The Effect of Different Emotional Inductions on Visual Search Behavior During Decision-Making in Skilled Female Soccer Players
Keywords:
emotions, visual search behavior, decision-making, soccer players.Abstract
The present study aimed to investigate the effect of different emotional inductions on visual search behavior during decision-making in skilled female soccer players. In this semi-experimental study with a within-subject design, 18 female soccer players aged 13–16 years with experience competing in the premier league participated. The decision-making task consisted of images depicting simulated soccer situations presented on a monitor under three emotional conditions (neutral, positive, and negative). To control for order effects, after completing the task in the neutral condition, nine participants were first exposed to the positive emotional condition followed by the negative emotional condition, whereas the remaining nine participants completed the emotional conditions in the reverse order. Throughout all stages, visual search eye movements were recorded using an eye-tracking system, and alpha wave activity in brain regions involved in decision-making (Fp1, Fp2, F3, Fz, F4, C3, Cz, and C4) was assessed using a 19-channel electroencephalography system. The results of repeated-measures analysis of variance demonstrated that the mean number of eye fixations and the mean fixation duration increased significantly in the positive and negative emotional conditions compared with the neutral condition. Furthermore, repeated-measures analysis of variance revealed that alpha wave activity in the Fp1, Fp2, F3, Fz, F4, C3, Cz, and C4 regions decreased significantly under positive and negative emotional conditions compared with the neutral (non-emotional) condition. The results of Pearson correlation coefficient analysis also indicated a significant negative relationship between the number of saccadic movements and the number of eye fixations with brain alpha wave activity in the neutral condition in the C4 region, in the positive emotional condition in the Fp1, Fz, Cz, and C4 regions, and in the negative emotional condition in the Fz, Cz, and C4 regions. In addition, Pearson correlation analysis demonstrated that under the neutral emotional condition, no significant relationship was observed between fixation duration and brain alpha wave activity in any of the target regions; however, under positive and negative emotional conditions, a significant positive relationship was found between fixation duration and brain alpha wave activity in the C4 region. The results of paired-samples t-tests showed that in neutral, positive, and negative emotional conditions, the mean number and duration of eye fixations during correct decisions were significantly greater than during incorrect decisions.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Zeynab Shams (Author); Negar Arazeshi; Zahra Entezari Khorasani (Author)
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