APPRAISAL OF NEURO LINGUISTICS PROGRAMMING ON PEAK PERFORMANCE OF ATHLETES IN SELECTED INTER-COLLIGATES SPORTS IN A DEVELOPING NATION

Abstract

The study appraised the awareness level and effectiveness of Neuro Linguistics Programming (NLP) on peak performance of collegiate athletes of a university, southwest, Nigeria. The descriptive survey research design was use for the study. Population consisted all individual and team sport athletes in the Nigeria University Games Association accredited sports (NUGA). The sample size comprised 100 respondents selected using sports type and gender as strata. Five (5) individual sports and five (5) team sports were randomly selected from the 16 accredited NUGA sports. From the selected sports 10 athletes were selected using convenient sampling technique. A self-designed research instrument titled “Neuro Linguistics Programming and sport performance Questionnaire (NLPSPQ) was used to elicit information on the level of awareness and effectiveness of NLP in peak performance from respondents. Data collected were analysed using frequent counts and percentages. Results revealed that in respective of types of sports athletes indicated (100%) that they are aware of NLP and that it is an effective mental tool that enhances their performance during competitions. The study concluded that NLP is an effective tool than can collaborate the physical mode of preparing athletes for competitions and recommended that both athletes and coaches should embrace NLP for better performance outcomes.