The Cognitive Underpinnings of Mental Toughness in Endurance Athletes

Abstract

This study investigates the cognitive mechanisms behind mentally tough behavior in elite endurance athletes. The first study uses a battery of tests to assess the correlation between different aspects of inhibitory control and athletic performance. The second study uses these results to motivate an intervention aimed at improving inhibitory control and athletic performance. Study 1 examined participants’ athletic performance in the Tinman triathlon race with their performance on the Stroop test, the Go/No-go test, and the Think/No-think test. These cognitive tests measured inhibitory attention control, inhibitory motor control, and inhibitory thought control, respectively. Only inhibitory attention control, as demonstrated by the Stroop test, produced a statistically significant positive correlation. These results motivated the design of Study 2’s intervention. Since participants’ performance on the Stroop test exhibited a correlation of statistical significance, the experimental group in the intervention involved meditation practice, which has been shown to improve inhibitory attention control and performance on Stroop tests (Wenk-Sormaz, 2005; Chan & Woollacott, 2007; Malinowski, 2013). Since participants’ performance on the Go/No-go test was not correlated with athletic performance in Study 1, the control group in Study 2 involved caffeine consumption in order to improve inhibitory motor control and performance on Go/No-go tests (Barry et al., 2007). The athletic performance measure and the cognitive testing scores were better for the meditation group than for the caffeine group, but none of these differences reached statistical significance. Similarly, the correlations run between athletic performance and the inhibitory control test measures failed to reach statistical significance. These findings suggest that the intervention was unsuccessful. Nevertheless, this study strengthens our understanding of the cognitive mechanisms behind mental toughness in sport and serves as a platform for future research.