Evaluating the evidence for implicit perceptual learning: a re-analysis of Farrow and Abernethy (2002)

I present a re-analysis of the data from Farrow and Abernethy's (2002) study of implicit perceptual training in tennis. I argue that there are several weaknesses and mistakes in the original analysis, which, when rectified, lead to a fundamentally different set of conclusions to those given in the original paper. Specifically, there are significant group differences in anticipatory performance before the intervention that make subsequent between-group comparisons at specific occlusion points problematic. Second, in contrast to what is reported in the original paper, the explicit learning intervention resulted in a significant improvement in performance. In addition, a comparison of the effects of the different interventions indicates that the placebo group demonstrated the largest mean improvement in anticipation for the four occlusion points up to racquet-ball impact. Third, the non-significant change in performance over a 32-day retention period indicates that any improvements in performance were retained, not lost, over this period of time. Following a re-analysis of the original data, I conclude that Farrow and Abernethy's study provides no evidence that an implicit perceptual training paradigm improves anticipatory performance more than either an explicit learning paradigm or, indeed, an intervention involving mere observation of tennis matches.     

Cardiorespiratory,hormonal and haematological responses to submaximal cycling performed 2 days after eccentric or concentric exercise bouts

The aim of this experiment was to determine the effectiveness of two video-based perceptual training approaches designed to improve the anticipatory skills of junior tennis players. Players were assigned equally to an explicit learning group, an implicit learning group, a placebo group or a control group. A progressive temporal occlusion paradigm was used to examine, before and after training, the ability of the players to predict the direction of an opponent's service in an in-vivo on-court setting. The players responded either through hitting a return stroke or making a verbal prediction of stroke direction. Results revealed that the implicit learning group, whose training required them to predict serve speed direction while viewing temporally occluded video footage of the return-of-serve scenario, significantly improved their prediction accuracy after the training intervention. However, this training effect dissipated after a 32 day unfilled retention interval. The explicit learning group, who received instructions about the specific aspects of the pre-contact service kinematics that are informative with respect to service direction, did not demonstrate any significant performance improvements after the intervention. This, together with the absence of any significant improvements for the placebo and control groups, demonstrated that the improvement observed for the implicit learning group was not a consequence of either expectancy or familiarity effects.     

Analogy learning: A means to implicit motor learning

Two experiments were conducted to examine the hypothesis that learning by analogy will invoke characteristics of an implicit mode of motor learning. In the first experiment, table tennis novices learned to hit forehand topspin implicitly, explicitly or by analogy. The results showed that the analogy and implicit learning groups accumulated equivalently fewer explicit rules than the explicit learning group during the learning phase. When a concurrent secondary task was added, the explicit learning group suffered from a significantly more serious performance impairment than the analogy and implicit learning groups; no significant differences were seen between the latter two groups. Self-perceived performance was correlated to actual performance in the explicit learning group but not in the analogy or the implicit learning groups. In the second experiment, the performance of an explicit learning group was found to be impaired by both a stress intervention and a thought suppression intervention, whereas the performance of an analogy learning group was not. These characteristics of analogy learning parallel those reported in the implicit learning literature, suggesting that analogy learning may be an effective method for teaching skills implicitly in sport.     

Interaction between motor ability and skill learning in children: Application of implicit and explicit approaches

The benefits of implicit and explicit motor learning approaches in young adults have been studied extensively, but much less in children. This study investigated the relationship between fundamental motor ability and implicit/explicit learning in children using the errorless learning paradigm. First, the motor ability of 261 children (142 boys, 119 girls) aged 9–12 years (M?=?9.74, SD?=?0.67) was measured. Second, children with motor ability scores in the upper and lower quartile learned a golf-putting skill in either an errorless (implicit) or errorful (explicit) learning condition. Four groups were formed: Errorless High-Ability (n?=?13), Errorless Low-Ability (n?=?11), Errorful High-Ability (n?=?10), and Errorful Low-Ability (n?=?11). Learning consisted of 300 practice trials, while testing included a 50-trial retention test, followed by a 50-trial secondary task transfer test, and another 50-trial retention test. The results showed that for high- and low-ability errorless learners, motor performance was unaffected by the secondary task, as was the case for high-ability errorful learners. Low-ability errorful learners performed worse with a secondary task and were significantly poorer than the corresponding high-ability group. These results suggest that implicit motor learning (errorless) may be beneficial for children with low motor ability. The findings also show a trend that children of high motor ability might benefit from learning explicitly (errorful). Further research is recommended to examine the compatibility of implicit and explicit approaches for children of different abilities.     

