Sports Arousal
The event that I chose to watch was the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim vs. the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. It was game four of the American League Division Series. Boston lead the series 2-1. The athlete I observed is named John Lackey. He is a pitcher who plays for the Angels.
In the beginning of the game Lackey left the field at a faster, more brisk pace. As the game progressed, his pace became slower. I also observed him mumbling under his breathe in the fifth inning after the Red Sox scored two runs. These two runs were huge since they were the first runs scored in the game and they were already in the fifth inning. Lackey threw several bad pitches to the catcher who in turn dropped them and the Red Sox stole base. Lackey also threw more terrible pitches allowing the Red Sox to hit fly balls.
Based on these specific behavioral responses, I am inclined to say that Lackey's arousal level was high. My conclusion is based on the fact that the winner of this series would go on to play in the World Series. Simply put, a lot was at stake. By my logic, the pitcher is probably the most important player on a baseball team. He sets the tone for the other teams scoring so a lot is riding on their performance.
It seems this high arousal level harmed Lackey. That is to say specifically that it affected his performance negatively. Of course he realized what was at stake and I think his nerves got the best of him. Judging by his facial expression and demeanor, I do not think he was performing positive self talk while he mumbled. I am also basing this on the fact that his pace slowed as he hustled off the field.
I am going to say that Lackey's behavior and performance is best suited to the Multidimensional Anxiety Theory. The MAT predicts that cognitive state anxiety is negatively related to performance. It was very clear during the game that as Lackey looked increasingly worried his performance suffered. I also think that it had a lot to do...
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