%0 Journal Article
%T THE PERCEPTUAL COGNITIVE PROCESSES UNDERPINNING SKILLED PERFORMANCE IN VOLLEYBALL: EVIDENCE FROM EYE-MOVEMENTS AND VERBAL REPORTS OF THINKING INVOLVING AN IN SITU REPRESENTATIVE TASK
%A Jos¨¦ Afonso
%A J¨˛lio Garganta
%A Allistair Mcrobert
%A Andrew M. Williams
%J Journal of Sports Science and Medicine
%D 2012
%I University of Uludag
%X An extensive body of work has focused on the processes underpinning perceptual-cognitive expertise. The majority of researchers have used film-based simulations to capture superior performance. We combined eye movement recording and verbal reports of thinking to explore the processes underpinning skilled performance in a complex, dynamic, and externally paced representative volleyball task involving in situ data collection. Altogether, 27 female volleyball players performed as centre backcourt defenders in simulated sessions while wearing an eye-tracking device. After each sequence, athletes were questioned concerning their perception of the situation. The visual search strategies employed by the highly-skilled players were more exploratory than those used by skilled players, involving more fixations to a greater number of locations. Highly-skilled participants spent more time fixating on functional spaces between two or more display areas, while the skilled participants fixated on the ball trajectory and specific players. Moreover, highly-skilled players generated more condition concepts with higher levels of sophistication than their skilled counterparts. Findings highlight the value of using representative task designs to capture performance in situ
%K Perceptual expertise
%K visual search behaviors
%K thought processes
%K in situ testing
%U http://www.jssm.org/vol11/n2/18/v11n2-18text.php