Linking affect and performance of an international level archer incorporating an idiosyncratic probabilistic method [An article from: Psychology of Sport & Exercise]

This digital document is a journal article from Psychology of Sport & Exercise, published by Elsevier in 2007. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Description:
Objective: To describe and operationalize a method of estimating the probability of varied performance levels (e.g., poor, moderate, or optimal) using multiple within-competition introspective affective measures (i.e., arousal and pleasantness) and heart rate (HR) of a professional female archer. Method and Design: The probabilistic method utilized in this study explores the dynamic nature of within-competition: (a) affect and performance levels; and (b) HR and performance levels by first using ordinal logistic regression, and then implementing an algorithm that converts the regression coefficients into five distinct Individual Affect-related Performance Zones (IAPZs). IAPZs are defined as that range of affective intensity or HR within which an individual has the highest probability of performing at a specific performance level (e.g., poorly, moderately, or optimally). The archer's IAPZs were determined over multiple competitions at five different shooting distances (18, 30, 50, 60, and 70m). Results: The findings illustrate the archer's (a) unique IAPZs at each shooting distance, and (b) affective state fluctuations among her IAPZs during competition. Conclusions: This method of determining IAPZs can be applied to individual athletes for: (a) describing affective states and arousal levels associated with various performance levels; (b) use as descriptive data to infer consistency and stability of his or her states; and (c) use in designing psychological interventions with the goal of ''stabilizing'' the athlete's affective responses in a desirable fashion.