Search

AbstractData analytics have become increasingly popular within professional sport organizations. Big data exists upon which decisions are made in relation to athlete selection and performance analysis. The data draw upon vary from big data and more idiosyncratic data that is contextually focused. We consider the importance of data technology in relation to the prediction of athlete and team performance within high-performance sport. Here we expand upon existing approaches to analytics, and why the prediction of athletes’ behaviors is often found to be ineffective. Recommendations are provided how sport psychology can offer insights for analytics departments.

Peak performances in different life domains are often achieved by healthy young- or middle-aged adults and are partly based on their executive functions. The extensive literature on older or non-healthy populations suggests an adequate availability of vitamin D as essential for good executive functioning. However, for healthy young- or middle-aged populations, the association between vitamin D levels and executive functions is not well understood. To test whether previous findings generalize to healthy young- or middle-aged participants, we conducted a scoping review to systematically map the existing literature on the association between vitamin D levels and executive functions. Literature searches of three databases were performed identifying seven studies that met the inclusion criteria. Results indicate mixed findings for the relationship between vitamin D and the three core executive functions cognitive flexibility, response inhibition, and working memory. Thus, this scoping review indicates a rather unsystematic impact of varying vitamin D levels or supplements on executive functions among healthy young- or middle-aged populations and we argue for more systematic investigations in the future.

ABSTRACTThis narrative review in this special issue marking the 20-year anniversary of the International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology aims to summarise work on expertise research in sport psychology and beyond. We shall review findings based on factors affecting the path to excellence. The structure of factors is aligned to the multifactorial gene–environment interaction model of Ullén et al. [2016. Rethinking expertise: A multifactorial gene–environment interaction model of expert performance. Psychological Bulletin, 142(4), 427–446]. Our research synthesis indicates that individual factors for expertise are well discussed; but, too often, not examined well empirically in terms of their quantity and quality. Further, it is notable that most of the interactions between important factors have not been investigated together, and thus it is too early to draw specific conclusions on how the combined effects of factors influence expertise development and sport performance. A literature search that differentiates findings on factors for expertise in all sport-related research (using SPORTDiscus as a source) in comparison to papers published in the International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology provides new ways of focusing future research in unexplored factors and their interactions. We shall provide an example of a recent large-scale project of about 600 national team level athletes in seven different sports to illustrate how general expertise models such as that from Ullén et al. can be applied to diagnostics in elite performance as one way to advance research in the field.

Successful sports performance often requires choosing what to do and how to do it in dynamic, complex, and uncertain environments. Thus, an understanding of the processes underpinning judgment and decision making in sports (JDMS) is crucial for both researchers and applied practitioners. Despite the research developments, examining JDMS from several perspectives, there are still significant gaps in the knowledge of the processes involved. In this article we explore how the theoretical understanding of JDMS can be extended by acknowledging that cognition and action dynamics are intertwined, deploy in parallel, and influence each other bidirectionally. We present a holistic approach that integrates simple heuristics and embodied cognition to explain JDMS. Importantly, our aim is not to devalue previous JDMS theories but rather to exemplify how embodied choices can redirect the current interpretation of judgment and decision-making processes in sports. Taking this embodied choice perspective, we reinterpret the findings of four prototypical research papers on JDMS, each representing one of the most influential perspectives in JDMS (i.e., the economic, social cognition, cognitive, and ecological dynamics approaches). Last, we discuss future directions for JDMS research from an embodied choice perspective.

ABSTRACTWe investigated the influence of providing football goalkeepers with kicker’s prior preferences on anticipation and gaze behaviour to explore the interaction of top-down and bottom-up cognitive processing. Forty participants (20 experienced goalkeepers and 20 novices) were asked to anticipate the direction of penalty kicks in three experimental conditions: without information (control situation), with correct information (congruent condition), and with wrong information (incongruent condition) on a kicker’s prior preferences. An eye-tracking device was used to analyse fixations on areas of interest. The participants anticipated the direction of the kick in congruent situations better than in the other two conditions (p = 0.001). Experienced goalkeepers were superior to novices in the incongruent and control conditions (p = 0.001). In those conditions, experienced goalkeepers also fixated more (p = 0.025) and longer (p = 0.046) on the trunk, and longer on the hips (p = 0.036), non-kicking leg (p = 0.001), and kicking leg (p = 0.001). We conclude that providing congruent information on a kicker’s preferences positively impacts goalkeepers’ anticipation. This confirms a model that expertise differences between experienced goalkeepers and novices are more prominent when the interaction of bottom-up and top-down processes is difficult.

