The Complexities of Athlete Learning Part 2
An ice skater in midair of a jump.
Here we go again! Part 2! Last time, we looked at errorless learning and external and internal focus of attention. Now we will build on last week and continue with the analogy of the ice skater. Today we will dive head first into analogy learning and implicit and explicit learning techniques. This post you may want to read versus skipping to bullet points, thus with this post there are no bullet points this time. My apologies!
Analogy Learning
Masters (2000) wrote about how, in analogy, learning instructions are delivered through an analogy where the rules that usually would be given by an instructor or coach explicitly are concealed as part of the analogy as a biomechanical metaphor. Here are some examples that will hopefully help bring this concept home:
Sprint Acceleration in Running: Like you are a jet taking off from an aircraft carrier.
Running Leg Action in Running: Like you are running through shallow water.
Discus Starting Position: Create a discus sandwich.
Punching in Martial Arts: Imagine you’re hitting a ball that weighs 500 lbs.
Sticking a Landing Position: Imagine your front foot just landed in cement.
This concept has several benefits, such as working memory independence, working well under psychological stress, almost always encouraging external focus of attention, and allowing for creativity (Lola & Tzetzis, 2020). Returning to the athlete in question, spins are another element in the long program that the athlete must execute. Applying an analogy to strengthen the spinning technique for a skilled athlete might be more about the finesse and holding up under stress. Here an analogy about the spin entrance may serve the athlete well because if the spin entrance is solid and well-executed, there is better success in completing the spin.
Implicit Teaching Techniques
The above concepts would be considered more implicit teaching techniques grounded in implicit learning. Implicit learning may be viewed as unintentional learning related to the passive accumulation of task knowledge that occurs as a nonconscious process and creates difficulties in verbalization (Masters & Maxwell, 2004; Masters et al., 2013). This translates to athletes not being aware of the underlying mechanisms for their performance improvements, allowing performance under pressure to remain stable (Masters et al., 2008). For athletes who are skilled and potentially competing at high levels, their skills and performances need to hold under pressure, remain stable, and improve. Stepping onto the world stage, for example, asks a great deal of an athlete and introduces a different world of pressures and expectations. Athletes need to be prepared. It would serve this athlete well to have a consultant who focused the bulk of the plan on using implicit teaching techniques like those discussed above.
There is also another advantage to implicit learning and how it relates to reinvestment theory (discussed in next week’s blog post), which says that a breakdown in performance occurs when an athlete attempts to gain control of their movements. This decision leads to conscious task processing through the utilization of explicit knowledge that was previously acquired (Masters & Maxwell, 2008). Chances are many of us have tried this because we can’t think of anything else to try at the moment. If you have, don't judge yourself for it. Now you know to do something different in the future. To counter reinvestment, implicit motor learning strategies are designed to prevent the accumulation of rule-based motor-skill knowledge, which in theory reduces the likelihood of conscious monitoring and controlling movement (Capio et al., 2020). Athletes need every advantage that they can have competing. This means not only having an effective and efficient skill set, but also having a mental edge. If the mind is trained along with the skills and they work towards developing strong motor learning, the athlete will be successful.
Explicit Teaching Techniques that a Sport and Performance Consultant Can Help With
Skills related to motor learning, practice, and performance such as goal setting, confidence building, and motivation, need to be worked on explicitly. Improving performance and preparation involves setting goals, remaining confident, and sustaining motivation. For example, if the athlete needed to address confidence levels regarding their ability to improve, even though skill level is high and they compete at high levels.,it may be beneficial to explain, work through, and integrate the Sport Confidence Model (Vealey, 1986; Vealey et al., 1998). The Sport Confidence Model is just a model of confidence that we will explore in a later post, but for now know that sometimes breaking down concepts helps us grasp a concept.
You made it!
take action today moment:
What role has analogy learning played in your life? Have you ever experienced analogy learning in sports or other areas of your life? There are times when analogy learning is great and other times where it may not be great for you or your work with someone else. Decide what these times may be for self or others and explore the why. It helps to understand the “why” behind your choices so that you can make informed decisions.
References
Capio, C. M., Uiga, L., Lee, M. H., & Masters, R. S. (2020). Application of analogy learning in softball batting: Comparing novice and intermediate players. Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology, 9(3), 357.
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.
Masters, R. S. W. (2000). Theoretical aspects of implicit learning in sport. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 31(4), 530-541.
Masters, R. S. W., & Maxwell, J. P. (2004). Implicit motor learning, reinvestment and movement disruption: What you don’t know won’t hurt you?. In A.M. Williams & N.J. Hodges (Eds.), Skill acquisition in sport: Research, theory and practice (1st ed.) (pp. 201-213 ). Routledge.
Masters, R. S. W., & Maxwell, J. (2008). The theory of reinvestment. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 1(2), 160-183.
Masters, R. S. W., Poolton, J. M., Maxwell, J. P., & Raab, M. (2008). Implicit motor learning and complex decision making in time-constrained environments. Journal of Motivational Behavior, 40(1), 71-79.
Masters, R.S.W., van der Kamp, J., & Capio, C. (2013). Implicit motor learning by children. Conditions of children’s talent development in sport. West Virginia: Fitness Information Technology, 21-40.
Poolton, J. M., Masters, R. S. W., & Maxwell, J. P. (2005). The relationship between initial errrorless learning conditions and subsequent performance. Human Movement Sciences, 24, 362-378.
Raisbeck, L., Yamada, M., & Diekfuss, J. A. (2018). Focus of attention in trained distance runners. International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 13(6), 1143-1149.
Scheper, I., de Bruijn, E.R., Bertens, D., Kessels, R.P., & Brazil, I.A. (2019). The impact of error frequency on errorless and errorful learning of object locations using a novel paradigm. Memory, 27(10), 1371-1380.
Schmidt, R., & Lee, T. (2013). Motor Learning and Performance With Web Study Guide: From Principles to Application (5th ed.). Retrieved from https://redshelf.com
Singh, H., & Wulf, G. (2020). The distance effect and level of expertise: Is the optimal external focus different for low-skilled and high-skilled performers?. Human Movement Science, 73, 102663.
Vealey, R. S. (1986). Conceptualization of sport-confidence and competitive orientation: Preliminary investigations and instrument development. Journal of Sport Psychology, 8, 221–246.
Vealey, R. S., Hayashi, S. W., Garner-Holman, M., & Giacobbi, P. (1998). Sources of sport confidence. Conceptualization and instrument development. Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 20, 54 – 83.