Beyond the playing field: sport psychology meets embodied cognition

In contrast to traditional views of the mind as an abstract information processor, recent theories of embodied cognition suggest that our representations of objects and events are grounded in action. In this review, I document recent behavioral and neuropsychological evidence in support of an embodied viewpoint, and I argue that sensorimotor experience plays a pivotal role in the embodied cognition framework. As such, not only can cognitive science and cognitive neuroscience inform sport psychology theory and research, but sport psychology (and motor skill expertise research in particular) is imperative for advancing theories of embodied cognition.     

Differentiating Experts' Anticipatory Skills in Beach Volleyball

In this study, we examined how perceptual-motor expertise and watching experience contribute to anticipating the outcome of opponents' attacking actions in beach volleyball. To this end, we invited 8 expert beach volleyball players, 8 expert coaches, 8 expert referees, and 8 control participants with no beach volleyball experience to watch videos of attack sequences that were occluded at three different times and to predict the outcome of these situations. Results showed that expert players and coaches (who were both perceptual-motor experts) outperformed the expert referees (who were watching experts but did not have the same motor expertise) and the control group in the latest occlusion condition (i.e., at spiker-ball contact). This finding suggests that perceptual-motor expertise may contribute to successful action anticipation in beach volleyball.     

Expert Baseball Batters Have Greater Sensitivity in Making Swing Decisions

Abstract

The aims of this study were to describe the prevalence of dance participation in U.S. adolescents and to estimate the contribution of dance to total moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). The sample was composed of 3,598 adolescents from the 2003–06 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Youth reported frequency and duration of physical activities performed in the past month. Dance participation prevalence was calculated; among those who reported dance, its contribution to total MVPA was estimated. The prevalence of dance was much higher in girls (34.8%) than boys (8.4%). Girls had a greater contribution of dance to total MVPA (39.3%) than boys (23.0%). Dance is a prevalent form of physical activity among girls, and it accounts for a substantial fraction of their total MVPA.     

Perception-action coupling in complex game play: Exploring the quiet eye in contested basketball jump shots

The duration of the final fixation before movement initiation – a gaze strategy labelled quiet eye – has been found to explain differences in motor expertise and performance in precision tasks. To date, research only addressed this phenomenon in situations without adversarial constraints. In the present study, we compared the quiet-eye behaviour of intermediately-skilled and highly-skilled basketball players in defended vs. undefended game situations. We predicted differences in quiet-eye duration as a function of skill and performance particularly resulting from late quiet-eye offsets. Results indicated performance-enhancing effects of long quiet-eye durations in the defended but not in the undefended game situation. Furthermore, in line with our prediction, later quiet-eye offsets were associated with superior performance elucidating the phenomenon’s relevance in online-demanding motor tasks. Further, earlier quiet-eye onsets were linked to successful performance supporting earlier suggestions that it is not only the duration but also the timing that matters. These findings not only extend the positive effects of the quiet eye in motor performance to dynamic game-play situations but also support the role of the quiet eye in response to programming and information processing respectively.     

Performing under pressure: Exploring the psychological state underlying clutch performance in sport

Clutch performance is improved performance under pressure. However, little research has examined the psychological state experienced by athletes in these situations. Therefore, this study qualitatively examined the subjective experience underlying clutch performance across a range of sports (e.g., team, individual) and standards (Olympic to recreational athletes). Sixteen athletes (M_age = 27.08 years; SD = 6.48) took part in in-depth, semi-structured interviews primarily after an exceptional performance (M = 4.38 days later; SD = 3.14). Data were analysed inductively and thematically. Clutch states involved 12 characteristics, including heightened and deliberate concentration, intense effort, and heightened awareness, which distinguished the experience of clutch from other optimal psychological states such as flow. Other characteristics, such as perceptions of control, were also reported and supported previous experimental research on clutch. These findings present in-depth qualitative insights into the psychological state underlying clutch performance, and are discussed in relation to the existing literature on optimal psychological states in sport.     

Expertise and expert performance in sport

We review contemporary research focusing on expertise and expert performance in sport. The deliberate practice theoretical framework is presented, and the level of investment in purposeful practice needed to reach the elite level in sport is illustrated. We highlight some of the adaptations that occur as a result of extended engagement in practice and training, with particular reference to perceptual-cognitive skills, such as anticipation and decision-making. These psychological adaptations are explained through reference to long-term working memory theory. Finally, the expert performance approach is presented as a guiding framework for studying expertise in sport, and some suggestions for future research are proposed. The study of expertise and expert performance in sport offers a unique source of data that help promote understanding of the factors that constrain human achievement and the extent to which these may be overcome by systematic engagement in practice and training.     

