First Draft
Smith 1
Casey Smith
Ms. Andrews
ENGL 1102
28 October 2012
Motivation
Motivation
as defined by
cliffnotes [KA1] is
an inferred condition that is constructed from simpler known elements, that
arouses and directs it toward a specific goal.
Motivation can be constructed by many elements, language being one of
them. There are many ways language can be used
to construct motivation in people, and motivational speeches or feedback from a
coach is a way that language can be used to construct motivation[KA2] . Studies show that dopamine has a direct
effect on motivation in the brain. Depending on
the level of dopamine sent to a particular part of the brain, athletes will
either become motivated, or they become timid, afraid, and nervous. [KA3] A
coach who coaches his athletes by having a positive attitude, having confidence
in his athletes, and motivates his athletes will increase the amount of
dopamine being sent to the striatum. The
increased levels of dopamine in the striatum in turn will begin to give the
athlete a motivated state of mind, almost a state of mind where they will tell
themselves they are unstoppable. A coach that
ridicules, exploits, and punishes athletes in an excessive manner will begin to
have athletes that have lowered levels of dopamine in the amygdala, which will
cause nervousness and anxiety. [KA4]
The striatum is located in the center of the brain and has a
direct relationship to how motivated someone can become. Depending on the person’s surroundings
amounts of dopamine will be sent to the striatum and in return it will make the
person more motivated and aggressive[KA5] . A coach’s language is one factor that can
directly affect these levels of dopamine.
Smith 2
Great
moments... are [KA6] born
from great opportunity. And that's what you have here, tonight, boys. That's
what you've earned here tonight. One game. If we played 'em ten times, they
might win nine. But not this game. Not tonight. Tonight, we skate with them.
Tonight, we stay with them. And we shut them down because we can! Tonight, WE
are the greatest hockey team in the world. You were born to be hockey players.
Every one of you. And you were meant to be here tonight. This is your time.
Their time is done. It's over. I'm sick and tired of hearing about what a great
hockey team the Soviets have. Screw 'em. This is your time. Now go out there
and take it.
This was a speech from
the movie Miracle on
Ice [KA7] (2004)
from coach Herb Brooks right before the 1980 US Men’s Hockey Team played the
USSR in the semifinal game of the Olympics.
The reason that this is so significant is because the USSR Hockey Team
had won every world championship and Olympics since 1954 and the US won the
game 4-3. The US Team came back from 2-3
to score twice in the third period to win the game and advance to the finals
where they would play Finland and take gold.
The coach’s language definitely had to spark something in the brains of
his players. The US team would have lost
this game if before the game the coach had ridiculed the players, pointing out
all of their mistakes, scolding them and telling them they are trash. Mathematically there was no way the US team
could have won, unless of course a miracle.
The USSR was the best up until that point, and the US was far from the
best.
I have more that im
putting in but I was still trying to sort out my information before I put it
in. I have another example of a coach
that talks down to his athletes and it affects them negatively, and the conclusion[KA8] .
[KA4]Is
this your thesis statement? I like what you are saying, but it is pretty
specific. Is there another way that you could phrase it into more general
terms?
Casey,
I think that you have a good start and I like the
argument that you are making. Also, I like that you are analyzing other texts
such as movies and I think that they can serve as evidence, but you also want
to rely on scientific and proven information too. Make sure that you are
backing up what you say with cited sources. I look forward to seeing what you
do in the next draft.
KA
Final Draft
Motivation
Motivation
is defined by a condition that is constructed from many simple factors that
sets the mind towards a specific goal.
Motivation can be constructed by many elements, language being one of
them. There are many ways language can
be used to construct motivation in people, and motivational speeches or
feedback from a coach is a way that language can be used in this way. Studies show that dopamine has a direct
effect on motivation in the brain.
Depending on the level of dopamine sent to a particular part of the
brain, athletes will either become motivated, or they become timid, afraid, and
nervous. A coach who coaches his
athletes by having a positive attitude, having confidence in his athletes, and
motivates his athletes will increase the amount of dopamine being sent to the
striatum. The increased levels of
dopamine in the striatum in turn will begin to give the athlete a motivated
state of mind, almost a state of mind where they will tell themselves they are
unstoppable. A coach that ridicules,
exploits, and punishes athletes in an excessive manner will begin to have
athletes that have lowered levels of dopamine in the amygdala which will cause
nervousness and anxiety. I believe that
the language a coach uses, whether it positive or negative, has an effect on
the performance of athletes.
