Youth Sports Psychology Articles

Parent Communication with Sports Kids Who Lash Out

Youth Sports Psychology

Communicating With Sports Kids After Losses What exactly is going on in the minds of young athletes when they throw a bat after striking out, storm out of a gym after a loss, or cry when their team suffers a big upset? How should you deal with this behavior? First … Read Sport Psychology Tip

Helping Young Athletes Improve Composure in Sports

Video of The Week

Improving Composure in Competition Youth Sports Psychology expert Dr. Patrick Cohn of Kids’ Sports Psychology explains why athletes become frustrated during competition and what coaches and parents can do about it. Help young athletes identify frustration-producing thoughts and modify them so your young athletes can reap the many benefits of improved … Read Sport Psychology Tip

The Problems with Favoritism in Youth Sports Athletes

What Can Athletes Learn from Elite Athletes’ Mindset?

Dealing With Favoritism in Youth Sports Sports parent Michael Sands is unhappy with what he calls favoritism at Beverly Hills High, where his son plays football. The coaches are all volunteers, but on weekends, they coach certain kids—for a fee. This puts the young athletes who get extra coaching on … Read Sport Psychology Tip

One Way Sports Kids Lose Confidence and the Solution

Youth Sports Psychology

Keeping Game Time Focus in The Present Sophie is a 7th grade cross-country runner who has trouble letting go of past losses. She assumes one loss will lead to another. This is a common challenge for young athletes. They make generalizations about one bad game or race. If it happened … Read Sport Psychology Tip

How Sports Kids Deal with Constructive Criticism [Interview]

Video of The Week

Handling Criticism in Youth Sports Lisa Cohn of Kids’ Sports Psychology interviews coach James Jackson and Dr. Patrick Cohn about how kids handle criticism in sports today. When coaches don’t communicate well during games, kids take well-meaning constructive feedback personally and generally don’t learn or improve. Watch the video below … Read Sport Psychology Tip

Why Confidence is a Youth-Sports Cure-All

Youth Sports Psychology

Instilling Confidence in Young Athletes Why is confidence so important in youth sports? Because it’s a cure-all. It’s that simple. When kids feel confident, they don’t get scared. They don’t get worried or tense. They believe their skills are just as good as their competitors’. Confident athletes recover easily from … Read Sport Psychology Tip