[The effects of positive, negative and neutral self-talk on motor performance]

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of self-talk on motor performance. Forty-six (46) male and female college students from the Ivory Coast were randomly assigned to two experimental groups (N = 15 for each) and one control group (N = 16). All subjects completed 5 blocs of 10 trials of a dart throw on a 45-cm by 45-cm target. The distance from the center of the target was recorded by measuring the distance along the x and y axes. Subjects in one experimental group (VP) were asked to repeat aloud positive verbalizations in between blocs of trials, while subjects in the other experimental group (VN) repeated aloud negative verbalizations in between blocs of trials. The control group (T) rested between trials. Results indicated that the angular errors in the VP group decreased faster than those of the T group, that the performance of the VN group did not improve significantly, and that the rate of angular error in the VN group was higher than that of the T and VP groups.