Study On Attentional Characteristics Of Players And General Population

Based on the detailed survey of recent investigations of attention in sport psychology , the present study try to combined the research paradigms of cognitive psychology (task-switch, dual-task, et al) into the investigation of attentional characteristics of players from different sport games or with different skill levels, and try to make coparasions between players and general population. With the self-developed attention testing programes on computer, groups of players with different attentional demands and common undergraduates major in management or psychology were tested. Results showed that some significant differences existing between different groups of subjects.1.Few differences were found between groups of players with different attentional demands. There is no differences between groups of players from different sport games in the ability of resisting distractors and the attention span. The level of attentional stability of group one (table tennis, badminton) increased from the second period to the third one, and the attentional stability of group group two (shot, discus, weight-lifting) declined from the second period to the third one, but that of group three remained stable. 2.Some differences existed in attentional characteristics between groups of players and general population. The ability of resisting distractors of general population was stronger than that of group one (table tennis, badminton) and group two(shot, discus, weight-lifting). The level of concentration of players increased for group one and declined for group two from the second period to the third, but that of general population declined. from the third period to the fourth The ability of divided attention and the speed of response-switch of general population were higher than that of players. 3.The gender differences in attentional abilities were found in the four groups. The ability of divided attention of female was higher than that of females. The effects of detection of stimulus position of males from group one and two was more stable than females, but males is less stable than females in group of general population.4.The ellite archers differentiated in the ability of concentration from that of players in other groups (table tennis, shooters ).Four presuppositions having dominated in the domain of attention research were reexamined and some suggestions were given: (1) the differences between players and general population in attentional characteristics is less than that people usually expected; (2) the commonly committed relevance between attentional characteristics of sport games and players' experience background is unclear; (3) attentional characteristics of players can be investigated in the contrast between trait and state; (4) attentional characteristics should be examined in the whole background of the players' cognition.