Flag on the field!

• How would you handle this situation? by Don Nathanson, 11/29/98
  • Psychology of Sport by Steven H. Shmurak, Ph.D., 11/28/98
    
    

But what is a sports psychologist? Surely whatever s/he does must be based on some set of basic principles adjusted for the idiosyncratic nature of professional sports. Five yard penalty for unauthorized lateral pass. I want to know, on the basis of the information presented in this post, how you personally would take on the (fantasy) referral of this team. Would you start with the head coach? The owner?

In Japan, an owner would assemble the entire staff in a very public forum and apologize both to staff and the public for every single aspect of the failure, saying something like "We have a wonderful team. Each and every one of you players is a true hero, a player capable of AllStar performance. Only my failure to lead you toward your best work has caused this humiliation. I promise to work better and harder toward that goal and ask for forgiveness of everybody who cares about our city and our team while we make the repairs needed." This done, I suspect that normal tonus would return to the musculature of the players, who each would suddenly be able to hold his head high and play his best.

But come on, guys. What would you do? How would you approach this situation? What would you do were the owner too shame sensitive to allow this intervention? What would you do next were he willing to act in the way just suggested?

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