The Effect of Audio-Visual Information on Gaze Behavior in Individuals with Trait Anxiety: Investigating the Role of Multisensory Perception

The effect of anxiety on sports performance has always been one of the important research issues in the field of sports psychology. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of audio-visual information on the gaze behavior of individuals with trait anxiety in the recognizing of the badminton shot. Participants were 40 novices with trait anxiety who were randomly divided into unisensory and multisensory perception groups. The unisensory group just observed video clips and recognize shot direction when the racket-ball contact and the multisensory group used audio-visual information simultaneously. Both groups performed 200 trials. Pre-test and post-test were taken as a unisensory in both groups. The results showed that the multisensory group obtained the optimal gaze behavior (low number of fixations and longer fixation duration). Using sound to highlight important cues is probably a way to improve the pattern of gaze behavior in beginners with trait anxiety.