The Effects of Sporting and Physical Practice on Visual and Kinesthetic Motor Imagery Vividness: A Comparative Study Between Athletic, Physically Active, and Exempted Adolescents

Abstract

The interest of motor imagery practice on performance and motor learning is well-established. However, the impact of sporting and physical practice on motor imagery vividness is currently unclear, especially in youth. Two-hundred-and-forty adolescents were recruited to form different groups. For each age group (age-group 1, A-G1 with 13years≤age≤14years 6months vs. age-group 2, A-G2 with 14years 6months<age≤16years), 40 athletes, 40 active adolescents, and 40 exempted were recruited (20 girls and 20 boys in each category). Movement Imagery Questionnaire-Revised Second version (MIQ-Rs) was used to assess the Visual Motor Imagery (VMI) and Kinesthetic Motor Imagery (KMI) vividness. Results show that VMI is more evoked and more vivid than KMI (p<0.001). Athletes had greater VMI and KMI than active and exempted groups (p<0.001), and the active group also performed higher VMI and KMI than the exempted group (p<0.001). Subjects from A-G2 had greater motor imagery than subjects from A-G1, and boys had better motor imagery than girls. Conclusion: the present results show that sport and physical education engagement is associated with enhanced motor imagery vividness, especially in VMI. Moreover, older adolescents evoke clearer images than younger adolescents, and boys have greater imagery ability than girls. Therefore, teachers and coaches should consider age and gender when developing this cognitive skill when learning, in physical education classes and sports clubs.

Motor imagery in autism: a systematic review

“…Therefore, employing MI techniques may well be beneficial for some autistic people, although an individual approach is likely to be most appropriate. Indeed, MI ability in typical populations is variable ( Moran et al, 2012 ; Cumming and Eaves, 2018 ) and influenced by multiple factors such as sporting and dance experience, MI practice, motor and cognitive ability and tactile discrimination ( Isaac and Marks, 1994 ; Arvinen-Barrow et al, 2007 ; Pelletier et al, 2018 ; Krüger et al, 2020 ; Dhouibi et al, 2021 ; Mao et al, 2022 ). Therefore, future research examining MI ability and impact of MI training on motor coordination in autistic populations will need to take into account individual differences.…”

Defining and measuring motor imagery in children: mini review

“…Further, this paradigm may be more suitable for older children than younger children as the ability to engage in the MCP improves with age. Boys may be more apt than girls to engage in the MCP ( Dhouibi et al, 2021 ). Nonetheless, the ease of measurement and consistent results in children continue to allow researchers to use this paradigm to assess MI ability in children.…”

Validation of the Slovenian Version of the Movement Imagery Questionnaire for Children (MIQ-C): A Measurement Tool to Assess the Imagery Ability of Motor Tasks in Children

“…Moreover, Dey et al ( 16 ) show that participation in sports improves mental representation in children, but it is not yet clear which modality (KI, IVI or EVI) was used and contributed the most. Dhouibi et al ( 17 ) found that adolescent athletes use the visual MI more frequently than non-athletes and that this ability is more vivid, pronounced and evoked than KI. The development of KI ability is a gradual process that can take many years to reach completion.…”