Arousal & Anxiety

Dimensions of anxiety:

• Cognitive - involving thoughts and the psychological symptoms of anxiety such as worry and self doubt.
• Somatic - involving the physiological symptoms of anxiety such as raised heart rate.
• Behavioural - involving the actions and behaviours a performer exhibits as a result of anxiety such as biting nails.

Types:

• State - situational specific anxiety for example a dancer rehearsing in a closed studio will experience lower levels of anxiety compared to performing to a large audience.
• Trait - personality related anxiety for example some people have a higher level of anxiety as part of their personality (see trait approach to Personality)

Theories of Arousal

If arousal equates to the amount of physiological and psychological activation ranging from being in a ‘deep sleep’ to ‘extreme excitement’, then it would make sense that different levels of arousal can affect sporting performances. The effect arousal has on performance has been investigated by a number of different psychologists and it has led to the development of different models. Each of these models looks to explain the relationship between increasing levels of arousal and sports performance.

Drive Theory

This is a simplistic model that suggests a positive linear relationship between arousal and performance. The more ‘psyched up’ an individual is the better they will perform. A key element of this model is the dominant response, which is the usual behaviour of the performer; this develops the drive theory to differentiate between levels of learning and the effects of arousal. The dominant response is intensified as arousal increases.

For example if we were looking at the serve of a novice and an experienced tennis player, the dominant response for a performer in the cognitive phase of learning (beginner) which is poorly learnt with a number of flaws in comparison to the perfect technical model. At low levels of arousal the performer may concentrate on trying to improve the performance of the skill as they execute it, but as arousal increases, the dominant habit is used so more errors occur and performances suffer. The dominant response for a performer in the autonomous phase (experienced) would be a well leant, correct response, so when there are high levels of arousal, performance would be improved.

Catastrophe Theory

The previous anxiety models do not distinguish between the effects of somatic and cognitive anxiety. Catastrophe theory suggests that an athlete is affected differently by each type of anxiety and that performance does not simply drop off. Sometimes the performance can dramatically decline.

Catastrophe theory proposes that when an athlete is under conditions of low cognitive anxiety the relationship between performance and somatic anxiety would follow the inverted U theory. So, if an athlete is experiencing raised heart rate and butterflies in their stomach but is not worried about how they are playing, they would experience a rise in performance to an optimal point followed by a gradual drop off. Under conditions of high cognitive anxiety the relationship between somatic anxiety and performance would rise to the optimal level but any increase in somatic anxiety would result in a catastrophic decrease in performance. Once this has occurred it is difficult to return to the original levels of optimal performance.

Stress is the imbalance between the demands of a situation and the individual’s perceptions of their capability to meet the demands, when success is important. Stress can be both physical and psychological. Every situation places an individual under stress, for example as you read this you may experience physical and psychological demands; however, you probably think that you are able to cope with the demands of this task so the level of stress is minimal. Yet, if you were rock climbing the demands would be more intense and some people may not perceive themselves as having the capability to cope, particularly those with a fear of heights, therefore they would experience higher levels of stress.

Key term – Stressor

Demands placed on an individual that instigate stress; examples in sport may include the pressure of taking an important penalty, the level of competition such as World Championships, and the audience. Another example is physical fatigue, as this can also be a stressor.

As state anxiety is situational and variable, it is possible to manage. State anxiety consists of cognitive and somatic anxiety; therefore, management techniques are either psychological or physiological.

Cognitive strategies

Mental rehearsal

Practising the performance of a skill in the mind allows the performer to be confident in the actions and this preparation lowers arousal. For example, a gymnast might practice a difficult vault in their mind to focus on specific elements of the skill and fine tune their performance.

Imagery

Picturing a situation in the mind that is associated with relaxation will help to lower arousal. For example, a tennis play may imagine ‘a quiet beach with blue sea and soft sand’ before walking out onto the court.

Positive self-talk

Using positive phrases to change the perception of the situation, for example, a Korfball about to play in major finals might feel ‘butterflies in the stomach’ and say to them-self “this is exciting” rather than “this is scary”.

Negative thought stopping

The performer blocks out negative thoughts such as feelings of failure or mistakes, and then they would develop positive thoughts e.g. successful skill completion.

Meditation

Use of controlled breathing to induce a ‘state’ of mental calmness. The aim is to ‘transcend’ from anxious state to calm state through ‘mantra’, a monotonous word or sound that is repeated. This is often completed whilst sitting or lying in a quiet place and once the mind is relaxed the body will follow.

Somatic Strategies (Physiological)

The main strategies to reduce anxiety are Progressive Muscular Relaxation (PMR), Centering and Biofeedback. PMR involves progressively tensing and relaxing muscles combined with rhythmical breathing; relaxation is achieved by distinguishing the feelings of tension and relaxation. It can focus the mind on reducing somatic anxiety, but also serves as a distraction from negative thoughts so can also help reduce cognitive anxiety.

Centering is a breathing technique whereby the performer relaxes his/her chest and shoulder muscles and focuses on the movement of the abdominal muscles while taking deep, slow breath.

Biofeedback is the use of physiological measuring equipment such as heart rate monitors, galvanic skin response detectors and blood pressure monitors. By monitoring the changes in these recordings an individual is able to physically decrease or increase the levels. Once this technique is learned, when required, the performer would be able to lower these responses without equipment; an example being, before taking a penalty in football.