Effect of video feedback on skill acquisition in gymnasts: A partial literature review
Effect of Video Feedback on Skill Acquisition in Gymnastics
There is considerable evidence that video feedback provides athletes with valuable guidance that helps improve motor efficiency and reduce cognitive anxiety. “Video feedback can be defined as the playback to a learner of his/her own (static and dynamic) image in action. It is an extrinsic or augmented source of feedback" (Potdevin et al. 2018). Video feedback is one of many types of augmented feedback, and creates external reinforcement in analyzing and self-regulating the execution of motor skills (Vezzosi, 2017). Augmented feedback has been shown to improve performance in the skill acquisition phase. It adds a visual display of the movement being trained (Ronsse et al. 2011). Vezzosi (2017) found that when a coach shows video feedback to the learner with a model of the correct movement, this accelerates understanding and speeds skill acquisition. Short-term memory is stimulated during visual guidance of the athletes’ performance, which enhances effectiveness in skill acquisition. (Farid et al. 2020). This method allows the learner to reduce the gap between ideal and current moment patterns through increased awareness (Vezzosi 2017).
According to Kovač (2012), Gymnastics is a multi-faceted sport and requires a diverse skill set. Both static and dynamic movements, as well as a constant shift of body positioning in space, are integral parts of the sport of gymnastics. During the beginning phase of skill acquisition, individuals tend to use memory of a motor or cognitive skill already acquired from past experience that best match the new skill (Delignières, 1998). Delignières (1998), found that a sport like gymnastics requires typical coordination tasks for beginners. Performance improvement is a measurement of an individual’s skill level changes before and after a set of specific actions or interventions. Bandura’s theory of modeling and social learning plays a major role in understanding the benefits of visual feedback of skill development. Bandura’s theory says that there is an important correlation between strengthening retention and using an observer style feedback. There was improvement in skill acquisition both in immediate tests and a stability of performance in retention using the pairwise video feedback method (Arab 2014; Ste-Marie et al. 2011).
Extensive research has been done on the impact of video feedback in skill acquisition. However, there have been limited studies on the effect that video feedback has in improving gymnastic skills specifically. Gymnastics is a high risk sport which requires high levels of biomechanics and proprioception in order to safely execute a skill. Consequently, as technology continues to improve every year, the use of video feedback and availability of different types of visual feedback in sports should evolve. The review of literature has been divided into the following sections: (1) video feedback in skill acquisition, (2) motor learning in the sport of gymnastics, which is subdivided into biomechanics and proprioception, and (3) applications of video feedback in gymnastic training.
Video Feedback in Skill Acquisition
Augmented feedback is considered an integral part of motor learning and improved intrinsic feedback within the individual (Potdevin et al. 2018). While the frequency in which augmented feedback is given to the student affects his or her development and retention of the skill, the quality of verbal and video feedback has proven to be more important. (Palao et al. 2015). Ronsse (2018) also found that the availability of video feedback plays a role performance improvement. By allowing the learner to view his or her own image and progress in motor learning, the learner can engage in more informed self-evaluation. Improved self-awareness is a key to more rapid behavior change (Partington et al. 2015).
In addition, the use of video feedback provides a method for a learner to observe movement immediately and use those observations to correct actions soon after the learner’s original performance (Farid et al. 2020). Use of video also allows coaches and instructors to provide visual feedback simultaneously with their verbal feedback. In fact, removal of verbal feedback has been shown to slow the pace of performance improvement. This is known as the “guidance hypothesis of information feedback”. As technology has advanced over the years, the use of video feedback has begun to grow rapidly. The proliferation of technology such as tablets and mobile phones equipped with high-resolution cameras able to record videos as high frame rates is expanding the availability of video feedback as a tool for skill acquisition. While we can expect this trend to continue, the use of this type of video augmented feedback still is relatively new as a teaching technique. (Farid et al. 2020). Video feedback is a significantly potent method to enable an individual to identify his or her strengths and weaknesses when performing a skill (Palao et al. 2015). The ability to identify one’s strengths and weaknesses through the use of video feedback in congruence with verbal feedback plays a major role in execution of a skill, technique work, and overall comprehension of training (Palao et al. 2015).
Action observation uses observation techniques, such as video feedback, to initiate neural connections in the athlete. This observation is used to help him or her mirror a motor action that was observed for implementation in future performance. Neural connections in the brain are activated during external feedback, with the inclusion of video feedback. These neural connections occur in an action observation system and result in more automatic motor skills (Vezzosi 2018). While there is evidence that video feedback improves an individual’s overall skill acquisition, the ability to absorb and adjust from visual feedback differs from person to person. The ability to absorb this type of feedback also depends on the individuals’ starting skill level regarding the skill being learned (Farid et al. 2020).
The use of video feedback along with verbal feedback from the instructor results in an increase in the athlete’s motivation, which in turn improves the speed of knowledge acquisition and the understanding of the specific movement at hand. Potdevin et al. (2018) found that video feedback has a positive correlation with self-motivation, self-assessment, and stronger engagement in learning a new skill. Along with improved skill-specific movements, this type of feedback shows to create rapid acquisition in complex movements as well. This is done using the combination of mental imagery from the student and comparing it with actual visual feedback. The student can then compare the two and bridge the gap of what he or she believed needed to be fixed and the actual error. This bridging of the gap builds strong knowledge and motivation in the student (Farid et al. 2020).
References
Farana, R., Uchytil, J., Zahradník, D., & Jandacka, D. (2015). The" Akopian" vault performed by elite male gymnasts: Which biomechanical variables are related to a judge's score. Acta Gymnica, 45(1), 33-40.
Farid, C., Abderrahmene, H., & Fares, B. (2020). Progress in motor learning through augmented feedback (video feedback from a model and video feedback from its own realization), the case of the long jump technics. مجلة الابداع الرياضي, 11(3), 253-277.
Kovač, M. (2012). Assessment of Gymnastic Skills at Physical Education-The Case of Backward Roll. Science of gymnastics journal, 4(3).
Palao, J. M., Hastie, P. A., Cruz, P. G., & Ortega, E. (2015). The impact of video technology on student performance in physical education. Technology, Pedagogy and Education, 24(1), 51-63.
Partington, M., Cushion, C. J., Cope, E., & Harvey, S. (2015). The impact of video feedback on professional youth football coaches’ reflection and practice behaviour: A longitudinal investigation of behaviour change. Reflective practice, 16(5), 700-716.
Potdevin, F., Vors, O., Huchez, A., Lamour, M., Davids, K., & Schnitzler, C. (2018). How can video feedback be used in physical education to support novice learning in gymnastics? Effects on motor learning, self-assessment and motivation. Physical education and sport pedagogy, 23(6), 559-574.
Ronsse, R., Puttemans, V., Coxon, J. P., Goble, D. J., Wagemans, J., Wenderoth, N., & Swinnen, S. P. (2011). Motor learning with augmented feedback: modality-dependent behavioral and neural consequences. Cerebral cortex, 21(6), 1283-1294.
Roure, C., Méard, J., Lentillon-Kaestner, V., Flamme, X., Devillers, Y., & Dupont, J. P. (2019). The effects of video feedback on students’ situational interest in gymnastics. Technology, Pedagogy and Education, 28(5), 563-574.
Vezzosi, M. J. (2017). The Effect of Video Feedback on Sport-specific Skill Acquisition and Performance Anxiety (Doctoral dissertation, Grand Canyon University)
