17 Psychophysiological Features of Effective Practice

Practice features

What, when, where, why, how we practice

Subtypes of motor memory

Procedural, semantic, episodic

Procedural memory

implicit memory of “HOW”

Semantic memory

Explicit memory of “WHAT”

Episodic memory

Explicit memory of emotional experiences

Memory strategies

Involve manipulating practice features to facilitate motor memory, different strategies facilitate distinct subtypes of motor memory 

Memory strategy types

Movement features, remembering strategies, practice characteristics

Movement features

How movements are produced to facilitate retention of procedural memory

Postural information (movement feature)

Body position and joint angles

Movement information (movement features)

distance, direction, and speed of movements

Remembering strategies

Involves techniques that facilitate retention of motor memory 

Repetition of motor skill (remembering strategy)

Facilitates procedural memory

Meaningfulness (what, why, and how to practice) (remembering strategy)

facilitate all memory subtypes

Learned based control (remebering strategy)

Allows learners to control over what and how they practice --> facilitates all memory subtypes

Mastery goals (remembering strategy)Envront

foster intentions that help promote motivation and effort --> facilitates all memory subtypes

Practice characteristics

Manipulate environmental and task features to facilitate retention of motor memory

Environmental features (practice characteristics)

features of real world environments, facilitates retention of procedural and semantic memory

Task features (practice characteristics)

features that mimic real-world difficulty, Facilitates retention of procedural and semantic memory 

5 fundamental features of practice

• Intention to improve and master skills

• Strong motivation and effort

• Learner-based practice and learner input 

• Effective communication of information

• Overlearning with variation

Intentions

These are psychological processes that arise from goals used to specify what to practice, why to practice, and how to practice, (Goals need to be specific)

Foster motivation

• Require for high levels of physical and mental effort

• Enables greater focus of attention

facilitate neural plasticity

emphasized over performance

Goals that foster intentions

Mastery goals and Performance Goals

Mastery goals

Level of skill mastery relative to oneself

• BETTER for achieving long-term learning outcomes

• emphasize improvement and skill mastery

• Consider learner objectives and characteristics

• Consider characteristics of the motor skill

Performance Goals

Desired level of performance relative to others

Intention to improve

• Practices should be planned and organized based on individual and team goals

• Goals should focus on skill mastery

• Foster intentions and improve meaningfulness

• Meaningful practices maximize motivation, effort, and focus of attention

Motivation and effort

Psychological process that facilitates motor learning by driving effort,

Effort

Physical and Mental effort

• Practices should include activities that are physically and mentally challenging

  • Should maximize high intensity activities and minimize inactivity

Physical effort

Physiological process that helps maximize motor learning

Mental effort

Psychological process that facilitates physical effort

Challenge Point Hypothesis

Proposes that learning is maximized when tasks are difficult but not overwhelming

• Finally achieving something leads to boosts in dopamine and norepinephrine, which help drive neural plasticity and learning

Progress and simplification

instructional tools used to modify task difficulty

• Needed to maintain optimal levels of task difficulty

• Help learners maintain motivation and effort

• Facilitate positive transfer of motor skills

Learned Based Practice

Practice based on learner characteristics and/or learner in

Learner characteristics

Refer to individual and/or team skills and abilities

• Movement techniques and information processing skills

• Physical, psychological, and psychomotor abilities

• Age and maturity

Learner input

Refers to learner preferences related to practice features

• Activities included in practice

• Goals used to foster intentions

• Type of communication used by instructors

Frequency and timing of feedback (Leaner input)

Used to correct errors and motivate learners

Practice based on learner input

Enhance motivation and effort to learners

• Empower and motivate learners --> leads to higher mental and physical effort, also results in better learning and memory