The Effect of Mental Training on Motor Performance of Tennis and Field Hockey Strokes in Novice Players

The aim of this study was to investigate whether the mental training of motor performance can be useful or not in learning tennis and field hockey strokes (forehand, backhand; push pass, hit) Twenty four male tennis-field hockey novice players participated in the study and were divided into experimental group (N = 12) and group for the scientific treatment of the tests (N = 12). Subjects were recruited from Faculty of Physical Education for Men, Alexandria University, Egypt, with ages between 19 to 20 years old. The experimental group attended 16 sessions (8 for tennis, 8 for field hockey) over six weeks (40 minutes each) and used mental training exercises (relaxation, visualization and concentration-attention control) pertinent to the forehand, backhand in tennis and push pass, hit in field hockey. Two waves of measurements were conducted (before and after the completion of the intervention) with the use of motor assessment tests related to the sport of tennis and field hockey. Each student was evaluated regarding to his technique of forehand, backhand in tennis and push pass, hit in field hockey in order to examine the effectiveness of mental training. ... mehrQuestionnaires were also used to measure visualization and concentration-attention control. The results showed a highly significant improvement in learning forehand, backhand in tennis and push pass in field hockey. However, no statistical difference was found for the performance of the hit stroke in field hockey. In addition, the findings showed also a significant difference between the initial and the final measurement regarding to the ability of concentration and visualization by using questionnaires. The results revealed a value of 0.780 which indicates a good reliability of the tool. As a conclusion, a combination of mental and practical training promises the greatest improvement in performance and learning, because it involves all senses.