Probing the allocation of attention in implicit (motor) learning

Abstract

We investigated the attention demands associated with implicit and explicit (motor) learning and performance using a probe reaction time paradigm. Two groups of participants learned a golf putting task over eight blocks of 50 trials performed from different distances. One group (errorless learning) began putting from the shortest distance (25 cm) and moved progressively back to the furthest distance (200 cm). A second group (errorful learning) began putting from the furthest distance (200 cm) and moved progressively closer (25 cm). Retention tests were used to assess learning in the two conditions, followed by transfer tests in which participants used either an unusual putter or a very unusual putter. Transfer to the unusual putters had an equivalent effect on the performance of both errorless and errorful learners, but probe reaction times were unaffected in the errorless learners, suggesting that execution of their movements was associated with reduced attention demands. Reducing errors during initial learning trials may encourage an implicit mode of learning and lower the demand for cognitive resources in subsequent performance.     

竞技体育后备人才的基本属性及其实现方式——以曹燕华乒乓培训学校为例

竞技体育后备人才培养是竞技体育发展的关键环节。我国竞技体育后备人才培养模式在发展的过程中不断改进和完善,但仍出现了许多问题,认识竞技体育后备人才的基本属性是解决问题的基础。曹燕华乒乓培训学校是实施“体教结合”办训的典型案例。剖析“体教结合”模式的优势及竞技体育后备人才属性实现方式,探讨曹燕华乒乓培训学校与杨泰实验学校“体教结合”的成功经验,为我国竞技体育后备人才培养提供启示。     

番子拳的内容与分类的整理研究

本文对番子拳按基础、功力、技击、套路四部分进行分类整理，并就番子拳的训练进行研讨。     

Quiet eye training aids the long-term learning of throwing and catching in children: Preliminary evidence for a predictive control strategy

Abstract

Quiet eye training (QET) may be a more effective method for teaching children to catch than traditional training (TT) methods, but it is unclear if the benefits accrued persist in the long term. Thirty children were randomly allocated into a QET or TT group and, while wearing a mobile eye tracker, underwent baseline testing, training and two retention tests over a period of eight weeks, using a validated throw and catch task. During training, movement-related information was provided to both groups, while the QET group received additional instruction to increase the duration of their targeting fixation (QE1) on the wall prior to the throw, and pursuit tracking (QE2) period on the ball prior to catching. In both immediate (R1) and delayed (R2, six weeks later) retention tests, the QET group had a significantly longer QE1 duration and an earlier and longer QE2 duration, compared to the TT group, who revealed no improvements. A performance advantage was also found for the QET compared to the TT group at both R1 and R2, revealing the relatively robust nature of the visuomotor alterations. Regression analyses suggested that only the duration of QE1 predicted variance in catch success post-training, pointing to the importance of a pre-programming visuomotor strategy for successful throw and catch performance.     

Connecting knowledge(s) to practice: a Bernsteinian theorisation of a collaborative coach learning community project

Collaborative action learning was undertaken in response to the growing criticisms of formal coach education. Since it is strongly felt that we can no longer merely commentate on what is not happening in terms of coach learning, a key requirement now is to demonstrate there are other options. The Coach Learning and Development (CLAD) programme was devised and implemented at a community rugby club in Wiltshire, England. The CLAD programme supported volunteers to engage more with contemporary designs for learning, acknowledging a fundamental problem with formal coach education in the way learning (and knowledge) is decontextualised. The theoretical endeavours of Basil Bernstein are introduced to Sport Coaching Research (SCR) for the first time, specifically the ‘pedagogical device’ to illustrate a process of recontextualisation. Findings suggest that the CLAD programme was successful in encouraging coaches to engage with more positive forms of coaching pedagogy. Therefore, the findings draw on the pivotal outcomes of the CLAD programme to re-configure more successful outcomes for coach education, coach learning and volunteers rights to knowledge.     

Evaluating the impact of a coach development intervention for improving coaching practices in junior football (soccer): The “MASTER” pilot study

ABSTRACT

The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the impact of a novel coach development intervention (MASTER) on coaching practices of football coaches. The study involved six coaches (of 10–12 year old) from one representative football club (Australia February–July 2017). The 15-week multi-component intervention included a face-to-face workshop, ongoing mentoring, modelled training sessions, peer assessments and group discussions. MASTER is underpinned by positive coaching and game-based coaching practices and aimed to educate coaches on how to implement and operationalise a number of evidence-based coaching elements. At each of baseline and immediate post-intervention coaches were filmed three times and evaluated using a modified version of the Coach Analysis Intervention System. Using linear mixed model analysis, significant changes were observed for time spent performing playing-form activities [+15.4% (95% CI 6.01–24.79)(t(15) = 3.5, P = 0.003], with significant changes in the type of interventions undertaken and the nature of feedback given to athletes. Program feasibility was examined using measures of recruitment, retention, adherence and satisfaction. Results indicate program feasibility and high coach evaluation ratings. MASTER demonstrated effectiveness for improving coaching practices of football coaches during training sessions. Further large-scale trials will build evidence for the utility of MASTER for guiding coaching practices in football and other sporting codes.     

