You may not know this but we actually take in more information about the world around us than we are ever consciously aware of. There is in fact in every waking moment an almost unlimited amount of information available to us, both from the outside world and from our internal thoughts and memories. So how do we chose what information to use and block out what we don’t need? This process is called attention and it is a selective process that allows us to take in only the information we need and exclude the rest. But there is not just one type of attention, in fact research has identified three different types of attention. For example, a rugby player may want to make an effort to listen to the instructions of a coach this is a form of cognitive attention. If the player chooses to observe the positions of their opponents but ignore the chants of the opposing fans this is an example of selective attention. Whereas the ability to run with the ball whilst simultaneously looking around for a teammate to pass to is an example of divided attention. So what influences our ability to pay attention in the way we want to during a game?

Some theories of attention suggest that you think of attention as a pool of energy you can allocate that is dependent on principles such as arousal and automaticity. Your level of arousal can have a big impact on your ability to pay attention, people usually find it easier to pay attention to something without being distracted when they are wide awake and alert than when they are sleepy. However, you don’t want to be too aroused as an increase in stress can lead to a narrowing of focus. Automaticity refers to the amount you have practiced a skill. If you have ever learnt to drive you may remember finding it difficult when you first started to think about the location of the controls, working the pedals, turning the steering wheel and looking in the mirrors all whilst trying to concentrate on where you were going and what other people on the road were doing. However, once you’ve been driving for a while you don’t always need to concentrate on the individual aspects all the time. This is because your actions have become more automatic. The more automatic a skill has become the easier it might be to perform it in a demanding game situation, however, it also might make you more susceptible to being distracted. Other theories suggest that attention can be considered as a mental beam or ‘spotlight’ that we can shine on the things that are most important to us at any one time. This spotlight can be focussed on external things such as the environment around us, or internal things such as our thoughts or feelings.

Sometimes in a game it can be difficult to maintain our focus on the things we want to pay attention to and ignore the things that are irrelevant or even harmful (such as negative thoughts and feelings). But how can rugby players improve their ability to pay attention to the important aspects of the game and tune out those that are irrelevant? Well the first step is to be clear on what is important for you to pay attention to, the clearer you are in your mind about what you want to focus on the easier it will be to maintain your attentional focus. Another simple way to improve your ability to pay attention is to simply try to get more sleep the night before a game as being tired can reduce your ability to focus your attention. You might also want to determine your optimum level of arousal and use some psychological skills training to manage stressful situations which might reduce your ability to pay attention. Our attentional focus often follows our eyes so looking at the thing you want to pay attention to (for example the ball) and not looking at the thing you want to ignore (for example the crowd) can help you maintain focus on the relevant cues. Finally you may want to try some training to improve your ability to focus on more than one thing at once, such as completing a cognitive task (for example counting backwards in threes) during your training sessions. Overall it is important to understand that whilst attention is a limited resource it is possible to train yourself to become better at paying attention to the things that are important and ignore the things that aren’t and this will make you a better rugby player.

Kirsty Brock is a lecturer in motor learning and motor control at AECC University College and researches the use of attentional training to improve sporting performance. Kirsty has many years coaching experience in team sports as is currently working with the GB armed forces para snow sports team.

AECC University College are the official Sport Science and Performance Partners for Bournemouth Rugby Club providing support across all levels of the club.

Kirsty Brock

Sports performance consultant