The Relative Contribution of Core Executive Functions in Shooting Performance Prediction

Investigating the underlying factors of sports performance is one of the most important goals of sports science researchers. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between core executive functions (inhibition and working memory) and shooting performance. For this purpose, 30 shooters from Kurdistan province, aged 18-32 years, trained under the supervision of the province's shooting committee, participated in this study. The working memory and inhibitory control were assessed through the N-Beck and Stroop tests. Then the score in the first official competition of these athletes was considered as shooting performance. Correlation between variables was evaluated by Pearson and Spearman correlation coefficient tests as well as linear regression. The results showed that there was a significant relationship only between the two components of incongruent trials errors and interference score in the Stroop test with shooting performance (P<0.05) and there was no significant relationship between the other components (P>0.05). Accordingly, the shooting score increased with decreasing errors in incongruent trials as well as reduced interference. In addition, linear regression results showed that only the interference score component was able to estimate part of the variance of shooting performance significantly. Overall, the present findings showed that among the core executive functions (working memory and inhibitory control), the inhibitory control can predict the shooting performance. Therefore, this component can be placed along with other important factors affecting shooter performance to be used first for evaluate and then to improve shooting performance through inhibition enhancement interventions.