Response selection and execution skills of professionals and novices during singles tennis competition.

This study extended research on sport expertise concerning the development of cognitive and motor skills in singles tennis (McPherson, 1999). 12 adult male professional and novice tennis players were videotaped during singles competition. Opponents for matches were randomly selected within each group of participants. Two tennis experts utilized an observational scale to judge players' performance generated during competition for serves and shots following the serve, e.g.. return of serves, lobs. Each player was scored on three performance components: quality of movement to or control of the ball for serves or shots attempted (control skills), appropriateness of serve or shot selections in the context of game situations (response selection skills), and quality of serves or shots produced (response execution skills). Relative frequency scores for the highest category of each performance component were derived according to the number of opportunities to respond. Serve performance indicated both groups were able to control their serves: however, professionals made more tactical selections and forceful executions. Shot performance indicated professionals made more successful movement to and control of shots, tactical shot selections, and forcing shot executions than novices. Overall, players' tactical response selections were greater than their forceful response executions. Thus, assessing players' decisions during competition may provide vital information concerning tactical skill development. Further, professional players exhibited higher and more consistent tactical behavior than elite collegiate players examined in 1999 by McPherson. Findings were attributed to tactical knowledge and motor skill development resulting from competition and practice experiences.     

The advantage of being left-handed in interactive sports

As compared with their prevalence in the general population, left-handers are overrepresented in the expert domain of many interactive sports. This study examined to what extent this is due to negative perceptual frequency effects—that is, whether the greater frequency of tennis matches with right-handed opponents makes it possible to discriminate the stroke movements of right-handed players more precisely. Fifty-four right-handed and 54 left-handed males in three equal-sized groups of varying levels of tennis expertise (national league experts, local league intermediates, and novices) completed a tennis anticipation test in which they had to predict the subsequent direction of an opponent’s temporally occluded tennis strokes on a computer screen. The results showed that all three groups were better at predicting the direction of strokes by right-handed players. This supports the hypothesis that the overrepresentation of left-handers in the expert domain is partly due to perceptual frequency effects.     

Relation of knowledge and performance in boys' tennis: age and expertise

This research examined boys' development of knowledge structure and sport performance in tennis. To assess decision-making and performance, expert and novice tennis players (10-11 and 12-13 years old) were compared on tennis performance (control, decision, and execution), tennis knowledge, serve skill, and groundstroke skill. Experts regardless of age performed better than novices on tennis skill and knowledge; experts' decisions and actions were better during tennis game performance. Declarative knowledge was related to the development of procedural knowledge; serve and groundstroke skill were related to the motor execution components of performance. Interviews during and after game play were used to examine knowledge and decision-making. Experts, as compared to novices, focused on higher level concepts, had more connections between concepts, and had more condition and alternative action concepts that were important to the game's goal structure. Experts' greater decision-making ability during game play was related to their knowledge structure.     

The use of anticipatory visual cues by highly skilled tennis players

The authors examined 13 skilled and 12 novice tennis performers' ability to use visual information of an opponent's movement pattern to anticipate and respond. In Experiment 1, skilled and novice players anticipated the type of stroke and the direction in which the ball was hit in a highly coupled perception-action environment. Both groups of players correctly anticipated at greater than chance levels. Skilled players were significantly more accurate than novices with live and video displays but not with point-light displays. In Experiment 2, the reaction latencies of 10 expert performers were significantly faster when they returned balls hit by a live opponent than when they returned balls projected from a cloaked ball machine. The findings indicate that experts are able to use movement-pattern information to determine shot selection and to use that information to significantly reduce their response delay times. The findings are discussed in terms of perception-action coupling in time-stress activities.     

Brain dynamics of visual anticipation during spatial occlusion tasks in expert tennis players

Stimulus identification and action outcome understanding for a rapid and accurate response selection, play a fundamental role in racquet sports. Here, we investigated the neurodynamics of visual anticipation in tennis manipulating the postural and kinematic information associated with the body of opponents by means of a spatial occlusion protocol. Event Related Potentials (ERPs) were evaluated in two groups of professional tennis players (N = 37) with different levels of expertise, while they observed pictures of opponents and predicted the landing position as fast and accurately as possible. The observed action was manipulated by deleting different body districts of the opponent (legs, ball, racket and arm, trunk). Full body image (no occlusion) was used as control condition. The worst accuracy and the slowest response time were observed in the occlusion of trunk and ball. The former was associated with a reduced amplitude of the ERP components likely linked to body processing (the N1 in the right hemisphere) and visual-motor integration awareness (the pP1), as well as with an increase of the late frontal negativity (the pN2), possibly reflecting an effort by the insula to recover and/or complete the most correct sensory-motor representation. In both occlusions, a decrease in the pP2 may reflect an impairment of decisional processes upon action execution following sensory evidence accumulation. Enhanced amplitude of the P3 and the pN2 components were found in more experienced players, suggesting a greater allocation of resources in the process connecting sensory encoding and response execution, and sensory-motor representation.     

