NEW TECHNOLOGY OF THE ATHLETES PSYCHO-PHYSICAL READINESS EVALUATION BASED ON THE GAS-DISCHARGE VISUALISATION METHOD IN COMPARISON WITH BATTERY OF TESTS
Bundzen P., Korotkov K., Kolodiy O.,
Balandin V., Zagrantsev V., Mashianova T., Masanova F.
Research Institute of Physical Culture, Lesgaft State Academy of Physical Culture.
Technical University “SPIFMO”, St.Petersburg, Russia
The definition of skilled athletes’ readiness for competitive activity is one of the actual problems of sport psychophysiology and psychology. In respect that the athletes’ psycho-physical readiness for competition is defined by two basic factors, namely the specific character of their mental state, as well as the level of development and ability for the mobilisation of organism’s psycho-physiological reserves [1], there have been elaborated and approved the technology of complex psychological and psychoenergy evaluation for the purpose of prognosis of the success of competitive activity.
METHODS OF THE STUDY
1. Methods of subjective and objective assessment of psycho-emotional state and prognosis of the success of competitive activity [2].
2. Method of subjective assessment of skilled athletes’ psycho-energy state (Profile of Mood States – POMS) [3].
3. Methods of testing of athletes’ physical work-capacity (V O2 max; oxygen pulse; time of PWC keeping).
4. Method of Biological Emission and Optical Radiation Gas Discharge Visualisation (BEO GDV) [4,5].
5. Method of the evaluation of meridional acupuncture points’ functional state by registration of ς-potential [6].
6. Expert evaluation of personified conclusions by the coaches of the athletes’ readiness for a competitive activity.
7. Statistical processing of the experimental results by means of the correlative and factor analysis.
SUBJECTS OF THE STUDY
34 skilled athletes of the School of Olympic Reserve (St.Petersburg) and the North-West Centre of Olympic Preparation were investigated; they specialized in the following sports: swimming, Nordic combination and basketball. Among the subjects there were 29 Candidates of master of Sport and 5 masters of Sport. The subjects were between the ages of 17 – 22, 30 males and 4 females.
RESULTS OF THE STUDY
The use of battery of tests including 23 parameters for determination the psycho-emotional state and the prognosis of the success of competitive activity enabled us to give the primary rating of athletes’ psychophysical readiness (PPR). All investigated athletes were divided to three groups with 11 person in each group:
1st group – athletes with high PPR;
2nd group – athletes with medium PPR;
3rd group – athletes with low PPR.
The comparison of athletes’ readiness rating being structured with their subjective assessment by POMS method revealed a statistically significant difference of the 1st and the 3rd groups of athletes by PPR assessment.
As a result of analysis of BEO-grams of fingers using the “GDV” package of programs developed by the team of Dr. K. Korotkov it was revealed statistically reliable differences of the basic parameters of BEO-grams among the 1st and the 3rd groups of athletes. This difference was demonstrated for the following parameters of BEO-grams:
1. The area of BEO-gram of every finger of the left and right hand.
2. The areas of different sectors of BEO-grams of the ring (4th) finger of both hands.
3. Fractal parameters of BEO-grams.
4. Types of BEO-grams after K. Korotkov (1995): K-, R-, L-, N-, S- in accordance with the level of their destructurisation, or increase of fractality.
It was demonstrated that at rest the BEO-grams of the athletes of the 3rd group with low PPR is typical for the healthy subjects of the same age and mainly belong to R-type. For the athletes with high PPR (1st group) the BEO-gram at rest is much less structured belonging mainly to L-type with significant percentage of N-type. After physical loading for all the athletes it was found transition to the “worse” type of BEO-gram: L- for the 3rd group and N- for the 1st group with some percentage of N- and S- types respectively. For athletes with medium PPS it was combination of R- and L-types at rest with dominance of L-N types after physical loading.
These results confirm conclusions of our long-term studies of BEO-grams of top-level athletes: their dominant type of BEO-grams at rest is quite different from the types of BEO-grams of relatively healthy people and “worsens” after training and mostly in the process of sport competition. In correlation with other data [5] this may be interpreted as a preliminary evidence for transition of top-level athletes to the state of Altered State of Consciousness [7] during competition. Of course, this hypothesis needs further development. It is also significant that the groups of athletes differing by PPR have essential difference in GDV patterns.
The athletes having high and low PPR are also notable for various reactivity of acupuncture points (AP) of Yian meridians (TR, IG). For these meridians the reactivity of AP is essentially higher in the athletes with low PPR.
The correlation and factor analysis of the results of the investigation carried out by the totality of studied indices (N = 28 and N = 44) allowed to mark out four basic factors whose dispersion makes up correspondingly 72% and 61%. The dominant weight for the first factor occupies the complex parameter of PPR rating (0.87). In this case the statistically reliable components of the first factor are: all the parameters of POMS including the indices of activity – anxiety; the GDV parameters of BEO-grams of eight fingers of both hands; the parameters of AP reactivity bilateral asymmetry of the fourth fingers and the parameter of maximal PWC holding in minutes. Thus, it is rightful to interpret functionally the given factor as a factor of athletes’ psycho-physical activity.
The second factor reliably (p < 0.01) marks out the parameters of the asymmetry of AP functional state, the parameter of AP reactivity TR and the area of BEO-grams of all fingers of both hands. In accordance with the combination of the parameters the given factor can be interpreted as a factor reflecting some peculiarities of organism’s systemic bioenergy homeostasis.
The third and fourth factors reflect the correlation of POMS parameters with the AP functional state and with the capacity of central nervous system, which is determined according to the velocity and accuracy of psychomotor reactions.
As a whole, the results of statistical analysis testify to the fact that the complex of the parameters selected for PPR evaluation appear to be complement; it confirms the adequacy of using the methods of PPR with emphasis on GDV parameters and ς – potential in sport psychodiagnostics. At the same time it is evident that the GDV parameters reflect mainly psycho-emotional state of the athlete, but they are not adequate for the evaluation of the physical state of a sportsman.
The study of the influence of special functional efforts (mental modeling of competitive situation and dosage physical exercises) on the BEO-grams patterns revealed their directed changes during the exercise. This creates hope of developing the technique of obtaining information about the mobilization of psychoenergy potential by the athlete in purposeful situations. The significance of working out the technology of an objective assessment of the given parameter while diagnosing PPR and forecasting the reliability of skilled athletes’ activity is beyond any doubts.
CONCLUSION
1. The GDV patterns of fingers’ BEO-grams (Korotkov’s images) of skilled athletes have some specific features revealing correlation with psycho-emotional status and psycho-physical readiness of athletes for the competitive activity.
2. The results of the study of systematic bioenergy homeostasis and GDV patterns transformation in the course of modeling of athletes’ readiness for the competition give reasons to assume a high informative significance and perceptiveness of using up-to-date computerized GDV technology in sport psycho-diagnostics.
3. The investigations carried out enable us to recommend the elaborated complex approach as a basic methodology within the limits of the international scientific program “Assessment and prognosis of top athletes’ competitive activity”.
REFERENCES
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3. Mc.Nair D. et al., 1992
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5. Korotkov K. Aura and Consciousness, New Stage of Scientific Understanding, St.Petersburg, 1999. – 303 p.
6. Bundzen P., Balandin V., Zagrantsev V., Unestahl L.-E. Psychological training of the Olympic reserve: Advanced Practices. In “Youth – Science – Olympism”. – Moscow, 1998. – pp. 66-68.
7. Unestahl L.-E., Bundzen P. Integral mental training. – St.Petersburg, 1997. – 42p.