Mental Attention: Improving Motor Imagery by Adding Focus

摘要

Research has delineated the values of motor imagery for physical tasks; subjects consistently outperform control groups when mentally rehearsing a task and transferring it to a physical medium. Additionally, an external focus of attention has been shown to increase accuracy and performance while performing a physical task as compared to an internal focus. There had been no previous research addressing a focus of attention while mentally rehearsing a task. Therefore, the objective of this study was to see if varying foci of attention during practice of a dart-throwing task could enhance mental rehearsal. Consistency was significantly depressed for mental internal and control conditions I the first test block.