Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
The question asks to identify the key variable that the Yerkes-Dodson law links to performance.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
The Yerkes-Dodson law is a well-established principle in psychology that describes the relationship between arousal and performance. The law states that performance on a task increases as physiological or mental arousal increases, but only up to an optimal point. If arousal levels become too high, performance decreases. This relationship is often depicted as an inverted U-shaped curve.
Affiliation is a social motive.
Attention is a cognitive process that can be affected by arousal, but it is not the independent variable in the law itself.
Affect refers to mood or emotion, of which arousal is a component, but Arousal is the specific term used in the Yerkes-Dodson law.
Step 3: Final Answer:
The Yerkes-Dodson law specifically describes the relationship between arousal and performance.