Motivation

During a chess match when things aren't going well for you, do you experience something akin to anxiety? Does that cause you to be more creative? Perhaps be more daring in your analysis of potential options?

Yes, in fact I will play more cautiously so as to try to get a draw, I'll try to steer the game into a known drawing position where although I may be material down, it's a draw (like K vs. K+N or K vs K+Rook's pawn). So for me anxiety would translate into being more careful, but I take your point about anxiety causing us to focus on solving a problem. I suspect it's got something to do with the neurotransmitter chemical in out brains called dopamine. From the wikipedia:

Research suggests a crucial role of dopamine in reward systems and anticipation of pleasure. Dopamine may also have a role in the salience ('noticeableness') of perceived objects and events, with potentially important stimuli such as: 1) rewarding things or 2) dangerous or threatening things seeming more noticeable or important. This hypothesis argues that dopamine assists decision-making by influencing the priority, or level of desire, of such stimuli to the person concerned.

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Nice furball asleep in the sink ! (Kath laughed) So you'd like to be your cat? :)