The Effect of Quiet Eye Training on Learning Skills of Table Tennis

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the efficiency of quiet eye training practices on the learning skills of table tennis. For this purpose, 28 novice players were randomly placed in two Control and Experimental groups. The Control group participants attended 12 sessions of usual table tennis training practices, whereas the Experimental group had one specialized training session on quiet eye technique, along with 12 sessions of usual exercises focused on quiet eye training. The results demonstrated that the visual factors and performance accuracy of the participants attending the Experimental group significantly improved throughout all skills. The average performance accuracy, respectively in serve and return of serve, was calculated at M=7.1, M= 3.2 for Control group and M=10.2, M= 6.3 for Experimental group. Findings of the present study support research literature in this context, acknowledging that quiet eye training practices, compared to typical table tennis practices, accelerate acquisition of skills for the beginners. They further provide basic evidence suggesting that short-term quiet eye practice protocols can leave long-term effects.