ² is 12.132. The critical value ? ² at the significance level p= 0.01 is 8.71. The relationship between the factorial and effective signs is statistically significant at the significance level p<0.01. The significance level p=0.001.

The value obtained by us confirms the hypothesis about the connection between the effective testing of a specially developed program and an increase in the level of motivation.

Thus, the results of primary and repeated diagnostics obtained by us in the experimental group show an increase in the level of motivation to achieve success among athletes and a decrease in the level of anxiety. This fact suggests that the program we have developed provides a reduction in anxiety and an increase in motivation to achieve success.

Program. In order to regulate the psychological states of athletes aged 8 to 9 years in the pre-competition period of preparation, a program was developed and implemented to work with model situations in which karate athletes aged 8-9 years can detect psychological difficulties associated with motivation to achieve success and anxiety, as well as together with the coach to find ways to resolve them.

The program itself is designed for 6 weeks.  

The following material was selected for her:

-sports mats, gloves, mouth guards;

- audio equipment;

- sheets of paper, pens, pencils, markers.

The experiment included 3 stages:

Stage 1. The introductory stage is "setting for victory".

Stage 2. Work with negative psychological states.

Stage 3. Psychological preparation for competitions. Generalization of the passed.

At each stage, karate athletes from 8 to 9 years old underwent various exercises and trainings aimed at changing psychological states in preparation for competitive activities.

Stage 1. The introductory stage is "setting for victory". (1-2 weeks)

At this stage, our task will be to make it clear to athletes that victory in sports cannot be achieved without the following components (psychological states): reducing the level of anxiety and motivation to achieve success.

A duel was played between two pre-trained athletes (not involved in this karate class), where one of them lost to the other, as he had an increased level of anxiety, lack of stress resistance and motivation to achieve success. After the match, the children were asked questions: "Why do you think he lost? What psychological states does he lack?".

Stage 2. Work with negative psychological states.(3-4 weeks)

At this stage, children were offered certain exercises to regulate psychological states.

Exercise No. 1. Musical accompaniment during traditional karate training as a way to increase the motivation of athletes to achieve success.

In traditional karate classes, we used musical accompaniment to increase the motivation of karate athletes aged 8-9 to achieve success. The training for karate athletes was conducted with musical accompaniment at the pace of "allegro".

After the training, a reflective discussion was organized with the participants on how the musical accompaniment helped them and whether it affected the performance of the training process. Most reacted positively to classes with musical accompaniment and reported that the desire to study has become much greater.

Exercise No. 2. Contact desensitization as a way to reduce the level of anxiety in karate athletes aged 8-9 years.

In traditional karate classes, at the beginning of the exercise, children were asked to make a list of individually unbearable situations in which they could get into. Situations were alternately modeled and solved by another child who did not have similar problems. Then the situation was worked out with the person to whom this problem belongs.  At the end of the training, a reflective discussion was held with the participants of the training.

During the discussion, the guys talked about reducing fear and anxiety after working out negative situations for them.

Exercise 3. "Me and stress"

Purpose: to help participants in understanding and verbalizing their ideas about stress, determining their attitude to this phenomenon.

Trainer's instructions. Coach: "Please draw a picture of Me and stress.

It can be made in any form — realistic, abstract, symbolic, artistic." The participants drew for 4-5 minutes. Then the coach asked questions that the participants answered independently (mentally), without writing down the answers on paper, without saying them out loud. After each question, the trainer gave the participants from 15 to 40 seconds to make changes and additions to the drawing.

Questions that the coach can ask.

Look carefully at your drawing.  Is color used in your drawing? See which colors (or which color) prevails in the drawing. What does this particular color mean to you? Where did you portray yourself? Mark yourself with the letter "I" in the picture. How did you portray stress? In the form of a living being, an abstract figure, a concrete person? See how much space your image takes up on the sheet and how much stress. Why? Have you used similar colors when depicting yourself and stress? Which ones? Mentally divide the sheet in half with horizontal and vertical lines. Where was your figure? Is there any barrier between you and stress in the drawing?

Discussion. After the participants answered the last question, the coach asked them to unite in subgroups of 4-5 people. As a rule, groups were created based on the principle of coincidence of any positions concerning the perception of the concept of "Stress", strategies and resources manifested in the drawings. In each formed group, those who wished could express their feelings, thoughts, etc., arising in the process of drawing. At the same time, the others listened, supplemented, expressed their point of view, asked questions, but did not criticize. Then each subgroup formulated several basic positions on which they would like to change something in their reactions to stressors. All participants returned to the circle. The coach invited those who wished to speak about the work done or about their feelings. Representatives from subgroups read out their lists. The trainer explained to the participants what problems it was possible to work on during the training.

3. stage.Psychological preparation for competitions.

Generalization of the passed. (5-6 weeks).

At this stage, the guys took part in the "Championship and championship of the city of Krasnoyarsk in all-round karate 2021".

