The effects of goal setting on volleyball serving performance, anxiety, and self-efficacy

Abstract

This study was designed to investigate the effects of goal setting on volleyball serving performance. Subjects were matched by experience and assigned randomly to either a goal group or instruction group. The goal group received a seminar on the effective implementation of goal setting and the instruction group received a seminar on the techniques and tactics of volleyball serving. Volleyball serving performance was assessed in both a test environment and in a game situation. The effects of goal setting on state anxiety and self-efficacy were also investigated. Results revealed no significant differences in serving performance between treatments. However, it was found through subsequent analysis that instruction group subjects who set goals without being prompted by the researcher to do so significantly outperformed instruction group subjects who did not spontaneously set goals. Furthermore when all subjects who set goals were grouped together, regardless of which treatment condition they were assigned to, and compared with non-goal setters, a significant between group difference then emerged. Goal group subjects improved their levels of self-efficacy more than did the instruction treatment. The goal group reduced its level of anxiety more than did the instruction group. The factors which contribute to the discrepancies between results found in sport related investigations and those obtained from studies conducted in business and laboratory environments are elaborated upon. The implications of the results for coaches and athletes are discussed. It was concluded that while effective procedures for implementing goal setting programmes in sport and exercise are being developed, further research is required before goal setting can be applied with any degree of confidence.