This study reports a detailed investigation of the interaction between goal setting, anxiety and perceptuo-motor performance. Forty-four subjects completed familiarization, control and treatment conditions in which they were required to perform a series of perceptual speed trials. In the control condition, subjects were assigned a vague, general goal of `do your best', whilst in the treatment condition, increasingly difficult, specific goals were assigned. During each condition, subjective goal difficulty, goal acceptance, performance, cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety and self-confidence were examined. The results suggested that the manipulation of the control and treatment conditions were succesful. In the treatment condition, an increase in cognitive anxiety and a reduction in self-confidence accompanied increasing goal difficulty but these remained stable in the control condition. Performance was greater when `do your best' as opposed to `very easy' goals were assigned, but this situation was reversed when `very hard' goals were assigned. The results of these laboratory-based findings are discussed with particular reference to the implications for practitioners in applied settings. (A)
Abstract