The striatum is located in the
center of the brain and has a direct relationship to how motivated someone can
become. Depending on the person’s
surroundings amounts of dopamine
Great moments... are born from great opportunity.
And that's what you have here, tonight, boys. That's what you've earned here
tonight. One game. If we played 'em ten times, they might win nine. But not this
game. Not tonight. Tonight, we skate with them. Tonight, we stay with them. And
we shut them down because we can! Tonight, WE are the greatest hockey team in
the world. You were born to be hockey players. Every one of you. And you were
meant to be here tonight. This is your time. Their time is done. It's over. I'm
sick and tired of hearing about what a great hockey team the Soviets have.
Screw 'em. This is your time. Now go out there and take it.
This was a
speech from the movie Miracle on Ice (2004) from coach Herb Brooks right before
the 1980 US Men’s Hockey Team played the USSR in the semifinal game of the
Olympics. The reason that this is so
significant is because the USSR Hockey Team had won every world championship
and Olympics since 1954 and the US won the game 4-3. The US Team came back from 2-3 to score twice
in the third period to win the game and advance to the finals where they would
play Finland and take gold. The coach’s
language definitely had to spark something in the brains of his players. The US team would have lost this game if
before the game the coach had ridiculed the players, pointing out all of their
mistakes, scolding them and telling them they are trash. Mathematically there was no way the US team
could have won, unless of course a miracle.
The USSR was the best up until that point, and the US was far from the
best.
My
senior year of high school is was on the varsity wrestling team and at the end
of the season all of the best wrestlers in the state go compete in the individual
state championships. A few of my
teammates made it to the tournament, including our best wrestler. Our best wrestler wrestled at 145 lbs. and
was 45-1 for his senior year. The reason
this is important is because my coach said something to him that made me change
the way I saw myself as an athlete. In
the finals match there were 30 seconds left in the third period and my coach
called a timeout. Our best wrestler was
down 7-8 and came out with a look of distraught and stress because he was down. He began saying how could he lose with his
grandma, family, girlfriend, and teammates all there after watching him work so
hard to make it. My coach stopped him
and said, “You’re not here for your grandma, your family, your teammates, or
me. You’re here for you and you
only. You’re not winning this match for
me, your teammates, or your family. You
want this for yourself, not for anyone else.
Your only down by one point so get back out there and get you your state
title”. He went back out and as the time
ran down, he shot, took his opponent down and won the match 9-8. I truly believe if my coach had criticized
his performance or was angry at him he would have gone back in and acted less
aggressive and would have lost the match.
From the language of my coach, my teammate’s brain definitely had a
reaction because he went instantly from a low self-esteem and no faith in
himself, to knowing the title was his to take.
“Going
into high school I was a standout athlete with high confidence but after my
freshman year I started to lose interest. It just wasn’t fun anymore. I hated
practice because I was always worrying about messing up and being embarrassed
by the coach. In games I worried about what he would do or say if I made a
mistake so I became less aggressive. When I thought I did something right he
thought it was wrong, and when I tried to work hard and gain his approval it
was never good enough. It got to the point where I was making up excuses to get
out of practice, and I even hoped I would be benched so I didn’t have to worry
anymore. I knew the
coach was tough,
and I have no problems doing extra work or having someone push me to do better.
But when he gets in my face, calls me out, embarrasses me in front of the team,
and has a
problem with me
every day it makes me question why I still play. I use to play to learn,
compete, be with friends, and have fun. Now I can’t wait for the season to be
over, and practice is always the worst part of my day. I don’t tell anyone how
it affects my motivation and confidence because it’s football, and everyone
complains about the coach. You just have to quit or accept it.”
That
was a quote from a high school football player who had a coach that criticized
and came down way too hard on his athletes.
