IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v19y2022i10p6254-d820514.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Effect of Attentional Focus on Sprint Performance: A Meta-Analysis

Author

Listed:
  • Danyang Li

    (School of Psychology, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100084, China)

  • Liwei Zhang

    (School of Psychology, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100084, China)

  • Xin Yue

    (School of Psychology, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100084, China)

  • Daniel Memmert

    (Institute of Exercise Training and Sport Informatics, German Sport University Cologne, 50933 Cologne, Germany)

  • Yeqin Zhang

    (China Football College, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100084, China)

Abstract

Sprinting is often seen in a variety of sports. Focusing one’s attention externally before sprinting has been demonstrated to boost sprint performance. The present study aimed to systematically review previous findings on the impact of external focus (EF), in comparison to internal focus (IF), on sprint performance. A literature search was conducted in five electronic databases (APA PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus, SPORTDiscus, and Web of Science). A random-effects model was used to pool Hedge’s g with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The meta-analysis included six studies with a total of 10 effect sizes and 166 participants. In general, the EF condition outperformed the IF condition in sprint performance ( g = 0.279, 95% CI [0.088, 0.470], p = 0.004). The subgroup analysis, which should be viewed with caution, suggested that the benefits associated with the EF strategy were significant in low-skill sprinters ( g = 0.337, 95% CI [0.032, 0.642], p = 0.030) but not significant in high-skill sprinters ( g = 0.246, 95% CI [−0.042, 0.533], p = 0.094), although no significant difference was seen between these subgroups ( p = 0.670). The reported gain in sprint performance due to attentional focus has practical implications for coaches and athletes, as making tiny adjustments in verbal instructions can lead to significant behavioral effects of great importance in competitive sports.

