Abstract

Much of the research concerning the relationship between anxiety and motor performance has set out to test drive theory predictions. Martens points out that much of the results have been equivocal. Therefore it was the purpose of the present investigation to test drive theory predictions against opposing predictions made by cognitive theory. Forty high trait-anxious and forty low trait-anxious subjects threw 10 balls at a target consisting of five concentric circles. Subjects were then randomly assigned to either the failure, success or no feedback condition. State anxiety results indicated significant main effects for trait anxiety and feedback with the greatest anxiety being exhibited by high trait-anxious subjects in the failure condition. Performance results indicated a significant Trait Anxiety X Feedback interaction with high trait-anxious subjects performing best after success and low trait-anxious subjects performing best under failure. The general pattern ofresults were directly contrary to drive theory predictions but entirely consistent with a cognitive approach. Weiners cognitive explanation is couched in achievement motivation theory and thus it is difficult to apply when one is interested in just anxiety. However, an approach by Wine, which emphasizes the attentional demands of the task, appears to offer promise in providing a cognitive explanation to the effects of anxiety on motor performance. Verf.-Referat