The influence of in-game emotions on basketball performance

Abstract

This study examined the influence of emotions on performance in basketball. Six female basketball players were videotaped in six games. Frequency of performance behaviours was recorded minute-by-minute and indices of successful (SGI) and unsuccessful (UGI) game involvement derived for each player. Post-game, players reported the intensity of experienced emotions (anger, anxiety, embarrassment, excitement and happiness), and the time of the eliciting incident. The only emotion revealed as a significant predictor of SGI was happiness; both anger and embarrassment were significant predictors of increased UGI. Consideration of individual player analyses suggests that there is variation in the magnitude of the influence of emotions on performance and the extent to which this influence was helpful or harmful to performance. The study provides evidence that emotions are associated with changes in game behaviours in competition. Implications for further research examining the emotion–performance relationship are discussed.     

Dynamics of the game in soccer: Detection of T-patterns

Abstract

Traditional approaches to the quantification of team sports have proved to be limited in their ability to identify complex structural regularities that, despite being unobservable, nonetheless underlie the development of the sporting contest between opposing teams. This paper describes a method for detecting the dynamics of play in professional soccer through the analysis of temporal patterns (T-patterns). The observation instrument used was SOF-5, which is especially designed for studying the dynamics of the game in soccer. The recording consisted of within-session monitoring using the MATCH VISION STUDIO 3.0 software, while the THEME software was used to detect and analyse T-patterns. These T-patterns revealed regularities in the playing style of the observed team, FC Barcelona. The structures detected included a ball possession pattern, whereby the ball was first kept in the central zone before being played forward, through several moves, into the zones closest to the opposing team's goal in order to disrupt the latter's equilibrium. The results obtained show that it is possible to identify stable temporal structures that provide information about concurrent interaction contexts with respect to lateral position and zone. As such, the proposed methodology appears to be useful in detecting complex structures within the game of soccer, structures which may help coaches to design attacking and defensive strategies.     

Home advantage in Greek football

Abstract

Home advantage as it relates to team performance at football was examined in Superleague Greece using nine seasons of game-by-game performance data, a total of 2160 matches. After adjusting for team ability and annual fluctuations in home advantage, there were significant differences between teams. Previous findings regarding the role of territorial protection were strengthened by the fact that home advantage was above average for the team from Xanthi (P =0.015), while lower for teams from the capital city Athens (P =0.008). There were differences between home and away teams in the incidence of most of the 13 within-game match variables, but associated effect sizes were only moderate. In contrast, outcome ratios derived from these variables, and measuring shot success, had negligible effect sizes. This supported a previous finding that home and away teams differed in the incidence of on-the-ball behaviours, but not in their outcomes. By far the most important predictor of home advantage, as measured by goal difference, was the difference between home and away teams in terms of kicked shots from inside the penalty area. Other types of shots had little effect on the final score. The absence of a running track between spectators and the playing field was also a significant predictor of goal difference, worth an average of 0.102 goals per game to the home team. Travel distance did not affect home advantage.     

Especial skill vs. quiet eye duration in basketball free throw: Evidence for the inhibition of competing task solutions

Abstract

The quiet eye (QE) is a gaze phenomenon that has been studied over more than two decades. However, the underlying mechanisms of the well-known expertise effect, namely, longer QE durations in experts when compared to less-skilled athletes remain unclear. Therefore, from a functional perspective, an inhibition hypothesis was proposed that explains long QE durations in experts with increased inhibition requirements over movement parametrisation. This hypothesis was tested by making use of the especial-skill effect in basketball free throw which refers to the observation of higher actual performance than would be predicted on the basis of performance at the nearby locations. In line with the expectations, from the distance of the free-throw line, higher actual than predicted shooting accuracy and longer actual than predicted QE duration were revealed. This suggests that when performing free throws prolonged QE durations are required to shield the optimal against alternative task solutions within the very dense sub-space of this especial skill. These findings suggest an inhibition function of long QE durations in expert athletes.     

