Self-controlled video feedback on tactical skills for soccer teams results in more active involvement of players

Many studies have shown that self-controlled feedback is beneficial for learning motor tasks, andthat learners prefer to receive feedback after supposedly good trials. However, to date all studiesconducted on self-controlled learning have used individual tasks and mainly relatively simpleskills. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine self-controlled feedback on tactical skills insmall-sided soccer games. Highly talented youth soccer players were assigned to a self-control oryoked group and received video feedback on their o ffensive performance in 3 vs. 2 small-sidedgames. The results showed that the self-control group requested feedback mostly after good trials,that is, after they scored a goal. In addition, the perceived performance of the self-control groupwas higher on feedback than on no-feedback trials. Analyses of the conversations around thevideo feedback revealed that the players and coach discussed good and poor elements of per-formance and how to improve it. Although the coach had a major role in these conversations, theplayers of the self-control group spoke more and showed more initiative compared to the yokedgroup. The results revealed no significant beneficial effect of self-controlled feedback on per-formance as judged by the coach. Overall, the findings suggest that in such a complex situation assmall-sided soccer games, self-controlled feedback is used both to confirm correct performanceelements and to determine and correct errors, and that self-controlled learning stimulates theinvolvement of the learner in the learning process

In situ examination of decision-making skills and gaze behaviour of basketball players

In this study we examined in situ decision-making skills and gaze behaviour of skilled female basketball players. Players participated as ball carriers in a specific 3 vs 3 pick-and-roll basketball play. Playing both on the right and left side of the court and facing three types of defensive play, they chose and performed one of four options: shoot, drive to the basket, pass to the screener or pass to the corner player. We concurrently measured gaze behaviour to examine the direct relationship between gaze and decision making. As one of the first studies examining decision making and gaze behaviour in situ, this study found support for the embodied choice framework as the results showed that handling the ball with the dominant or non-dominant hand influenced the decisions that were made. Gaze measures suggested that peripheral vision may serve a significant role in decision making in situ, whereas players mainly relied on central vision to execute an action. Furthermore, this study underlined the need for developing and using newer and more informative methods to analyse gaze

Persistent handwriting problems are hard to predict:A longitudinal study of the development of handwriting in primary school

Background: After one year of tuition, up to a third of primary school children show insufficient handwriting. It is unclear whether this early insufficient handwriting predicts persistent handwriting problems, because there is a dearth of studies that followed developmental trajectories longitudinally. Aims: To describe handwriting development in primary school children longitudinally and to determine predictive positive value and sensitivity of early handwriting assessment. To analyse whether underlying abilities helps early identification of persistent handwriting problems. Methods: 173 primary school children were yearly assessed for four years using the Concise Assessment Scale for Children's Handwriting and the Beery Buktenica developmental test of visual-motor integration. Results: Both quality and speed of handwriting increased with years of tuition, with a pronounced increase in quality between two and three years of writing tuition. Sensitivity and positive predictive value were low. The only significant predictor of handwriting quality was handwriting quality in the previous year. For handwriting speed, no significant developmental model was revealed. Conclusions: Quality and speed of handwriting after one year of tuition is not sufficiently predictive for distinguishing between transient insufficient handwriting and persistent handwriting problems three years later. Practitioners should hold back when referring children for remedial teaching

Adverse effects of anxiety on attentional control differ as a function of experience: A simulated driving study

This study tested whether adverse effects of state anxiety on attention and performance may be modulated by experience. Sixteen experienced and eleven inexperienced drivers drove in a simulator under low- and high-stress conditions. Anxiety was manipulated by competition, the presence of an evaluator, external video camera, and traffic noise. Most drivers showed greater anxiety scores and higher mean heart rates following manipulation. In both groups increased state anxiety decreased car speed control and caused more collisions, accompanied by fewer fixations of longer duration towards the driving lane across a horizontally narrower region. Inexperienced drivers increased the number of short fixations towards cars, while experienced drivers increased the number of short fixations on the speedometer. Although anxiety impairs processing efficiency and performance effectiveness for both groups, attentional changes differ as a function of experience. Inexperienced drivers tended to shift attention to threatening stimuli, while experienced drives were more likely to consciously monitor task goal

The confluence of intrinsic and extrinsic constraints on 3- to- 9-month-old infants' catching behavior

The present study sought to uncover what constraints shape the early development of the perceptual-motor skill of catching, and how intrinsic (i.e., movement possibilities) and extrinsic constraints (i.e., object speed imposes temporal precision) impinge on the perception of whether or not a moving object affords catching. Thirty-five infants (with different preferred catching tendencies) between 3 and 9 months of age were presented with balls approaching from the side with different speeds. Video recordings were used to determine how each infant reached for the ball (with the right hand, the left hand or with both hands) and whether these catching attempts were successful (resulting in ball-hand contact). The lower the proportion of failing catching attempts the more accurate the infant perceived the ball's catchability. This accuracy is also reflected in the discrepancy between boundary and success speed (i.e., the difference between the ball speed that still was perceived as catchable and the highest ball speed that was actually successfully managed). The findings indicate that the interaction between infants' intrinsic constraints (which gave rise to, e.g., the preference for two-handed catching and inclination to reach) and the extrinsic constraints (imposed by object speed) induces age-related differences in catching performance and age-related differences in the perception of what action a moving object affords. © 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Perceptueel-motorische talentontwikkeling: van multisport naar donorsport

Sport heeft een belangrijke rol in onze samenleving; onderzoek in en naar sport draagt bij aan het versterken van deze rol. In het Amsterdam Institute of Sport Science (AISS) werken Amsterdamse kennisinstellingen met elkaar en diverse sportorganisaties samen om sport en bewegen in al haar facetten te onderzoeken

The state of the art:A personal view on the development of movement coordination

The theoretical position taken in the contributions to this volume are summarized using the distinction between prescriptive and natural physical approaches to the study of development. This summarizing step gives rise to a consideration of a central, but neglected issue: how can developmental transitions be explained? This epilogue ends by pointing out some of the future challenges that confront the study of movement coordination in a developmental perspective

Creating adaptive athletes: the athletic skills model for enhancing physical literacy as a foundation for expertise

The purpose of the current paper is to advocate that the athletic skills model (ASM) serves as a suitable framework to structure (developmental) movement programs to enhance physical literacy as a foundation for expertise. Taking the non-linear developmental trajectories into account (including the possibility to follow the linear developmental pathway), the ASM applies three “roads” to reach this goal, that is, the concentric approach, creating challenging environments, and exploiting transfer. Each of these separately or in combination with each other will increase the level of physical literacy, that is creating more functional variation leading to an increasement of possibilities for adaptation of those involved (athletes, PE teachers, and coaches). ASM seeks a life-long physical activity participation and to maintain a balance between performance, fitness and health for the recreational as well for the disable and able (elite) athlete

Variability in the emergence of early infant reaching

Observation de 10 nourrissons entre l'âge de 8 et 24 semaine