Inter-disciplinarity in sport sciences: The neuroscience example*

Abstract

Sport science is a relatively recent domain of research born from the interactions of different disciplines related to sport. According to the European College of sport science (http://sport-science.org): “scientific excellence in sport science is based on disciplinary competence embedded in the understanding that its essence lies in its multi- and interdisciplinary character”. In this respect, the scientific domain of neuroscience has been developed within such a framework. Influenced by the apparent homogeneity of this scientific domain, the present paper reviews three important research topics in sport from a neuroscientific perspective. These topics concern the relationship between mind and motor action, the effects of cognition on motor performance, and the study of certain mental states (such as the “flow” effect, see below) and motor control issues to understand, for example, the neural substrates of the vertical squat jump. Based on the few extensive examples shown in this review, we argue that by adopting an interdisciplinary paradigm, sport science can emulate neuroscience in becoming a mono-discipline.     

Embodied Rilkean sport-specific knowledge

This paper develops and introduces the embodied Rilkean sport-specific knowledge into the current sports knowledge philosophical debate. This idea is based on my interpretation of Mark Rowlands’ Rilkean memory theory. Broadly speaking, Rowlands proposed that an embodied Rilkean memory is memory content that is then ‘woven into the body and its neural infrastructure’ resulting in new bodily or behavioral dispositions. I propose that elite-level sports knowledge may become contentless bodily and/or behavioral dispositions and take the form of embodied Rilkean sport-specific knowledge. This version of sports knowledge enriches the current philosophy of sports debate that has centered on the analytical distinction between procedural knowledge (knowing how) and declarative knowledge (knowing that). After presenting the embodied Rilkean sport-specific knowledge concept and providing empirical evidence that supports its existence, I argue that the current distinction between ‘knowing how’ and ‘knowing that’ may not be exhaustive.     

20 years later: deliberate practice and the development of expertise in sport

Twenty-one years ago, Ericsson, Krampe and Tesch-Romer published their seminal work expounding the notion of deliberate practice in explaining the development of expertise. This concept has since become extremely influential in the fields of sport psychology and motor learning. This review evaluates current understanding of deliberate practice in sport skill acquisition with an emphasis on the role of deliberate practice in distinguishing expert athletes from non-experts. In particular, we re-examine the original tenets of Ericsson et al.'s framework to (a) evaluate the sport-related research supporting their claims and (b) identify remaining research questions in this area. The review highlights the overall importance of deliberate practice in the development of expert sport performers; however, our understanding is far from complete. Several directions for future research are highlighted, including the need for more rigorous research designs and statistical models that can evaluate changes in developmental and contextual factors across development. Finally, we advocate for a more thorough understanding of the implications of a ‘deliberate practice approach’ for coaching science.     

Personality and its Relationship to Success in Professional Baseball

Purpose: The relationships among students' self-efficacy, 2 × 2 achievement goals (mastery-approach [MAp], mastery-avoidance [MAv], performance-approach [PAp], and performance-avoidance goals), and achievement performance remain largely unanswered. We tested a model of the mediating role of self-efficacy on the relationship between 2 × 2 achievement goals and cardiorespiratory fitness. Method: A sample of 276 middle school students (115 boys and 161 girls; 91 sixth graders, 87 seventh graders, and 98 eighth graders), aged 12 to 15 years (M _age = 13.34, SD = 0.96), responded to the Achievement Goals Questionnaire (Conroy, Elliot, &; Hofer, 2003) and Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (Gao, Newton, &; Carson, 2008) referenced to the fitness test. Their cardiorespiratory fitness was assessed via the Progressive Aerobic Cardiorespiratory Endurance Run (PACER) 3 days later. Results: Structural equation modeling demonstrated an acceptable model fit to the data, χ ² (2, N = 105) = 1.66. Self-efficacy had a statistically significant direct effect on the PACER after controlling for the effects of the achievement goals (γ _{self-efficacy-PACER}  = .21). MAv and PAp also had direct effects on PACER performance (γ _MAv-PACER  = ? .24, and γ _PAp-PACER  = .24, respectively). MAp failed to exert direct effect on the PACER. However, the indirect effect of MAp on the PACER via self-efficacy was small although it was statistically significant. Additionally, the indirect effects of MAv and PAp on PACER through self-efficacy were not significant. Conclusions: Students' self-efficacy fully mediated the effect of MAp on fitness performance, as well as partially mediated the effects of MAv and PAp on cardiorespiratory fitness performance. Study implications are provided for educators and practitioners.     

