Attention and Motor Skill Learning explores how a person's focus of attention affects motor performance and, in particular, the learning of motor skills. It synthesizes the knowledge coming from recent research examining the effects of attentional focus on motor performance and learning, and it provides practical implications for both instructional and rehabilitative settings.
Attention and Motor Skill Learning challenges traditional views that the method of learning a motor skill involves focusing attention on each part of the skill and internalizing proper execution. Instead, author Gabriele Wulf argues that the learning of new motor skills suffers when attentional focus is on the coordination of movements. When attention is directed to the desired movement effect, however, performance levels rise. Not only is a higher level of performance often achieved faster with an external rather than an internal attention focus, but the skill is retained better. The advantages of external focus apply to a variety of skills and skill levels and may be used while instructing athletes, children, and those with physical impairments as well as in any setting in which effective and efficient training of motor skills is a concern.
Attention and Motor Skill Learning not only presents the latest research on attentional focus, but it also offers practical solutions for bypassing or at least shortening the first “conscious” stage of learning. Instructors may then use these suggestions to provide their students or patients with a faster and more effective way to develop and perform motor skills. This text turns research into application by
 -detailing how a person's attentional focus changes with age and type of task and in later stages of learning, allowing readers to apply the information to a variety of ages and settings;
-providing specific instructional examples and challenges in “Practical Applications” sections that may be used in everyday teaching scenarios; and
-including comparison tables and offering suggestions for differentiating instructions regarding internal and external foci of attention. To help teachers understand how the wording of their instruction can facilitate the learning process, Attention and Motor Skill Learning shares insights from athletes, musicians, and speech therapists on their thinking as they perform or teach selected skills in each chapter's “Attentional Insights” section. The “Future Directions” sections at the end of each chapter highlight potential research studies that challenge readers to use and further develop the methods and practices in the book. Other useful features include case studies and chapter-opening scenarios that present motor-learning problems and demonstrate the role of attentional focus in solving them.
Attention and Motor Skill Learning provides many practical examples and implications for teaching, learning, relearning, and performing motor skills. This book will help readers better understand the effects that attentional focus has on motor performance and learning as well as the mechanisms underlying these effects. While challenging traditional learning methods, this book presents the latest research and demonstrates how changing one's focus of attention can speed the learning process and lead to more effective performance of motor skills.

Attention and Motor Skill Learning

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Wulf, Gabriele

Psychology & Counseling

Human Kinetics

Motor Control and Learning, Sixth Edition With Web Resource, focuses on observable movement behavior, the many factors that influence quality of movement, and how movement skills are acquired. The text examines the motivational, cognitive, biomechanical, and neurological processes of complex motor behaviors that allow human movement to progress from unrefined and clumsy to masterfully smooth and agile. 
 This updated sixth edition builds upon the foundational work of Richard Schmidt and Timothy Lee in previous editions. The three new authors—each a distinguished scholar—offer a range and depth of knowledge that includes current directions in the field. The extensively revised content reflects the latest research and new directions in motor control and learning. Additional new features of the sixth edition include the following: 
 • A web resource that includes narratives and learning activities from Motor Control in Everyday Actions that correspond with the chapters in the book, giving students additional opportunities to analyze how research in motor learning and control can be expanded and applied in everyday settings 
 • An instructor guide that offers sample answers for the learning experiences found in the student web resource 
 • New content on sleep and movement memory, the role of vision, illusions and reaching, the OPTIMAL theory of motor learning, the neuroscience of learning, and more 
Motor Control and Learning begins with a brief introduction to the field and an introduction to important concepts and research methods. Part II thoroughly covers motor control with topics such as closed-loop perspective, the role of the central nervous system for movement control, speed and accuracy, and coordination. Part III deals with motor learning, exploring the effects of attentional focus, the structure of practice sessions, the role of feedback, theoretical views of motor learning, and the retention and transfer of skills. 
 Throughout the book, art and practical examples are included to elucidate complex topics. Sidebars with historical examples, classic research, and examples of real-world applications highlight the importance of motor control and learning research and bring attention to influential research studies and pioneers. End-of-chapter summaries and student assignments reinforce important concepts and terms and provide review opportunities. For instructors, an image bank complements the new instructor guide; it is available to course adopters at www.HumanKinetics.com/MotorControlAndLearning. 
 The updated research, new features, and highly respected authors of Motor Control and Learning, Sixth Edition With Web Study Guide, provide a solid foundation for both students and practitioners who study and work in fields that encompass movement behavior.

Motor Control and Learning: A Behavioral Emphasis

Politics & Social Sciences

Schmidt, Richard A.

Lee, Timothy D.

Winstein, Carolee

Zelaznik, Howard N.

Social Sciences

Motor Control And Learning

Lee, Timothy Donald

Winstein, Carolee J.

Schmidt, Richard A., 1941- Author

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