The Effects of Priming Negative Cues on Stroop Rifle Shooting Task in Elite Biathletes: A Psychophysiological Pilot Study

Attempting to suppress unwanted thoughts is generally characterized by the opposite outcomes of what is desired in motor task performance, resulting in a counterintentional error. The study examined the impacts of priming negative cues on elite athletes’ performance in Stroop rifle shooting task, guided by ironic processes of mental control theory (Wegner, 1994). Ten elite youth biathletes performed the task under two conditions: Low-Cue Frequency (LCF) and High-Cue Frequency (HCF) using a quasi-experimental within-subject design. Using multiple psychophysiological measures, the study assessed ironic errors, non-ironic errors, target hits, and reaction times (RTs) at the incongruent stimuli. Across both conditions, repeated negative priming cues did not lead to ironic shooting errors or delays in target responses—contradicting Wegner’s (1994) assumption about ironic errors. Bayesian analysis revealed moderate and anecdotal evidence in support of the null model (BF 01 ) for target hit rates and RTs towards target hits, respectively. Heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) also showed no significant variations across conditions. Findings suggest that negative instructions, regardless of frequency, do not disrupt elite biathletes’ shooting performance. Directives like “do not shoot [specific color]” fail to induce ironic errors, highlighting elite biathletes’ resilience to such cues in maintaining consistent shooting performance.