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Effects of Cognitive Restructuring Intervention on Competitive State Anxiety and Volleyball Skill Performance Among Female Collegiate Volleyball Players in Guangzhou, China
Sponsor: Lyu Botao
Summary
This study will examine whether an 8-week cognitive restructuring (CR) program can reduce competitive state anxiety and improve volleyball skill performance among female collegiate volleyball players in Guangzhou, China. Approximately 96 players from six university women's volleyball teams will participate. The six teams will be randomly assigned to either the CR intervention group or the neutral volleyball referee-instruction group. Both groups will continue their regular volleyball training. The CR group will receive weekly group sessions, brief pre-training exercises and homework focused on identifying and changing unhelpful thoughts in volleyball pressure situations. The comparison group will receive ordinary volleyball referee-signal instruction as a neutral educational activity and will not receive cognitive restructuring or other psychological-skills training. Participants will complete assessments before and after the 8-week study period. The assessments will include questionnaires measuring competitive state anxiety, trait sport anxiety, sleep quality and mental effort, together with standardized tests of serving, reception, spiking, blocking and defence. The study will compare changes in anxiety and volleyball skill performance between the two groups. Participation is voluntary. The study involves no drugs or medical devices. Exercise and testing-related discomfort will be monitored, and participants may stop or withdraw from the study at any time without penalty.
Key Details
Gender
FEMALE
Age Range
18 Years - 24 Years
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Enrollment
96
Start Date
2026-10-15
Completion Date
2026-12
Last Updated
2026-10-27
Healthy Volunteers
Yes
Interventions
Cognitive Restructuring Intervention
This arm includes three university women's volleyball teams. Participants will receive an 8-week cognitive restructuring (CR) program in addition to their regular team volleyball training. The CR program includes one 45-60-minute group session each week, two 5-8-minute pre-training micro-practices per week, and brief homework. Sessions focus on understanding competitive state anxiety, identifying automatic thoughts and cognitive errors, evaluating evidence and usefulness, developing adaptive task-focused self-statements, and applying these skills in volleyball pressure situations. Participants will complete the same baseline and post-intervention assessments as the comparison group.
Volleyball Referee-Signal Instruction
This arm includes three university women's volleyball teams. Participants will continue their regular team volleyball training and receive ordinary volleyball referee-signal instruction during the 8-week study period. The instruction will cover standard volleyball referee hand signals and basic rules as a neutral educational activity. It will not include cognitive restructuring, psychological-skills training or anxiety-management content. Participants will complete the same baseline and post-intervention assessments as the CR group.
Locations (1)
Guangzhou Sports University
Guangzhou, Guangdong, China