Sport and the sociologist 1890–1914

This essay is a response to Paul Ward’s piece ‘Last Man Picked. Do Mainstream Historians Need to Play with Sports Historians?’ (The International Journal of the History of Sport (2012), doi:10.1080/09523367.2012.726617). While Ward admits that his work is a polemic and is inspired largely by events in his youth, this response nevertheless questions the decision to critique an entire sub-discipline based on childhood experiences. Ward’s criticisms, however, are also practice-based, and this response also critically examines the lack of fresh evidence to support Ward’s claims regarding sports history’s existence outwith mainstream historical academia, and its supposed privileged place within the wider world of leisure history. The author makes that case that not only does sports history to take part in a wider historical dialogue, but must necessarily look to engage with sports studies practitioners. Finally, in the face of Ward’s criticisms, this essay reiterates what makes sport a vital subject for historians, in regional, national and international contexts.     

Recent Developments in Measurement and Possible Applications to the Measurement of Psychomotor Behavior

Abstract

Elementary physical education instructors and movement development clinicians frequently employ movement observation as their primary assessment strategy. The purpose of this study was to determine the minimal conditions of observation needed to obtain generalizable results across observers, trials, and subjects for the hop, jump, and run. The developmental sequences developed at Michigan State University were used as the observation system. Twelve children in the age range of 33–111 months were rated on five trials by 15 observers. The sample consisted of an equal number of males and females and did not involve children with handicapping conditions. The results suggest that when observers receive 1 hour of training for each skill, one observer and three trials are needed for evaluating the hop (.88), while three observers and three trials are required for the jump (.83). None of the nine measurement conditions resulted in acceptable (.80) generalizability for the run.     

Age,Physical Activity,Physical Fitness,Body Composition,and Incidence of Orthopedic Problems

Abstract

The incidence of orthopedic problems was examined in 5, 582 men and women who attended the Cooper Clinic in Dallas, Texas between 1974 and 1982. The effects of age, physical activity, physical fitness, and body mass index (EMI) on the occurrence of these problems were examined using a proportional hazards approach. The expected risk of orthopedic problems per person-year was 0.045 for men and 0.046 for women. For men, physical fitness, BMI, and physical activity were associated with orthopedic problems, while for women, physical activity was the main predictor. Age was not a factor for either gender. The effect of change in physical fitness, physical activity, and BMI was examined in a subset of 2, 325 persons with more than one visit to the clinic. For women, physical activity and a decrease in BMI were associated with orthopedic problems, while for men none of those factors were significant. Again, age was not a factor in either group. The absence of any age effect on the occurrence of problems suggests that with regard to orthopedic problems, moderate amounts of physical activity in generally healthy persons may be recommended without special consideration as to age.     

Composition of Practice: Influence on the Retention of Motor Skills

Abstract

The purpose of these experiments was to investigate further the variable practice effect found by Shea and Kohl (1990). Experiment 1 was an initial attempt to determine the locus of the retention benefits demonstrated by subjects provided variable practice experiences. All groups received 20 acquisition blocks consisting of five test trials per block at a target of 150 N. The interval between test trials was either unfilled or filled, with additional trials consisting of the same target force, variable target forces, or practice on an unrelated motor task. The results indicated retention was not incremented (relative to an unfilled interval) by requiring subjects to perform an unrelated motor task in the intertest–trial interval. However, when the intertest–trial interval was filled with practice on related motor tasks, retention was significantly improved. Experiment 2 assessed the impact of increasing the number of related motor tasks interpolated between test trials. The results indicated filling the intertest–trial interval with one motor task resulted in large retention benefits relative to an unfilled interval. Further increases in the number of related motor tasks (3) interpolated between test trials resulted in only modest increments to retention. The results were consistent with the elaboration perspective proposed by Shea and Zimny (1983). The elaboration perspective proposes that the simultaneous presence of related items in working memory facilitates interitem elaborative and distinctive processing that ultimately results in retention benefits.     

A three-dimensional kinematic analysis of the long jump take-off

The long jump has been widely studied in recent years. Two models exist in the literature which define the relationship between selected variables that affect performance. Both models suggest that the critical phase of the long jump event is the touch-down to take-off phase, as it is in this phase that the necessary vertical velocity is generated. Many three dimensional studies of the long jump exist, but the only studies to have reported detailed data on this phase were two-dimensional in nature. In these, the poor relationships obtained between key variables and performance led to the suggestion that there may be some relevant information in data in the third dimension. The aims of this study were to conduct a three-dimensional analysis of the touch-down to take-off phase in the long jump and to explore the interrelationships between key variables. Fourteen male long jumpers were filmed using three-dimensional methods during the finals of the 1994 (n = 8) and 1995 (n = 6) UK National Championships. Various key variables for the long jump were used in a series of correlational and multiple regression analyses. The relationships between key variables when correlated directly one-to-one were generally poor. However, when analysed using a multiple regression approach, a series of variables was identified which supported the general principles outlined in the two models. These variables could be interpreted in terms of speed, technique and strength. We concluded that in the long jump, variables that are important to performance are interdependent and can only be identified by using appropriate statistical techniques. This has implications for a better understanding of the long jump event and it is likely that this finding can be generalized to other technical sports skills.     

