An idiographic approach to the fluctuation of appraisals and coping during a trapshooting competition

Events occurring during competition can impact athletes differently and influence their cognitive states and emotional states. Therefore, appraisal and coping processes are individual and can be understood better using an idiographic approach. The purpose of this study is two-fold: 1) to describe the nature of the fluctuation of emotional states and coping processes during the competition and 2) to propose an idiographic and ecologically valid method of study of these processes through the use of verbal protocols and sequential analysis. One master world-class elite (58 years old and 28 years of competitive experience) and one master 4th-category regional level trapshooter (59 years old and 30 of experience) participated in this study. Participants completed an affect grid after each shot during two competitions of the national trapshooting championship. Each competition was composed of 6 sets of 25 shots. After each set, participants provided verbal reports using a delayed verbal protocol procedure. This procedure consisted of identifying critical moments within the competition, and reporting thoughts and feelings immediately before and after each critical moment. Verbal reports were transcribed verbatim and coded according to Lazarus’ cognitive-motivational-relational theory of emotion. Units of information were submitted to event sequential analysis to determine the probability of occurrence of paired-events. The elite level athlete reported a stable pattern of pleasure and arousal levels, while the non-elite athlete reported greater fluctuation of emotional states. It was found great inter- and intra-individual variability depending on the context, but patterns of appraisal and coping were identified through sequential analysis.