Arousal is considered as a natural state of increased attention and stimulation of our organism. For some psychologists, arousal is considered as an energizing function perceived as the intensity of motivation and used by us when the situation requires it. If its level is excessive we will experience negative emotional reactions such as stress or an exaggerated state of anxiety, which are not very adaptive. Some characteristics of a state of negative arousal in the face of challenges can be: feeling worried, nervous, having doubts, fear, or feeling tense. Representative features of positive arousal may be self-confidence and feeling comfortable.
Arousal occurs when facing environmental challenges such as a new slope, a steeper terrain than usual, or reaching our speed limit. In these situations, we as skiers, or athletes facing a competition, experience a series of physiological alterations that include increased heart rate, stomach tension, generalized stiffness and, above all, difficulty in concentrating on the actions to be performed.
Arousal is studied by sport psychologists as to what is the appropriate level in athletes in front of a competition: it should be high, intermediate, or conveniently low. One of the roles of instructors and coaches is to transmit psychological strategies that assist skiers and athletes to effectively manage emotional arousal.
Arousal and anxiety affect our performance. The same level can affect one skier and benefit another just as in the same performance the level of anxiety fluctuates.
In this regard, the following theories are considered:
- The Drive theory determines that our performance increase at the same time as our arousal or state of anxiety. One of its principles states that the increase in the level of arousal boosts performance in the experienced skier but decreases it in the novice who will be more likely to fail. This means that, if the responses are erroneous, which is observed in the initial phase of learning, an increase in arousal will negatively influence performance. On the other hand, it will favor it if the motor behaviors have been mastered as in the expert level. This theory does not explain why in certain skiers an increase in arousal may cause them to make mistakes even if they have mastered the technique considerably.
- The Inverted “U” theory addresses the different states of arousal and performance. It explains that performance increases with the level of arousal up to a certain maximum point (the highest point on the inverted “U” curve) after which, if it continues to increase it produces a detriment to technical performance. When a low level of arousal is observed, the efficiency of the execution is below our possibilities but if the level increases so will our mood and, consequently, our performance.
The way in which the athlete interprets the arousal predisposes his performance. That is to say that, in the same situation, a high level of the same arousal may be perceived by one athlete as a pleasant emotion while another may judge it as unpleasant, or that a low degree of arousal is boring but for others it is relaxed.
- The Theory of optimal performance zones holds that each athlete possesses an optimal zone of arousal and anxiety to achieve the best performance. The determination of these zones is individual according to one’s own characteristics and the situation to be faced in terms of its lesser or greater complexity.
We can conclude that stress and exaggerated anxiety are negative and undesirable elements; on the contrary, an appropriate arousal for each skier is necessary for the desired performance.
