The effect of freedom of relevant choice on the 7-m throw in university students practicing handball

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of freedom of relevant choice, that is, associated with performance success, on the motor learning. Forty players of both sexes (21.2 ± 2.4 years) participated in the study and were divided into four experimental groups: alternated, random, choice, and yoked. The task was the Handball 7-m throw, in specific right and left side throw. Participants performed five blocks of six throws in the practice phase and, after 30 min, another six throws in the retention test. A mixed model analyses of variance (ANOVA) were run with data from the performance success and consistency rates considering first and last blocks of acquisition and retention block as repeated measures. Groups were analyzed as independent variables by considering their interaction with sex (4 × 2 × 3 (groups × sex × blocks)) and time of practice (4 × 4 × 3 (groups × time of practice × blocks)). Results showed that the alternated and choice groups presented superior rates of performance success to the random and yoked groups. The findings of this study allowed us to conclude that learning was benefited by the alternated and choice conditions compared to the random and yoked conditions.