There is no doubt that the interest in the psychological aspect is clearly reflected in the physical and skillful aspect when practicing sports activity, and that psychology in general and sports psychology in particular have an effective role in achieving the goals set for any activity or activity carried out by the individual, as the interest in the psychological aspect has become one of Important and necessary matters in all areas of life because of its clear importance on the behavior of individuals, and learning in the sports field is the basis for all sporting events and for every new movement or skill that determines the goal and purpose of this movement and every movement that the individual learns serves and achieves a motor duty and to learn any sports skill in any activity In general, or in basketball, it requires that the individual have the readiness, satisfaction, and focus that makes him feel satisfied and haxppy with what he learns. And giving and creativity by the sample members, and this can be achieved through what is called psychological flow, which is considered one of the most important concepts of positive psychology [1-4]. Psychological flow is also considered a state of comfort, focus, passion, and optimal effectiveness for the individual. Psychological flow is also considered a healthy and natural state to influence the work of the central nervous system. And it may help improve the psychological state of the individual and increase the feeling of happiness and contentment, and many studies in this field also indicate that the psychological flow is a state of complete integration with the activity that the individual practices, and this was confirmed by Kawthar Muhammad, and others quoting Jackson and Marsh that the psychological flow is "a state in which the individual merges greatly, which leads to the optimal performance of the physical and mental function, and it is seen as a state of change of consciousness in which the individual feels immersed in activity where the body and mind work together, and the experience of psychological flow is linked to the optimal learning state Which scholars and specialists have described as a state of concentration that reaches the level of complete immersion in the performance of the activity, and understanding is at its highest level” [5-7]. Through the researcher’s story, as a former student and a teacher at the present time, he noticed the dominance of negative thoughts over positive thoughts among female students at the undergraduate level, and this is a result of the pressures faced by female students, including academic pressures, as well as pressures as a result of their constant pursuit for the best, which is reflected in the occurrence of negative psychological mobilization and thus affects this. On performance and level in practical lessons, and here the importance of the current research emerged in preparing a counseling program based on the psychological flow that works to develop positive thoughts through its sessions that included a range of areas that would work on developing and raising the level of psychological flow among the members of the experimental group. As well as benefiting from the results of this study in preparing for other studies with samples and other age stages [8].

The research approach is considered the way that the researcher follows to reach reliable and logical results and conclusions through data collection and analysis, so the researcher relied on the experimental approach for its suitability for the research and because the experimental approach is considered "an attempt to control all the basic factors affecting the dependent variables in the experiment except for one factor that controls it The researcher changes it in a specific way with the aim of determining and measuring its effect on the dependent variable or variables” [9], following the method of the two equivalent experimental and control groups.

Research Population and Sample

That "the research community is a systematic scientific term intended for all those to whom the results of the research can be generalized, according to the objective field of the research problem" [4], the researcher identified his research community of first-stage female students in the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences/University of Al-Qadisiyah for the year The academic year 2022-2023 AD, whose number is 32 students, representing the total community for the research. The research sample was randomly selected, represented by 28 students from the original community and 4 female students remaining from the community. The exploratory experiment was applied to them.

Preparing the Mentoring Program

The counseling program is considered as an action plan developed according to scientific foundations to provide counseling services to the study sample in a collective way. The aim of the counseling program is to help the sample members in the experimental group acquire a set of knowledge, information and skills, as well as modify some attitudes to reach a high level of positive feeling and desire to perform work. And motor duty with concentration and a degree of satisfaction and a sense of happiness, and thus reaching a high level of psychological flow, which is "a state that the individual feels while performing an activity or a specific physical effort, so that he is at the top of his concentration and unconsciousness while merging with the activity, and this is what achieves reaching the goal." [1], and the following are the details of the counseling program:

• The General Objective of the Counseling Program: The aim of the program is to develop the psychological flow of the students of the first stage in the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences/University of Al-Qadisiyah, by implementing group sessions prepared according to scientific foundations

• The Method Used to Implement the Program: The program was applied collectively and directly to all members of the experimental sample

• Program limits

• Human limits: The counseling program was applied to the first-stage female students in the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences/University of Al-Qadisiyah, who numbered 14 students

• Spatial Boundaries: The basketball court in the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences/ University of Al-Qadisiyah

• Time Limits: The indicative program was implemented for the period from 4/12/2022 to 12/1/2023

