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Published on: April 15, 2020
He Dies, He Scores: Evidence That Reminders of Death Motivate Improved Performance in Basketball
Colin A Zestcott1, Uri Lifshin1, Peter Helm1
11 University of Arizona.
Abstract:
This research applied insights from terror management theory (TMT; Greenberg, Pyszczynski, & Solomon, 1986) to the world of sport. According to TMT, self-esteem buffers against the potential for death anxiety. Because sport allows people to attain self-esteem, reminders of death may improve performance in sport. In Study 1, a mortality salience induction led to improved performance in a "one-on-one" basketball game. In Study 2, a subtle death prime led to higher scores on a basketball shooting task, which was associated with increased task-related self-esteem. These results may promote our understanding of sport and provide a novel potential way to improve athletic performance.
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