Dr.Sc.Psych., Professor B.P. Yakovlev¹
Postgraduate I.V. Aksarin²
PhD, Associate Professor I.Y. Aksarin²
PhD, Associate Professor A.A. Pasishnikov^1
1Surgut State University, Surgut
²Yugra State University, Khanty-Mansiysk

Keywords: sensory-motor asymmetry, lateralizing, asymmetry ratio, junior basketball players, sport training.

Introduction. Many different factors and characteristics of junior athletes are taken into account and analyzed in the sports training process. The lateralization of the functional brain asymmetry in the training of junior athletes at the initial training stage is not an exception. In their time, E.K. Aganyants and K.D. Chermit considered an individual asymmetry profile to be a meaningful genetic marker of successful sports activities [1, 6].

Expressed functional asymmetry in junior athletes negatively affects the game process, as confirmed by the earlier studies on the rationality and efficiency of the competitive techniques applied by the junior basketball players with different types of lateralization of functional asymmetry [3]. In addition to the athletes’ limited ability to perform symmetric exercises and techniques with an expressed asymmetry, it also affects their health [4]. Many researchers believe that asymmetry develops due to uneven training loads [2]. For instance, an asymmetry of blood pressure and vascular tone is found both during exercise and at rest [4].

Objective of the study was to determine the role of functional asymmetry in the development of   technical fitness of junior basketball players.

Methods and structure of the study. Sampled for the study were 10-12 year-old beginner basketball players (n=40) trained at sport schools. The sample was split up into Reference Group (RG) and Experimental Group (EG) of 20 people each, with the RG trained as required by the standard CYSS/ CYORSS curriculum; and the EG trained basically under the same curriculum complemented by the sensory-motor asymmetry lateralizing practices.

The individual profiles and asymmetry ratios in the junior basketball players were determined using the Annett hand preference questionnaire and the following tests: Track Test, Tapping Test, RMO Test, Response to the Light Stimulus Test [3, 7]. The asymmetry ratio was calculated according to the formula:

     where: R_asym – asymmetry ratio; Е_r – number of tests performed with the right side dominance; Е_l – number of tests performed with the left side dominance; Е_e – number of tests successfully performed on either side, with no specific dominance. At R_asym>+15 % – dominance of the right-side paired body parts; R_asym<-15 % – dominance of the left-side paired body parts; -15%< R_asym<+15% – functional symmetry.

Results and discussion. Rivalry in basketball invariably implies strong opposition of the guards, for which reason the game situation changes every single second, thus forcing the forwards to act under severe time constraints. Having decided on his action, a basketball player may be late in performing it, which in most cases results in an error. Therefore, it is very important to develop the quick decision making ability in a junior basketball player. This feature requires of the athletes a high level of development of their locomotor system, which would provide quick sensory and visual perception and equally as quick comprehension of the current situation for decision making purposes [4, 5].

The table represents the sensory-motor asymmetry indicators in the junior basketball players of the RG and EG. The results testify to the asymmetry in the motor response rates of the dominant and non-dominant arms of the junior basketball players.

Table 1. The sensory-motor asymmetry indicators in the junior basketball players before and after the experiment

According to Table 1, the EG subjects had an increase in the motor response rate of both arms in terms of sensory-motor asymmetry. Thus, in the track test performed with the dominant arm, they succeeded to improve their results, while the non-dominant arm results were improved even more. At the end of the experiment, the junior basketball players of the RG improved their results in the track test performed with the dominant arm, while the non-dominant arm results remained at approximately the same level.

The two-year experiment revealed an increase in the tapping test results in terms of both the dominant and non-dominant arms in both groups. However, in the EG, the increase in these indicators during the tapping test turned out to be higher when performed with the non-dominant arm. Apparently, this increase was due to the additional load imposed on the non-dominant arm during the training process. It should also be emphasized that the additional targeted load on the non-dominant arm in the EG did not affect the development of the dominant one.

The RG basketball players were found to have a significant growth of the tapping test results, much lower though. Such an increase in the RG indicators is explained by the natural development characteristic of the 10-12 year-olds, as well as by the performance of symmetric exercises during the training process.

The results of testing the reaction to a moving object testified to the fact that the motor response rate in the dominant arm of the junior basketball players of both groups increased with age and regular exercise. The improved motor response rate in the dominant arm in both groups was associated with the daily use of technical elements that are only natural for basketball players (dribbling, shot, ball handling). However, the results of testing the non-dominant arm showed the increase observed in the EG only. Obviously, this was due to the additional load imposed on the non-dominant side of the body. In the RG, the results remained at approximately the same (baseline) level.

