Abstract
This study investigated the effect of a panel of judges on the movements and postures of cellists in performance. Twenty four expert cellists played a short piece of music, to a metronome beat, in the presence and absence of the panel. Kinematic analyses showed that in the presence of the panel the temporal execution of left arm shifting movements became less variable and closer to the metronome beat. In contrast, the panel's presence had no reliable effect on their spatial accuracy. A detailed postural analysis indicated that left elbow angle during execution of a given high note was correlated with level of heart rate, though the nature of this correlation was systematically affected by the relevant participant's subjective state: if anxious, a higher heart rate correlated with a more flexed elbow, if not anxious then with a more extended elbow. Our results suggest a change in physiological state alone does not reliably predict a change in behavior in performing cellists, which instead depends on the interaction between physiological state and subjective experience of anxiety. This highlights a need to distinguish performance anxiety from physiological arousal, to which end we advocate currency for the specific term performance arousal to describe heightened physiological activity in a performer.
Highlights
Social phobia has one of the highest prevalence rates in psychiatric disorders with a report suggesting that more than 10% of the population are affected during their lifetime (Kessler et al, 2005)
The results section first describes the changes in the subjective experience of the participants associated with the presence of the Audience and the playing of the High Notes, followed by a description of the corresponding changes in their physiological measures
SUBJECTIVE MEASURE: ONE-ITEM LIKERT SCALE we report the changes in the subjective experience of the participants associated with the presence of the Audience, repetitions of Trial (5 trials) and Time of report
Summary
Social phobia has one of the highest prevalence rates in psychiatric disorders with a report suggesting that more than 10% of the population are affected during their lifetime (Kessler et al, 2005). The physiological component of anxiety has been evaluated in terms of electrodermal activity (Vetrugno et al, 2003), cardiovascular response (Friedman, 2007), and respiration (Martinez et al, 1996). Changes in these autonomic functions are linked with heightened cortisol and epinephrine levels in the bloodstream mediated by the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal system in response to a stressful stimulus (Tsigos and Chrousos, 2002). Fredrikson and Gunnarsson (1992), for example, found significant increases in heart rate and neuroendocrine activation compared with when they performed without an audience These participants rated themselves more distressed before audience, though no relationship was found between self-rated distress and physiological responses
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