Advances in the application of information technology to sport performance

This paper overviews the diverse information technologies that are used to provide athletes with relevant feedback. Examples taken from various sports are used to illustrate selected applications of technology-based feedback. Several feedback systems are discussed, including vision, audition and proprioception. Each technology described here is based on the assumption that feedback would eventually enhance skill acquisition and sport performance and, as such, its usefulness to athletes and coaches in training is critically evaluated.     

Modelling coaching practice: the role of instruction and demonstration

In this paper, we review the empirical literature pertaining to the effectiveness of instructions and movement demonstrations. Initially, we examine existing theories and approaches that try to explain the process of skill acquisition so as to determine implications of these theories for instructional provision. This is followed by an evaluation of studies in the motor learning literature in which pre-practice information has been manipulated. Explicit learning strategies are contrasted to implicit and discovery learning methods, and current explanations for instructional effects are discussed in terms of such mechanisms as effects-related attentional focus and movement variability. In the final sections, we review data from our own laboratory where pre-practice information has been manipulated during the learning of a novel bimanual coordination task. From these studies, proposals are made to try and explain how pre-practice information works to effect the process of skill acquisition, including the selection and execution of a response and the processing of associated feedback. An important role is given to the existing skills of the learner in understanding the instructions and performing the desired movement. Finally, we suggest some practical implications of this empirical evidence for the teaching of motor skills.     

如何提高射箭运动员应对应激反应的自我心理调控能力

应激是运动员在压力情境中常出现的一种心理反应,过度的应激反应通常会干扰运动员在比赛中的正常发挥,为此,通过有效训练来提高运动员的应激应对能力具有重要的实践价值。本文在阐述紧张情绪与运动表现关系的基础上,重点介绍了三种常用的应激应对训练方法。     

Exploring PERMA in spectator sport: Applying positive psychology to examine the individual-level benefits of sport consumption

Sport spectating provides numerous benefits for sport organisations and individuals. In this paper we use a positive psychology approach to examine the individual-level benefits of sport consumption in order to investigate the activation of five domains of well-being: positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, and accomplishment (PERMA). Using a two-study panel research design, we collected qualitative data from a sample of Australian Rules Football consumers. In the first study, we explored how the PERMA domains were activated during the season. Study two included a follow-up interview with eight initial respondents in the off-season. We found evidence of four PERMA domains that were activated in the sport spectator context by a variety of consumer experiences. The emergence of these domains in both studies suggests sport marketers would benefit from actions including: creating more social spaces within their stadiums, hosting regular off-season events, and creating social-media based competitions which promote fan engagement and interactions throughout the calendar year.     

对北京体育大学举重队上挺技术的研究

采用文献资料法、问卷调查法、专家访问法对举重上挺技术进行研究,认为北京体育大学举重运动员上挺技术动作不规范是导致上挺技术失败的主要原因,对上挺技术训练的方法提出建议。     

Managing sport for health: An introduction to the special issue

Sport is often viewed as vehicle to achieve positive health outcomes. While sport's potential to contribute to health is rarely disputed, sport is not always managed in ways that specifically prioritise health objectives, and evidence regarding sport's contribution to health has been inconsistent to date. This special issue was designed to advance a research agenda in relation to the management of sport for health. Articles published in the special issue examine sport management practices that impact health, both positively and negatively. The authors identified three overarching themes, with respect to how sport can be managed towards the achievement of health outcomes: sport should be aligned with community needs and should be empowering; sport should be adaptable and evolving to ensure sport culture values health; and, sport organisations should leverage partnership for health to promote organisational sustainability. In future research, scholars are encouraged to further examine the three identified themes and expand on other findings presented in the special issue, towards a stronger evidence base in relation to the management of sport for health. Opportunities exist to continue to advance knowledge regarding the potential for management strategies, models, and practices to lead to positive-and importantly, negatives-health outcomes through sport. If sport management scholars and practitioners are to meaningfully contribute to health agendas, health objectives must play a central role in reshaping sport systems and strategies toward the achievement of such outcomes.     

