Effects of cognitive functions on feedback request strategy and learning of a perceptual motor task

Taking individual's cognitive abilities into consideration can play an important role in the initial stages of learning motor skills. So, the purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of cognitive functions on feedback request strategy and learning of a perceptual motor task. A number of 60 university male students with a mean age of 22/4 years (SD = 1/99) were selected through convenience sampling and were assigned to 6 groups according to their intelligence quotient, memory quotient and attention scores. All participants performed 100 badminton long services during the practice phase, and 20 services, during the retention and transfer phases. Wechsler Revised Intelligence Test, Wechsler memory scale, Toulouse and Pieron Test, and Scott and Fax Badminton Long Service were used to collect the data on intelligence quotient, memory quotient, attention, and badminton long service performance, respectively. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) with repeated measures and Independent t-test (α=0/05) were used to analyze the collected data. The analyses demonstrated that intelligence quotient, memory quotient, and attention had a significant effect on decreasing feedback request frequency during the acquisition phase, and increasing badminton long service scores during the acquisition, retention and transfer phases. Therefore, it can be concluded that bearing individual's cognitive abilities in mind during motor skills training can be beneficial.