Sports are deeply linked to our emotions, which explains why we value them so much in our society. The feelings of joy when our team wins the national title, feelings of sadness when they lose the home opener, or even the feelings of team work as kids playing together. Emotions are always present in sport, especially for the athlete's involved.
Competition can often generate anxiety and worry, which in turn could potentially affect our physiological and psychological processes so dramatically that performance rapidly declines.
As defined by researchers, arousal consists of neural excitation on a continuum ranging from a comatose state to a state of extreme excitement as might occur in a panic attack.
In sport and exercise, arousal is thought to be energizing, and responsible for preparing the body for intense and vigorous activity.
Arousal results from our body's natural fight or flight response to stress, specifically an uncontrollable response that disrupts homeostasis (disregulation). Often times this disregulation creates an overly aroused or anxious/stressed state.
Arousal control training seeks to develop a better ability to control arousal. This in turn may prevent anxiety and distress and enhance performance during pressure situations.
How people respond to arousal and develop stress or anxiety varies. There are two main generalized responses to arousal:
1 - Trait anxiety is a general predisposition to respond to most situations with high levels of anxiety. People with high trait anxiety experience stress and anxiety at an fairly constant level.
2 - State anxiety is a more specific measure of anxiety resulting from a particular moment or in response to a single stimulus. State anxiety is almost unavoidable; for example, the majority of people experience state anxiety when they are speaking in front of a large group.
Though many theories exist to explain just how arousal and stress/anxiety influence performance, the following is typically agreed upon. The relationship between arousal and performance is curvilinear, with peak performance occurring at an intermediate point within the spectrum of arousal. There is an ideal level of arousal for optimal performance. Being either under or over aroused may result in performance decrements.
Most theories stresses finding and maintaining an optimal arousal level for the task to be performed.
Typically, higher levels of arousal can be tolerated on simple tasks (gross motor skills) before performance is decreased.
On the other hand, complex tasks (fine motor skills) require a much lower level of arousal for optimal performance.
Additionally, tasks with high decision demands (a football quarterback) require lower arousal than those with low decision demands (a boxer).
The main techniques in arousal control training are muscle-to-mind relaxation skills and mind-to-muscle relaxation skills.
Because every person is different, the ways arousal, stress, and anxiety are experienced are unique to each of us.
Additionally, the best way to control arousal varies person by person. It is important to understand what causes your arousal, where you experience it (physically and mentally), and then to find the best relaxation skill and train to reduce your arousal.
Though it is not as common, some people are unable to develop arousal and energy in key situations. For these individuals, the above relaxation skills can be modified to energize the body.
If you are interested in learning more about arousal control and how to optimize your progress, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Materials and information adopted from Arousal-Performance Relationships by Daniel M. Landers and Shawn M. Arent, both from Arizona State University . The original chapter was published in Applied Sport Psychology: Personal Growth to Peak Performance. (5th ed.) which was edited by Jean M. Williams and published by McGraw-Hill (2006).
