E-Thesis 228 views
THE EFFECT OF INTEROCEPTION ON ELITE PHYSICAL SPORTING PERFORMANCE / THOMAS SEABURY
Swansea University Author: THOMAS SEABURY
DOI (Published version): 10.23889/SUthesis.64507
Abstract
Interoception refers to the sense of the physiological state of one's body and may play a crucial role in achieving elite performance in competitive sports. The three experimental chapters within this thesis examined subjective and objective interoception in elite athletes (top 100 national ran...
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Swansea, Wales, UK
2023
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| Institution: | Swansea University |
| Degree level: | Doctoral |
| Degree name: | Ph.D |
| Supervisor: | Young, Hayley A. and Benton D. |
| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa64507 |
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| Abstract: |
Interoception refers to the sense of the physiological state of one's body and may play a crucial role in achieving elite performance in competitive sports. The three experimental chapters within this thesis examined subjective and objective interoception in elite athletes (top 100 national ranking/sporting equivalent) across four forms of sport (track and field, team sports, strength sports and precision sports). Study 1 used the Multidimensional Interoceptive Awareness Assessment (MAIA) (Mehling et al., 2012) to compare track and field athletes. Sprinters reported having better regulation of attention to internal sensations and a greater propensity to listen to their body for insight than distance runners and non-athletes. When compared to non-athletes, sprinters and distance runners reported having more bodily trust. Finally, elite athletes reported lower emotional awareness, self-regulation, and body listening than non-elite athletes. Findings from Study 1 indicated that athletic populations sprinters, report having better interoceptive abilities. However, this may not translate into more elite performance. Study 2 examined cardioception using two tasks: The Heartbeat Counting Task and The Heartbeat Detection Task. Elite and non-elite performers completed the tasks under two conditions; (1) in silence and (2) while listening to a pre-recorded crowd noise that replicated the live sounds of spectators watching a sporting event (an ecologically valid distractor used to allow for objective assessment of an athlete’s ability to sustain their attention to internal signals while being distracted by external factors). Compared to non-athletes, sprinters and distance runners performed the heartbeat detection test more accurately when distracted. Across both heartbeat tasks, in comparison to non-athletes, sprinters and distance runners had greater confidence in their interoceptive percept. Furthermore, elite athletes were less accurate at counting their heartbeat, less confident in their heartbeat counting performance, and were characterised by a higher interoceptive prediction error (a mismatch between accuracy and confidence). Findings from Study 2 suggested that while athletic populations have better interceptive accuracy, especially when distracted, better interoception may not benefit elite running performance. Study 3 looked to extend the findings from Study 1 to compare team sports, strength sports and precision sport athletes on self-reported interoceptive abilities using the MAIA. Strength athletes reported a greater tendency to regulate attention than precision and team athletes. When compared to team and precision athletes, strength athletes also reported greater perceived emotional awareness as well as a greater tendency to notice their internal signals. Finally, strength athletes reported being more likely to listen to their internal bodily signals than team and precision sport athletes. These findings support those of Study 1, suggesting there is an association between explosive athletes and greater reported levels of many interoceptive beliefs compared to other types of athletes. Concerning rank, in Study 3 elite athletes reported higher self-regulation, attention regulation and trust in their internal bodily signals. Interestingly, these findings are a contrast to those in Study 1 where elite athletes reported lower emotional awareness, self-regulation, and body listening. This indicated the association between athlete level and self-reported interoception may depend on the sport. Overall, the findings from this thesis suggest that interoception may vary depending on both sport and level of the athlete. Future research that aims to determine whether these interoceptive differences are a cause or a consequence of training and / or whether interoception can be altered to benefit athletic performance is needed. |
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| College: |
Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences |