Abstract
Three experiments investigated the predictions of the biased competition theory of selective attention in a computer based sport task. According to this theory objects held in the circuitry of working memory (WM) automatically bias attention to objects in a visual scene that match or are related to the WM representation. Specifically, we investigated whether certain players that are activated in the circuitry of WM automatically draw attention and receive a competitive advantage in a computer based sport task. In all three experiments participants had to hold an image of a certain player in WM while engaged in a speeded sport task. In Experiment 1 participants had to identify as quickly as possible which player was in possession of the ball. In Experiment 2 and 3 participants had to decide to which player they would pass to in a cartoon team handball situation and a photo picture basketball situation. The results support the biased competition theory of selective attention and suggest that certain decision options receive a competitive advantage if they are associated with the activated contents in the circuitry of WM and that this effect is more pronounced when more decision options compete for attention. A further extension compared to previous research was that the contents of working memory not only biased attention but also actual decisions that can lead to passing errors in sport. We critically discuss the applied implications of the findings.
Highlights
Team sport athletes need to be able to quickly and efficiently select situation appropriate actions under extreme time pressure in high interference situations: for example when a quarterback in American football tries to find an open receiver in the final offensive play or a point guard in basketball has to make a split second decision of whom to pass the ball to
We attempt to transfer Biased Competition Theory of Selective Attention (BCT) to a computer based sports task that is grounded in the real life sport situation of e.g. a basketball point guard making a passing decision after having formed the intention to pass to a certain player–which we argue involves holding a representation of that player in working memory (WM)
By assigning different behavioral responses to the objects in the visual display the attentional guidance effect was evident on error rates which indicates that once visual attention was drawn to an object participants were more likely to press the key assigned to that object even if it was not the target
Summary
Team sport athletes need to be able to quickly and efficiently select situation appropriate actions under extreme time pressure in high interference situations: for example when a quarterback in American football tries to find an open receiver in the final offensive play or a point guard in basketball has to make a split second decision of whom to pass the ball to. A cognitive theory emphasizing a close interaction between attention and WM that might account for the mental processes in the aforementioned sport situations is the biased competition theory of selective attention [6]. In the present research we test the predictions derived from the biased competition theory of selective attention in a computer simulated sports task as sports offers an suitable context due to its situational constraints–for example time pressure; multiple team-members and opponents–imposed on the athletes
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