Joseph Baker

Sport-Specific Practice and the Development of Expert Decision-Making in Team Ball Sports

The role of sport-specific practice in the development of decision-making expertise in the sports of field hockey, netball, and basketball was examined. Fifteen expert decision-makers and 13 experienced non-expert athletes provided detailed information about the quantity and type of sport-specific and other related practice activities they had undertaken throughout their careers. Experts accumulated more hours of sport-specific practice from the age of 12 years onwards than did non-experts, spending on average some 13 years and 4,000 hours on concentrated sport-specific practice before reaching international standard. A significant negative correlation existed between the number of additional activities undertaken and the hours of sport-specific training required before attaining expertise, suggesting a functional role for activities other than sport-specific training in the development of expert decision-making.

Annual age-grouping and athlete development: a meta-analytical review of relative age effects in sport.

Annual age-grouping is a common organizational strategy in sport. However, such a strategy appears to promote relative age effects (RAEs). RAEs refer both to the immediate participation and long-term attainment constraints in sport, occurring as a result of chronological age and associated physical (e.g. height) differences as well as selection practices in annual age-grouped cohorts. This article represents the first meta-analytical review of RAEs, aimed to collectively determine (i) the overall prevalence and strength of RAEs across and within sports, and (ii) identify moderator variables. A total of 38 studies, spanning 1984–2007, containing 253 independent samples across 14 sports and 16 countries were re-examined and included in a single analysis using odds ratios and random effects procedures for combining study estimates. Overall results identified consistent prevalence of RAEs, but with small effect sizes. Effect size increased linearly with relative age differences. Follow-up analyses identified age category, skill level and sport context as moderators of RAE magnitude. Sports context involving adolescent (aged 15–18 years) males, at the representative (i.e. regional and national) level in highly popular sports appear most at risk to RAE inequalities. Researchers need to understand the mechanisms by which RAEs magnify and subside, as well as confirm whether RAEs exist in female and more culturally diverse contexts. To reduce and eliminate this social inequality from influencing athletes’ experiences, especially within developmental periods, direct policy, organizational and practitioner intervention is required.

A review of primary and secondary influences on sport expertise

Sport scientists have examined numerous factors influencing the acquisition and manifestation of high levels of performance. These factors can be divided into variables having a primary influence on expertise and variables that have a secondary influence through their interaction with other variables. Primary influences on expertise include genetic, training, and psychological factors while secondary influences include socio‐cultural and contextual elements. This paper reviews the factors affecting the development of expert performance in sport and suggests directions for future research.

Early Specialization in Youth Sport: a requirement for adult expertise?

The role of early specialization in the development of sport expertise is a point of contention among researchers. While there is consistent evidence linking quantity of training with level of proficiency attained, a focus on specialized training during early stages of development has been linked with several negative consequences. Diversified involvement in a number of sports during early stages of development has been presented as a possible alternative to early specialization. Considering the consequences of advocating the early specialization approach and research suggesting the effectiveness of early diversification, coaches and sport scientists should consider the early diversification approach as an alternative. Further research is required to expand our understanding of the relative contributions of diversified versus specialized training. The acquisition of expertise in sport is the result of complex interactions among biological, psychological, and sociological constraints (Singer & Janelle, 1999). Successful negotiation of these constraints can lead to the highest levels of perform

Learning From the Experts: Practice Activities of Expert Decision Makers in Sport

Studies examining the component skills of expert . performers have revealed that experts in team ball sports differ from other players in a range ofattributes. Experts are characterized by superior perceptual skills, especially in terms ofpattern recognition and anticipation (e.g., Abernethy, 1990), superior decision-making skills, especially in terms of knowledge of appropriate tactics and procedures (e.g., McPherson, 1994), and superior movement execution skills, especially in terms ofmovement adaptability and automaticity (e.g., Parker, 1981). Better athletes in these sports are also characterized by high levels ofphysiological preparedness (physical fitness) for the specific demands of their sport (e.g., Crouse, Rohack, &Jacobsen, 1992). Studies examining expert performance in the context ofpractice histories have revealed that across a range of domains, including sport, a minimum of 10 years of sustained practice appears to be a necessary condition for developing expertise (e.g., Simon & Chase, 1973). Indeed, an emerging view, championed most strongly by Ericsson, Krampe, and Tesch-Romer (1993), is that there is a monotonic relationship between the number ofhours ofdeliberate practice undertaken and the performance level achieved. Deliberate practice is consid. ered in this context to be done with the specific goal of