Visual search,anticipation, and reactive comparisons between highly-skilled and beginning tennis players

Abstract

Simulated tennis playing situations were created for the laboratory testing of visual search patterns, anticipation, reactions, and movements to compare male and female high-level and beginning players. Of particular interest was the degree to which each measure would differentiate the groups. Participants were highly-rated university players (N-30) and students enrolled in a beginning tennis class (N = 30). Under one testing condition, visual search patterns were recorded as they viewed filmed opponents serve (60 trials) and hit ground strokes (60 trials). Also recorded was anticipation accuracy and speed of the intended type and location of serves and the intended placement of ground strokes. In other testing, execution of a split step was followed by moving rapidly to the comet location for a simulated stroke in response to a series of light cues. Reaction and movement times were recorded. Discrimination analysis revealed that experts and beginners were most differentiated due to fixations on certain cues and predicting ball direction. As to visual search analysis of fixation duration for nine possible areas during the serves, only the head area was significant. Beginners directed more time toward the head region than did the highly skilled. Experts and novices had similar visual patterns with respect to ground strokes, and a few differences existed within the two female groups, in the two male groups. as well as between males and females. Anticipation measures for the serve indicated that experts were faster and more accurate than beginners, and males were faster than females. Ground stroke data revealed that the highly-skilled were faster and more accurate than novices. Finally, the simulated split-step data showed that reaction times and movement times were faster for the experts versus the beginners, and males were quicker in movement times than females.     

长期高策略性技能训练对运动员大脑白质结构的影响：一项DTI研究

目前关于运动员经验优势的脑机制还存在争议, 尤其对于涉及较多认知过程参与的高策略性技能项目运动员, 其大脑白质结构可塑性变化还需进一步探究。研究横向对比了乒乓球运动员和非运动员大脑白质纤维束的弥散张量成像数据。结果发现, 相比于非运动员, 乒乓球运动员在连接背侧和腹侧通路脑区的双侧皮质脊髓束、左侧上纵束、左侧下纵束和双侧额枕下束的各向异性值(FA)更大, 进一步分析发现, 部分腹侧通路白质纤维束FA增加的原因是径向扩散系数(RD)下降。研究结果支持了动作双通路模型。提示经过长期高策略性技能训练, 乒乓球运动员在背侧和腹侧通路上的白质纤维束结构完整性增强。     

The coupling between gaze behavior and opponent kinematics during anticipation of badminton shots

PurposeWe examined links between the kinematics of an opponent’s actions and the visual search behaviors of badminton players responding to those actions.MethodA kinematic analysis of international standard badminton players (n = 4) was undertaken as they completed a range of serves. Video of these players serving was used to create a life-size temporal occlusion test to measure anticipation responses. Expert (n = 8) and novice (n = 8) badminton players anticipated serve location while wearing an eye movement registration system.ResultsDuring the execution phase of the opponent’s movement, the kinematic analysis showed between-shot differences in distance traveled and peak acceleration at the shoulder, elbow, wrist and racket. Experts were more accurate at responding to the serves compared to novice players. Expert players fixated on the kinematic locations that were most discriminating between serve types more frequently and for a longer duration compared to novice players. Moreover, players were generally more accurate at responding to serves when they fixated vision upon the discriminating arm and racket kinematics.ConclusionsFindings extend previous literature by providing empirical evidence that expert athletes’ visual search behaviors and anticipatory responses are inextricably linked to the opponent action being observed.     

Chronometric comparisons of imagery to action: visualizing versus physically performing springboard dives

Motor imagery research emphasizes similarities between the mental imagery of an action and its physical execution. In this study, temporal differences between motor imagery and its physical performance as a function of performer expertise, skill complexity, and spatial ability were investigated. Physical execution times for springboard dives were compared with visualized execution times. Results indicate that physical and visualized performance times were not identical: Their relation is a function of dive complexity and diver expertise, but not their interaction. Relative to physical time, visualization time increased with increased complexity, suggesting the involvement of capacity-limited working memory. A nonmonotonic relation was found for expertise: Unlike experts or novices, visualization time for intermediates was significantly slower than physical time. These temporal differences are most consistent with schematic differences in skill representation. Intermediates may be relatively slowed by greater amounts of nonautomatized knowledge, as compared with the automatized knowledge of experts or the sparse knowledge of novices.     