Effects of manipulating relative and absolute motion information during observational learning of an aiming task

In the visual perception perspective of observational learning, the manipulation of relative and absolute motion information in visual demonstrations optimally directs learners’ search towards appropriate task solutions. We assessed the effect of emphasizing transformational information and removal of structural information using point-light kinematic displays in approximating the model’s relative motion patterns. Participants viewed computer-simulated point-light demonstrations or normal video demonstrations before and intermittently throughout 100 acquisition trials with knowledge of results on an underarm modified-dart aiming task. On the next day, all participants performed 20 retention trials without demonstrations. The kinematics of spatial and temporal coordination and control variables were examined relative to the model’s action, as well as performance scores. The results indicated that approximation of the model’s spatial and temporal coordination and control patterns was achieved after observation of either type of demonstrations. No differences were found in movement outcomes. In a second experiment, the effects of manipulating absolute motion information by slowmotion demonstrations were examined relative to real-time demonstrations. Real-time demonstrations led to a closer approximation to the model’s spatial and temporal coordination patterns and better outcome scores, contradicting predictions that slow-motion displays convey intact relative motion information. We speculate that the effect of visual demonstration speed on action perception and reproduction is a function of task constraints ‐ that is, novelty or familiarity of relative motion of demonstrated activities.     

Five dimensions of brand personality traits in sport

The first purpose of this study was to elaborate upon existing critiques and return to the fundamental brand personality concept by reexamining personality trait theory (i.e., lexical approach) and the sport brand personality literature. Based on a conceptualisation of sport brand personality, the second purpose was to develop an instrument for measuring brand personality in sport based on the restricted definition that excludes non-human personality traits. We adopted the lexical approach in an effort to explore the application of the HEXACO model for obtaining a set of representative personality traits (N = 36) both applicable and relevant to sport brands. For the purpose of this study, a sport brand × subject structure was utilised to find major sport brand personality dimensions. As a representative brand in sport, the National Football League was selected. Two data sets were collected from college students. The 36 sport brand personality traits were submitted to a principal axis factor analysis on the first data set (N = 196). The analysis identified five factors (i.e., Agreeableness, Extraversion/Emotionality, Openness, Conscientiousness, and Honesty) that closely resemble the structure of human personality models. A Confirmatory Factor Analysis confirmed that the newly developed five-factor model has an acceptable fit to the second data set (N = 155). This study identified that the lexical approach can provide a conceptual and methodological foundation when developing brand personality instruments.     

The role of sport in community capacity building: An examination of sport for development research and practice

Population health promotion and preventing disease remain important global policy goals. Because of the complex nature of health, and the recognition of the limits of individual-oriented health promotion strategies, recent decades have seen increased interest by public health researchers and practitioners in community-level approaches to health promotion. Increasingly, community-level approaches have been based upon the theoretical concept of community capacity. Community capacity is seen as a critical mechanism for supporting and promoting community-level health and through the sport for development (SFD) model, there is evidence of sport being an important practice for community development. However, little is known about the potential role of sport as a mechanism for building community capacity. Therefore, the purpose of this review is to examine the efficacy of sport to contribute to the process of community capacity building. Using seven established dimensions of community capacity, there is evidence that many SFD practices can effectively facilitate dimensions of community capacity when conducted in intentional, culturally relevant ways. Specifically, sport has demonstrated efficacy in building local skills, knowledge, and resources, increasing social cohesion, facilitating structures and mechanisms for community dialog, leadership development, and encouraging civic participation. More research is needed to understand sport's ability to promote capacity building through collective action, developing value systems that support democracy and inclusion, and encouraging critical reflection. To increase the usefulness of sport to support community health development, SFD principles should be included as part of sport management university curricula. Additionally, practitioners need grounding in community and human development research to support non-sport components of programs. Finally, participatory action research techniques should be used by researchers and practitioners. Sport-based development often generates high interest from residents, funders, and policy makers. By applying principles of community capacity building, sport may be uniquely positioned to enhance sustainable community health development initiatives.     