Genes, environment and sport performance : Why the nature-nurture dualism is no longer relevant

The historical debate on the relative influences of genes (i.e. nature) and environment (i.e. nurture) on human behaviour has been characterised by extreme positions leading to reductionist and polemic conclusions. Our analysis of research on sport and exercise behaviours shows that currently there is little support for either biologically or environmentally deterministic perspectives on elite athletic performance. In sports medicine, recent molecular biological advances in genomic studies have been over-interpreted, leading to a questionable ‘single-gene-as-magic-bullet’ philosophy adopted by some practitioners. Similarly, although extensive involvement in training and practice is needed at elite levels, it has become apparent that the acquisition of expertise is not merely about amassing a requisite number of practice hours. Although an interactionist perspective has been mooted over the years, a powerful explanatory framework has been lacking. In this article, we propose how the complementary nature of degenerate neurobiological systems might provide the theoretical basis for explaining the interactive influence of genetic and environmental constraints on elite athletic performance. We argue that, due to inherent human degeneracy, there are many different trajectories to achieving elite athletic performance. While the greatest training responses may be theoretically associated with the most favourable genotypes being exposed to highly specialised training environments, this is a rare and complex outcome. The concept of degeneracy provides us with a basis for understanding why each of the major interacting constraints might act in a compensatory manner on the acquisition of elite athletic performance.

Influences of competition level, gender, player nationality, career stage and playing position on relative age effects.

Relative age, referring to the chronological age differences between individuals within annually age‐grouped cohorts, is regarded as influential to an athletes development, constraining athletic skill acquisition. While many studies have suggested different mechanisms for this effect, they have typically examined varying sports, precluding an examination of the possible inter‐play between factors. Our three studies try to bridge this gap by investigating several moderators for relative age effects (RAEs) in one sport. Handball is a sport with position‐specific demands, high cultural relevance and a performance context with established developmental structures and levels of representation for males and females. In Study 1, we investigated the influence of competition level and gender on RAEs before adulthood. In Study 2, elite participation, player nationality and stage of career are considered during adulthood. In Study 3, playing position and laterality (i.e., right vs left handedness) are investigated as moderators. Collectively, the results emphasize the complex inter‐play of direct and indirect influences on RAEs in sports, providing evidence toward explaining how RAEs influence the development and maintenance of expertise.

Towards a unified understanding of relative age effects

Abstract When athletes are placed into annual age groups to organize and coordinate sport participation, certain (dis)advantages occur as a result of the subtle age differences within these groups. These differences, termed “relative age effects”, have been consistently related to youth and adult sport attainment. However, there has been a lack of consistency in the terminology used in this area of research. In this paper, we consider the operational terms used in relative age research, discuss appropriate applications of terminology, and suggest directions for future research. Importantly, we argue for a unified understanding of what “relative age” means, stressing the need for clarity in directing future advances in the field.

Play and practice in the development of sport‐specific creativity in team ball sports

Current theoretical approaches regarding the development of creativity support the view that gathering diversified experience over years is an ideal medium for creative thinking. This study examined the role of practice conditions in the development of creative behavior in team ball sports. Twelve trainers selected the most creative and the least creative players from their teams. These athletes (n=72) provided information about the quantity and type of sport‐specific and other related practice activities undertaken throughout their careers. Results indicated significant differences between the groups for time spent in unstructured play activities and a marginally significant difference for total time spent in training for their main sport. In both cases, more creative players accumulated more time than their less creative counterparts.

Developmental contexts and sporting success: birth date and birthplace effects in national hockey league draftees 2000–2005

Objectives: To examine relative age and birth place effects in hockey players drafted to play in the National Hockey League (NHL) between 2000 and 2005 and determine whether these factors influenced when players were chosen in the draft. Methods: 1013 North American draftees were evaluated from the official NHL website, which provided birthplace, date of birth and selection order in the draft. Population size was collected from Canadian and American census information. Athletes were divided into four quartiles on the basis of selection date to define age cohorts in hockey. Data between the Canadian and American players were also compared to see if the optimal city sizes differed between the two nations. Results: Relative age and birthplace effects were found, although the optimal city size found was dissimilar to that found in previous studies. Further, there were inconsistencies between the Canadian and American data. Conclusion: Contextual factors such as relative age and size of birthplace have a significant effect on likelihood of being selected in the NHL draft.