• Number of Sessions for the Program: Two sessions per week, with a total of 12 sessions for the counseling program, which are (acquaintance, setting goals clearly, feedback, focus on the task, balance between challenge and skill, sense of time management, muscle and mental relaxation, working on thinking errors, feeling exactly control, integration of awareness into action, self-affirmation, conclusion) and the duration of each session 40 minutes, increase or decrease according to the requirements of each session

• Techniques Applied in the Program: Lecture-discussion-dialogue-entertainment activities-feedback-imagination-homework

• Program Content: The content was designed in a coherent manner in terms of the selected topics, which develop all areas of psychological flow among the research sample from the experimental group. Receiving the students-identifying the topic of the session-following the special techniques for each session and according to what is required and the purpose of the session-an entertaining aspect to increase interaction-homework-the conclusion of the session

Psychometric Flow Meter

In order to reach the goals, set in the research, this requires the presence of a tool to measure the psychological flow of the research sample, and this requires access to a lot of theoretical studies and literature related to the subject, including the measure of psychological flow that was translated and prepared by and used [1], on a sample of university students and the scale and many other studies and standards. And it was adopted, as it was attributed to the theory of (Csiksentmihaly), who explained the psychological flow as "a state of deep concentration that occurs when people engage in dealing with tasks that require intense concentration, perseverance, continuity, and effort, and this optimal state is also achieved when the level of the individual's capabilities and skills is in a state of balance." Completely with the challenge or difficulty associated with the task, especially tasks with specific goals that provide immediate feedback” [10,11], and below is a description of the scale adopted in the study:

Scopes of the Scale

The scale consists of 9 domains, namely:

• Balance between challenge and skill

• Consolidation of awareness with action

• Clear goals

• Unambiguous feedback

• Focus on the task (work-activity-study)

• A sense of exactingness or control

• Absence of self-awareness

• The feeling of the passage of time

• Self-enjoyment

• Each domain included a set of paragraphs, all of which were formulated in the form of declarative phrases. The number of paragraphs for the scale was 35 paragraphs

• Answer Alternatives: The answer alternatives were developed according to the Likert method with the five-point scale and it was always applying to me- often applies to me-sometimes applies to me-rarely applies to me-never applies to me and grades were taken 5-4-3-2-1 respectively

• The Validity of the Scale: To ensure the validity of the scale and its paragraphs in measuring the purpose for which it was developed and its suitability with the current research sample, the researcher presented it to a group of experts and specialists in the field of mathematical science, and the scale with all its paragraphs obtained the percentage of agreement from the experts

• Measurement Instructions: Appropriate instructions have been developed, which are considered as evidence for the sample to use while answering the measure, and it has been emphasized that the appropriate alternative that applies to the actual behavior of the individual is chosen, and that the measure is designed for scientific research purposes, and there is no need to mention names when answering to avoid embarrassment. Answer in addition to setting an illustrative example of how to answer the paragraphs

• Score Calculation Mechanism: Scores 5-4-3-2-1 are given respectively for the alternatives to the answer always applies to me-often applies to me- sometimes applies to me - rarely applies to me - never applies to me for the positive paragraphs and grades are given 1-2-3-4-5, respectively, for the paragraphs that were written in the negative direction, and thus the highest score for the scale is 175 and the lowest score is 35

Determine the Basic Skills of Basketball

The researcher identified the basic skills under study in basketball according to the curriculum taught for the first stage in the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences at Al-Qadisiyah University, and the skills whose learning time coincides with the time of application of the indicative program were chosen, which is a skill (chest handling - plumping - correction).

Pre Test

The researcher conducted pre-tests for the research sample for the experimental and control groups for the period from 4-5/12/2022, and the psychological flow test was conducted for the members of the research sample first, then the skill tests with basketball, where all the tests chosen by the researcher were standardized tests, as the most appropriate test was determined For each skill through a questionnaire presented to experts in the field of tests, measurement, evaluation and basketball, and the test that obtained relative importance 70 or above was approved for the skills under study, which are as shown in Table 1.

Counselling Program Application

The counselling program prepared by the researcher was applied to the experimental group with 12 sessions divided into two sessions per week, with emphasis on the use of scientific methods when giving sessions.

Post-Test

After completing the application of the indicative program, the researcher conducted post-tests for the research sample for the experimental and control groups, where he applied the final psychological flow test to the sample members, and then final tests were conducted for the skills under study for the period from 11-12/1/2023, and then the results were discharged for each test for the purpose of statistical processing.