Discovery learning is believed to be an effective method for learning motor, anticipation, and cognitive skills, but the mechanisms leading to improvements are not well understood in the context of real-life decisions in sports. There is no agreement on whether implicit or explicit learning processes underlie discovery learning. We compared the performances of four groups of participants in a basketball decision situation: Two groups received training in perceptual or cognitive discovery learning, respectively; a third group received rule-instructed guidance, and the fourth group was used as a control and received no specific training. We evaluated the relative effectiveness of these approaches and their common or distinct mechanisms. The rule-instructed group was superior in decision quality to the other groups. In addition, we found that cognitive discovery learning is based more on explicit processes but perceptual discovery learning relies more on implicit processes. These results indicate that in sports the concept of discovery learning should be differentiated according to its perceptual and cognitive components. Keywords: discovery learning, implicit learning, explicit learning, decision making, In sports, there are various approaches to learning, or acquiring a new motor skill. For example, a learner can generate a best approximation of the correct action and evaluate its [...]

Functional cognition is relevant for athletic success and interdependent with physical exercise, yet despite repeatedly demonstrated inflammatory responses to physical training, there are no studies addressing the relationship between cognition and inflammation in athletes. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between cognitive performance and selected inflammatory, and further physiological biomarkers in elite athletes. Data from 350 elite athletes regarding cognitive performance (processing speed, selective attention, working memory, cognitive flexibility), systemic inflammatory markers, metabolic hormones, growth factors, tissue damage markers, and micronutrients (e.g., ferritin, 25-OH-vitamin D), as well as physiological, subjective ratings of recovery and stress were analysed by correlative and multiple regression analyses. Results show that across all athletes variance in processing speed, selective attention, and working memory, could be best explained through a combination of metabolic hormones with physiological and psychological indicators of stress, and in cognitive flexibility through vitamin D levels. Only for the subgroup of athletes from closed-skill sports, the ratio TNF-α:IL-10 significantly contributed to explanation of variance in working memory and cognitive flexibility. In general, found correlations point to the importance of inflammatory balance and sufficient long-term nutrient supply for unaffected cognitive performance.

Experimental decision-making research uses a task where participants are presented with alternatives from which they must choose. The proposed model and the resulting heuristic, 'Take The First' utilizes the principles of associative memory networks in conjunction with the rules of fast and frugal heuristics.

•Integrate concepts from cognitive science and movement science.•Develop a holistic approach of motor heuristics and embodied choices.•Describe and explain how people choose and act.

Abstract.Embodied cognition frameworks suggest a direct link between sensorimotor experience and cognitive representations of concepts (Shapiro, 2011). We examined whether this holds also true for concepts that cannot be directly perceived with the sensorimotor system (i.e., temporal concepts). To test this, participants learned object-space (Exp. 1) or object-time (Exp. 2) associations. Afterwards, participants were asked to assign the objects to their location in space/time meanwhile they walked backward, forward, or stood on a treadmill. We hypothesized that walking backward should facilitate the online processing of “behind”/“past”-related stimuli, but hinder the processing of “ahead”/“future”-related stimuli, and a reversed effect for forward walking. Indeed, “ahead”- and “future”-related stimuli were processed slower during backward walking. During forward walking and standing, stimuli were processed equally fast. The results provide partial evidence for the activation of specific spatial and temporal concepts by whole-body movements and are discussed in the context of movement familiarity.

Mental training has the potential to enhance motor performance and behavior in older adults. Yet several studies have revealed age-related alteration of motor imagery (MI) ability, suggesting that mental training is not applicable for older adults. The purpose of the present study was to estimate MI performance in older adults, taking into account task requirements. MI performance of 20 older (mean age 70.75 ± 3.68 years) and 22 younger (mean age 24.31 ± 1.25 years) adults was estimated with the mental chronometry paradigm from the first-person perspective. Participants completed four walking tasks with different requirements, walking (A) in a straight line; (B) with two changes of direction; (C) on uneven ground; and (D) while additionally flipping switches. Path length and width were constant across tasks. MI ability was also measured with the Controllability of Motor Imagery Test, in which body parts have to be controlled and manipulated mentally. In addition, participants reported self-rated clarity of their MI in both tests after each trial. Our data suggest no generalized alteration in MI of walking with different task requirements among older adults. A significant Age × Condition × Task interaction emerged, but this result could not be attributed to a specific task requirement in post-hoc tests. For controllability of MI, older adults showed alterations in imagining body postures. These results showed dissociation with the self-rated clarity in both tests. The present findings suggest that older adults show no age-related alterations in MI for familiar movements. Mental Training of familiar movements could therefore be feasible for older adults and enables promising intervention strategies.

Action and perception are represented in a common framework. Greater motor experience should therefore lead to improved perception. This has been shown with the help of visual stimuli. Given that rhythm and timing are important factors in movement perception, auditory self-recognition should also be superior to recognition of auditory stimuli produced by others. To test this hypothesis, we examined performance in a discrimination and an identification task with movement sounds produced by participants themselves (motor and auditory experiences), by the partner of the participant within the experimental study (auditory experience), and by strangers (no experience). The results of the discrimination task show that participants could distinguish between identical and different sound pairs independent of the agent. The results of the identification task show that participants could identify their own movement sounds significantly better than strangers' sounds. The coupling of action and perception thus seems detectable via naturally emerging movement sounds (auditory information). Taken together the present study confirms and extends current theories regarding action-perception coupling, by providing evidence that self–other effects occur in the auditory domain using movement sounds. Future research should explore the underlying (neurophysiological) mechanisms that account for the present results.

