2017, Volume 13, Issue 1
The effect of instructional conditions on competitive state anxiety and free-throw performance in adolescent basketball players
Hossein Soltani1
1Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran
Author for correspondence: Hossein Soltani; Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran; email: soltani_hn[at]yahoo.com
Full text
Abstract
Background & Study Aim: In basketball, one of the most important, and at times anxiety provoking, game situations is free throw shooting. Many contests are won or lost in the final minutes by slim margins, and the outcomes of these games are often decided by how accurate athletes are at free throw shooting. The purpose of this research was the effect of instructional condition on competitive state anxiety levels and free-throw performance in young basketball players.
Material and Methods: Statistical sample included 28 elite basketball players aged between 13-17 years with at least four years playing experience. The research method of this study was quasi- experimental with 2 (trait anxiety group: high, low) ×2 (instructional condition: control, pressure) design. Firstly, the subjects took Sport Competition Anxiety Test for screening and then 11 players were assigned to high level trait anxiety group and 10 players for low level trait anxiety group. At the first day the high and low level trait anxiety groups were evaluated in terms of competitive state anxiety under control condition. Then they were requested to perform five basketball free-throws. At the second day both groups again retook competitive state anxiety test under pressure instruction condition followed by performing five basketball free-throw.
Results: One-way ANOVA showed that pressure instructional conditions had a significant effect on cognitive anxiety in both low anxiety trait and high anxiety trait groups (p≤0.05). The effect of pressure instructional conditions had not a significant effect on somatic anxiety and self-confidence in both low anxiety trait and high anxiety trait groups (p>0.05). The effect of pressure instructional conditions had not a significant effect on basketball free-throw performance in low anxiety trait but the effect of pressure instructional conditions on basketball free-throw performance in high anxiety trait group was significant (p≤0.05).
Conclusions: The results of this study supports multi-dimensional theory of state anxiety. In both groups with high and low state anxiety experienced average level of somatic anxiety compared to cognitive anxiety implying that all players should experience optimal level of somatic anxiety in order to have better performance and indeed somatic anxiety has less impact on performance than cognitive anxiety.
Key words: somatic state anxiety, cognitive state anxiety, state self-confidence