初探培养学生执行《体育(与健康)课程标准》的能力

研究与新课程标准相适应的教学模式,教学手段和更新教学方法,做到学术性与师范性相结合,重视学生能力的培养,优化教学内容,优选教学组织形式,强调运动体验,体现运动技能的领域目标,让大部分学生掌握职业训练"双重目标"的各项技能动作,学会科学锻炼身体的方法,是本文的研究方向,并进行了一年的实验教学。     

In pursuit of becoming a senior coach: the learning culture for Australian Football League coaches

Background and Purpose: Given the turbulent and highly contested environment in which professional coaches work, a prime concern to coach developers is how coaches learn their craft. Understanding the learning and development of senior coaches (SCs) and assistant coaches (ACs) in the Australian Football League (AFL – the peak organisation for Australian Rules Football) is important to better develop the next generation of performance coaches. Hence the focus of this research was to examine the learning of SC and AC in the AFL. Fundamental to this research was an understanding that the AFL and each club within the league be regarded as learning organisations and workplaces with their own learning cultures where learning takes place. The purpose of this paper was to examine the learning culture for AFL coaches.

Method: Five SCs, 6 ACs, and 5 administrators (4 of whom were former coaches) at 11 of the 16 AFL clubs were recruited for the research project. First, demographic data were collected for each participant (e.g. age, playing and coaching experience, development and coach development activities). Second, all participants were involved in one semi-structured interview of between 45 and 90 minutes duration. An interpretative (hierarchical content) analysis of the interview data was conducted to identify key emergent themes.

Results: Learning was central to AFL coaches becoming a SC. Nevertheless, coaches reported a sense of isolation and a lack of support in developing their craft within their particular learning culture. These coaches developed a unique dynamic social network (DSN) that involved episodic contact with a number of respected confidantes often from diverse fields (used here in the Bourdieuian sense) in developing their coaching craft. Although there were some opportunities in their workplace, much of their learning was unmediated by others, underscoring the importance of their agentic engagement in limited workplace affordances.

Conclusion: The variety of people accessed for the purposes of learning (often beyond the immediate workplace) and the long time taken to establish networks of supporters meant that a new way of describing the social networks of AFL coaches was needed; DSN. However, despite the acknowledged utility of learning from others, all coaches reported some sense of isolation in their learning. The sense of isolation brought about by professional volatility in high-performance Australian Football offers an alternative view on Hodkinson, Biesta and James' attempt in overcoming dualisms in learning.     

The influence of implicit cognitive processes on physical activity: how the theory of planned behaviour and self-determination theory can provide a platform for our understanding

The influence of implicit cognitive processes on social behaviour has been heavily scrutinised in recent years. A burgeoning body of literature now indicates that implicit processes are particularly predictive of those behaviours that are spontaneously performed and difficult to control. Although interest in implicit cognition has been strong in many fields, few studies have investigated the role of implicit cognitive processes on physical activity. In this article we highlight the avenues through which implicit processes might influence different forms of activity. Two of the most prominent theories in sport and exercise psychology – the theory of planned behaviour and self-determination theory – are used as templates through which discussion is focused. Studies on implicit processes that have utilised these theories are reviewed and critiqued, and the implications of findings from these studies on the prediction of physical activity are discussed. The final section includes a discussion of recent theorising on the mechanisms through which implicit cognitive processes might change. It is hoped that discussion of these important issues will stimulate research into the role of implicit cognitive processes in physical activity.     

Schema theory: critical review and implications for the role of cognition in a new theory of motor learning

This paper is based on a symposium celebrating the 26th anniversary of the publication of "A Schema Theory of Discrete Motor Skill Learning" (Schmidt, 1975) held at the annual conference of the North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity in June 2001. We provide a brief historical context for schema theory and a review of the development of the mechanistic approach to motor learning in general. We explore recent findings in mental practice, observational learning, augmented feedback presentation, and the variability of practice that are inconsistent with schema theory and provide a rationale for the importance of cognitive activity in motor learning.     