The athlete became too timid and afraid to be able to actually play the
sport he had loved to play. It got to
the point where he began skipping practice and then ended up just quitting the
team. The coach literally embarrassed
players and had them become quickly self-conscious about themselves and how
they play. An athlete who has a standout
ability and isn’t given a good coach it can ruin the talent that the athlete
possesses. Given a good coach who
motivates and teaches his athletes, the athlete in the quote may have not quit
the team and been able to play at the next level.
The
language used by a coach definitely has an impact on the performance of his
athletes. A good coach who inspires,
motivates, and guides his athletes the right way will be able to take talented
athletes to the next level and teach them how to be confident, yet humble at
the same time. A coach who goes too
hard, exploits, embarrasses, and goes over the top with punishment will end up
having talented athletes that want to give up because they don’t feel like they
are learning or benefitting from how the coach is coaching. Chemicals affect how a person acts whether it is
with a confident attitude or a nervous, timid attitude. Science has shown that many factors affect
when these levels of chemicals change and one of those factors happens to be language, so
therefore depending on the language of a coach it can positively or negatively
affect his athletes.
Works Cited
Cardinal, Rudolph N., John A. Parkinson, Jeremy Hall, and Barry J. Everitt. "Emotion and Motivation: Role of the Amygdala, Ventral Striatum, and Prefontal Cortex."Dinoysus.psych.wisc.edu. Department of Experimental Psychology University of Cambridge, 20 Feb. 2002. Web. 28 Nov. 2012.
"How Bully
Coaches Affect an Athlete's Mental Game | Sports Psychology Today." Sports
Psychology Today by Mental Edge Athletics. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2012.
This
website tells a story about a 16 year old standout football player was
constantly criticized and punished by his coach every time he messed up and in
turn it caused him to begin finding excuses to skip practice and then
eventually quitting the team. This
websote will prove helpful in that this story also talks about how the coach
changed the athlete mentally. The story
goes hand in hand with my topic of how a coaches language affects the
performance of athletes.
How Coaches
Expectations Effect Player Performance
."
The Soccer
Training Company . N.p., n.d.
Web. 25 Nov. 2012.
This
website discusses how a coaches expectations affect the performance of the
athletes on a team. It talks about how
if a coach talks down to his player's and constantly gets overly angry at the
mistakes of his player's it can cause them to become timid and afraid and
perform worse. It also says that if a
coach compliments his players and coaches them through their mistakes it will
in turn bring out a better performance from the athletes.
"How
Criticism Can Affect Athletes’ Mental Game | Sports Psychology Blog for
Athletes and Coaches." Sports Psychology for Athletes, Parents,
Coaches. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2012.
This website is an article of a Women's
German soccer player who during the World Cup had scored 14 goals, but in the
final game her first half performance proved to be almost despicable so the
coached benched her. When she was
benched she became very angry and was confused as to why she had been taken out
since she knew she was the best. Once
out the German team scored 3 more goals to win 3-1 and the player realized that
maybe she wasn't the best. The coaches
actions taught the athlete a little something about humility.
Psychology for the Sports Coach." Athlete / Coach
Personality Profiling Test, DISC /
Behavioral Profiling. N.p., n.d. Web. 25
Nov. 2012.
This website discusses the psychology of
an athletes mind during sports. It also
tells how the most important influence on the athletes minds are based off the
coaches. The website goes in depth with
the description of how important being mentally strong is for an athlete. I will hopefully use this website's
information to help with research of my own inquiry to see how what is told to
an athlete affects their performance.
Reflection
I played sports my whole life and have seen the good and the bad when it comes to coaches. I have seen coaches who put down players, exploit, and punish them for no reason. I have also seen coaches who inspire athletes and bring out their best. I've seen coaches act so negative towards a player that they turned champions into quitters. I had a great time learning about the science behind how motivated an athlete can get depending on the language of a coach. This topic fits very well into my major, kinesiology. Kinesiology is basically sport and exercise science, so learning about language and its effect on the brain was interesting to me. I hope to pursue a career where I work with college level or professional athletes in physical therapy, so from the research I did for this assignment I can use to show a coach if I see he isn't talking to his athletes the right way. Even though this assignment was long and painful I still learned a lot and feel I benefitted from it in the end.
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