Thinking about Choking? Attentional Processes and Paradoxical Performance

TLDR

Choking under pressure is a common phenomenon where increased performance pressure worsens outcomes, and it is thought to arise either from distraction (cognitive load) or from self‑focus that diverts attention inward. The study aimed to differentiate between the distraction and self‑focus explanations by manipulating pressure through performance‑contingent rewards. Participants were assigned to conditions that varied pressure, added cognitive load by counting backward from 100, and adapted self‑awareness by videotaping half the participants during practice trials. Results showed that pressure induced choking only when participants were neither distracted nor adapted to self‑awareness, and that adding cognitive load or self‑awareness adaptation reduced choking, supporting self‑focus as the underlying mechanism and refuting distraction.

Abstract

When pressure to perform is increased, individuals commonly perform worse than if there were no pressure ("choking under pressure'). Two mechanisms have been proposed to account for this effect-distraction (cognitive load), wherein pressure distracts attention from the task, and self focus, wherein attention shifts inward interfering with performance. To distinguish between these two competing explanations, the current experiment manipulated pressure by offering performance-contingent rewards. For half the participants, cognitive load was increased by requiring participants to count backward from 100. Additionally, adaptation to self awareness was manipulated by videotaping half the participants during practice trials. Results show that pressure caused choking when participants were not distracted and had not been adapted to self awareness. This effect was attenuated when cognitive load was increased or when self-awareness adaptation had occurred. These results support self focus mediated misregulation as the mechanism for choking and disconfirm the distraction hypothesis.