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Abstract
The purpose of the present study was to investigate the content of young athletes’ imagery use. The participants were 7–8 (n = 24), 9–10 (n = 30), 11–12 (n = 35), and 13–14 (n = 21) year‐old male and female athletes competing in both team and individual sports. Sixteen focus groups, two for each age category and gender, were used as the method of data collection. Each focus group consisted of 6–8 participants grouped by gender and age and was structured to assess what they image in sport. Emerging from the focus groups were five content categories of imagery including imagery sessions, the effectiveness of imagery, the nature of imagery, the surroundings, and the type of imagery. These categories support previous imagery research conducted with adult athletes (Munroe, Giacobbi, Hall, & Weinberg, 2000). Imagery with respect to age and gender are discussed.