Exploring the perceptual training in Badminton doubles positioning

[[abstract]]Badminton is an open-skilled and fast sport that players need to detect the invariant information from the environment and build up their affordance. Therefore doubles positioning requires perception and action tightly coupled to make good performance. Purpose: To investigate the learning of the perceptual training in Badminton doubles positioning and the possibility of transferring to the game playing situation. Methods: 16 college students (Badminton experience: 2.25?0.89 years) whose pretest score of the playing ability in doubles positioning was less than 50% were randomly divided into movement-learning group and perceptual-learning group. They learned how to position by video-perceptual training and feedback. The independent variables were group, mode of performance (perceptual or movement), learning (pre and post tests), stroke (first, second, and third), and tactic (offensive or defensive). The dependent variable was the performance score. The three-way ANOVA was used for analyses. Results: The perceptual training was beneficial for doubles positioning performance. But the perceptual performance was superior to motor performance; the hitting situation was superior to not hitting situation for the third stroke; the perceptual performance was superior to the motor performance in not hitting situation. Conclusion: Whether the experienced player learn doubles positioning by way of perceptual or motor mode, it was all helpful to the basic concept of positioning. However, the no-hitting situation in doubles positioning was the most difficult to master and was interpreted as the further evidence of the perception-action coupling (Gibson, 1961).