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[Choking under pressure: Positive public expectations and performance in a motor task]
1Institut für Sport und Sportwissenschaften der CAU Kiel. bstrauss@email.uni-kiel.de
Zeitschrift Fur Experimentelle Psychologie : Organ Der Deutschen Gesellschaft Fur Psychologie
|January 1, 1997
Summary
Choking under pressure occurs when public expectations of success are high, but personal expectations are not. Performance improves only when public and private expectations align.
Area of Science:
- Sport Psychology
- Performance Psychology
- Social Psychology
Background:
- Choking under pressure is defined as suboptimal performance despite high motivation.
- Pressure variables include competition, rewards, negative consequences, and spectators.
- Choking can occur even with positive public expectations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine choking under pressure in a sport context.
- To investigate the impact of public and private expectations on performance.
- To analyze the interaction between different expectation conditions.
Main Methods:
- An experimental 2x2 design was employed.
- Sixty university students performed a rowing ergometer task.
- Conditions included varied public (positive vs. no) and private (positive vs. negative) expectations.
Main Results:
- Performance decreased when public expectations were positive, but personal expectations were not.
- Higher performance was observed only when public and private expectations matched.
- The study identified a specific condition leading to performance decrements.
Conclusions:
- Mismatched expectations (public positive, private negative) lead to choking.
- Congruent expectations (public positive, private positive) enhance performance.
- Understanding expectation congruence is crucial for optimizing athletic performance.