Procedural Knowledge, Decision Making and Performance in Women's Volleyball According to Age Group and Specific Experience

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze the procedural knowledge in action, decision-making and performance of the left-side attacker according to age group and specific experience, in women's volleyball. Four Portuguese women's teams participated in the present study: one under-16, one under-18 and two adult teams. A verbal interview protocol was implemented immediately after randomly chosen live game actions. The left-side attackers had to verbally respond to this question immediately following the execution of an attack, in 6 vs. 6 situations in practice. Players' decision-making and performance were analyzed by video images. Procedural knowledge was analyzed trough non-parametric statistics, namely Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests. Decision-making and performance were analyzed through Chi-square (ο²) testing. Results showed that adult teams and the more experienced left-side attackers generated more goal concepts and fewer condition concepts, were more often concerned with the opponent and less with teammates. Moreover, no differences in player's performance and decision-making were observed according to age group and experience as left-side attackers. Further research should consider the characterization of the training process, mainly focusing on the tactical contents, as the information provided could provide a better and deeper understanding about the players' tactical development.