Table 1: Among The Approved Tests for the Skills Under Study

Statistical Means

The researcher used the statistical bag (SPSS) to process the data.

It appears to us through Table 2 that the arithmetic mean of the pre-test of the control group in the psychological flow variable of the sample was 69 and with a standard deviation of 13.002, while the arithmetic mean of the post-test was 112.642 and with a standard deviation of 11.881. The value of z calculated by -3.296-b, while the value of sig was 0.001 at the level of significance 0.05, which indicates that there are statistical differences between the pre and post-tests, as well as we find that the arithmetic mean of the pre-test for the control group in The thoracic handling skill amounted to 4.214 and a standard deviation of 0.699, while the arithmetic mean of the post-test was 6.357 and a standard deviation of 0.744. 0.001 at the level of significance 0.05, which indicates that there are statistical differences between the pre and post-tests of the chest handling skill. As for the pre-test of the plumping skill, the arithmetic mean was 3.857 with a standard deviation of 1.231, while the arithmetic mean of the post-test for the same skill was 6.357 with a standard deviation of 1.008, and the value of z calculated by -3.329 appeared. -b) As for the value of sig, it was 0.001 at the level of significance 0.05, which indicates that there are statistical differences between the pre and post-tests of the skill of clapping. As for the shooting skill, we find that the arithmetic mean of the pre-test for the control group was 4.357 with a standard deviation of 0.928, while the arithmetic mean of the post-test was 6.142 and a standard deviation of 1.099, and the value of z calculated by -2.930 appeared for us. b) The value of sig was 0.003 at the level of significance 0.05, which indicates that there are statistical differences between the pre and post-tests of the shooting skill.

Table 3 shows that the arithmetic mean of the pre-test of the experimental group in the variable of psychological flow in the sample was 70.428 with a standard deviation of 17.500, while the arithmetic mean of the post-test was 131.000 with a standard deviation of 21.782, and a value of 21.782 appeared for us. z calculated by -3.296 -b, while the value of sig was 0.001 at the level of significance 0.05, which indicates that there are statistical differences between the pre and post-tests in the psychological flow variable, as well as we find that the arithmetic mean of the pre-test for the group The experimental score in the thoracic handling skill amounted to 4.714 and a standard deviation of 1.138, while the arithmetic mean of the post-test was 8.571 and a standard deviation of 1.157. It reached 0.001 at the level of significance 0.05, which indicates the existence of statistical differences between the pre and post-tests of the skill of pectoral handling. As for the result of the pre-test for the plumping skill, the arithmetic mean was 3.642 with a standard deviation of 0.744, while the arithmetic mean for the post-test for the same skill was 7 with a standard deviation of 2.148, and the value of z calculated by -3.089 appeared. -b) As for the value of sig, it was 0.002 at the level of significance 0.05 which indicates that there are statistical differences between the pre and post-tests of the skill of clapping. As for the shooting skill, we find that the arithmetic mean of the pre-test for the experimental group was 4 with a standard deviation of 0.960, while the arithmetic mean of the post-test was 7.642 and a standard deviation of 1.215, and the value of z calculated by -3.198 appeared for us. b) The value of sig was 0.001 at the level of significance 0.05, which indicates that there are statistical differences between the pre and post-tests of the shooting skill.

Table 4 shows that the experimental group achieved an arithmetic mean in the post-test of the psychological flow variable amounted to 131,000 and a standard deviation of 21.782, while the control group achieved in the post-test of the psychological flow variable an arithmetic mean of 112.642 and a standard deviation of 11.881, while the value of z calculated for the experimental and control groups in the post-psychological flow test was -1.119-b, while the value of sig was 0.003 at the level of significance 0.05, and this indicates that there are statistical differences between the two groups. The experimental and the control in the post-test of the psychological flow of the research sample. 

Table 2: It Shows the Arithmetic Mean and Standard Deviations of the Pre and Post Tests of the Control Group in the Study Variables

Table 3: It Shows the Arithmetic Mean and Standard Deviations of the Pre and Post Tests of the Experimental Group in the Study Variables

Table 4: It Shows the Arithmetic Mean and Standard Deviations of the Post-Tests for the Control and Experimental Groups in the Study Variables

The results showed that the arithmetic mean of the thoracic handling skill for the experimental group in the post test was 8.571 with a standard deviation of 1.157, while the arithmetic mean of the post test for the control group was 6.357 with a standard deviation of 0.744, and the value of z calculated -2.714-b, while the value of sig was 0.007 at the level of significance 0.05, and this indicates that there are statistical differences between the post-tests of the experimental and control groups in the skill of pectoral handling.

