A two-dimensional view of arousal was operationalized by controlling gradient and intensity of exercise-arousal in three experiments with 160 male subjects. In all three experiments, significant cognitive performance decrement occurred at moderate intensities of arousal during, or shortly after, steep-gradient arousal increases. These results could not have been predicted by theories that view arousal as unidimensional. Affect measures, recorded in two of the experiments, were uncorrelated with cognitive performance. Results suggest that athletes' cognitive capabilities may be adversely affected by the execution of routine sport motions at moderate arousal, and they may have no conscious awareness of arousal gradient sensations while performing. The adoption of a two-dimensional view of arousal is urged, particularly for study of subjects in motion.
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