Understanding development and learning of motor coordination in sport: Thecontribution of dynamic systems theory

To date our understanding of learning and development of fundamental motor skills in sport still relies heavily on stage-like approaches. The aim of t his article is to show how dynamic systems theory can provide compelling co ncepts and methods to go beyond stage approaches and study the transitions from one stage to another. We begin by introducing the major dynamic system s concepts and methods that we deem essential to the study of motor learnin g and development. Then we illustrate through two exemplar studies how the application of these concepts and methods have shed new light on old develo pmental questions and the learning of complex coordination. Finally, we dis cuss how dynamic systems theory can be used to study and teach fundamental motor skills in children. In the conclusion, we invite practitioners and sc ientists to empirically test and verify our claims.