The psyching-up strategies utilised by strength athletes and their effectiveness in enhancing strength performance

This thesis examined how psyching-up strategies influence performance in strength tasks. A coherent programme of five studies reviewed existing literature, identified and categorised strategies, examined their application in competition and evaluated their effectiveness through experimental and intervention research. Study 1 systematically reviewed the literature on psyching-up and maximal force production. This review demonstrated that psyching-up enhanced performance in 65% of trials compared with control conditions, while highlighting a limited understanding of how strategies are selected and utilised in applied strength-sport contexts. Addressing this gap, Study 2 adopted a concept mapping design, recruiting experienced practitioners who identified 64 unique psyching-up techniques and grouped them into eight distinct strategies. These comprised “arousal-reducing” strategies (pre-performance routines; positive thoughts, feelings, images and behaviours; goals and performance accomplishments) and “arousal-enhancing” strategies (self-deprecation; negative thoughts, feelings, images and behaviours; stimulation; physical and physiological techniques; aggressive acts). Pre-performance routines was rated as the most effective strategy. Study 3 extended this work into competitive environments by observing the use of psyching-up strategies during strength-sport competitions. Aligning with the findings from Study 2, pre-performance routines was selected significantly more frequently than any other strategy (p < .001). Study 4 experimentally examined psyching-up effectiveness in 200 competitive strong(wo)man and powerlifting athletes during the deadlift. Deadlift velocity was significantly greater during the psyching-up condition compared to the control. Although no differences were observed between strategies, linear discriminant analysis revealed that higher reward sensitivity, greater trait aggression and lower anxiety sensitivity predicted selection of “arousal-enhancing” strategies (p = .002). Finally, Study 5 prescribed personality-matched strategies to athletes reporting ineffective psyching-up, resulting in significant improvements in deadlift velocity following prescription. Collectively, this thesis provides the first systematic and experimental evidence base for psyching-up in strength-sports and supports the value of personalised psychological preparation.