Uncertainty and visual strategies in table tennis

Ball games are characterized by perceptual uncertainty and time-pressure. Of interest is the visual-search pattern carried out when these characteristics change. This is the case in table-tennis situations when comparing a drill situation, when one kind of stroke is constantly repeated, and a match situation, when the stroke is more often unpredictable. We analysed, during play, the visual-search pattern of five expert table tennis players to examine the effect of uncertainty on visual behavior. Direction of gaze was recorded by a video-oculographic recorder (NAC Eye Mark Recorder IV). Analysis showed that (i) visual fixations towards opponent player were only systematic in a match contrary to drill where they occurred less frequently. (ii) Whatever the situation, only the first part of the ball's trajectory was visually tracked. This occurred immediately after the opponent's release of the ball. Nevertheless, visual tracking was more frequent and of longer duration in a match. (iii) Analysis of motor behavior showed that the duration of the movement preparation was longer in a match while the duration of the execution phase was unchanged.     

The Effectiveness of Situational Awareness Learning in Response to Video Tennis Match Situations

The purpose of the study was to examine the effectiveness of specially designed instructions on tennis match play training on situation awareness (SA), anticipation (A), and decision-making (DM). Response speed and accuracy measures were taken in videoed match play tennis situations and the effect of perceptual skills training on these behaviors was recorded in a primary and two related tennis situations. Intermediate tennis players (N = 59, M = 21.75 years old, SD = 4.96) were randomly assigned to one of five groups. After receiving instructions, participants responded to a series of edited video clips. A 5 × 3 × 3 (Groups × Condition x Shot Type) repeated-measures multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted to determine differences in perceptual training and learning strategies across three conditions and multiple shot types. Findings indicated that combinational SA/A/DM perceptual training effectively improved performance; however, no difference was found between implicit and explicit learning strategies. Future research possibilities and applied implications are discussed.     

Effect of tactical initiative on predicting passing shots in tennis

This study aimed to demonstrate that one of the main sources of information that tennis players use to anticipate their opponents' strokes is prior knowledge of the upcoming events likely to develop when the player has the opportunity to impose his or her playing intent. Seventeen experienced male players were faced with simulated on‐court situations with three different delivery conditions such that their tactical initiative was high, moderate or weak (reflecting the possibilities of controlling rallies). Each situation finished with a passing shot from the opponent that the participant had to intercept with a volley stroke in the absence of visual information (vision occluded before the opponent's stroke). Analysis of directional responses showed that the participants were more accurate if they were in firm control of the rallies (high level of tactical initiative). Forecasts were also found to be more accurate for down‐the‐line backhand shots. These findings increase our understanding of anticipation in tennis. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Soccer player's and closed-skill athletes' execution of a complex motor skill

The main purpose of this study was to investigate possible differences in speed and accuracy of motor execution among female soccer players in an Expert Soccer group, a Novice Soccer group, and a Closed-skill Athlete group. There were two main findings. Firstly, both soccer groups performed better than the Closed-skill Athletes on speed and accuracy of motor execution. Secondly, there were no significant differences between Expert and Novice soccer players in the speed and accuracy of motor execution.     

网球运动专长对深度运动知觉影响的ERP研究

结合专家-新手范式与ERP技术,研究网球运动专长对个体深度运动知觉产生的影响。通过记录网球专家和新手各19名进行深度运动模式判断时的行为和ERP数据,比较两组个体深度运动知觉的行为反应差异和脑电特征。结果显示,网球专家组深度运动知觉的判断准确率高于新手组;新手组在球体靠近时P1(PO7点)的潜伏期比球体远离时的潜伏期长,专家组无显著性差异;专家组在球体靠近时的P2(Oz点)成分潜伏期长于球体远离时的潜伏期。结果表明,网球运动专家的深度运动知觉能力在准确性上较新手高;运动专长效应与选择性注意资源的调用以及模式识别有关;枕区P2成分可作为深度运动知觉的评价指标。     

Exploring the retirement from sport decision-making process based on the transtheoretical model

ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to complement and extend the current knowledge of the particular stages of athletes’ career transition process through employing the transtheoretical model (Prochaska & DiClemente, 1984) as a theoretical framework. More specifically, the current study aimed to explore Korean elite tennis players’ career transition process through focusing on their retirement decision-making process, including their cognitive and behavioral changes and internal and external influences for their decisions during the final stages of their sport careers and the retirement decision-making process.DesignWe employed focus groups.MethodsA total of 12 participants took part in one of three focus groups (i.e., four current players, five retired players, and three coaches) that focused on the process of athletes' retirement decision-making. All participants (seven males and five females; Mean age = 31.25, SD = 3.49 years) were either current or former Korean elite-level tennis players. The data were thematically content analyzed.ResultsThe results revealed three themes: (a) readiness for retirement, (b) psychological and emotional responses during the decision-making process, and (c) coping strategies; and showed that athletes’ decision-making at the end of their sports careers is a dynamic process, accompanied by various emotional responses requiring different coping strategies at different stages.ConclusionFindings indicated that the transtheoretical model helped to explain athletes’ decision-making in retiring from sport and suggested to the need to provide different interventions at different stages. Identifying detailed aspects of readiness for retirement and examining the effectiveness of interventions grounded in the transtheoretical model are recommended as future research directions.     

