Direction of anxiety The extent to which a person perceives anxiety to be either
facilitative or debilitative of his or her performance.
Dispositional attributions Explanations of behaviour that invoke personality
characteristics as the causes of a given outcome.
Divided attention The ability to perform two or more tasks equally well as a result of
extensive practice.
Drive theory A theory of motivation which suggests that behaviour is fuelled from
within by drives stemming from basic biological needs.
Dual-task approach A research method for studying divided attention in which
participants are required to perform two tasks at once.
Effect size Statistical estimation of the effect of one variable on anther variable.
Ego orientation A type of motivation in which an athlete perceives success as
performing better than others on a given task or skill.
Electroencephalograph (EEG) A neuroscientific technique for recording electrical
activity in the brain using special electrodes placed on the scalp.
Electromyographic (EMG) activity A recording of the electrical activity of the muscles.
Endorphin A naturally occurring, opiate-like peptide substance in the brain that serves to
reduce pain and increase pleasure.
Endorphin hypothesis The theory that the mood-enhancing effects of exercise are
attributable to the effects of endorphins which are released during physical activity.
Event-related potential (ERP) A neuroscientific technique for measuring transient
electrical changes in the brain evoked by certain information processing events.
Exercise Planned, structured and repetitive bodily movements that people engage in to
improve or maintain physical fitness and/or health.
Exercise dependence (also known as “exercise addiction”) A desire for leisure-time
physical activity that may result in uncontrollable bouts of excessive exercise.
Experimental research A research method in which investigators examine the effects of
manipulating one or more independent variables, under controlled conditions, on a
designated dependent variable.
Expertise (see also “deliberate practice”) Exceptional skills and/or knowledge in a
specific area as a result of at least 10 years of deliberate practice in it.
Extrinsic motivation The impetus to engage in an activity for external rewards rather
than for the satisfaction or enjoyment yielded by the activity itself.
Eye-tracking technology The use of special computerised equipment to record and
analyse the location, duration and order of people’s visual fixations when asked to
inspect a given scene.
Fitness See “physical fitness”.
Flow states See “peak performance experiences”.
Focus See “concentration”.
Focus group (see also “qualitative research”) A qualitative data collection technique
which involves a group discussion led by a trained facilitator and which attempts to
understand participants’ attitudes, experiences and perceptions of designated ideas or
topics.
Functional equivalence theory The theory that mental imagery and perception share
similar neural mechanisms and pathways in the brain.
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