Individual differences in visual information processing rate and the prediction of performance differences in team sports: a preliminary investigation.

Abstract

This study used a backward-masking paradigm to examine individual differences in rate of visual information processing among university basketball, ice hockey and Canadian football players. Displays containing four letters were presented for stimulus durations ranging from 25 to 300 ms. Following stimulus offset, a masking stimulus was presented for 200 ms. The subjects were instructed to write down as many letters as possible from the briefly presented stimulus display on a specially prepared response grid. The results indicated consistent individual differences in rate of visual information processing. More importantly, it was found that rate of visual information processing as indexed by the backward-masking technique, has promising validity for predicting general performance excellence in university ice hockey and basketball players. Individual differences in rate of visual information processing were interpreted as reflecting the operation of attentional factors.