I've heard from players and forums about chess psychology and I was wondering how I could apply this to my games and/or preparations. I've also heard from experts that it was a key part of chess and should be considered very thoroughly by players wishing to reach high results. Does anyone knows about this?
no but sounds cool
There's a really cool book on this topic called "The 7 Deadly Chess Sins" by Jonathan Rowson. Levon Aronian mentioned it being his favorite chess book. What I've discovered from reading it is that psychology in chess becomes more and more relevant to game result the longer the time controls (up until a point). I think classical games are extremely rich in psychology -- time management, overthinking, getting lost in your own ideas, getting rattled by your opponents unexpected moves, failing to see the importance of a critical moment, misevaluating material compensation, or trying too hard to punish a 'bad' move are all examples of how psychology can creep into a chess game. In other words, psychology in tournament chess is not just about emotions getting in the way of good decisions, but also on a more basic level about distortions in our perceptions, or limitations in our ability to calculate. I'm sure there's other good books on the topic. I'd be interested to hear what else is out there.
oh.
Psychology is very important in Chess, especially in longer time controls, as on_the_kingside mentioned. One area that I find psychology is extremely important is in positions in which a computer would evaluate your position as "losing." Even while you are clearly losing, you can take advantage of several psychologic factors that can affect your opponent. The main factors affecting your opponents while they are in winning positions are their overconfidence, their need to stay in control, their fear, and their impatience. By the way, all of these comes from "The Complete Chess Swindler" by David Smerdon, which I would highly recommend reading.
The following is a chapter (short chapters) about Defending from William Hartston's wonderful little book, 'Better Chess'...It focuses on the psychology of defending a bad position (the whole book brings the psychological aspect of chess into a lot of it's chapters covering different aspects of the game.
Defending
Perhaps the most consistent of all errors perpetrated by club players is to overestimate the value of the initiative. Everyone likes to attack and to feel the joy of dictating the course of events, yet it is, in practice, just as easy to win games by good defense as by attacking well. A slightly passive or cramped position need not be disadvantageous in itself. As long as it contains no structural weaknesses, your position should be defensible - and when the attacking forces eventually have to retreat, it is highly probable that the attacker will, in his haste to advance, have created his own weaknesses.
The art of good defense is patience.
The attacker feels he is doing well because he limits his opponent's choice of move, yet by doing so, he may also limit his opponent's chance of making a mistake. A series of direct threats may help to wear down the opponent's resistance, but defending accurately against such threats mat also cause the attacker to lose faith. Lile a good baseline player in tennis, the good defender on a chessboard may, after a long period under pressure, finally catch his opponent with a good passing shot.
The point of greatest psychological vulnerability for both players is when the initial wave of an attack has been beaten back. The poor defender will then breathe a sigh of relief and make a fatal mistake instantly; the poor attacker will continue playing aggressively and leave himself open to a decisive counter-attack.
For many players, the most difficult aspect of the game is maintaining emotional equilibrium as the position changes from good to bad. Keeping calm under pressure is the essence of good defensive play.
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"The 7 Deadly Chess Sins" by Jonathan Rowson is another great book about the psychology involved in chess.
Defending
Perhaps the most consistent of all errors perpetrated by club players is to overestimate the value of the initiative. Everyone likes to attack and to feel the joy of dictating the course of events, yet it is, in practice, just as easy to win games by good defense as by attacking well. A slightly passive or cramped position need not be disadvantageous in itself. As long as it contains no structural weaknesses, your position should be defensible - and when the attacking forces eventually have to retreat, it is highly probable that the attacker will, in his haste to advance, have created his own weaknesses.
The art of good defense is patience.
The attacker feels he is doing well because he limits his opponent's choice of move, yet by doing so, he may also limit his opponent's chance of making a mistake. A series of direct threats may help to wear down the opponent's resistance, but defending accurately against such threats mat also cause the attacker to lose faith. Lile a good baseline player in tennis, the good defender on a chessboard may, after a long period under pressure, finally catch his opponent with a good passing shot.
The point of greatest psychological vulnerability for both players is when the initial wave of an attack has been beaten back. The poor defender will then breathe a sigh of relief and make a fatal mistake instantly; the poor attacker will continue playing aggressively and leave himself open to a decisive counter-attack.
For many players, the most difficult aspect of the game is maintaining emotional equilibrium as the position changes from good to bad. Keeping calm under pressure is the essence of good defensive play.
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"The 7 Deadly Chess Sins" by Jonathan Rowson is another great book about the psychology involved in chess.
Then of course there's Psychology In Chess (by Nikolai Krogius).
"I don't believe in psychology. I believe in good moves."- Bobby Fischer
The average player (like most of us) will never be Bobby Fischer or even an ordinary expert for that matter....
For most of us, improving our chess has more to do with eliminating our bad moves...and that's where the importance of psychology comes in.
For most of us, improving our chess has more to do with eliminating our bad moves...and that's where the importance of psychology comes in.
@gothica31
www.chess-blog.com/blog/ways2win.html
Look under mindgames, there I have posted two examples of chess psychology, hope this helps you
In my opinion psychology should not play a huge role, rather move accuracy - but well.. you play bullet so..
www.chess-blog.com/blog/ways2win.html
Look under mindgames, there I have posted two examples of chess psychology, hope this helps you
In my opinion psychology should not play a huge role, rather move accuracy - but well.. you play bullet so..
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