The Development of Context-Specific Biofeedback Training Screens – An Application to Hockey Officials
The benefits and potential of biofeedback training for enhancing athletic performance has received noticeable consideration in both research and practice. While most biofeedback research applied to sport participants has focused primarily on athletes, one group of participants has been neglected in both research and training. This group is known as sports officials. Ice hockey officials are required to possess various physical, cognitive, and psychological skills, suggesting that biofeedback training to enhance their on-ice performance holds strong utility. Since biofeedback research applied to sport offers very little perspective into the needs and requirements of biofeedback protocols applied to officials of sport, the purpose of this research project is to develop the first context-specific biofeedback training screens applied to hockey officiating. Working in conjunction with and obtaining approval from the Saskatchewan Hockey Association (SHA), participating referees and linesman were outfitted with a Contour 1080p© helmet camera to capture various on-ice experiences from a game-to-game basis. A focus group was held with SHA official representatives (i.e., official supervisors, mentors) to gain a better understanding as to (a) the various physical and cognitive/mental skills and abilities that are necessary to the official while on the ice, (b) the potential utility of biofeedback training for enhancing hockey official’s performance, and (c) how the previously obtained videos could be incorporated into the training experience so as to make the training experience more applied and meaningful. The results of the focus group provided valuable insight as to how the biofeedback training screens and tasks could be developed around the acquired video segments. Once the video segments were identified and validated by contextual experts (participants of the focus group), they were incorporated and configured into formatted biofeedback training screens using software offered by Thought Technology™. The implications of this research include educating officials on how their psychophysiology can influence their on-ice performance as well how they can utilize biofeedback training methods to restore and improve their performance. As a result, this research project is a critical step for future biofeedback research and training applied to sports officials.
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Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, University of Regina