Emotional intelligence in sport

Research has determined that improving intrapersonal and interpersonal communication seems to be a key factor in improving cohesion on sports teams, resulting in enhanced athletic performance. (Hodge et al, 2014) (Chan et al, 2011). Based on my experience delivering Internal Family Systems (IFS)-informed emotional intelligence training to university-level men’s and women’s rugby teams, varsity athletes were, in fact, able to hone intrapersonal and interpersonal communication skills. My observations were supported by feedback received from the athletes themselves.

Emotional intelligence (EI) has been defined as the ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions; it helps people recognize the impact of emotions and helps guide one’s thinking and actions to productively solve problems and regulate behavior (Salovey & Mayer, 1990). Four branches of EI were identified in 1997 by Salovey & Mayer: 1) perceiving emotion, 2) facilitating thought using emotion, 3) understanding emotion and, 4) managing emotion. The goal of emotional intelligence training is to enhance intrapersonal and interpersonal communication.

The principles of IFS dovetail nicely with EI. Perceiving emotion in IFS is recognizing that a Part is reacting. It is the skill of being aware that a Part is in the seat of consciousness (which I described to athletes as their “inner control panel”), as opposed to true Self. Facilitating thought by using emotion in IFS is twofold: being aware of the thoughts and behavioral reactions which emanate from a Part or emotion (such as an Inner Critic), and knowing what thoughts and actions will facilitate a Part to step aside and allow the player’s Self to share in creating a productive response. Understanding emotion in IFS is recognizing why a Part is acting the way it is. Where did the Part learn to react this way? When did the Part start protecting in this manner?

For example, an activity I did with rugby teams recently in a post-game EI sessions was to have players identify a Part that distracted them in their last game. They put down the Part’s name on the large index card, drew a picture of the Part (colored pencils were available), and wrote down what the Part was saying to them. On the other side of the index card the players wrote down: 1) what reaction/emotion the Part activates, 2) if it was productive or counterproductive during the game, 3) what the Part was trying to accomplish, 4) what characteristic of True Self would be able to help the Part accomplish this.

As I walked around the room I overheard one player tell a teammate while showing the teammate her card, “Look! This is what it actually looks like inside of me!” That is awareness.  Sharing awareness like this enhances team cohesion. The players, just by being in the same room together and doing the same activity, knew they all had Parts that distract them and Parts that help them.

The next day one of the players messaged me: “Hi Jill, I hope you’re doing well. I just wanted to let you know, I really appreciated last night’s activity. Identifying my emotions and analyzing them really helped me understand their role in my success as a player and also as a person. It’s one thing to be aware of what we feel, but putting it on paper and trying to understand why we experience different kind of emotions (both positive and negative) pushes us to not only recognize them but also learn how to live and deal with them. Thank you, E.”

Self leadership is the goal when managing emotion. Athletes can redirect dysfunctional or extreme behavior and reactions to more productive and beneficial responses by having Self be the leader of their actions. Interpersonal communication is enhanced when athletes are aware of emotions, the reactions they elicit, and the subsequent anticipated behaviors in others; the ability to modulate their own actions and responses helps elicit productive and beneficial outcomes in themselves and others.

Let’s put this into a hypothetical situation. A baseball batter strikes out, which results negative emotion—the internal activator—and another out. There are feelings of disappointment, anger, frustration. The player is self-critical after return to the bench (an internal and often counterproductive negative response.) This player may also have one or more physiological responses, like an increased heart rate, tearing eyes, or increased muscular tension.

This player’s cognitive, motivational, and experiential systems will likely determine what the next action is. Will the player be motivated to figure out what needs to be done for the next at bat to perform better? Does the player have the cognitive ability to recognize what caused the strike out? And does the player have the experiential skill and EI to regain focus and be productive? Or will self-criticism take over and inhibit the focus needed to perform optimally? Will this player have the tools to transform the Inner Critic into the Inner Mentor? IFS-informed emotional intelligence training can impart these skills.

The Inner Mentor is a healthy version of the Inner Critic (Earley and Weiss, 2013.) Integrating IFS into the team culture creates an important common language. Athletes and coaches that have tools can activate their capacity to respond in healthy beneficial ways to less-than-optimal situations. People respond emotionally to matters or situations they find personally significant and can increase trust by communicating their experiences.

Offering athletes IFS-Informed emotional intelligence training helps facilitate enhanced intra-personal and interpersonal communication skills, promotes team cohesion, and improves team performance. Just like any athletic skill, this takes training and practice.