A study by the University of Basel exposed that an encouraging touch from teammates, such as a pat on the shoulder, can increase the opportunities of scoring a complimentary throw in basketball, especially after missing the first shot. This recommends that physical touch can be an important aspect in improving efficiency under tension. Credit: SciTechDaily.comA totally free throw in basketball will have every eye glued to a single person. Its an intensely demanding scenario. A research group led by the University of Basel studied whether a friendly tap on the shoulder increases the chances of making a shot.In tight spots, physical touch like a hug or a pat on the back can decrease stress. Whether this influences performance in difficult life situations has not yet been studied in information. A group of scientists headed by Christiane Büttner at the Faculty of Psychology of the University of Basel investigated this question in the context of basketball games. Their results appeared in the journal Psychology of Sport & & Exercise.One of the most stressful scenarios throughout a video game is a free toss. A player gets a totally free throw if they were fouled while trying to score. The fouled player gets 2 complimentary throws and can win one point per successful shot. Lots of video games are chosen by totally free throws.Büttner and her coworkers at the University of Landau and Purdue University studied exactly this scenario utilizing videos of basketball video games. The study included an overall of 60 video games played by womens basketball groups in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the US. The video games contained 835 occurrences of 2 complimentary throws.Your team has your backThe scientists counted how numerous of her 4 teammates touched the shooter before a shot, for instance by tapping her on the shoulder or squeezing her hand. They then calculated whether there was a statistical association in between the variety of touches by colleagues and the success rate of the subsequent shot.The data revealed that the opportunity of scoring increased when teammates revealed their support through touch. The effect only appeared after a failed first shot. “So support from teammates is most useful when your tension level is currently high because youve missed out on the first of the 2 shots,” Büttner states in summary.Its possible that a pat on the back or squeeze of the hand might also help manage tension and enhance performance in other team situations, says the psychologist.Reference: “The power of human touch: Physical contact improves performance in basketball complimentary tosses” by Christiane M. Büttner, Christoph Kenntemich and Kipling D. Williams, 19 February 2024, Psychology of Sport and Exercise.DOI: 10.1016/ j.psychsport.2024.102610.
A research study by the University of Basel revealed that a supportive touch from colleagues, such as a pat on the shoulder, can increase the chances of scoring a free throw in basketball, specifically after missing the first shot. The video games consisted of 835 occurrences of two free throws.Your group has your backThe researchers counted how many of her 4 teammates touched the shooter before a shot, for example by tapping her on the shoulder or squeezing her hand. “So support from colleagues is most handy when your stress level is already high since youve missed the first of the 2 shots,” Büttner states in summary.Its conceivable that a pat on the back or squeeze of the hand could also help manage stress and improve efficiency in other group circumstances, states the psychologist.Reference: “The power of human touch: Physical contact enhances efficiency in basketball free throws” by Christiane M. Büttner, Christoph Kenntemich and Kipling D. Williams, 19 February 2024, Psychology of Sport and Exercise.DOI: 10.1016/ j.psychsport.2024.102610.