Do psychophysiological responses to competitive anxiety predict competition outcomes? A pilot study in elite female
Maryam Kenshloo1, Behrouz Golmohammadi2, Vahid Khashani1
1Division of Motor Behavior, Department of Physical Education and Sports Sciences, Faculty of Humanities, Semnan University, Semnan, Iran.
Abstract:
Evaluating psychophysiological markers is key to understanding the allostatic burden of official competitions. This study investigated the associations between responses to competitive anxiety and salivary biomarkers-cortisol (sCort), interleukin-6 (sIL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (sTNF-α)-in elite female karate athletes during competition. Thirty participants (mean age = 21.8 ± 3.4 years) completed the Persian version of the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 Revised (CSAI-2R) approximately 1 h prior to competition to assess cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety, and self-confidence. Saliva samples were collected 30 min before the competition to quantify biomarker levels. Significant positive associations were observed between sCort and both somatic and cognitive anxiety (p < 0.05), whereas no significant associations were detected between anxiety subscales or self-confidence and sIL-6 or sTNF-α (all p > 0.05). Multiple regression results showed that cognitive and somatic anxiety significantly predicted sCort (p < 0.05), while none of the CSAI-2R variables significantly predicted sIL-6 (p > 0.05) or sTNF-α (p > 0.05). Logistic regression analysis revealed that somatic anxiety significantly predicted competition outcome (p < 0.05), whereas other variables did not. These findings highlight the potential utility of monitoring somatic anxiety as a marker of competitive anxiety in elite female karate athletes.
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