ABSTRACT
This chapter outlines key assumptions and examples of the psychophysiological, experimental and psychometric measurement paradigms used for the assessment of concentration skills in athletes. It evaluates the reliability and validity of one of the most popular attentional scale used in sport psychology, namely, the Test of Attentional and Interpersonal Style (TAIS). The chapter explores the relationship between self-reported concentration strategies and athletic success by using the attentional processes of marathon runners as a case-study. Although psychophysiological aspects of athletic performance have been studied, the most popular biological indices of attention used by sport psychology researchers have been electroencephalogram (EEG) measures, heart rate (HR) parameters and event-related cortical potentials (ERP). The psychophysiological and experimental paradigms use objective techniques for the measurement of attentional processes in athletes. The Bangor Sport Psychological Skills Inventory (BSPSI) was developed for use by applied sport psychologists for the purpose of psychological skills profiling.
