Author – Vedika Jogani
A recent graduate from Ithaca College with a Master’s degree in Sports and Exercise Science, specializing in Mental Performance, Vedika Jogani is OMP’s Product and Content Manager.
I’m sure you’ve heard the term “mentally tough” tossed around casually in the world of sports.
Commentators often use this umbrella term to differentiate good athletes from great ones, attributing their success to mental toughness.
But what does being mentally tough really mean?
A study conducted with players, coaches, and parents of a soccer team found that mental toughness is a multidimensional concept.
It is defined as “the presence of some or all of the experientially developed and inherent values, attitudes, emotions, cognitions, and behaviors that influence the way an individual approaches, responds to, and appraises both negatively and positively construed pressures, challenges, and adversities to consistently achieve their goals.”
Mental toughness encapsulates a range of characteristics, behaviors, situations, and cognitions:
Characteristics
Certain traits are common in all mentally tough individuals, such as a winning mentality, desire, self-belief, physical fitness, work ethic, resilience, personal values, concentration and focus, performance awareness, sport intelligence, tough attitude, ability to handle pressure, competitive effort, risk-taking, and emotional intelligence and control.
Behaviors
Mentally tough athletes display behaviors like playing and recovering from injuries, consistently delivering high performances, doing the “tough stuff,” making superior decisions, demanding the ball, dominating opposition players, inspiring others, coping with distractions, taking risks, displaying positive body language, responding well when players are down, and making sacrifices from a young age.
Situations
Mentally tough athletes handle various situations effectively, such as injury and rehab, being dropped from the team, preparation, balancing commitments, dealing with media pressure, coping with distractions, playing overseas, scoring goals, managing external and internal pressures, being away from home, and handling peer and social pressures.
Cognitions
Mentally tough athletes exhibit a strong will to win, self-belief, concentration, inspiration, tactical awareness, adaptability, positive body language, perseverance, determination, optimism, a down-to-earth perspective, valuing opportunities, love for the game, and acknowledging self-responsibility.
Mental toughness is a comprehensive concept that includes a variety of traits, behaviors, situations, and cognitive strategies. These elements collectively enable athletes to navigate challenges and adversities while consistently achieving their goals.
