BHK Sport and Exercise Psychology 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: According to Self-Determination Theory, which type of motivation is associated with the highest level of psychological well-being and persistence?
- External regulation
- Introjected regulation
- Intrinsic motivation (Correct answer)
- Identified regulation
Correct answer: Intrinsic motivation
Intrinsic motivation — doing an activity for inherent satisfaction — is associated with the highest psychological well-being and long-term persistence in self-determination theory.
Question 2: The Inverted-U hypothesis (Yerkes-Dodson law) predicts that athletic performance peaks at:
- Low arousal levels
- High arousal levels
- Moderate arousal levels (Correct answer)
- Zero arousal
Correct answer: Moderate arousal levels
The Inverted-U hypothesis proposes that performance improves as arousal increases to a moderate optimal level, then declines if arousal continues to rise beyond that point.
Question 3: Self-Determination Theory identifies three basic psychological needs. Which of the following is NOT one of them?
- Competence
- Autonomy
- Relatedness
- Achievement (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Achievement
Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan) identifies competence, autonomy, and relatedness as the three fundamental psychological needs; achievement is not one of them.
Question 4: In Achievement Goal Theory, a mastery (task) goal orientation is characterized by:
- Comparing performance against competitors
- Focusing on personal skill improvement (Correct answer)
- Prioritizing winning above all else
- Avoiding challenging tasks to protect self-esteem
Correct answer: Focusing on personal skill improvement
A mastery goal orientation centers on developing personal competence and improving skills, using personal progress rather than social comparison as the standard of success.
Question 5: Competitive trait anxiety is best defined as:
- Anxiety that only occurs during actual competition
- A stable tendency to perceive competitive situations as threatening (Correct answer)
- Acute anxiety caused by a poor competitive performance
- Anxiety triggered solely by spectator presence
Correct answer: A stable tendency to perceive competitive situations as threatening
Competitive trait anxiety is a stable personality predisposition that leads individuals to perceive competitive situations as threatening and respond with elevated state anxiety.
Question 6: Social facilitation theory (Zajonc) predicts that the presence of an audience will:
- Always improve performance regardless of skill level
- Always impair performance regardless of skill level
- Enhance well-learned tasks but impair novel or complex tasks (Correct answer)
- Have no measurable effect on performance
Correct answer: Enhance well-learned tasks but impair novel or complex tasks
Zajonc proposed that an audience increases arousal, which strengthens dominant (well-learned) responses, benefiting experts but impairing beginners on complex tasks.
Question 7: Which of the following best represents extrinsic motivation in an athlete?
- Playing a sport because you find it inherently enjoyable
- Training hard to experience personal growth
- Competing primarily to earn scholarship money (Correct answer)
- Exercising to feel the pleasure of physical movement
Correct answer: Competing primarily to earn scholarship money
Extrinsic motivation involves engaging in an activity primarily to obtain external rewards (e.g., money, trophies) or avoid punishments rather than for the activity itself.
BHK Sport and Exercise Psychology 1
According to Self-Determination Theory, which type of motivation is associated with the highest level of psychological well-being and persistence?