External versus internal focus enhances motor performance and learning in children with different visuospatial...

Area of Science:

• Motor learning and control
• Cognitive psychology
• Developmental psychology

Background:

• External focus (EF) instructions improve motor performance more than internal focus (IF) instructions.
• The role of visuospatial working memory capacity (WMC) in EF/IF effectiveness, particularly in children, is under-researched.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effects of EF versus IF on dart-throwing skill acquisition and learning in children.
• To examine how high versus low visuospatial WMC influences the effectiveness of EF and IF instructions.

Main Methods:

• Forty-eight boys (9-11 years) were grouped by high/low WMC and assigned to EF or IF conditions.
• Participants completed practice, retention, and transfer tests, including a longer distance throw and a dual-task (tone counting).

Main Results:

• EF instructions consistently outperformed IF instructions across all stages of the task.
• WMC did not impact practice or retention, but low WMC was associated with better performance on the longer distance transfer test.
• EF remained superior in dual-task conditions, with WMC showing no significant effect.

Conclusions:

• External focus instructions promote more automatic movement and better multitasking abilities in children.
• Visuospatial WMC had a less significant impact than anticipated, underscoring the broad benefits of EF for motor skill development in children.