An Examination of the Maintenance of Preshot Routines in Basketball Free Throw Shooting.

Abstract

Weinberg and Gould (2003) have noted the effectiveness of preperformance routines. From anxiety reduction, to confidence training, to concentration enhancing, research has suggested that many athletes utilize preperformance routines as a cue for improving performance. Yet, little research was found which observed athletes' exact actions within preperformance routines. For example, does a basketball player observe the same preperformance routine before every free throw? This investigation observed the maintenance of preset behavioral protocols in basketball free throw shooting. More specifically, this investigation examined whether free throw shooting percentages were affected by following or deviating from a specific routine from one free throw to the next. The participants consisted of nine men and seven women from two varsity basketball teams competing at an NCAA Division I institution in a southeastern section of the United States basketball conference. Researchers, independent of each other, monitored and recorded performance routines for each free throw taken by any player on the teams using the Preperformance Observational Checklist (PPOC) designed specifically for this investigation. The results revealed those athletes who follow a preshot routine had a higher, but not statistically significant, free throw percentage (74%) than those who did not follow a preshot routine (68%). This finding is in agreement with Lobmeyer and Wasserman (1986) who found athletes who followed a preshot routine perform with greater accuracy at the free throw line than those who did not follow a routine. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved) (journal abstract)