Handling of medical knowledge in sport: Athletes' medical opinions,information seeking behaviours and knowledge sources

Medical care in sport comprises a variety of treatments, from scientifically proven biomedicine to complementary and alternative medicine. Information and knowledge about these diverse treatment options is spread by different sources. Thus, athletes encounter information of varying content, quality and background. This exploratory pilot study addresses athletes' medical opinions, their health-related information seeking behaviour and the knowledge sources they utilise. Questionnaires were used to examine n = 110 German athletes (n_male = 69, n_female = 41; mean_age = 24.28 ± 4.97 years) at high performance levels (national team and/or European championship and/or World championship n = 22; first national league and/or German championship n = 51, second national league and/or State championship n = 37) from various Olympic sports. A cluster analysis regarding the athletes' attitudes towards sport medicine exhibited four different types of athletes: ‘the autonomous athlete’, ‘the open-minded athlete’, ‘the functionalistic athlete’ and ‘the conservative athlete’. In general, our findings show that the most used and trusted information sources are physicians and physiotherapists. However, medical information is trusted the most if it is experience- and field-tested, and comes from the athletes' sport-specific network. Our findings also suggest that professional medical knowledge management in competitive sport is needed.     

Managing abuse in sport: An introduction to the special issue

This special issue was designed to advance a research agenda focussed on the management of abuse in sport. Despite progress in the field, greater attention to the structures, policies, processes, practices, and sites in which abuse occurs is required. As such, there is a need for evidence-based solutions to improve the management of abuse and integrity in sport. The authors identified five overarching themes across the 12 papers included within the special issue: the harms and legacies of abuse; abuse in mediated environments; abuse of referees; frameworks that sustain abuse; and safeguarding. The articles included in this issue highlight the complexity of abuse in sporting spaces, the impact it can have on victims and the challenges faced in appropriately managing sporting spaces toward the reduction of harm. This special issue is driven by the authors’ desire to promote integrity and enrich the sporting experience for all, with the hope of driving further research into the management of abuse and integrity in sport.     

Leader prototypicality in sport: The implicit leadership theories of women and men entering sport management careers

Implicit leadership theories (ILTs) matter because they are used as the benchmark against which people determine who is a leader and who is not. This assessment informs their behavioral responses. People are thought to have a superordinate-level ILT representing their prototypical mental model of leadership and a series of basic-level ILTs. Each of these represents how people conceptualize leadership in particular domains (e.g., sport, politics, and popular culture). In this study, the authors generate the structures of basic-level sport management ILTs for women and men who are about to enter this industry. These form the baseline from which socialization to work, organizational cultures, and the sport management industry begins. The ILTs of women entering sport management careers have a 35-item, 6-factor structure (Sensitivity, Knowledgeable, Physical Attractiveness, Inspirational, Dedication, and Focused), whereas men entering the industry have a 32-item, 7-factor structure (Sensitivity, Dedication, Physical Attractiveness, Focused, Creativity, Inspirational, Courageous). The resulting sport management ILT profiles differ from superordinate ones by emphasizing physical and vitality attributes, incorporating emotional elements, and by eschewing antiprototypical elements. The paper ends with a discussion of the implications for leadership research in sport management.     

The conventions of sport clubs: enabling and constraining the implementation of social goods through sport

In order to shed light on the possibilities for using sport as a vehicle for the realization of social goods—understood as sport having a wider social role—this paper scrutinizes Norwegian sport clubs. The study is guided by the concept of convention, which refers to individuals’ cognitive structures, and to social structure. Three sport clubs were investigated and three qualitative methods, including document analysis, observation and interviews, were employed. First, in the results section, the main sport convention is identified as being competitiveness. Secondly, it is argued that as a consequence of the main convention for sport there are limited possibilities for the realization of social goods such as health. The possibilities of sports clubs combining the convention of competitiveness with others is discussed, considering the former as substantial for practice and discussing whether the latter is mere rhetoric.     

