Skilled swimmers maintain performance stability under changing attentional focus constraints

Maloney, Michael A.; Gorman, Adam D.

doi:10.1016/j.humov.2021.102789

Cited by 4 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…Despite a significant change in the movement technique execution according to the instruction, the effect did not result in better sprint times. In the same manner, investigating the swimming start techniques with using the EF (push the blocks away) and IF (push with your feet) instructions, caused no difference in most of the measured variables despite a lower horizontal acceleration in IF condition [ 38 ]. Together, these two studies demonstrate the sensitivity of focus consequences, where IF instructions modulate the addressed movement part, but at the same time the whole neuromuscular system is unable to optimize these adaptations for the movement outcome.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Focus of Attention in Coach Instructions for Technique Training in Sports: A Scrutinized Review of Review Studies

Werner

Federolf²

2023

JFMK

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Literature reports superior performance when focusing one’s attention during a movement on environmental effects of that movement (external focus, EF) compared to focusing on the moving body (internal focus, IF). Nevertheless, IF instructions still play an important role in the daily practice of coaches, trainers, and therapists. The current review compiles evidence for focus-of-attention concepts on movement form corrections and technique training. Reviews on the topic and selected additional papers addressing the effect of attentional focus on movement form or on kinetic, kinematic or muscle activity data were included. Both EF and IF instructions affect movement form. The reviews revealed that IF instructions seem to be better applicable to direct movement form changes than EF instructions. In contrast, EF instructions better facilitate optimization within the whole-body coordination, often resulting in better performance outcomes not directly linked to movement pattern changes. Several studies discuss focus-of-attention effects in the context of the optimal feedback control theory expanding on the constrained action hypothesis. In summary, EF and IF instructions both affect form and performance of movements, however, their relative efficacy is situation dependent. The often-purported superiority of EF over IF instructions cannot be generalized to all application contexts.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Focus of Attention in Coach Instructions for Technique Training in Sports: A Scrutinized Review of Review Studies

Werner

Federolf²

2023

JFMK

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“…Although many studies have demonstrated a benefit of adopting an external FoA over an internal FoA, this finding is not universal. For instance, studies in swimming [ 12 ] and darts [ 13 ] have failed to find a significant performance difference between either FoAs, whilst a study in gymnastics form found that performance improved when adopting an internal over an external FoA [ 14 ]. However, the latter study garnered concerns by Wulf [ 11 ] regarding the lack of similarity between FoA task instructions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of focus of attention on aiming performance in the first-person shooter videogame Aim Lab

James¹,

O'Connor²

2023

PLoS ONE

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Research examining the impact of Focus of Attention (FoA) has consistently demonstrated a benefit of adopting an external FoA over an internal FoA across a variety of sports and other domains. However, FoA research has yet to be applied within the rapidly growing world of competitive gaming. This study investigated whether an external FoA provided benefits over an internal FoA for aiming performance in First-Person Shooter (FPS) videogames, using the aim-training game Aim Lab. The study explored whether the level of participants’ previous experience of FPS games impacted any effect, as few studies have investigated this directly. Participants with high (N = 20) and low (N = 17) FPS experience who had a minimum of 200 hours FPS experience were selected for the study. The participants were instructed before each set of ten trials to either attend to their wrist/arm movements (internal FoA) or to the target (external FoA). There was no significant main effect of FoA on performance and no significant interaction between FoA and experience. In contrast to findings in other studies, an external FoA provided no performance benefits over an internal FoA in the FPS game Aim Lab. We discuss methodological issues related to the measures used and suggest avenues for future research with a view to improving understanding of putative underlying mechanisms for FoA effects.

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Resolving the Centipede’s Dilemma: external focus distance and expertise in applied, continuous skills

Banks,

Higgins,

Sproule

et al. 2024

Psychological Research

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Research has reliably demonstrated that an external focus of attention during skill production enhances performance, retention, and transfer relative to an internal focus on movement mechanics. The optimisation of external focus points, across a range of contexts and performers, is important for effective skill production. Two studies were conducted evaluating the impact of external focus distance in an applied, continuous sports skill (kayak sprinting) with participants of two different expertise levels. In Study 1, using a within-participants design, recreational kayakers (n = 20) were timed sprinting 75 m in a surf ski under proximal external focus, distal external focus, and control conditions. The distal focus (on the finish) (29.75 s) was significantly faster than both other trials (ps < 0.001). The control condition (30.95 s) was significantly faster than the proximal focus (on the boat) (32.37 s) (p = 0.003). The effect size was large (ηp2 = 0.55). In Study 2, specifically trained racers in sprint kayaks (K1s) (n = 16) were timed in a 100 m K1 sprint under the same three conditions as in Study 1. The control condition (28.96 s) was significantly faster than the proximal focus trial (29.83 s) (p = 0.02). The effect size was large (ηp2 = 0.23). There was no significant difference between the distal focus trial (29.03 s) and the other conditions. These findings suggest that focus distance can play a pivotal role in continuous skills. Whilst recreational performers may benefit immediately from a distal focus, this might not be the case for specifically trained athletes. Further, a proximal focus on fitted, passive equipment may be detrimental to performance.

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Skilled swimmers maintain performance stability under changing attentional focus constraints

Cited by 4 publications

References 37 publications

Focus of Attention in Coach Instructions for Technique Training in Sports: A Scrutinized Review of Review Studies

Focus of Attention in Coach Instructions for Technique Training in Sports: A Scrutinized Review of Review Studies

Impact of focus of attention on aiming performance in the first-person shooter videogame Aim Lab

Resolving the Centipede’s Dilemma: external focus distance and expertise in applied, continuous skills

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