Research summary · Youth development
Timing-focused practice improves a laboratory anticipation task in young volleyball players
Thirty-two girls aged 8–10 from one volleyball club were randomized to eight weeks of timing-focused practice or usual training. A blinded assessor measured anticipation errors for moving-light stimuli immediately after training and two months later.
- Publication year
- 2026
- First published online
- Publication type
- Assessor-blinded randomized controlled trial
- Journal
- Children
- Population / context
- Girls' volleyball · Perceptual-motor learning
What the publication reports
The practice group showed smaller timing errors at both tested stimulus speeds, with advantages retained at follow-up. For the faster stimulus, adjusted post-training errors were 64 versus 122 milliseconds. The intervention replaced an equivalent block of usual training rather than simply adding training time.
Limits and interpretation
The small, single-club sample limits precision and generalization. The measured outcome was a laboratory timing task, not successful passes, match performance or injury prevention. Two-month retention does not establish benefits across later development.
Read the source
Consult the original record for the full author list, methods, references, funding and competing-interest disclosures.
The Impact of an 8-Week Deliberate Practice Intervention on Coincidence Anticipation Timing and Long-Term Retention in Youth Female Volleyball Players
Original publication / indexed recordPMID: 42353992DOI: 10.3390/children13060822Full text at the sourceReader discussion
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