Segmental dynamics of soccer instep kicking with the preferred and non-preferred leg

Abstract

Detailed time-series of the resultant joint moments and segmental interactions during soccer instep kicking were compared between the preferred and non-preferred kicking leg. The kicking motions of both legs were captured for five highly skilled players using a three-dimensional cinematographic technique at 200 Hz. The resultant joint moment (muscle moment) and moment due to segmental interactions (interaction moment) were computed using a two-link kinetic chain model composed of the thigh and lower leg (including shank and foot). The mechanical functioning of the muscle and interaction moments during kicking were clearly illustrated. Significantly greater ball velocity (32.1 vs. 27.1 m · s^?1), shank angular velocity (39.4 vs. 31.8 rad · s^?1) and final foot velocity (22.7 vs. 19.6 m · s^?1) were observed for the preferred leg. The preferred leg showed a significantly greater knee muscle moment (129.9 N · m) than the non-preferred leg (93.5 N · m), while no substantial differences were found for the interaction moment between the two legs (79.3 vs. 55.7 N · m). These results indicate that the highly skilled soccer players achieved a well-coordinated inter-segmental motion for both the preferred and non-preferred leg. The faster leg swing observed for the preferred leg was most likely the result of the larger muscle moment.     

Changes in the perception of action possibilities while climbing to fatigue on a climbing wall

Abstract

In two experiments we examined changes in the perception of action possibilities as a function of exertion. In Experiment 1, participants repeatedly climbed on a climbing wall in a series of trials that progressively increased in number to 10 trials, resulting in increased exertion. Before and during climbing, the participants judged their maximum reaching height and perceived exertion. On a separate day, participants climbed another 10 trials while performing actual maximum reaches. Higher perceived exertion was associated with decreases in perceived maximum reach while the actual reaches did not decrease. However, the perceptual changes occurred early during task execution when the participants were not yet fatigued. When exertion set in, neither perceived nor actual maximum reaching appeared to be affected. In Experiment 2, we included exhaustion trials. The findings replicated the early changes in perception observed in Experiment 1, which may be explained by hands-on experience with the task. Furthermore, while climbing to exhaustion, perceptual judgements largely changed in keeping with changes in the actual maximum reach. Thus, there appeared to be a functional relationship between participants' actual action capabilities, rather than their state of physical fatigue per se, and perceived action possibilities.     

Activity profile of top-class association football referees in relation to performance in selected physical tests

Abstract

The aims of the present study were (1) to analyse the physical demands of top-class referees and (2) to compare their official FIFA fitness test results with physical performance during a match. The work rate profiles of 11 international referees were assessed during 12 competitive matches at the 2003 FIFA Under-17 World Cup and then analysed using a bi-dimensional photogrammetric video analysis system based on direct lineal transformation (DLT) algorithms. In the first 15 min of matches, the referees were more active, performing more high-intensity exercise (P < 0.01) than in the first 15 min of the second half. During the second half of matches, the referees covered a shorter distance (P < 0.01), spent more time standing still (P < 0.05), and covered less ground cruising (P < 0.05), sprinting (P < 0.05), and moving backwards (P < 0.001) than in the first half. Also in the second 45 min, the distance of referees from infringements increased (P < 0.05) in the left attacking zone of the filed. There was also a decrease (P < 0.05) in performance in the period following the most high-intensity activity, compared with the mean for the 90 min. Time spent performing high-intensity activities during a match was not related to performance in the 12-min run (r ² = 0.30; P < 0.05), the 200-m sprint (r ² = 0.05; P < 0.05), or the 50-m sprint (r ² = 0.001; P < 0.05). The results of this study show that: (1) top-class referees experienced fatigue at different stages of the match, and (2) the typical field tests used by FIFA (two 50-m and 200-m sprints, followed by a 12-min run) are not correlated with match activities.     

Effects of Method of Subject Selection (Volunteer vs Random) and Treatment Variable on Motor Performance

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to test for possible interaction effects between method of subject selection (volunteer vs random) and a selected treatment variable—verbal encouragement. The presence of such an interaction would suggest that generalizations regarding verbal encouragement could be made only to specific subject populations. Volunteer (n = 40) and randomly selected (n = 40) subjects were randomly assigned to either a verbal encouragement condition or to a control group with no verbal encouragement. Dependent variables were a tapping task and a leg lift task. It was predicted that volunteer subjects, due to their higher need for approval and greater desire to accommodate, would perform significantly better under the verbal encouragement condition than would the randomly selected subjects. Multivariate and univariate data analyses indicated that the prediction was supported on the tapping task (female subjects only) but not on the leg lift task. It was concluded, at least on certain tasks, that use of volunteer subjects may result in a selection bias × treatment interaction effect that could limit the generalizability of research results.