Three-Dimensional State Anxiety Recall: Implications for Individual Zone of Optimal Functioning Research and Application

Abstract

The accuracy of athletes in recalling precompetition anxiety was tested using the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2. Young and adolescent female gymnastics and field hockey athletes (N = 34) were tested one hour precompetition and again 48 hours postcompetition (with instructions to recall precompetition feelings). Correlations were significantly different (weaker) than when the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory was used within the same time frame (Harger & Raglin, 1994). After establishing individual “zones” around actual state anxiety values, based on individual zone of optimal functioning (IZOF) theory (Hanin, 1980, 1986, 1989), it was determined that the weaker correlations in the present study translated into enough incorrect in-zone/out-of-zone assessments that two-day recall, using the CSAI-2, may not be useful for IZOF research and practice. The necessity to further this research with other samples and sports was emphasized. The possibility of using alternate methods was discussed in an effort to provide accurate, minimally intrusive state anxiety measurement which may, ultimately, guide practitioners in effective intervention design through the use of IZOF, multidimensional anxiety theory, and the specific-effects (matching) hypothesis.