Effects of starting score-line,game location,and quality of opposition in basketball quarter score

Abstract

In several team sports, the game starting score-line may be understood as a measure of performance accomplishment and hence might have an effect on players' subsequent efforts. The aim of this study was to identify the effect of the starting score-line, game location, and quality of opposition on basketball game quarter final score. The sample comprised 504 game quarters from the Spanish Basketball Professional League and these were classified as balanced (difference in scores equal of 8 points or less, n=194) and unbalanced (difference in scores of more than 8 points, n=310) using k-means cluster procedures. The effects of the predictor variables on game quarter outcome (difference between points scored and points received) in the whole game and in the second, third, and fourth game quarters were analysed using linear regression analysis. The starting game quarter score-line was only significant in unbalanced situations with very similar effects among different game quarters. The greater the difference in accumulated score at the beginning of each quarter, the more points recovered by the teams who were losing. A small effect from the quality of the opponent was found in the second and third quarters, whereas game location only had an effect when analysing the whole game and second quarter using balanced and unbalanced game quarters combined.     

One for One: A Defense of Pitcher Retaliation in Baseball

Baseball rules prohibit pitchers from intentionally throwing at batters. When a pitcher does so, however, it is common practice for a pitcher on the opposing team to retaliate by throwing at the first player of the offending team to bat the next inning, and for umpires to ignore the rule forbidding that. I argue that (1) player retaliation in the form of one for one is a better response to the initial violation than any other that is available, (2) one for one can be justified as payback and for anticipated good consequences, and (3) everyone who becomes a professional baseball player has consented to the practice. From these claims, I conclude that one for one is in the best interest of baseball, it is best if umpires follow common practice and wink at the rule forbidding it, and players cannot complain if they are told to throw at batters in certain circumstances, or are thrown at in just those circumstances.     

北京市水资源短缺风险等级评价与预测

本文利用1979年-2009年的北京市水资源相关数据,采用灰色关联分析方法筛选出主要水资源短缺风险因子;用模糊聚类分析法对水资源系列进行聚类;用灰色系统GM(1,1)法预测2010年-2015年的水资源短缺风险,将结果进行模糊聚类分析.结果表明,降雨量、常住人口、第三产业及生活等其它用水量与北京市水资源短缺的关联度较大.在1999年之前,北京市水资源风险主要处于中等以及较低的等级.1999年之后,北京市的水资源风险基本处于较高的等级.在丰水年条件下,2010年-2015年北京市水资源风险处于较低等级;在平水年处于中等等级;在枯水年和极端枯水年,将处于较高风险甚至高风险等级.2014年后,南水北调工程引水入京将有效缓解水资源短缺状况,使水资源短缺的风险降低一个等级.     

平谷区农村居民点用地的时空特征及优化布局研究

农村居民点的优化布局必须在分析现状的基础上,按照农村产业发展规划目标,针对不同类型进行分类调控,科学评价农村居民点的综合发展潜力是村庄量化分类的基础,也是协调推进村庄整治的关键所在.本文以北京市平谷区为例,利用2004年、2009年土地利用现状数据库,研究了平谷区2009年农村居民点空间分布特征及2004年-2009年间居民点用地的变化情况.结合山区和平原区的不同发展条件,分别制定山区和平原区农村居民点的综合发展潜力评价指标体系,运用GIS的地理空间分析功能,对评价要素的空间叠加、计算,评价村庄的综合发展潜力.并将评价结果与城镇发展规划相结合,针对农村居民点用地的区位条件,提出居民点用地调控的类型及区域产业发展布局的方向.研究结果体现了土地利用的现状及适宜性,对推进农村居民点整理具有一定的指导意义.     

一种企业研发团队复杂网络平台体系架构

针对现有复杂网络软件难以支撑企业研发团队分析的问题,建立一个灵活、可扩展的关系网络的展示环境和可视化分析环境,提炼出研发团队复杂网络映射方案、表示方案,通过特征指标关联反映研发团队复杂网络的内在本质,形成以行为为准则的复杂网络动态演化机制,为企业研发团队的复杂网络分析提供一个具有复杂网络建模、分析展示系统、指标特征关联、网络动态演化4个层面的专业平台架构。     

一种基于“PERFORM”的团队绩效评价新体系

在对团队绩效评价研究文献综述的基础上,从一个新的视角,即从团队的"PERFORM"特征出发,构建7个评价维度27个具体评价指标的团队评价新体系。依据新体系,运用层次分析方法,给出一个团队评价的应用实例。