Regulatory fit and performance in elite bowlers

Abstract: Research within regulatory fit framework has shown that athletes perform better when in a state of regulatory fit. This state occurs when there is a match between a player’s chronic regulatory focus and the framing of the given task. In a counterbalanced within-groups experimental design, bowling players (N = 34) performed various rounds of the same ecologically-valid pin-setting configuration under two different experimental conditions: in a promotion manner (aspiration to make the spare) and in a prevention manner (obligation not to miss the spare). Results showed no significant relationship between regulatory fit and bowling performance. Findings are discussed in terms of task difficulty and experimental manipulation in relation to regulatory fit theory.