Good afternoon! I’m your host, Barron Owusu, and welcome back to the Psych Era! In honor of the NFL being back and the Giants being the best team in the league (I’m biased), let’s discuss the social aspect of being an athlete. Being an athlete is one of the world’s most tedious and demanding challenges. Not only does it take immense physical prowess, but the mental aspect of it is even more formidable. How often have we seen a team (Cowboys) fold under pressure in a big moment? Can you guess? For those of you wondering, the answer is- an INFINITE amount of times. In the clutch, some tend to rise, some fall, and some remain consistent; why is it that? This is due to phenomena known as social facilitation and social loafing. Human beings tend to get overhyped or aroused during specific tasks. For example, have you ever gotten so excited about playing a sport or doing a simple job to the point you did poorly? I know I have! Before discussing athletes, let me tell you an epic tale.

I was 8 (don’t worry, this isn’t a trauma dump) and getting ready to play a game called Ludu with my family. I was oddly good at this game for some reason, and my family praised me for it. I was a god among men, or so I thought. Ludu involves a simple dice roll, and I struggled to do that because I was so enthusiastic or, per the Yerkes Dodson Law, too aroused. Athletes must maintain optimal arousal to perform well. In other words, one can not be too excited or nervous to perform at the highest level; you must have a perfect balance. Generational talents such as Lebron do precisely this, maintain a balance. Before games, King LeGoat James (my favorite of all time) always mediates to allow his body to relax and be in a state of calm. That is one of the main elements that has allowed him to dominate the league for over 18 years and combat the General Adaptation Syndrome.

Home court advantage is real, by the way. I know it may sound like an excuse Cowboys fans continue to make as to why they lost, but it is true. “Studies of professional, collegiate, and high school sports have consistently found that home performers defeat visiting performers in more than half of the total games played.”. Having your fans support you boost your playing ability; however, it demoralizes the opponent’s spirit. Now, allow me to get into the bad part of social situations in sports. Social loafing, as mentioned earlier, is when humans put in less effort when other people are around. Why is that? Well, the more people are around, the less effort we put in because we assume “someone else would do it”! In the context of sports, let’s say we have an offensive line in football on the road. Trash talking, boos, what someone has going on in their life can affect them significantly, and the fact you are on a team. A team is meant to work together, but humans get lazy, allowing social loafing and the cowgirls– I mean athletes to fail. Allow me to clarify. This does not apply to all people; some athletes have a solid mental fortitude, allowing them to excel in such situations. Thank you so much for reading, and see you next time on The Psych Era.