The Globe and Mail posted a curious article regarding how humans learn (and perform) complex skills. Initially, we learn each skill separately and combine the individual actions as we progress. Instead of thinking “jab-step, explosive first-step, jump-stop, and pull-up jumpshot” great players think “make an open shot” and execute all the components together. If told to go slowly, an expert will deconstruct the movement in their mind and make it harder for themselves. On the other hand, a novice needs to consider each skill distinctly in order perform the entire action successful.
The article illustrated the point with a putting chart but similar studies have been performed in other sports, including basketball and even running. One might suggest that “you should practice as you play” but how do you know how you play? Even video cannot reveal the attentional focus of an athlete in action. What is the difference between an expert who should rely on reflex and a novice who must think things through? The threshold can only be conquered using a mix of mental training, high-intensity practice, and game experience.
In order to foster accurate self-evaluation, coaches should:
- Be Honest: Show and tell athletes where they stand. Explain which attentional focus strategy will be most successful and why. Don’t be pejorative but demonstrate what needs to be done to move from current performance to an ideal level. Teams should emphasize clear and open communication.
- Be Constructive: Focus on actions, not outcomes. It is more important that the footwork is correct than whether the shot drops. Manage failures so athletes know exactly what they did wrong and can develop the skill in practice. Recognize and encourage improvement to build confidence.
- Be Prompt: Individual feedback should be given as a player exits the game so that their post-competition reflection can be accurate. Practice is an opportunity for more detailed information to one or more players but it should closely follow the action in question and include connections to performance in games and competition. Attribute any errors to a cause that players can begin to control at that time.
- Incorporate Visualization: Visualization can be a part of pre-game preparation and post-game debriefing. Enable the cognitive abilities of athletes so that they know what they are doing. Repetition will build positive habits but early success can be increased by teaching athletes what a good performance feels like.
- Prepare for Pressure: While an external focus can help experts, those unaccustomed to pressure can make errors when focusing on surroundings, such as hostile people and new places. Experts should be calm and confident. Novices must not only use strategies that help them complete every part of an action but also ignore the additional pressure. Both would benefit from competitive practice environments that simulate games.
- Adapt: A player may move from a novice to an expert during the course of a season or their physical abilities may not be in tune with their cognitive ones. Coaches must continually evaluate and change their teaching strategies as required.
Players will be receiving information from multiple sources, many of which are skewed or biased – such as opponents, fans, friends, teammates, parents, and themselves – which can impede their performance and add to competitive anxiety. The coach should be the main source of competent and impartial information. If a player learns to self-evaluate themselves accurately, there is another source of objective information upon which they can rely.