Jona Lehrer: Tiger Woods & The Superstar Effect

Original source: SimoleonSense.com .

Interesting article….

Click Here To Read: Jona Lehrer: Tiger Woods & The Superstar Effect

Synopsis (via WSJ)

From the playing field to the boardroom, when one competitor is clearly the best, the others don’t step up their game—they give up. As Tiger Woods returns to golf, Jonah Lehrer looks at the nature of competition.

Introduction (via WSJ)

Competitors playing a match against Bobby Fischer, perhaps the greatest chess player of all time, often came down with a mysterious affliction known as “Fischer-fear.” Even fellow grandmasters were vulnerable to the effect, which could manifest itself as flu-like symptoms, migraines and spiking blood pressure. As Boris Spassky, Mr. Fischer’s greatest rival, once said: “When you play Bobby, it is not a question of whether you win or lose. It is a question of whether you survive.”

Recent research on what is known as the superstar effect demonstrates that such mental collapses aren’t limited to chess. While challenging competitions are supposed to bring out our best, these studies demonstrate that when people are forced to compete against a peer who seems far superior, they often don’t rise to the challenge. Instead, they give up.

According to a paper by Jennifer Brown, an applied macroeconomist at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, Mr. Woods is such a dominating golfer that his presence in a tournament can make everyone else play significantly worse. Because his competitors expect him to win, they end up losing; success becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Click Here To Read: Jona Lehrer: Tiger Woods & The Superstar Effect