How does the acquisition of skill affect performance?



Skill acquisition refers to the process that athletes use to learn or acquire a new skill. A skill can be defined as an act or task such as typing or drawing, or in the instance of sport, catching, throwing, and running.

Skill acquisition is a gradual developmental process that requires our cognitive (thinking) processes to work with our physical abilities to learn how to perform movements that we were previously unfamiliar with. For performers and coaches to produce peak performance, it is essential that they understand how the level of skill acquisition can affect performance. This includes an understanding of the learning process, analysis of how well it is performed and identification of how the performance of this skill can be improved.

Learning can occur in three ways: When learning physical skills motor learning is of greatest importance.
 * cognitive learning - learning by receiving knowledge and information
 * affective learning - learning on a social level (e.g. self-esteem and fair-play)
 * motor learning - learning by acquiring physical motor skills.

Skill learning is a continuous and dynamic process. When the learner acquires a skill certain changes can be seen in their performance as they move through stages of learning from a beginner through to a skilled performer. These changes can be analysed in three stages, as developed by Paul Fitts and Michael Posner in 1967. These stages are known as the cognitive, associative and autonomous stages of skill acquisition.