Funções cognitivas e regulação emocional de atletas de e-sports

Abstract

Electronic sports (or e-sports) have gained an enormous space in media and in the sports world in recent years. The athletes of this modality have strict training routines, as well as multiprofissional techinical team, with coaches, nutritionists, phyisiotherapists and psychologists, who help in the formation and care of the athletes. An e-sports athlete needs a set of cognitives and emotionals skills to have a good performance in a match. The aim of this study was to investigate the cognitive and emotional processes in e-sports athletes according to gender and modality of the game, time of participation in the competition team, participation in competitions in the last six months and the existence of psychological support in the team. Thirty nine e-sports athletes ( =21,13 years; SD=2,25), majority of males (32), have participated in the study answering the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress _21 and four experimental tasks in random order: Go/No-Go (attention), Corsi Blocks (work memory), WSCT (cognitive flexibility) and emotional regulation. The results have showed difference in the cognitive aspects between individuals who practice diferente types of games, as well as a correlation between these cognitives and emotionals processes investigated. Ultimately, the presente study emphasized the importance of the sports psychologist in e-sports teams. The contribution of this professional is not limited to manegement of the emotional aspects in view of the demands of a highly competitive and exhausting environment. In addition to assisting in the pursuit for the athlete's well-being, the beneficial effects of psychological support on the cognitive functions of e-sports athletes were revealed.