A Comparison of Gaze Behaviors and Decision Making in Skilled and Novice Football Players

The mechanisms involved in expertise in the last decade have received a great deal of attention of researchers. They try to understand how performers are able to deal with complex tasks and overcome limitations to become highly skilled. The aim of this study was to compare gaze behaviors and decision making skill among skilled (n=12) and novice (n=12) football players. 24 male football players (age range: 19-25 years old) took part in the study and were divided into two groups of experts and novices. Participants watched images of different situations and provided their prediction of the desired kicks by choosing the right key in the shortest time possible. The number and duration of fixations and the accuracy and speed of decision making were recorded using Eye Tracking and Reaction Time device. The results of ANOVA on decision making skill showed a significant difference between the two groups in their decision making speed and accuracy, but the results of the gaze behaviors showed no significant difference in the number and duration of fixations between the two groups. These results showed that expert players are able to select the appropriate signs of the screen based on a considerable amount of perception. In addition, the results of this study showed that expert players show higher perception of vision and better decision making than novice players.