The aim of this introduction is to provide the reader with the keys to understanding the context of the research papers published in this special issue on emotions and decision-making in sports. Recent work on emotions and decision-making in psychology is first contrasted with historical views on the topic, and the claim is made that the sports domain is an ideal environment for the development of the field. After introducing the articles, we outline a comprehensive approach for future research that would take advantage of theoretical and methodological developments. Specifically, at the theoretical level we show how sports could benefit from integrating theories from mainstream psychology, and at the methodological level we detail the possibilities offered by cognitive neuroscience to increase what is known about the processes at the core of the emotion and decision-making relationship.

A synthetic cell-permeable peptide corresponding to the highly conserved α-integrin signature motif, Palmityl-K989VGFFKR995(Pal-FF), induces integrin activation and aggregation in human platelets. Systematic replacement of the F992-F993with amino acids of greater or lesser hydrophobicity to create Pal-KVGxxKR peptides demonstrate that hydrophobic amino acids (isoleucine, phenylalanine, tyrosine, tryptophan) are essential for agonist potency. In marked contrast, substitution with small and/or hydrophilic amino acids (glycine, alanine, serine) causes a switch in the biological activity resulting in inhibition of platelet aggregation, adhesion, ADP secretion, and thromboxane synthesis. These substituted, hydrophilic peptides are not true pharmacological antagonists, as they actively induce a phosphotyrosine signaling cascade in platelets. Singly substituted peptides (Pal-AF and Pal-FA) cause preferential retention of pro- or anti-thrombotic properties, respectively. Because the α-integrin signature motif is an established docking site for a number of diverse cytoplasmic proteins, we conclude that eliminating critical protein−protein interactions mediated through the hydrophobic amino acids, especially F993, favors an anti-thrombotic pathway in platelets. Agents derived from the inhibitory peptides described in this study may represent a new therapeutic strategy for anti-platelet or anti-integrin drug development.

Zusammenfassung.Bisherige Studien zum Vergleich von modellbasierten und realen Vorhersagen im Bereich des Sports zeigten, dass menschliches Vorhersageverhalten durch heuristische Modelle sehr gut abgebildet wird. In Studie I wurden erstmals drei heuristische und ein normatives Modell hinsichtlich ihrer Informationsnutzung bei Vorhersagen von Spielergebnissen zweier Vorhersagejahre der 1. Fußball-Bundesliga miteinander verglichen. Die Ergebnisse der Untersuchung zeigen, dass die heuristischen Modelle dem Bayes-Modell bezüglich der Vorhersagegenauigkeit ebenbürtig bzw. überlegen waren, wobei sie bis zu 50 % weniger Informationen nutzten. Als wichtige Informationen im Fußball wurden das Halbzeitergebnis und der Heimvorteil identifiziert. In einer Folgestudie II zeigten Vorhersagen einer Stichprobe (N= 208) zur Fußball-Weltmeisterschaft 2002, dass Laien Experten hinsichtlich ihrer Vorhersagegenauigkeit überlegen waren.

Motion is often thought of as the result of perceptual and higher cognitive processes. Although this idea has been investigated in myriad ways, the understanding of how movements tune cognitive processes is still in its infancy. The present study examined the nonaffective tuning of movements (arm extension and arm flexion) on heuristic and systematic processes. In a departure from recent cognitive tuning models, a model was derived that defines the tuning effect based on the movement goal and not on the movement position. In the experiment, participants moved toward an extension or flexion position with a movement goal which connected the movement with either an avoidance or an approach function. Analysis indicated that cognitive tuning is a product of the movement goal rather than the movement position. Implications for models of motor control as well as for cognitive tuning models are presented.

AbstractUsing the concept of ecological rationality, different conclusions from those of Poplu, Baratgin, Mavromatis, and Ripoll in “What kind of processes underlie decision making in soccer simulation? An implicit‐memory investigation” (2003, International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 1, 390–405) can be drawn. The choice of environmental context and structure imposes constraints on possible interpretations of the obtained results. The implications of Poplu et al.’s data, new evidence, and the relationship between implicit and explicit decision‐making processes are discussed with the aim of enhancing performance in real game situations.

AbstractThis paper analyzes the implicit and explicit learning distinction of tactical decision making in ball games. It is argued that implicitly learned decisions are advantageous in low‐complexity situations and explicitly learned decisions are advantageous in high‐complexity situations. Four experiments were carried out in low‐complexity and high‐complexity situations in handball, basketball, and volleyball. The results suggest that in low‐complexity situations implicit learners are superior to explicit learners, and in high‐complexity situations the opposite is true. These results, in sports‐specific situations, are consistent with recent research that shows the ecological rationality of human behavior. Practical applications are drawn from the results for training in ball games.