The purpose of the competition:

1. Identify a champion in an age, weight category or discipline and award him a medal of the appropriate level;
2. Selection of the best athletes in the national team of the club, city, country;
3. Preparation for the next, more responsible competitions;
4. Identify errors and shortcomings in the preparation;
5. To identify problems in the psychological preparation of an athlete;
6. Identification of the athlete's special abilities;
7. Maintaining interest in sports;

For that final stage of the program, we developed a short generalizing lecture course for athletes, which was read during the competition period.

Striving to become the best is a natural human need. The champion receives an award, for example, a medal and a certificate. His name is entered in the official protocol of the championship and published in the press and Internet resources. In this case, external motivation is included. It is pleasant to be a champion, so it is necessary to repeat this feeling – to become a champion.

Lower-level competitions are not only preparatory, but can also be qualifiers for higher-rank championships. Getting into the national team (club, region or country) is always prestigious and responsible. Moreover, even winning the qualifying tournament does not guarantee getting into the national team. It is still necessary to match the level of a major tournament.

Team selection is also an external motivation. "I trained well – I won the selection – I got into the national team."

Not all starts are of equal importance for athletes. Of course, I want to win everything, but there are no victories without defeats. Therefore, the main tournaments to be won are selected (no more than 2-3 per year). Exactly, we need to prepare for these tournaments. One of the ways to prepare is to participate in intermediate starts. Participation in such competitions is considered as training. It is here that new techniques, tactical schemes, etc. are tested. The athlete may not know that the start is intermediate, it is planned by the coach. A specific task is set before each match and its implementation is monitored. After the end of the tournament, a detailed analysis is made.

Defeat is a good material for analysis and conclusion. In addition, defeat not only hardens, but also stimulates to move forward. The coach must correctly approach the defeat of his ward. In the fight against a stronger opponent, shortcomings and mistakes are visible. And it's good that these errors were identified in time and there is time to fix them.

A typical situation is that an athlete is "burned out" or, conversely, too apathetic. You will not know how your ward should prepare for the start if you do not try to start in different conditions.

If physical readiness is visible and understandable before the start, then the psychological state of the athlete is not always. This is especially true for debutants. By carefully observing the athlete before the start of the competition, during the warm-up, at the beginning of the match, the coach can draw conclusions about the psychological characteristics of the ward.. Pre-start fever and initial apathy are two extreme conditions. The best condition before the start is called combat readiness. It is to this combat readiness that an athlete must strive.

Athletes have predictable victories, there are natural ones, there are unexpected ones, or sensational ones. The same can be said about defeats. It often happens that an unprepared athlete becomes a champion. The label "unprepared" is pasted on him by those who lost to him. He was just using his abilities that no one suspected..

Many athletes often lose interest in their sports activities. In sports, this is clearly manifested if the interest is lost in a capable and promising athlete. In this case, competitions act as external motivation. Having performed in low-level competitions and won there, the athlete is inspired to practice again. The coach selects the tournament level very carefully and carefully..

According to the results of our competitions, all participants of the study took prizes. This proves the effectiveness of our developed program for regulating the psychological states of karate athletes from 8 to 9 years old in the pre-competition period of training.

After the competition, a reflexive discussion was held with the athletes in the classroom, questions were asked whether the athletes were given to realize their training. Almost everyone agreed on the usefulness of the activities carried out, everyone pointed out the need for exercises and the introduction of all elements of the program in further professional activities

Conclusion. In this work, the level of anxiety and motivation to achieve success in karate athletes from 8 to 9 years old in control and experimental groups of 11 people were studied. It was revealed that in the experimental group, the majority had a high and average level of anxiety (58% had increased anxiety; 42% had an average level of anxiety; 66.6% (7 people) of the subjects in the experimental group had an average level of motivation to achieve success; 33.4% (4 people) had a low level.

We have developed a program for regulating the psychological states of karate athletes from 8 to 9 years old in the pre-competition period of training. The program itself was compiled in accordance with the principles according to which more attention should be paid to the methods of the pre-competition period, so as to motivate and guide the child to achieve success through independent, and then together with the coach, overcoming difficulties (Kuznetsov V.V., Kornilov V.M., Ermolaeva S.I.).

All exercises of the program are based on the principle of organizing work with model situations in which athletes can detect psychological difficulties associated with motivation to achieve success, anxiety, and also together with the coach to find ways to resolve them, during which there will be an increase in motivation to achieve success and a decrease in anxiety.

In the course of the study, after testing the program, changes in the level of anxiety (its decrease) and motivation (its increase) occurred in 83.3% of respondents. The results of primary and repeated diagnostics obtained by us in the experimental group show a significant increase in the level of motivation to achieve success among athletes and a decrease in the level of anxiety in the experimental group. This is confirmed by statistical processing of the results using the criterion ? ².

This fact suggests that the program we have developed provides a reduction in anxiety and an increase in motivation to achieve success.

The results of the study and the developed program, which includes 3 stages: 1) The introductory stage is "setting for victory". 2) Work with negative psychological states. 3) Psychological preparation for competitions. Generalization of the passed; can be used in the educational and training process of karate, in institutions of additional education of children engaged in the preparation of sports reserve (youth sports school and sports school), in institutions of secondary and higher professional education engaged in professional training and advanced training of karate coaches.