1. Arousal, Stress, and Anxiety Arousal, Stress, and Anxiety

2. Is Arousal the Same as Anxiety?
Arousal is a general physiological and psychological activation, varying in intensity along a continuum. Anxiety is a negative emotional state with feelings of worry, nervousness, and apprehension associated with activation of the body.

3. Defining Arousal, Stress, and Anxiety
States
Trait

4. Measuring Arousal and Anxiety
Physiological signs (heart rate, respiration, skin conductance, biochemistry)
Global and multidimensional self-report surveys
e.g. Sport Anxiety Scale (trait anxiety)
e.g. Sport Competition Anxiety Test (trait)
e.g. Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2

5. Trait and State Anxiety Relationship
High versus low trait anxious people usually have more state anxiety in highly evaluative situations.

6. Stress and the Stress Process
Stress: A substantial imbalance between physical and psychological demands placed on an individual and his or her response capability under conditions where failure to meet demands has important consequences.
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7. Stage 1
The Stress Process
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4

8. Stress and Stress Process Implications
Intervene during any of the four stages of the stress process or cycle.
Viewing stress as a process, not a discrete entity

9. Sources of Stress and Anxiety
Event importance
Situational sources
Uncertainty
Trait anxiety
Personal sources
Self-esteem
Social physique anxiety

10. How Arousal and Anxiety Affect Performance
Drive theory
Inverted–U hypothesis
Individualized zones of optimal functioning
Multidimensional anxiety theory

11. Anxiety direction and intensity Significance of all these views
How Arousal and Anxiety Affect Performance
Catastrophe model
Reversal theory
Anxiety direction and intensity
Significance of all these views

12. Drive Theory

13. Inverted–U Hypothesis

15. Individualized Zones of Optimal Functioning (IZOF) Hypothesis

17. Catastrophe Model

18. Catastrophe Model

19. Reversal Theory
How arousal affects performance depends on an individual’s interpretation of his or her arousal level.
Arousal can be interpreted as pleasant/excitement or as unpleasant/anxiety.
Arousal interpreted as pleasant facilitates performance, and arousal interpreted as unpleasant hurts performance.

20. Multidimensional Anxiety Theory
Cognitive anxiety: negatively related to performance
Somatic anxiety: related to performance in an inverted-U pattern
Little support for its predictions

21. Anxiety Direction and Intensity
An individual’s interpretation of anxiety symptoms is important for understanding the anxiety-performance relationship.
To understand the anxiety-performance relationship, both the intensity (how much anxiety one feels) and direction (a person’s interpretation of anxiety as being facilitating or debilitating to performance) must be considered.
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22. Anxiety Direction and Intensity
Viewing anxiety as facilitative leads to superior performance.
Some support has been found for this view.

23. Significance of All the Arousal–Performance Views
Significance of All the Arousal–Performance Views **Arousal is multifaceted**
Arousal and state anxiety do not always have a negative effect on performance— they can be facilitative or debilitative depending on the interpretation.
Some optimal level of arousal leads to peak performance, but the optimal levels of physiological activation and arousal-related thoughts (worry) are not the same.
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24. Significance of All the Arousal–Performance Views
Combination of a.) physiological arousal and b.) arousal interpretation are more important than actual levels of each.
It is doubtful that the optimal level of arousal is always at the midpoint of the arousal scale.

25. Why Arousal and Anxiety Influence Performance
Increased muscle tension and coordination difficulties
Attention and concentration changes: Narrowing of attention Shift to dominant style Attend to inappropriate cues

26. Why Arousal Influences Performance
Attentional narrowing

27. Implications for Practice
Identify optimal combinations of arousal-related emotions needed for best performance.
Recognize how personal and situational factors interact to influence arousal, anxiety, and performance.

28. Implications for Practice
Interactional Model of Anxiety

29. Implications for Practice
Recognize arousal and state anxiety signs (feeling ill, dazed,muscle tension etc.)
Tailor coaching strategies to individuals:
Different strokes for different folks.
Sometimes arousal and state anxiety must be reduced, other times maintained, and other times facilitated.
Develop performers’ confidence.

30. Recognize Symptoms of Arousal and State Anxiety
Cold, clammy hands
Constant need to urinate
Profuse sweating
Negative self-talk
Dazed look in eyes
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31. Recognize Symptoms of Arousal and State Anxiety
Feel ill
Headache
Cotton (dry) mouth
Constantly sick
Difficulties sleeping
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32. Recognize Symptoms of Arousal and State Anxiety
Increased muscle tension
Butterflies in stomach
Inability to concentrate
Consistently perform better in nonevaluative situations