Research of Characteristics of Mental Images of Movements in Martial Artists

Abstract

The study investigated the specificity of mental images of martial artists when presenting certain actions (hip throw, miller, dive, transfer, leg pass) using a modified questionnaire to identify the features of mental images. 19 subjects (age 22 ± 3.6 years, male) participated in the study, nine of whom were wrestlers. The subjects presented the above techniques in their performance several times. The following were analyzed: foreshortening, type of landmarks in the control of the presented movement, and chronometric characteristics of mental images. The results showed that experienced athletes were characterized, as a rule, by a stable foreshortening — predominantly from the 1st person. Fewer experienced athletes had a dominant 3rd-person perspective. There were pauses in the chronometric indices of experienced athletes in order to work through certain moments. In novice athletes, the rate of presentation of skills almost always corresponded to the real one. Muscle sensations dominated when describing skills in experienced martial artists. The beginners were dominated by visual characteristics, external forms.