The 1997 Coleman Roberts Griffith Address movement expertise: A juncture between psychology theory and practice

Two of the major distinguishing characteristics of the pioneering work of C oleman R. Griffith were his theory-practice integration through applied res earch and his eclectic focus not just on cognitive and emotional aspects of the psychology of sport, but also on elements related to perception, decis ion-making and movement control, and learning. The first part of this paper discusses the implications of these two attributes to broad issues for spo rt psychology related to the fragmentation-integration of knowledge, to def ining the scope of the field, and to the nature of the relationship with ot her fields of knowledge, especially motor control and learning. The second part of the paper illustrates some of these issues through an overview of a pplied research on the enhancement of the perceptual skills of athletes. A critique of current understanding of the nature of perceptual skill in spor t is first provided, using expert-novice comparisons as a means of uncoveri ng the essential distinguishing attributes of expert performance. Knowledge about the nature of expert perception is then used to assess the potential of current and prospective training strategies to enhance perceptual skill and, through this, provide new avenues for improving athletic performance.