Elite coaches' perceptions of the characteristics of decision-making that discriminate between expert and novice basketball players

Abstract

This study was aimed at discovering what elite coaches perceive to be the critical characteristics of decision-making that distinguish expert players from novices in basketball. A qualitative method of inquiry (the long interview) was followed. The data were gathered during interviews with five elite coaches. A framework to define decision-making was created through a systematic analysis of the data by two investigators with substantial background in top-level basketball. The key discriminating variables as defined by the elite coaches were: Anticipation (experts know where to look and have the ability to read the game better than novices); cognitive knowledge (experts have a more comprehensive knowledge of the rules and of tactics), self-knowledge (experts have more accurate sense of their own abilities) and the quality of memory processes (experts make decisions faster than novices and show more adaptability in their decision-making). The results of this research confirm expert-novice differences in anticipation and quality of memory processes found in other studies of decision-making in sport. The results also underscore the importance of knowledge structures - declarative, procedural and personal - in the development of expertise in sport performance.


(S. African J. for Research in Sport, Physical Ed. and Recreation: 2003 25 (1): 59-70)