Machine and deep learning for sport-specific movement recognition: a systematic review of model development and performance

Objective assessment of an athlete’s performance is of importance in elite sports to facilitate detailed analysis. The implementation of automated detection and recognition of sport-specific movements overcomes the limitations associated with manual performance analysis methods. The object of this study was to systematically review the literature on machine and deep learning for sport-specific movement recognition using inertial measurement unit (IMU) and, or computer vision data inputs. A search of multiple databases was undertaken. Included studies must have investigated a sport-specific movement and analysed via machine or deep learning methods for model development. A total of 52 studies met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data pre-processing, processing, model development and evaluation methods varied across the studies. Model development for movement recognition were predominantly undertaken using supervised classification approaches. A kernel form of the Support Vector Machine algorithm was used in 53% of IMU and 50% of vision-based studies. Twelve studies used a deep learning method as a form of Convolutional Neural Network algorithm and one study also adopted a Long Short Term Memory architecture in their model. The adaptation of experimental set-up, data pre-processing, and model development methods are best considered in relation to the characteristics of the targeted sports movement(s).     

Predicting objectively assessed physical activity from the content and regulation of exercise goals: evidence for a mediational model

Grounded in self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000), the purpose of this work was to examine effects of the content and motivation of adults' exercise goals on objectively assessed moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). After reporting the content and motivation of their exercise goals, 101 adult participants (Mage = 38.79 years; SD = 11.5) wore an ActiGraph (GT1M) accelerometer for seven days. Accelerometer data were analyzed to provide estimates of engagement in MVPA and bouts of physical activity. Goal content did not directly predict behavioral engagement; however, mediation analysis revealed that goal content predicted behavior via autonomous exercise motivation. Specifically, intrinsic versus extrinsic goals for exercise had a positive indirect effect on average daily MVPA, average daily MVPA accumulated in 10-min bouts and the number of days on which participants performed 30 or more minutes of MVPA through autonomous motivation. These results support a motivational sequence in which intrinsic versus extrinsic exercise goals influence physical activity behavior because such goals are associated with more autonomous forms of exercise motivation.     

Music in the exercise domain: a review and synthesis (Part II)

Since a 1997 review by Karageorghis and Terry, which highlighted the state of knowledge and methodological weaknesses, the number of studies investigating musical reactivity in relation to exercise has swelled considerably. In this two-part review paper, the development of conceptual approaches and mechanisms underlying the effects of music are explicated (Part I), followed by a critical review and synthesis of empirical work (spread over Parts I and II). Pre-task music has been shown to optimise arousal, facilitate task-relevant imagery and improve performance in simple motoric tasks. During repetitive, endurance-type activities, self-selected, motivational and stimulative music has been shown to enhance affect, reduce ratings of perceived exertion, improve energy efficiency and lead to increased work output. There is evidence to suggest that carefully selected music can promote ergogenic and psychological benefits during high-intensity exercise, although it appears to be ineffective in reducing perceptions of exertion beyond the anaerobic threshold. The effects of music appear to be at their most potent when it is used to accompany self-paced exercise or in externally valid conditions. When selected according to its motivational qualities, the positive impact of music on both psychological state and performance is magnified. Guidelines are provided for future research and exercise practitioners.     

Music in the exercise domain: a review and synthesis (Part I)

Since a 1997 review by Karageorghis and Terry, which highlighted the state of knowledge and methodological weaknesses, the number of studies investigating musical reactivity in relation to exercise has swelled considerably. In this two-part review paper, the development of conceptual approaches and mechanisms underlying the effects of music are explicated (Part I), followed by a critical review and synthesis of empirical work (spread over Parts I and II). Pre-task music has been shown to optimise arousal, facilitate task-relevant imagery and improve performance in simple motoric tasks. During repetitive, endurance-type activities, self-selected, motivational and stimulative music has been shown to enhance affect, reduce ratings of perceived exertion, improve energy efficiency and lead to increased work output. There is evidence to suggest that carefully selected music can promote ergogenic and psychological benefits during high-intensity exercise, although it appears to be ineffective in reducing perceptions of exertion beyond the anaerobic threshold. The effects of music appear to be at their most potent when it is used to accompany self-paced exercise or in externally valid conditions. When selected according to its motivational qualities, the positive impact of music on both psychological state and performance is magnified. Guidelines are provided for future research and exercise practitioners.     

Observation interventions for motor skill learning and performance: an applied model for the use of observation

Using the 5 Ws and 1 H journalistic approach of Beveridge Mackie (2011), we reviewed the observation intervention research that targeted sport skills or daily movement tasks. Through this review, it became apparent that while there is much research that examines observation of a live or video (what), skilled model (who) for enhanced skill learning (why) in laboratory settings (where), there is a need for not only a wider scope of research, but also a deeper one. Following the review of literature, an applied model for the use of observation is advanced. Through this applied model, we propose that practitioners should first assess the observer's characteristics and the task characteristics for which any observation intervention is being created. The practitioner should then gain an understanding of the context and the desired outcomes of the learner and use this advance information to vary the characteristics of: (1) who is observed; (2) what is observed and what instructional features will accompany the intervention; (3) when it is observed; and (4) how the observed information should be delivered. Future research directions are also forwarded with regard to identified gaps in the literature.