Does decision making transfer across similar and dissimilar sports?

ObjectivesThe ability to make decisions under time pressure is crucial to performance in sport. However, there remains a paucity of research that examines whether the skills underpinning decision-making transfer across similar or dissimilar sports. We examine whether decision making transfers from soccer to other sports that may be deemed to be either similar (basketball) or dissimilar (tennis) based on sports taxonomy.MethodsSkilled soccer players (N = 20) completed a video-based temporal occlusion test designed to measure decision-making involving offensive sequences of play from soccer, basketball, and tennis. Participants were required to decide on an appropriate action to execute for each situation presented.ResultsResponse accuracy was higher in the soccer decision-making task compared to the basketball and tennis tasks. Furthermore, accuracy scores were higher on the basketball compared to the tennis task.ConclusionsThere appears to be some positive transfer of decision-making between sports that share similar elements, supporting the importance both of specificity and generality in expert performance.     

Anticipation of ball location in low and high-skill performers: a developmental perspective

Objectives: To study how visual anticipatory capabilities develop in high and low-skill tennis players and the role of years of practice (i.e. experience). It was expected that with accumulated experience differences will increase with skill-level, in particular under conditions of fast visual exposure which results in minimal environmental information exposure.Method: Eighty tennis players divided into 4 age categories and 2 skill levels (high and low) were selected according to 4 criterion which ensured appropriate representation of skill-level and experience in tennis. Age categories were 8–11, 11–14, 14–18, and >18. Years of experience in the game were 2.12, 4.17, 6.5, and 12.4 years respectively. Players observed filmed segments of tennis strokes on a monitor, which varied in temporal occlusion conditions from −480 ms prior to ball-racquet contact to 320 ms after contact. After each exposure they were asked to indicate the final ball location. The radial, lateral, and depth distances were averaged for age and skill level.Design: A temporal occlusion paradigm was used in this study. The film was prepared with a camera positioned in the receiver's court. Eight strokes which best represent the game of tennis were chosen. Forty-eight segments were viewed and errors were calculated for each exposure.Result: High-skill tennis players gained more from practice and experience in developing visual anticipatory skills, but their perceptual advantage was not consistent across all stroke conditions, being at its greatest number in conditions of maximal temporal constraints.Conclusions: Differences in visual anticipatory capabilities exist between different skill levels at the outset of their development. These differences increase with experience, mainly after 6–7 years. Greater knowledge base does not always guarantee a superior anticipation of upcoming events and choosing the best decision.     

Table Tennis Experts Outperform Novices in a Demanding Cognitive-Motor Dual-Task Situation

Abstract

Theories on motor skill acquisition predict that earlier learning stages require more attention, which should lead to higher cognitive-motor dual-task interference in novices as compared to experts. Expert and novice table tennis players returned balls from a ball machine while concurrently performing an auditory 3-back task (working memory). The groups did not differ in 3-back performance in the single task. Cognitive dual-task performance reductions were more pronounced in novices. A similar pattern emerged for the number of missed balls in table tennis, except that experts outperformed novices already in the single task. Experts consistently showed costs of about 10%, while novices showed costs between 30% and 50%. The findings indicate that performances of novices suffer considerably in motor-cognitive dual-task situations.     

同伴特点如何影响人们的合作与冲突行为?

人类的生存繁衍依赖于人们之间的相互合作,合作与冲突行为的研究近年来成为心理学的研究热点。本研究通过实验程序操纵Chicken Game中博弈同伴的特点,考察个体在社会困境中面对不同特点同伴时的合作行为。结果发现：(1)同伴道义论组和功利论组总和解率没有显著差异,同伴竞争组和合作组的总和解率也没有显著差异。(2)在与道义论以及合作型的同伴互动时,个体的行为没有明显受到上次博弈反馈的影响。(3)当同伴为功利论时,相比于上次博弈个体选择和解而同伴选择进攻,双方都选择和解时个体在当前博弈中更倾向于和解;(4)在同伴竞争组中,相比于上次博弈个体选择进攻而同伴选择和解,双方都选择和解时被试在当前博弈中会更倾向于和解。实验结果表明个体在博弈任务中会受到同伴特点的影响,并且同伴在博弈中的行为特点的影响更为显著。本研究从同伴特点来考察个体的合作行为,揭示了影响个体博弈行为的一种因素。