Does competition enhance or inhibit motor performance: A meta-analysis

A meta-analysis was conducted on the relative impact of cooperative, competitive, and individualistic efforts on motor skills performance. Competition was divided into 3 groups: zero sum, appropriate, and unclear. The motor skills tasks were divided into means-interdependent and means-independent tasks. The dependent variables were achievement-performance, interpersonal attraction, social support, and self-esteem. A total of 64 studies met the criteria for inclusion. Effects sizes were computed, and confidence intervals were used to determine their significance. A fail-safe sample size was computed to determine how many additional studies were needed to change the significance of the results. Cooperation resulted in higher achievement for means-interdependent tasks in zero-sum competition, unclear competition, and individualistic efforts, and it promoted higher achievement for means-independent tasks for unclear competition and individualistic efforts. For all comparisons, cooperation resulted in greater interpersonal attraction, social support, and self-esteem.