The development and preliminary validation in sport contexts of the cognitive appraisal of challenge and threat measure

The aim of this study was to test a new measure of the cognitive appraisal of threat/challenge (CACT) on motor task performance situations. It was supposed that the variability of threat/challenge states intensity would depend on the product of the evaluation of importance of performing a task and the certainty of success/failure. In two studies, the sensitivity and predictive validity of the CACT and the DRES—“classical” measure of threat and challenge appraisal (Tomaka et al. J Pers Soc Psychol 65(2):248 [45])—were compared. Results show that the CACT is both sensitive to conditions that activate threat/challenge states and is a very good predictor of affect variability and motor performance. Ultimately, these data suggest that the CACT is a more powerful measure of cognitive appraisal of threat/challenge compared to the DRES. The theoretical and methodological contributions of CACT to our understanding of the role of threat/challenge states in motor performance are discussed.