Urban sportscapes: An environmental deterministic perspective on the management of youth sport participation

This paper examines sport participation from an environmental perspective by considering the dynamic role of the sportscape (built-form and supporting infrastructure) in enabling, facilitating and promoting youth sport participation. Complementing recent work by Wicker et al. (2013), we conduct a case study of the ‘geography of sport’ in the Greater Toronto Area. In the process we introduce the concept of facility ‘gravitas’ to capture the attractiveness or ‘magnetism’ of sportscape entities and thereby acknowledge the multifaceted sets of environmental factors (including the bricks-and-mortar of facilities and the supporting mechanisms such as transportation, coaches and clubs) that influence sport participation. The results demonstrate that the geography of sport is not only about where sport venue built-forms are located, but also what types of sport infrastructure are available. To develop a better understanding of sport participation it is important to assess the capacity and quality of the sportscape along with other supporting structures and facilitators. The paper points to the implications for managers and policy makers from this perspective.     

运动技能转换在田径技术教学中的运用

现在体育专业田径运动技术的教学 ,随着改革的深化减少了课时 ,从而增加了教学的难度 ,在这种情况下 ,把握运动技能转换的规律 ,研究其教学艺术 ,对提高田径技术的教学质量 ,推进教改的发展 ,有着重要的意义。     

我国优秀运动员培养模式演变与选择研究

研究梳理了我国自"新体育"思想以来,竞技体育优秀运动员培养过程中形成的不同模式背景、特点及其适用环境,结合目前我国竞技体育发展现状,探索中国竞技体育优秀运动员培养模式的趋势。从而借用系统科学理论视角,分析未来我国优秀运动员培养模式方向确立和路径选择。     

Sport Education as a pedagogical application for ethical development in physical education and youth sport

The purpose of this paper is to consider four pedagogical applications within the Sport Education model to examine the ways in which a young person can become a literate sports person and develop ethical behaviour through engagement in physical education and youth sport. Through a systematic review of the Sport Education research literature we present evidence to suggest that although notions such as inclusion, responsibility and ownership, personal and social development and social justice are part of the architecture of this pedagogical model, our findings show that rather than simply being caught, ethical conduct must be taught. Consequently, in the final part of the paper, we present four pedagogical applications within Sport Education that physical education teachers as well as youth sport practitioners and administrators may find useful to promote ethical development: (1) ethical contracts; (2) sports panels; (3) modified games; and (4) awards and rewards.     

From sporting past to future well-being: sport heritage and intergenerational learning in Glasgow

ABSTRACT

This article focuses on the context of private sporting clubs, previously referred to by sports historians as ‘the long residuals of sport’, as important sites of sporting culture and sport heritage in local communities. The project explores the history and meaning of sport through intergenerational collaboration between the academic researcher, primary school children and experienced members of Glasgow Southside's sports community. The research reflects on the process of intergenerational learning, reminiscence and heritage activities to inform future cultural histories of sport, as well as sports development and future well-being. Through a focus on interpreting cultural and social change in Glasgow sport by educating children and elder members of the community in the use of sport media archives, as well affording opportunities to examine the usefulness of intergenerational communication in community settings, the project investigated the cultural transmission of sporting cultures of the past, and its influence over, or disconnection from, contemporary sporting practices of young people. The article concludes that by acknowledging and sharing the heritage of private sport clubs, such ‘communities of practice’ have an important role to play in fostering stronger socio-cultural ties between clubs, their members and young people.     

Playing on the periphery: troubling sport policy,systemic exclusion and the role of sport in rural Canada

Abstract

In policy contexts, social exclusion can be experienced through the systematic marginalization of groups by inhibiting their ability to access resources and support. In this article, we consider the context of community sport development in rural Canada to discuss the implications of rationalized policy systems for rural citizens. We discuss instances where engagement with the sport system was constrained as well as the way that rural people responded in order to continue engagement in sport both within and outside of policy frameworks. A more inclusive sport policy system requires the acknowledgement of diverse social outcomes which may be realized through sport. But, in order for this to take place, policy makers and practitioners must acknowledge that these outcomes can exist outside of athlete development and must re-consider the ways that resources and support can be allocated.     

关于浙江省体育传统项目学校竞技体育后备人才的调查研究

本课题通过对宁波、镇海、上虞、余姚、诸暨、东阳、义乌等城市,就有关体育传统项目学校的训练情况、竞赛情况、管理体制、经费来源渠道和后备人才的输送情况等有关问题进行了座谈访问和问卷调查。通过研究,摸清了我省体育传统项目学校的基本现状,并就存在的问题提出了若干改革措施和建议。