Information Processing Theory

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Q1. Describe the information processing theory of how performers produce and control actions. Use a sporting example to support your answer.

The Information Processing theory is best described by McMorris, T. (2004). The input is your environment, everything around you. What is taken in from the input will be delivered to your Central Nervous System (CNS), which then has three steps, Perception, Decision, Efferent organization.

Perception is how we will portray the information coming in (McMorris, 2004). Selective attention is important in perception; it will allow you to distinguish between relevant cues and irrelevant cues. The perception phase can also be described as interpreting the environment (Wrisberg, 2007). A basketball player
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Through the IPT you will keep taping into your Short-term memory (STM), and Long-term memory (LTM) systems for information.

Performers will produce actions through the Information Processing theory (Input-perception-Decision-Efferent Organization-Output) (Welford, 1968). Control of these actions will be stored through your Short term and Long term memory systems (McMorris, 2014).

Honeybourne, J. (2004) Described Memory as two aspects, STM and LTM. STM is characterized as a limited storage system in which information is lost, or decays, within seconds without the allocation of conscious rehearsal strategies (Baddeley, 1996). LTM is the storage of lots of information that has been collectively accumulated.

A good example of how performers control an action is goalkeeper trying to save a penalty kick in soccer. A goalkeeper will use his STM memory stores to try and remember any previous video he might have seen on the penalty kickers technique. The goalkeeper might use LTM to recall any information they have stored about body position and ankle angle McMorris, T. (2004). Both STM and LTM are vital in performers controlling their
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This stage of learning is accomplished through a vast amount of practice. This stage is associated with little mental effort. It happends when someone has practiced the skill enough that skill becomes automatic. An example of this is an elite rugby player, when passing the ball a player won’t think about the proper technique in the pass, it will be an automatic process. The player will then be able to focus on which actions are appropriate next Williams and A, M. (2012). For coaches with players in the autonomous stage, there isn’t need for lots of instruction. For performers in the autonomous stage, they don’t need much detail, as their movements are automatic, but rather preform more practice and honing in on their