Modelling mood states in athletic performance

The ability to recognize patterns of play is fundamental to performance in team sports. While typically assumed to be domain-specific, pattern recognition skills may transfer from one sport to another if similarities exist in the perceptual features and their relations and/or the strategies used to encode and retrieve relevant information. A transfer paradigm was employed to compare skilled and less skilled soccer, field hockey and volleyball players' pattern recognition skills. Participants viewed structured and unstructured action sequences from each sport, half of which were randomly represented with clips not previously seen. The task was to identify previously viewed action sequences quickly and accurately. Transfer of pattern recognition skill was dependent on the participant's skill, sport practised, nature of the task and degree of structure. The skilled soccer and hockey players were quicker than the skilled volleyball players at recognizing structured soccer and hockey action sequences. Performance differences were not observed on the structured volleyball trials between the skilled soccer, field hockey and volleyball players. The skilled field hockey and soccer players were able to transfer perceptual information or strategies between their respective sports. The less skilled participants' results were less clear. Implications for domain-specific expertise, transfer and diversity across domains are discussed.     

Attentional focus effects on sprint start performance as a function of skill level

Abstract

Several researchers have demonstrated that an external focus of attention (about movement’s effects) during movement execution allowed better performances and learning of various motor tasks than an internal focus of attention (about movement itself). However, attentional focus effects have not been studied in tasks requiring explosive actions preceded by fast reaction time to a signal, such as a sprint start. We hypothesised that the beneficial effect of external focus of attention would be observed in the different stages of the sprint start (i.e. reaction time, block clearance and running) for both expert and novice sprinters. Novice and expert sprinters performed sprint starts followed by a 10 m sprint under three conditions: external focus instructions; internal focus instructions; and neutral instructions. The reaction time and the running time were significantly shorter in the external focus condition than in the internal focus condition, for both expert and novice participants. These results confirm the beneficial effect of an external focus of attention on the speed of movement execution. Moreover, they revealed that attentional focus influences movement preparation. Several hypotheses are proposed to account for these results, with reference to the processes that could be responsible for the observed effects.     

Quantifying the nature of anticipation in professional tennis

Abstract

We quantify the nature and frequency of anticipation behaviours in professional tennis using video coding of incidents where the time delay between the opponent's stroke and the reaction of the player were recorded. We argue that anticipation is based on uncertain information and should lead in some situations to erroneous decisions. We identified the transition between reaction (with 100% accuracy in the selection of where the ball is played on the court) and anticipation (with less than 100% accuracy) as being 140–160 ms after ball contact. Anticipation behaviours occurred on between 6.14% and 13.42% of the coded situations. These anticipation behaviours appeared almost exclusively in ‘unfavourable’ situations, where the opponent had a significant tactical advantage, with the type of playing surface having only a limited effect. Moreover, the decrease in accuracy with shorter response times is not monotonic, with an increase in response accuracy being observed for times shorter than 120 ms before ball contact. We propose that very early anticipation behaviours occur when players use significant context-specific information before the opponent's stroke. When such information is not available, players produce anticipation behaviours that are closer to the moment of ball–racket contact using information that is more likely to be based on the opponent's preparation of the stroke. This study opens new directions for research focusing on the testing and training of anticipation in fast ball sports.     

Whole-body control of anticipated and unanticipated sidestep manoeuvres in female and male team sport athletes

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of sex and planning time on spatial and temporal aspects of the whole-body centre of mass (CoM) mechanics during sidestepping performance. Seventeen female and 17 male collegiate team sport athletes completed seven anticipated and seven unanticipated sidestep trials during which three-dimensional CoM data were recorded. Female athletes had a reduced ability to reorient their CoM towards the desired direction of travel (lower medio-lateral and anterior-posterior CoM velocity) than their male counterparts, with reduced medial (closer to stance foot) and increased posterior positioning of CoM relative to the stance foot (p < 0.05). When planning time was limited, female and male athletes performed sidestepping with CoM further from the stance foot (more medial) and more anterior than in the anticipated condition (p < 0.05) at reduced medio-lateral velocities. Sex and condition control strategy differences were evident both in the preparatory phase and the stance phase. The current research draws attention to the foreseen benefits of training athletes, with particular emphasis on females, to direct CoM towards the desired direction of travel in the preparatory and stance phases within temporally constrained situations for improved performance.     

Components of attack response inhibition in fencing: Components of attack response inhibition in fencing

Applying the Go/No-Go paradigm to fencing, we investigated the relationship between the moment at which the No-Go signal appeared after a movement had been initiated and the time required by fencers to suppress the motor execution of a step-lunge. Secondarily, we determined a time threshold from which movement inhibition results in an error. The No-Go stimulus was represented by a real attack movement. 18 elite fencers and a fencing master were included in the study. Four force plates measured the horizontal components of the fencer's and master's reaction forces, which were used to calculate the time components of the attack and the response inhibition process. Also, the velocity and displacement of the master's and fencer's respective centres of mass were estimated using inverse dynamics. In all cases, cognitive inhibition processes were completed after the onset of movement. Movement time was calculated using four time components (muscle activation, muscle deactivation, transition and braking time). The results obtained revealed that cognitive processes were not significantly affected by the timing of the appearance of the No-Go signal. In contrast, movement time and its time components tended to decrease when the time delay between the No-Go stimulus and the onset of the fencer's movement increased. In conclusion, any attempt to withhold an attack movement when it has already started leads to an error that increases the risk of being hit by the opponent, especially when attack is inhibited within 150?ms after the movement has started.     

