Psychoeducation, Relaxation Training, and Mindfulness

Chapter 5 presents fundamental counseling skills that are easily implemented within a cognitive behavioral therapy framework: psychoeducation, motivational interviewing, relaxation training, and mindfulness. The chapter offers a brief historical note on each technique, an evaluation of its research support, and authentic client–therapist dialog that emphasizes its utility and key elements. Each technique is discussed within the context of cognitive behavioral theory, including its overall effect on intervention outcomes and applicability for different referral problems. This chapter’s appendix material includes practical school-based resources for practitioners seeking to apply these techniques in session (detailed breathing, muscle relaxation, and guided imagery scripts) along with multimedia resources for children and families.

Effects of PETTLEP imagery technique on precision skills: a study on drag flick in Pakistan hockey

Present study was aimed at investigating the role of Physical, Environmental, Task, Timing, Learning, Emotion and Perspective (PETTLEP) Imagery technique in the improvement of skill precision level of hockey drag flickers. For this purpose, both male (83) and female (38) hockey drag flickers (n=121) of age ranged between 17 and 27 years were selected from different hockey teams belonging to clubs, colleges, universities, departments, regional and national academies of Pakistan. Participants were made to undergo a Pretest-Intervention-Posttest research design consisted of 20 drag flicks and filling of SIAQ questionnaire. Drag Flick Precision Measurement Test (DFPMT) along with Sports Imagery Ability Questionnaire (SIAQ) were used to measure their skill precision levels and their imagery ability. The participants were classified into three categories as per their skill precision levels (Point-based), ranging from 48 Novice (upto12 points), 42 Intermediate (13–18 points) and 31 Elite (19 points and above), and were randomly assigned to one of four intervention groups; Physical Practice (PP), PETTLEP Imagery Practice (IP), Physical Practice+PETTLEP Imagery Practice Combination (CP), and No Practice (NP) Control group. Each group performed their respective tasks for 10 weeks through specially designed physical training programs aided by Imagery scripts. Paired sample t test analysis showed that all groups improved significantly (p<0.05) from pre- to post-test, and the CP group improved more with average improvement value of 8.32 for DFPMT and 5.39 for SIAQ (p<0.05) than the IP, PP and NP groups. However, there was no significant difference found between the PP (Sig. 0.73) and NP (Sig. 0.44) groups in SIAQ. Result extend prior research findings and suggests that PETTLEP Imagery practice used in combination with Physical practice has substantial impact on improving performance of complex motor skills, Present findings showed that PETTLEP imagery model was found to improve player’s precision skill levels, especially when it was combined with physical practice. However, further studies in this connection are needed.

Women’s use and acceptability of guided imagery in a multi-behavior intervention focused on psychological stress, food cravings, and exercise

ObjectivesThe purpose of this short report was to describe the experiences of 29 overweight or obese women (Mage = 44) who completed a multi-behavior guided imagery intervention that simultaneously targeted psychological stress, food cravings, and physical activity behavior.MethodsParticipants created tailored guided imagery scripts with health coaches for daily use as part of the 5 week randomized controlled wait-list trial. Post-intervention semi-structured interviews were transcribed verbatim and content analyzed for common conceptual themes.ResultsThe results showed that 83% of the participants stated they would continue using guided imagery, <7% would not, while the remaining 10% were unsure about future usage. The perceived usefulness varied across the three behaviors.ConclusionsGuided imagery has the potential to simultaneously address multiple health behaviors. Our results shed light on how tailored guided imagery scripts can be used to help overweight and obese women manage or lose body weight.

Intervening with near-future possible L2 selves: EFL students as peer-to-peer motivating agents during Exploratory Practice

The present study offers insights on understanding motivation to learn a second language (L2) through implementation of the Exploratory Practice principles within the context of English as a foreign language at a university in Spain, and on discovering opportunities to enhance this. The account sits within the domain of the possible selves and the theoretical framework of the L2 Motivational Self System. Student-led visualisation – a twist on teacher-led visualisation – is the key ‘Potentially Exploitable Pedagogic Activity’ (PEPA), explored as a device for inviting a near-future L2 self-guide into the here-and-now. This PEPA evolved out of stages of understanding, including student dismissal as ‘fantasies’ their possible professional L2 selves in a remoter future. Through classroom observation, template analysis of imagery scripts, and student oral and written feedback, the present study finds that the students demonstrated motivated L2 behaviour in group writing about the near-future ideal L2 self and in introducing this self-guide to their peers, who were moved by and found plausible the stories they heard.

Inducing positive involuntary mental imagery in everyday life: an experimental investigation

Positive involuntary mental imagery occurs frequently in daily life but evidence as to its functions and importance is largely indirect. The current study investigated a method to induce positive involuntary imagery in daily life, which would allow direct testing of its impact. An unselected student sample (N = 80) completed a single session of a positive imagery cognitive bias modification (CBM) paradigm, which involved listening to and imagining brief positive imagery scripts. Participants then recorded any involuntary memories of the imagined training scenarios in a three-day diary before returning to the lab for a follow-up assessment. Participants were randomized to imagine the scenarios in either an emotionally involved or emotionally detached manner, providing a test of the role of emotion in the subsequent experience of involuntary memories. Participants reported experiencing involuntary memories of the training scenarios in their daily life, but the number recorded did not differ between the experimental conditions. Exploratory analyses suggested that more vivid imagery and recall testing were associated with a greater number of involuntary memories. The study highlights the potential of the imagery CBM paradigm to further our understanding of the functions and potential importance of positive involuntary mental imagery in daily life.

Using a MG-M Imagery Intervention to Enhance the Sport Competence of Young Special Olympics Athletes

Opportunities for athletes with an intellectual disability (ID) to participate in sport are limited by physical and psychosocial barriers. Sport psychology interventions may be able to address these barriers, namely the lack of sport competence that athletes with an ID experience. This study sought to enhance sport competence among athletes with an ID using personalized motivational general-mastery (MG-M) imagery scripts. The six-week study assessed the imagery use, imagery ability, and sport competence of five Special Olympians (M

Pre-Competition Imagery and Music: The Impact on Flow and Performance in Competitive Soccer

This article describes an intervention on the precompetition routines of soccer players during a 19-week phase of a competitive season. Specifically, we worked with players to develop an enhanced understanding of the effectiveness of personalized preperformance music and imagery scripts in facilitating flow states and performance. Five male players (M age = 20.5; S.D = 1.6) participated in a single-subject multiple baseline across individuals design with multiple treatments and without reversal. Following a preintervention phase, participants undertook the intervention during their prematch warm-up. Flow and perceived performance were assessed immediately after each match. Results indicated that asynchronous music and MG-M imagery when combined had a facilitative effect on flow and perceived performance. Postexperimental player comments supported these findings and suggest that the intervention strategy has great potential for athletes during precompetition. Consultancy guidelines for the use of music and imagery within competitive soccer are presented in the discussion.