Abstract

Anxiety is an intense feeling of worry or fear and can often be overwhelming, taking over someone’s everyday activities. Oftentimes, individuals who have feelings of anxiety or are in stressful situations that are anxiety inducing, they can get physical symptoms such as increased heart rate, sweating, fatigue and rapid breathing. Anxiety can also affect an individual’s quality of vision. In circumstances that are highly stressful, individual’s vision can start to diminish temporarily, affecting the peripheral vision as well as making central vision blurry. This study examines the effects of anxiety and vision quality on athletic performance among collegiate athletes. It compares the impact of being in stressful situations among athletes with and without vision disorder during athletic events. By conducting a study focusing on collegiate athletes at the University of Central Florida and comparing their anxiety levels, as well as any changes in their eyesight/perception, we can assess the association between stress and eyesight, and whether this correlation has an impact on their performance. The objective of this study is to assess a potential relationship between athletes’ performance, with and without vision-related disorders, during highly stressful situations. 31 participants, between the ages of 18-27, participated in this study. Using UCF Qualtrics and incorporating the State-Trait Anxiety Survey into an online modality, the survey was sent out to all student athletes. By comparing the data collected in SSPS and One-Way ANOVA, there was no significant difference in the mean anxiety scores between the tested variables, including the type of sport played, the type of refractive errors, and wearing corrective lenses. Future research can focus on assessing a larger athlete sample and perhaps assessing anxiety and vision during performance and competition to better understand the true relationship between anxiety and vision disorders among athletes.

Thesis Completion

2022

Semester

Fall

Thesis Chair/Advisor

Saleh, Suha

Degree

Bachelor of Science (B.S.)

College

College of Health Professions and Sciences

Department

Communication Sciences and Disorders

Degree Program

Health Sciences

Language

English

Access Status

Open Access

Release Date

12-15-2022

Download

Share

COinS