Implicit versus Explicit Training
Soccer players and a coach in two spots. In the background player in red standing in a circle. In the front, a coach speaking with a player in yellow.
What is implicit and explicit training in the world of sports? Implicit learning is learning that happens with little to no instruction from an outside source such as a coach and is more focused on the athlete’s experience. A few good examples of this is learning to ride a bike, using an analogy to teach a skill, or allowing an athlete to learn via sensory experience versus verbal feedback. In contrast, explicit learning is where an outside source such as a coach provides an athlete with verbal instruction.
What way of learning is best? Let’s see what the research tells us about the answer to this question.
One study conducted by Lola and Tzetzis (2020) worked with novice volleyball player skills. Their results showed that, even though all the experimental groups improved motor skill and self-efficacy, there were differences in the type of improvement. For example, the analogy learning group had the highest score for the retention tests for both motor performance and self-efficacy, and the implicit group was better than the explicit and the control groups.
Another study provides us with more information that we can consider. Navarro et al. (2018) did a study with football players looking at dual-task situations with implicit and explicit training methods of penalty kicking performance. These players were identified as skilled. Their results showed that implicit and explicit training methods had similar levels of decision-making. However, the implicit training group had higher kicking accuracy.
And finally, the last study to mention is one conducted by Nazemzadegan and Yousefi (2020) that looked at the effects of explicit and implicit learning on static balance. There was no significant difference between explicit and implicit learning in static balance, even though both groups improved, suggesting that subcortical mechanisms may not be influenced by the type of learning.
So what do we do with this information?
Implicit and explicit training needs to be tailored directly to the person taking into account the skill and/or skill level and the brain activation, for example. The Nazemzadegan and Yousefi (2020) study speaks directly to this idea. That means that when working with a gymnast on static balance on the balance beam it would not necessarily matter whether explicit versus implicit, while for a football player it does matter. This brings me to the next point. What is the aim of the training for the person? What skills are they hoping to learn? Is there another concept tied to in addition to improving movement incorporated into the learning? This brings in the Navarro et al. (2018) study as well as the Lola and Tzetzis (2020) study where they looked at decision-making and kicking accuracy and self-efficacy and motor performance respectively. These are two different concepts being learned and taught. That intersection and other skills matter. Basically, what it comes back to is that no one type of training is one-size-fits-all. There are different pieces to a person, including their learning styles, body awareness, desire to learn, etc,. that need to be factored in. And as research continues chances are we will learn more about how to best utilize the different types of learning styles.
Before we say goodbye for the day there is one more thing to share about implicit learning and its benefits. Implicitly learned skills may be less vulnerable than explicitly learned skills to stress and fast changing environments (Verburgh et al. 2016). Furthermore, implicitly learned skill does not take up as much of the athlete’s attention so that it can be used elsewhere, which in a later blog post we will learn can be important!
take action today moment:
Think about the different ways you have experienced training. Have you experienced both implicit and explicit training? What worked best for you and when? Take some time to reflect on these questions and then consider doing some journaling about these experiences. You can even begin to track your progress with the different methods and see how they impact your performance.
Learn More About EXPLICIT AND IMPLICIT TRAINING:
Coaching Science. Explicit Vs Implicit Learning.
References
Lola, A. C., & Tzetzis, G. (2020). Analogy versus explicit and implicit learning of a volleyball skill for novices: The effect on motor performance and self-efficacy. Journal of Physical Education and Sport, 20(5), 2478-2486.
Navarro, M., van der Kamp, J., Schor, P., & Savelsbergh, G. J. (2018). Implicit learning increases shot accuracy of football players when making strategic decisions during penalty kicking. Human Movement Science, 61, 72-80.
Nazemzadegan, G. H., & Yousefi, M. (2020). The effect of explicit and implicit kearning on static balance. International Journal of Motor Control and Learning, 2(4), 41-45.
Verburgh, L., Scherder, E. J. A., Van Lange, P. A. M., & Oosterlaan, J. (2016). The key to success in elite athletes? Explicit and implicit motor learning in youth elite and non-elite soccer players. Journal of Sports Sciences, 34(18), 1782-1790.