ABSTRACT
Emotions in sport represent a telling comparison to the Greek construct of the pharmakon wherein a given substance can be both a poison and a remedy. In team sports, teams can struggle with some of the same challenges as individual athletes as an important competition approaches. A significant problem that can occur in important competitions is that, along with the shift in focus from process to outcome, athletes may also shift from striving toward their performance goals to goals that are context-specific. Task cohesion includes performance goals combined with team-member roles and individual responsibilities related to the team goal. The identification of task-specific behaviors related to team roles and performance goals for athletes has been identified in the literature as a positive coping mechanism for performance anxiety. Mental imagery has long been identified as tool that athletes can use to enhance their sports performances.
