Keep your cool and win the game: Emotion regulation and performance in table tennis

Abstract

People often feel anxious prior to performance situations, and this can lead to performance decrements. Thus, applying effective emotion regulation strategies could be crucial for achieving maximum performance. We investigated the relation between dispositional precompetition emotion regulation and competition performance. Participants were 310 table tennis players (240 men, Mage =39.07, SD=15.99). Self-reported emotion regulation behavior was matched with objective performance data. We found that positive cognitive change strategies were positively related and negative cognitive change strategies were negatively related to winning in competitions. Furthermore, athletes with a higher performance status more often used situation modification, positive cognitive change, and response modulation strategies. Our findings contribute to personality research by providing evidence for the (non)effectiveness of certain emotion regulation strategies.