The influence of specific and non-specific mental cues in learning a novel gross motor task

Includes bibliographical references (pages 92-100)Fifty college men participated in a study to ascertain\ud the effects different inter-trial mental activities had in\ud learning a novel gross motor task. The following mental\ud practice activities were utilized after each of the\ud physical practice trials performed during the eight practice appointments: Group I (Specific Mental Practice)\ud read specific speed and accuracy cues; Group II (Non-\ud Specific Mental Practice) attempted to think of means of\ud improving the speed and accuracy scores; and Group III\ud (Extraneous Mental Activity) performed simple mathematics\ud problems. The motor task involved jumping, stepping, and\ud hopping through a pattern of footprints painted on a plywood board. Each group significantly improved its total jumping and speed scores during the learning period. Groups I and II also significantly improved-their jumping accuracy scores, but Group III did not. Intergroup analysis of the total jumping scores indicated that Groups I and II differed significantly from Group III, but no significant differences were observed between the two mental practice groups. The null hypothesis, consequently, was accepted. Large inter-group variations in total jumping score appeared to be due to the more accurate performance facilitated by specific inter-trial instructions, and not as the result of one group's superior improvement in jumping speed. The more accurate performance was facilitated by specific cues, but a faster performance of the task was not due to the influence of the inter-trial instructions.\ud The test of task retention administered four weeks after\ud the post-test did not reveal any. significant advantages in\ud the use of specific or non-specific instructions in learning\ud and retaining a novel gross motor task