A Mental Skills Package for Special Olympics Athletes: A
Preliminary StudyBy Gregg, Melanie J.; Hrycaiko, Dennis;
Mactavish, Jennifer B.; Martin, Garry L.; Adapted Physical
Activity Quarterly, Vol. 21, No. 1, pp. 4-18 Publication Date:
January 2004 Study conducted to replicate and extend a mental
skills package to Special Olympics track and field athletes with
intellectual disabilities. Research has demonstrated that mental
skills training (MST) packages are effective for enhancing
athletic performance. Mental skills training involves
psychological elements that enhance athletic performance, and
involves elements such as relaxation therapy, imagery, self-
talk, and goal-setting. The purpose of developing a MST package
is to combine all of the skills necessary for performance
enhancement into a single intervention. Three Special Olympics
track-and-field athletes participated in the study. The MST
package served as the independent variable to examine the
effects of the intervention on the dependent variables, wh