Suggested Citation

  • Danyang Li & Liwei Zhang & Xin Yue & Daniel Memmert & Yeqin Zhang, 2022. "Effect of Attentional Focus on Sprint Performance: A Meta-Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(10), pages 1-13, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:10:p:6254-:d:820514
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/10/6254/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/10/6254/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Marcin Maciejczyk & Renata Błyszczuk & Aleksander Drwal & Beata Nowak & Marek Strzała, 2021. "Effects of Short-Term Plyometric Training on Agility, Jump and Repeated Sprint Performance in Female Soccer Players," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-10, February.
    2. Julian H Elliott & Tari Turner & Ornella Clavisi & James Thomas & Julian P T Higgins & Chris Mavergames & Russell L Gruen, 2014. "Living Systematic Reviews: An Emerging Opportunity to Narrow the Evidence-Practice Gap," PLOS Medicine, Public Library of Science, vol. 11(2), pages 1-6, February.
    3. Jessica Gurevitch & Julia Koricheva & Shinichi Nakagawa & Gavin Stewart, 2018. "Meta-analysis and the science of research synthesis," Nature, Nature, vol. 555(7695), pages 175-182, March.
    4. Aurelio Tobias, 1999. "Assessing the influence of a single study in the meta-anyalysis estimate," Stata Technical Bulletin, StataCorp LP, vol. 8(47).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Oded Berger-Tal & Alison L Greggor & Biljana Macura & Carrie Ann Adams & Arden Blumenthal & Amos Bouskila & Ulrika Candolin & Carolina Doran & Esteban Fernández-Juricic & Kiyoko M Gotanda & Catherine , 2019. "Systematic reviews and maps as tools for applying behavioral ecology to management and policy," Behavioral Ecology, International Society for Behavioral Ecology, vol. 30(1), pages 1-8.
    2. Phu Nguyen-Van & Anne Stenger & Tuyen Tiet, 2021. "Social incentive factors in interventions promoting sustainable behaviors: A meta-analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(12), pages 1-27, December.
    3. Fanjie Meng & Xiangpo Pan & Wenzhen Tong, 2018. "Rifampicin versus streptomycin for brucellosis treatment in humans: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(2), pages 1-12, February.
    4. Irsova, Zuzana & Doucouliagos, Hristos & Havranek, Tomas & Stanley, T. D., 2023. "Meta-Analysis of Social Science Research: A Practitioner’s Guide," EconStor Preprints 273719, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    5. Alexander L. Brown & Taisuke Imai & Ferdinand M. Vieider & Colin F. Camerer, 2024. "Meta-analysis of Empirical Estimates of Loss Aversion," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 62(2), pages 485-516, June.
    6. Mekonnen Sisay & Dumessa Edessa & Tilahun Ali & Abraham Nigussie Mekuria & Alemu Gebrie, 2020. "The relationship between advanced glycation end products and gestational diabetes: A systematic review and meta-analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(10), pages 1-20, October.
    7. Ruhaimatu Abudu & Raj Bridgelall, 2024. "Autonomous Ships: A Thematic Review," World, MDPI, vol. 5(2), pages 1-17, April.
    8. Manh-Toan Ho & Ngoc-Thang B. Le & Manh-Tung Ho & Quan-Hoang Vuong, 2022. "A bibliometric review on development economics research in Vietnam from 2008 to 2020," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 56(5), pages 2939-2969, October.
    9. Guillaume Cabanac & Theodora Oikonomidi & Isabelle Boutron, 2021. "Day-to-day discovery of preprint–publication links," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(6), pages 5285-5304, June.
    10. Lukas Hafner & Maxime Pichon & Christophe Burucoa & Sophie H. A. Nusser & Alexandra Moura & Marc Garcia-Garcera & Marc Lecuit, 2021. "Listeria monocytogenes faecal carriage is common and depends on the gut microbiota," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-13, December.
    11. Meiyun Wang & Xiubo Jiang & Wenlong Wu & Dongfeng Zhang, 2013. "Endothelial NO Synthase Gene Polymorphisms and Risk of Ischemic Stroke in Asian Population: A Meta-Analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 8(3), pages 1-9, March.
    12. Kulinskaya, Elena & Mah, Eung Yaw, 2021. "Simulation results on the performance of statistical methods in cumulative meta analysis," MetaArXiv 8t4pf, Center for Open Science.
    13. Jennifer S. Wong & Chelsey Lee & Natalie Beck, 2024. "The effects of aftercare/resettlement services on crime and violence in children and youth: A systematic review," Campbell Systematic Reviews, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 20(2), June.
    14. Christopher Hansen & Holger Steinmetz & Jörn Block, 2022. "How to conduct a meta-analysis in eight steps: a practical guide," Management Review Quarterly, Springer, vol. 72(1), pages 1-19, February.
    15. Maurizio Sajeva & Marjo Maidell & Jonne Kotta, 2020. "A Participatory Geospatial Toolkit for Science Integration and Knowledge Transfer Informing SDGs Based Governance and Decision Making," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(19), pages 1-19, September.
    16. Denis Fougère & Arthur Heim, 2019. "L'évaluation socioéconomique de l'investissement social," Working Papers hal-03456048, HAL.
    17. Doris S M Chan & Rosa Lau & Dagfinn Aune & Rui Vieira & Darren C Greenwood & Ellen Kampman & Teresa Norat, 2011. "Red and Processed Meat and Colorectal Cancer Incidence: Meta-Analysis of Prospective Studies," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 6(6), pages 1-11, June.
    18. Dongdong Xiao & Xin Nie & Wenyue Wang & Juan Zhou & Ming Zhang & Zhe Zhou & Yang Zhao & Meng Gu & Zhong Wang & Mujun Lu, 2014. "Comparison of Transverse Island Flap Onlay and Tubularized Incised-Plate Urethroplasties for Primary Proximal Hypospadias: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 9(9), pages 1-10, September.
    19. SiJie Liu & Lei Yao & DongLin Ding & HuanZhang Zhu, 2010. "CCL3L1 Copy Number Variation and Susceptibility to HIV-1 Infection: A Meta-Analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 5(12), pages 1-7, December.
    20. In-Soo Shin & Juh-Hyun Shin & Dong-Eun Jang & Jiyeon Lee, 2022. "A Methodological Quality Evaluation of Meta-Analyses on Nursing Home Research: Overview and Suggestions for Future Directions," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(1), pages 1-19, January.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:10:p:6254-:d:820514. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.