Effect of Visual Stimuli Training on Reaction Time, Decision Making and Performance Accuracy of Table Tennis Player

Abstract

Objective: In sports it may be necessary for an athlete to make a decision and execute a movement towards a specific direction with high temporal accuracy. Previous study shows, by reducing or increasing the amount of time between what and how decisions via manipulating ball speed or training to change between different targets in time and movement constrain we can have a major impact on performance. The aim of this study was first to develop visual stimuli training device that able player to change between different targets and different movement training. Second, to investigate whether this training system can actually improve accuracy, reaction time and decision making of athlete after an intervention of five weeks by comparing to a control group with no specific visual stimuli training. Methods: Eighteen semi-experience table tennis players were randomly divided into 2 groups (control group, n = 8

experiment group, n = 10) and underwent pretest, intervention, post-test and retention test. The test consisted of accuracy test, decision making test, choice reaction time test and three different level of accuracy together with decision making test. Results: The result shows significant improvement in choice reaction time test and accuracy test just for the group that use visual stimuli training system and not for control group. But no significant improvement was found in decision making test for either group. However, there was a significant improvement in all three level of accuracy together with decision making test for only experiment group though the effect size were getting smaller by level of test difficulty. Conclusion: By training to limit the available time for table tennis player to change the direction of sending ball into a different specific area in response to different visual stimuli, we can improve visual reaction time, performance accuracy but not decision making of table tennis player. However, the performance which require both decision making and accuracy together might improve even if the decision making part of the performance remain the same and this result shows that improving accuracy might be a guaranty for performance superiority that require decision making as well.