Tracing the origins of athlete development models in sport: a citation path analysis

Reviews of the sport psychology literature have identified a number of models of athlete development in sport (Alfermann & Stambulova, 2007; Durand-Bush & Salmela, 2001). However, minimal research has investigated the origins of knowledge from which each model was developed. The purpose of this study was to systematically examine the influential texts responsible for providing the basis of athlete development models in sport. A citation path analysis of the sport psychology literature was used to generate a knowledge development path of seven athlete development models in sport. The analysis identified influential texts and authors in the conceptualization of athlete development. The population of 229 texts (articles, books, book chapters) was selected in two phases. Phase 1 texts were articles citing seven articles depicting models of athlete development (n=75). Phase 2 included texts cited three or more times by Phase 1 articles (n=154). The analysis revealed how the scholarship of Benjamin Bloom (1985) has been integrated into the field of sport psychology, and how two articles appearing in 1993 and 2003 helped shape present conceptualizations of athlete development.     

Quantifying external focus of attention in sailing by means of action sport cameras

The aim of the current study was twofold: (1) to validate the use of action sport cameras for quantifying focus of visual attention in sailing and (2) to apply this method to examine whether an external focus of attention is associated with better performance in upwind sailing. To test the validity of this novel quantification method, we first calculated the agreement between gaze location measures and head orientation measures in 13 sailors sailing upwind during training regattas using a head mounted eye tracker. The results confirmed that for measuring visual focus of attention in upwind sailing, the agreement for the two measures was high (intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) = 0.97) and the 95% limits of agreement were acceptable (between ?8.0% and 14.6%). In a next step, we quantified the focus of visual attention in sailing upwind as fast as possible by means of an action sport camera. We captured sailing performance, operationalised as boat speed in the direction of the wind, and environmental conditions using a GPS, compass and wind meter. Four trials, each lasting 1 min, were analysed for 15 sailors each, resulting in a total of 30 upwind speed trials on port tack and 30 upwind speed trials on starboard tack. The results revealed that in sailing – within constantly changing environments – the focus of attention is not a significant predictor for better upwind sailing performances. This implicates that neither external nor internal foci of attention was per se correlated with better performances. Rather, relatively large interindividual differences seem to indicate that different visual attention strategies can lead to similar performance outcomes.     

论身体运动与身体认知的具身性转向

认知科学的发展改变了人们传统的身体认知观念,具身认知的思想逐渐引起研究者的关注与重视,关于身体认知的研究开始朝向具身化方向转变。从人体运动场域的视角,探讨身体运动与身体认知具身性转向之间的关系及其相互影响。研究认为,身体运动在身体认知与被认知的过程中起到中介和调适作用,身体运动的方式可以映射出身体认知过程的具身性变化。身体运动可分为客观身体运动与现象身体运动两种类型,它们对身体认知的具身性转向起着不同的推动作用。身体运动特有的行为模式反映了身体认知与周围环境的关联性,身体运动的限制作用体现在身体认知表征的特性与范围方面,身体运动的分派特征对身体认知转向中的构成性角色具有证实作用,身体运动的调适功能是身体认知与具身行动之间协调性存在的重要保障。在身体运动对身体认知具身性转向的解释方面,要求身体运动应在身体认知的具身性转向中保持主动,重视身体经验的投射功能,关注身体运动的物理属性与运动方式的决定性作用。将身体运动的相关研究融入到具身认知的范畴,形成完整而有序的研究范式,将有助于解决身体认知研究领域中出现的系列问题。     

Visual search,movement behaviour and boat control during the windward mark rounding in sailing

In search of key-performance predictors in sailing, we examined to what degree visual search, movement behaviour and boat control contribute to skilled performance while rounding the windward mark. To this end, we analysed 62 windward mark roundings sailed without opponents and 40 windward mark roundings sailed with opponents while competing in small regattas. Across conditions, results revealed that better performances were related to gazing more to the tangent point during the actual rounding. More specifically, in the condition without opponents, skilled performance was associated with gazing more outside the dinghy during the actual rounding, while in the condition with opponents, superior performance was related to gazing less outside the dinghy. With respect to movement behaviour, superior performance was associated with the release of the trimming lines close to rounding the mark. In addition, better performances were related to approaching the mark with little heel, yet heeling the boat more to the windward side when being close to the mark. Potential implications for practice are suggested for each phase of the windward mark rounding.