Mental toughness in sport: developments in theory and research

The pursuit of excellence in sport depends on four key facets of performance, namely physical, technical, tactical and mental skills. However, when physical, technical and tactical skills are evenly matched, a common occurrence at elite level, it is the performer with greater levels of mental toughness that seems to prevail most often. This book brings together the world's leading researchers and practitioners working on mental toughness to discuss this vital ingredient of performance excellence in sport, to survey the latest research and to present cutting-edge developments in theory and professional practice. It explores key conceptual, methodological and practical issues including: what mental toughness is and is not how to measure mental toughness in sport how to develop mental toughness in sport mental toughness in other human performance settings, from business to coping and life skills.

Understanding mental toughness / Mental toughness : a phenomenological perspective / Tom Fawcett -- Mental toughness and coping in sport / Adam R. Nicholls -- A social-cognitive framework for understanding and developing mental toughness in sport / Robert J. Harmison -- Who's mental, who's tough and who's both? Mutton constructs dressed up as lamb / Mark B. Andersen -- Measuring mental toughness / Development and validation of the mental toughness inventory (MTI) : construct validation approach / S. Cory Middleton, Andrew J. Martin and Herb W. Marsh -- Measuring mental toughness in sport : current status and future directions / Daniel F. Gucciardi, Clifford J. Mallett, Stephanie J. Hanrahan and Sandy Gordon -- Developing mental toughness / Mental toughness development : issues, practical implications and future directions / Declan Connaughton, Richard Thelwell and Sheldon Hanton -- Mental toughness as a life skill / Daniel Gould, Katherine Griffes and Sarah Carson -- Understanding and developing the will to win in sport : perceptions of parents, coaches and athletes / Clifford J. Mallett and Tristan J. Coulter -- Building mental toughness / Robert Weinberg and Joanne Butt -- Menta…