Instructions for Motor Learning: Differential Effects of Internal Versus External Focus of Attention

1998 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 169-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriele Wulf ◽  
Markus Höß ◽  
Wolfgang Prinz
Keyword(s):  
Motor Learning ◽  
Focus Of Attention ◽  
Differential Effects ◽  
External Focus

scholarly journals The Effect of External Attentional Focus and Self-Controlled Feedback on Motor Learning in Older Adults

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-13
Author(s):  
Sima Razaghi ◽  
Esmaeel Saemi ◽  
Rasool Abedanzadeh
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Motor Learning ◽  
Retention Test ◽  
Attentional Focus ◽  
Focus Of Attention ◽  
The Other ◽  
Acquisition Phase ◽  
Control Group ◽  
External Focus ◽  
Mixed Anova

AbstractIntroduction. External focus instruction and self-controlled feedback have beneficial effects on motor learning. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the benefits of combined effects of external focus instruction and self-controlled feedback on balance performance in older adults.Material and Methods. Forty older adults (mean age: 63.21 ± 3.6 years; all female) were selected and randomly divided into 4 groups: self-controlled feedback, external attention, external attention/self-controlled feedback and control group. The task of standing on the platform of the stabilometer device and trying to keep the platform horizontally as much as possible was performed in each 30-sec. trial. The participants of self-controlled group received feedback on the timing of balance after the trials. In the external focus of attention, participants noticed the signs that were located horizontally ahead of their feet. The test was conducted in two sessions. In the acquisition phase, 10 trials of 30 seconds were performed and the retention test was completed 24 hours later as 5 trials of 30 seconds.Results. The results of mixed ANOVA on time data as an indicator of balance in the acquisition phase showed that the mixed group of external focus of attention and self-controlled feedback had better performance than the other groups (p = 0.004). In the retention test, the results of mixed ANOVA showed that the participants in the combined group of external focus and self-controlled feedback had better performance than the other groups (p = 0.006). The external focus of attention and self-controlled feedback performed similarly, and both were superior to the control group (p < 0.05).Conclusions. The results of this study, supporting the OPTIMAL theory of motor learning in the elderly, showed that the combination of two factors of external focus and self-controlled feedback has a double advantage over the presence of each of the factors. Therefore, it is suggested that the combinations of external focus instructions and self-controlled feedback should be used to improve performance and motor learning in the classes of practical and clinical rehabilitation fields.

scholarly journals The effects of external and internal focus of attention on motor learning and promoting learner’s focus

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 175-180
Author(s):  
Saeed Ghorbani ◽  
Amir Dana ◽  
Zynalabedin Fallah
Keyword(s):  
Motor Learning ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Focus Of Attention ◽  
Acquisition Phase ◽  
Significance Level ◽  
External Focus ◽  
Task Goal ◽  
Optimal Theory ◽  
Internal Focus ◽  
And Control

SummaryStudy aim: External focus of attention is considered as a critical factor in the OPTIMAL theory of motor learning. This theory proposes that external focus of attention facilitates motor performance and learning because it promotes focusing on the task goal. However, the effects of external focus of attention on focusing on the task goal are not well understood. The aim of this study was, therefore, to investigate the effects of an external focus of attention versus an internal focus of attention on motor learning and promoting focus of the learner on the task goal.Material and methods: Thirty-six right-handed male students (mean age 21.16 ± 1.85 years old) with no prior experiences with the motor task were randomly assigned to three groups: external focus, internal focus, and control groups. Participants were asked to throw darts at a target during an acquisition phase (10 blocks of six trials each) and during subsequent retention and transfer tests. Throwing accuracy and focus on the task goal were measured as dependent variables. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) with repeated measures as well as a one-way ANOVA was used to analyze the differences in accuracy scores between groups during the acquisition phase as well as retention and transfer tests, respectively. The significance level was set at p < .05. The author supervised all phases of the experiment.Results: The results showed that adopting an external focus promoted a focus on the task goal and resulted in significantly better motor learning than adopting an internal focus and control conditions (p < 0.05).Conclusions: The findings of the present study provided support for the propositions of the OPTIMAL theory and showed that adopting an external focus of attention promotes focus of the learner on the task goal. The results are discussed in terms of benefits of external focus instructions for facilitating motor learning and goal-action coupling.

scholarly journals Effects of external focus of attention on learning static balance among girls with ADHD

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-74
Author(s):  
Saeed Ghorbani ◽  
Amir Dana ◽  
Efstathios Christodoulides
Keyword(s):  
Motor Learning ◽  
Focus Of Attention ◽  
Older Children ◽  
Manipulation Check ◽  
Children With Adhd ◽  
External Focus ◽  
Optimal Theory ◽  
Internal Focus ◽  
Girls With Adhd ◽  
Better Than

SummaryStudy aim: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of adopting an external focus of attention on motor learning among girls with ADHD aged seven and eleven years.Material and methods: Twenty-four seven-year-old and 24 eleven-year-old female children with symptoms of ADHD were randomly assigned to groups receiving either external focus of attention (EXT) instructions or internal focus of attention (INT) instructions, making four experimental groups: EXT-7, INT-7, EXT-11, and INT-11. Participants performed a pretest followed by five training blocks under an external or internal instruction and were then given a retention test one day later. After training, we employed a manipulation check to verify the children’s type and intensity of focus.Results: Adopting an external focus of attention, compared to an internal focus of attention, led to better motor learning among girls with ADHD (F1, 44 = 5.08, p = 0.029, η2 = 0.10). In addition, adopting an external focus of attention reduced the children’s tendency to focus on self. Older children performed better than younger children in balance time (F1, 44 = 16.10, p < 0.001, η2 = 0.26).Conclusions: Our results indicate that propositions of the OPTIMAL theory can be extended to children with ADHD.

Effects of attentional focus on motor learning in children with autism spectrum disorder

Autism ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 405-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andy CY Tse
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Focus Group ◽  
Motor Learning ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Focus Of Attention ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Control Group ◽  
External Focus ◽  
Internal Focus

Inability to acquire a new motor skill is a common motor difficulty in children with autism spectrum disorder. The purpose of this study is to examine whether the motor learning benefits of an external focus of attention for typically developing children and children with intellectual disabilities could also be applied to children with autism spectrum disorder. Children ( N = 65; mean age = 10.01 years) diagnosed with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder were randomly assigned into one of the three groups: external focus ( n = 22), internal focus ( n = 22), and control ( n = 21). They were required to throw beanbags at a static target for 50 acquisition trials, 10 retention trials, and 10 transfer trials. While all three groups learnt the skills in a similar manner during the acquisition phase, the internal focus group demonstrated more robust motor performance than the external focus group and the control group in both retention and transfer tests, while there was no difference between the external focus group and the control group in both retention and transfer tests. The findings provide evidence that internal focus of attention may be more effective for facilitating motor learning in children with autism spectrum disorder. However, further study is needed to determine the factors contributing to this finding.

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