Mind wandering is not always harmful in sports: the role of its content.

Objective: Mind wandering (MW) among athletes during training and competition can lead to poor performance. However, MW has also been found to have positive effects. This study aims to clarify the causes of the bidirectional (negative and positive) effects of MW in the sports context, specifically focusing on whether these effects are related to the content of MW.

Costs over benefits: mind wandering in sporting performance.

Introduction: Athletes' mind wandering during competition has positive and negative effects. The purpose of this study was to explore the reason for these bidirectional effects.

Methods: We recruited 51 athletes from China to take part in semi-structured interviews in which we explored their experiences of mind wandering in competition.