| Title: |
Evaluating the Impact of VR Training on Perceptual-Cognitive Skills in Elite Youth Football: Insights into Transfer and Performance |
| Authors: |
Tiercery, Mathis; Carling, Christopher; Pavillon, Thomas; Bideau, Benoit; Sorel, Anthony |
| Publisher Information: |
Springer Science and Business Media LLC |
| Publication Year: |
2025 |
| Description: |
Players’ perceptual-cognitive skills and exploratory activity are essential components of soccer performance. This preliminary study explored the impact of Virtual Reality (VR) training on perceptual-cognitive skills and its potential transferability to game performance in elite youth football players. Sixteen players (Age = 13, SD = 0.3) from an elite youth soccer academy participated: control group = 8 and intervention group = 8. The effectiveness of a short VR training program delivered over four weekly sessions of 20 minutes on scanning and passing skills during a small-sided game was assessed. No significant difference was observed between groups for the pre- vs post assessment of the frequency of scanning movements (F = 2.56, p = 0.132, \(\:{\eta\:}^{2}\)=0.155) although a 49% improvement occurred in the intervention group following the virtual reality training (controls=-2% decrease). Passing accuracy was unchanged (p = 0.882) across evaluations in the VR-trained group versus the control group following the VR intervention. While no statistically significant difference was observed following the intervention, the frequency of scanning actions approximately doubled, coupled with a large effect size. This may suggest a positive trend towards the transfer of perceptual-cognitive skills to real-world game performance and that VR training has potential to enhance these crucial skills in young footballers although additional research is merited. |
| Document Type: |
other/unknown material |
| Language: |
unknown |
| DOI: |
10.21203/rs.3.rs-7169491/v1 |
| Availability: |
https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7169491/v1; https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-7169491/v1; https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-7169491/v1.html |
| Rights: |
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
| Accession Number: |
edsbas.1545AF78 |
| Database: |
BASE |