Playing AVI During Tennis Training Process

Impact of Active Video Games on Motor- and Visual Spatial-learning Capabilities During the Process of Tennis Training in Young Children

Developing movement capabilities and efficiently acquiring and assimilating movement information and knowledge in middle childhood stages is of great importance for performing complex movement structures in later stages of life. Our study is directed to researching the influence of active video games (AVG) on assessment of tennis motor skills and visual capabilities in middle childhood, as a part of two separate sub-researches.

In the first sub-research, which included a sample of 55 children aged between 7 and 9, the investigators measured the physiological responses of bodies after acute and chronic exposure to playing AVG. The investigators established a significant difference in skin conductance before beginning the intervention between the virtual and actual game. After the intervention, the experimental group had a significantly higher average value of heart rate frequency and breathing frequency while playing AVG in comparison to the control group.

In the second sub-research the investigators measured progress in tennis technique (TRSC test), development of gross motor skills and change in reaction time on the same group of children. In the TRSC test, the control group improved in all sub-groups with both strokes. The experimental group made no improvements in sub-group 3d with the ''forehand'', 1d and 3d with the ''backhand''. In the gross motor skill development test the investigators have not established a significant interaction effect. In the analogue reaction time measurement test, the investigators recorded a significant interaction between time x group. The same goes for Simon's test with incongruent stimuli, with congruent the interaction was of no relevance.

The investigators established that the use of AVG can represent a new strategy for combining movement/sports activities and cognitively directed tasks aiming at effective assessment of tennis skills.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Age limit

Exclusion Criteria:

• excluded were players with injuries or long-term body impairments that prevented them from performing shots as they are usually instructed.