Self-reflection is when people think about their own actions and behaviors to learn from their experiences (Durand-Bush, 2019). There are two types of self-reflection: self-judgment and self-reactions. Self-judgment is when someone compares their performance to their goals and decides why they did well or poorly (Zimmerman, 2000). If they think they did poorly because of things they can’t control, like their natural ability, they may feel bad and not try as hard next time. But if they think they did poorly because of something they can change, like not putting in enough effort, they may feel motivated to do better next time. How people feel about their performance can affect how they think about what happened (Zimmerman, 2000). If they feel good about their performance, they are more likely to think about how they can improve. If they feel bad about their performance, they are more likely to make excuses or blame others.
Self-reflection is important for athletes because it can help them perform better and feel better about themselves (Durand-Bush et al., 2015). Athletes can reflect during their performance or after it’s over (Schon, 1983). Reflecting on their actions can help them become more aware of themselves and their abilities (Hughes et al., 2009). Coaches can help athletes reflect on their performance and encourage them to learn from their mistakes. Sometimes, people don’t have enough time or motivation to reflect on their performance (Gilbert & Trudel, 2013), but with support, they can learn to reflect and improve (Durand-Bush et al., 2015) As people get better at self-reflection, they can become better at learning and improving their performance (Hughes et al., 2009).
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Durand-Bush, N., McNeill, K., & Collins, J. (2015). The self- regulation of sport coaches: How coaches can become mas- ters of their own destiny. In P. Davis (Ed.), The psychology of effective coaching and management (pp. 217265). Hauppauge, NY: Nova Publishers.
Gilbert, W. D., & Trudel, P. (2013). The role of deliberate practice in becoming an expert coach: Part 2 – Reflection. Olympic Coach, 24(1), 3544.
Hughes, C., Lee, S., & Chesterfield, G. (2009). Innovation in sports coaching: The implementation of reflective cards. Reflective Practice, 10(3), 367384.
Schon, D. A. (1983). The reflective practitioner. New York, NY: Basic Books.
Zimmerman, B. J. (2000). Attaining self-regulation: A social- cognitive perspective. In M. Boekaerts, P. R. Pintrich, & M. Zeidner (Eds.), Handbook of self-regulation (pp. 1342). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.