While the results of the post-test for the skill of plumping for the experimental group showed that the arithmetic mean for it was 7 with a standard deviation of 2.148, while the arithmetic mean of the post-test for the control group for the same skill was 6.357 with a standard deviation of 1.008, while it reached The value of z calculated for the experimental and control groups was -2.858-b, while the value of sig was 0.004 at the level of significance 0.05.

​As shown by Table 4, the basketball shooting skill in the post-test for the experimental group achieved an arithmetic mean of 7.642 and a standard deviation of 1.215, while the arithmetic mean of the control group in the post-test for the same skill was 6.142. With a standard deviation of 1.099, and when calculating the value of z, it appeared to us with a value of -2.913-b, while the value of sig was 0.004, with a level of significance 0.05, which indicates that there are statistical differences between the post-tests of the experimental and control groups. Shooting skill in basketball. And by presenting the results of post-tests for the variables (psychological flow and skills under study in basketball) for the experimental and control groups and analyzing them, it becomes clear that each of the educational curriculum followed by the professor of the subject in the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences and the counseling program prepared by the researcher, which is based on psychological flow, had A positive effect on the process of learning the technical performance of the skills (chest handling, plumping and shooting) in basketball, i.e. there were significant differences in favor of the post-tests. We also notice through Table 4, which shows the values ​​of the arithmetic medians of the post-tests. It is clear that there are significant differences between the tests and in favor of the experimental group in all basketball skill tests and the psychological flow test. Psychological, as there was a clear interaction by the sample members during the application of the program, and that the techniques used in the psychological program such as feedback, dialogue, discussion, story style and other methods and techniques used and according to the subject and purpose of the session had an effective role in the individual’s access to a high degree of psychological flow Which is considered “a situation in which the individual is preoccupied with an activity when it does not seem that there is anything else important at that time, and this experience is very enjoyable and the individual does it whatever it takes to achieve this thing” [11], as the followed program had a positive effect On learning the skills under study, and there was a direct relationship between psychological flow and learning skills in basketball, as well as achieving goals and reducing psychological pressure on female students, and this was confirmed by Suhair “One of the goals of psychological counseling is to reduce stress and eliminate anxiety until the individual achieves the integration that allows him In achieving its objectives, the role of counseling curricula and psychological programs is evident in limiting and reducing the psychological pressures facing learners through daily life” [3].

• There are statistically significant differences between the experimental and control groups in the psychological flow variable in favor of the experimental group

• There are statistically significant differences between the experimental and control groups in learning some basic basketball skills among the research sample and in favor of the experimental group

Recommendations

• Using the counseling program prepared by the researcher in learning basketball skills and applying it to other skills

• The need to pay attention to the psychological aspect during the education and teaching of basketball skills in the faculties of physical education and sports sciences

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3. Ahmed, Suhair Kamel. Guidance and Psychological Counseling. Alexandria Book Center, 2000.

4. Al-Assaf, Saleh Muhammad. Introduction to Research in Behavioral Sciences. 5th ed., Dar Al-Obeikan, 2015.

5. Hamoudat, Fayez Bashir. et al. The Foundations and Principles of Basketball. 2nd ed., Mosul University Press, 1985.

6. Hamoudat, Fayez Bashir, and Moayad Abdullah. Basketball. 2nd ed., Higher Education Press, University of Mosul, 1999.

7. Mahmoud, Kawthar Muhammad. et al. “Constructing the Psychological Flow Scale for Distinguished Female Students at the Faculty of Physical Education in Cairo.” Scientific Journal of Sport Sciences and Arts, vol. 71, no. 3, June 2022.

8. Allawi, Muhammad Hassan, and Muhammad Nasr al-Din Radwan. Skillful and Psychological Tests in the Sports Field. 1st ed., Dar Al-Fikr Al-Arabi, 1987.

9. Al-Shawk, Nuri Ibrahim, and Rafi Saleh Al-Kubaisi. Researcher’s Guide to Writing Researches in Physical Education. College of Physical Education, University of Baghdad, 2004.

10. ​Csikszentmihalyi, Mihalyi. Creativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention. Harper Perennial, 1996, pp. 46.

11. Kiili, K. “Content Creation Challenges and Flow Experience in Educational Games.” Internet and Higher Education, vol. 8, no. 3, 2005, pp. 185.