TY - JOUR
T1 - Differential effects of task-specific practice on performance in a simulated penalty kick under high-pressure
AU - Navarro, M.
AU - Miyamoto, N
AU - van der Kamp, J.
AU - Morya, E.
AU - Ranvaud, R.
AU - Savelsbergh, G.J.P.
PY - 2013
Y1 - 2013
N2 - Objectives: The current study investigated to what extent task-specific practice can help reduce the adverse effects of high-pressure on performance in a simulated penalty kick task. Based on the assumption that practice attenuates the required attentional resources, it was hypothesized that task-specific practice would enhance resilience against high-pressure. Method: Participants practiced a simulated penalty kick in which they had to move a lever to the side opposite to the goalkeeper's dive. The goalkeeper moved at different times before ball-contact. Design: Before and after task-specific practice, participants were tested on the same task both under low- and high-pressure conditions. Results: Before practice, performance of all participants worsened under high-pressure; however, whereas one group of participants merely required more time to correctly respond to the goalkeeper movement and showed a typical logistic relation between the percentage of correct responses and the time available to respond, a second group of participants showed a linear relationship between the percentage of correct responses and the time available to respond. This implies that they tended to make systematic errors for the shortest times available. Practice eliminated the debilitating effects of high-pressure in the former group, whereas in the latter group high-pressure continued to negatively affect performance. Conclusions: Task-specific practice increased resilience to high-pressure. However, the effect was a function of how participants responded initially to high-pressure, that is, prior to practice. The results are discussed within the framework of attentional control theory (ACT). © 2013 Elsevier Ltd.
AB - Objectives: The current study investigated to what extent task-specific practice can help reduce the adverse effects of high-pressure on performance in a simulated penalty kick task. Based on the assumption that practice attenuates the required attentional resources, it was hypothesized that task-specific practice would enhance resilience against high-pressure. Method: Participants practiced a simulated penalty kick in which they had to move a lever to the side opposite to the goalkeeper's dive. The goalkeeper moved at different times before ball-contact. Design: Before and after task-specific practice, participants were tested on the same task both under low- and high-pressure conditions. Results: Before practice, performance of all participants worsened under high-pressure; however, whereas one group of participants merely required more time to correctly respond to the goalkeeper movement and showed a typical logistic relation between the percentage of correct responses and the time available to respond, a second group of participants showed a linear relationship between the percentage of correct responses and the time available to respond. This implies that they tended to make systematic errors for the shortest times available. Practice eliminated the debilitating effects of high-pressure in the former group, whereas in the latter group high-pressure continued to negatively affect performance. Conclusions: Task-specific practice increased resilience to high-pressure. However, the effect was a function of how participants responded initially to high-pressure, that is, prior to practice. The results are discussed within the framework of attentional control theory (ACT). © 2013 Elsevier Ltd.
U2 - 10.1016/j.psychsport.2013.03.004
DO - 10.1016/j.psychsport.2013.03.004
M3 - Article
SN - 1469-0292
VL - 14
SP - 612
EP - 621
JO - Psychology of Sport and Exercise
JF - Psychology of Sport and Exercise
ER -