Goal setting is a highly important tool used in sport and exercise and is a current topic in sport psychology literature.

process goals. An important step when setting goals is knowing when to concentrate on what type of goal. Setting outcome goals away from competition can help short term motivation; if set during competition they can lead to negative thoughts and increased anxiety. Performance and process goals are useful as they can be adjusted as they depend less on an opponent’s behaviour. These types of goals can be effective in both competition and practice. It has been reported that athletes who have used process and performance goals regularly have stated that the decreased stress on the end result has led them to feel less anxious and more confident. Along with different types of goals there are different types of goal setting styles. The concept of goal setting styles is based on the idea that individuals have different goal orientation based on their perceived personal ability. The three different goal setting styles are performance oriented, success oriented and failure orientated. Individuals who are performance orientated see success as learning or improving a skill. These athletes have high levels of perceived ability and motivation. In a performance orientated goal setting style success is attributed to effort and there is a positive response to failure. Athletes who adopt this orientation perform remarkably well and will closely approach their performance potential long term. The main objective in a success oriented goal setting style is to win; this relates to the fact that outcome goals are ranked as most important. In this style of goal setting success is attributed to high ability and failure is a result of unstable factors, such as poor mental preparation. Although this type of orientation often results in success it only allows moderate performance improvement. Individuals who adopt a failure oriented goal setting style have low perceived ability. This is due to the fact that they do not socially compare well to others. In most case they fail or they perform poorly. Success in this type of orientation is attributed to external factors, such as luck, and failure is attributed to low ability. Persons with this orientation have little interest in learning and they often drop-out. This sort of goal setting style is avoided and athletes are encouraged to adopt a performance oriented goal setting style. In order for athletes to successfully use goal setting as a psychological skill they have to design an effective goal setting system and adhere to the principles of goal setting. By adhering to the principles of goal setting a valuable goal setting program can be developed. The main principles of goal setting are: • Set specific goals. • Set moderately difficult but realistic goals. • Set short-range as well as long-range goals. • Set process & performance goals as well as outcome goals. • Set goals for practice & competition. • Set positive goals instead of negative goals. • Identify dates for achieving goals. • Identify strategies for goal achievement. • Record goals. • Provide goal evaluation. • Provide goal support. • Set group goals. The first principle states that specific goals should be set in measurable terms, as specific goals are more effective than general “do your best goals”. It is essential that as well as setting outcome goals, performance and process goals are set. It is also important that moderately difficult but realistic goals should be set. A meta analysis by Kyllo & Landers (1995) showed that moderately difficult goals resulted in the best performance as opposed to extremely difficult goals. If goals are set too high then this will only lead to failure. It has been recommended that goals are set so that they are complex enough to test athletes but realistic enough to be achieved. Short range and long range goals should be set. This is important as short range goals allow athletes to see immediate improvements in performance, which can enhance motivation. Setting short range goals allows athletes to keep track of their long range goals. Also goals should be set for competition and practice. Athletes often make the mistake of only setting goals for competition. Gould (2001) recognised that research by Orlick & Partington (1988) found that highly successful Olympians set clear daily practice goals. Goal setting principles also state that positive goals should be set instead of negative goals. Stating goals in positive terms identifies behaviours to be displayed than behaviours not to be displayed. Setting positive goals also helps the athlete concentrate on success rather than failure. Strategies also have to be put in place in order to help the athlete attain these positive goals. Often goals are set but never achieved as athletes fail to identify goal achievement strategies. Target dates should also be identified for attaining goals. This helps with motivation as it reminds athletes of the urgency of achieving their objective. Goals and their target dates should be recorded by the individual, as it is easy for them to forget what goals they have set. By recording them and keeping them where they can be seen, reminds the athlete of the goals they have set. Feedback and support are other key principles of a goal setting program. It is fundamental that a coach provides evaluative feedback in order to enhance performance. Athletes have to be aware of how their present performance relates to the goals they have set. Support from family and friends is vital as they can encourage the individual to achieve their goals. A recent recommendation by researchers is that group goals as well as individual goals be set. The group task must be clearly specified along with the strategies to achieve these group goals. It is important that all team members should have an input into the team goal setting process. From the principles of goal setting an effective goal setting system has to be followed. The three simple parts of a goal setting system are planning stage, meeting stage and evaluation stage. In the planning phase it is essential that coaches conduct a needs analysis to identify different team and individual needs. Form this needs analysis the coach should then think about the goals that should be set in order to fulfil these needs. At the meeting stage the coach should arrange briefings with athletes in order to discuss goal setting. An initial meeting should take place of the whole team in order to convey the importance of goal setting. Once the athletes have had a chance to think about what goals they might set, then a second meeting of the coach and individual athletes should take place in order to identify and record individual goals. It is in the evaluation phase that feedback is given to the athlete on how close they are to attaining their goals. Research into goal setting has shown that goal setting is an effective tool. The research conducted has normally been a comparison of performances of individuals who set goals and those who don’t. Also comparisons have been made between goal types, such as those who set specific objective goals and those who set general “do your best” goals. A literature review conducted by Locke et al (1981) supports goal setting as a powerful tool for enhancing performance. The review found that 90% of studies showed positive effects of goal setting in laboratory and “real world” environments. Burton (1989) examined the effects of a goal setting program on swimmers. The purpose of the study was to give reasons to why goal setting influences performance by relating to factors such as confidence and anxiety. The results of the study showed that participants with high goal setting ability showed better performance and more positive cognitions Wordcount: 1599 Psychological training is an important aspect of any training program in sports. Goal setting is one particular aspect of a psychological skills training program. Often people brush this aside and do not pay the attention to it that is necessary. The first step in goal setting is to set short term goals that gradually build on each other. More often than not people set goals that are out of their reach and end up quitting in their attempt to reach these goals. By setting short term goals you will feel energized to attain your long term goals once you have accomplish your short term goals. Once you have written down your short term goals, analyze them and ask yourself what resourses are available to you. For instance, if you want to score more goals this season in hockey, you will have to practice more often, is this possible? this is another mistake that people make when setting goals, not know their resourses. If I can't make an extra practice or two to get more shots on the goalie then it is going to be difficult to attain my goal. Another very important part of goal setting is to set outcome goals, and not so much performance goals, especially if you are playing on a team. Trying your best during a game or practice and feeling confident that you are giving you all will usually transform itself into a positive outcome. When athletes focus there attention on what they are doing to the point that their play is effected is an example of focussing on performance goals. The best way to look at goal setting is to picture a stair case and each step is a goal that you want to attain. Wordcount: 292