The response to the light stimulus test made it possible to determine an integral characteristic of operational thinking with attention switch to the light stimulus. The data presented in the table testify to the enhancement of the motor response rate in the dominant arm in both groups. In the EG, the motor response to the light stimulus in the non-dominant arm was characterized by a significant improvement. In the RG, an increase in the response to the light stimulus was also observed in the non-dominant arm, quite insignificant though. Despite the obvious improvement of the response rate of both arms in both groups, it should be noted that in the EG a higher increase was associated with the inclusion in the training process of exercises to enhance the sensory-motor reaction.

Table 2 represents the dynamics of changes in the asymmetry ratio in the junior basketball players of the RG and EG at the beginning of the experiment (1), during the control examination (2) and at the end of the experiment (3).

Table 2. The sensory-motor asymmetry ratio in the junior basketball players at the beginning and at the end of the experiment

During the educational experiment, the EG subjects were found to have a decrease in the manual asymmetry ratio. The decrease in this indicator was detected in the pedagogical tests as follows: "simultaneous arm movements", "throws", "arm wave", "throwing at a target" [2, 3]. The RG subjects, who were trained as required by the standard CYSS/ CYORSS curriculum, demonstrated a slight decrease in the manual asymmetry ratio. The analysis of the motor asymmetry dynamics indicated an increase of the percentage of "right-handedness" among the RG basketball players. Obviously, little attention was paid to the non-dominant arm during the training of the RG junior athletes, and symmetric exercises to develop the non-dominant side of the body were lacking.

Conclusion. The findings of the two-year study of individual asymmetry profiles in basketball showed that the stability and slight decrease in the manual asymmetry ratio in the junior basketball players of the EG was owing to the additional load imposed on the non-dominant hand.

References

1. Aganyants E.K., et al. Funktsionalnye asimmetrii v sporte: mesto, rol i perspektivy issledovaniya
2. [Functional asymmetries in sport: place, role and prospects of research]. Teoriya i praktika fiz. kultury, 2004, no. 8, pp. 22, 23.
3. Aksarin I.V., Aksarina I.Yu. Model tekhnicheskoy podgotovki yunykh basketbolistov s uchetom funktsionalnoy asimmetrii [Model of technical training of junior basketball players with regard to functional asymmetry]. Vestnik Chuvashskogo gosudarstvennogo pedagogicheskogo universiteta im. I. Ya. Yakovleva, 2017, no. 4 (96), pp. 58-67.
4. Aksarin I.V. Analiz ratsionalnosti i rezultativnosti vypolneniya tekhnicheskikh priemov yunymi basketbolistami s uchetom funktsionalnoy asimmetrii v sorevnovatelnoy deyatelnosti [Analysis of rationality and effectiveness of techniques performed by junior basketballers in view of functional asymmetry in competitive activities]. Vektor nauki Tolyattinskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Ser. Pedagogika, psikhologiya, 2017, no. 4, pp. 9-16.
5. Berdichevskaya E.M., Gronskaya A.S. Funktsionalnaya asimmetriya i sport [Functional asymmetry and sport]. Rukovodstvo po funktsionalnoy mezhpolusharnoy asimmetrii [Manual on functional interhemispheric asymmetry]. Moscow, 2009, pp. 647-691.
6. Bragin N.N., Dobrokhotova T.A. Funktsionalnye asimmetrii cheloveka [Functional asymmetry in man]. 2nd ed., rev., sup.. Moscow: Meditsina publ., 1988, 240 p.
7. Chermit K.D., Karyagina N.V. Adaptatsionnoe povedenie sportsmenov s razlichnym iskhodnym urovnem asimmetrii [Adaptational behaviour of athletes with different initial levels of asymmetry]. Maikop: Meditsina publ., 1993, 195 p.
8. Yakovlev B. P. Psikhicheskaya nagruzka v sporte vysshikh dostizheniy [Mental load in elite sports]. Surgut: SurSPU publ., 2007, 220 p.

Corresponding author: apokin_vv@mail.ru

Abstract

The article summarizes findings of our multiannual studies of the functional asymmetries in beginner basketball players. The study analyzes benefits of the sensory-motor asymmetry lateralizing in the beginner basketball trainings, with the lateralizing initiatives viewed as an extra resource for the training process efficiency improvement –  since the habitual underuse of the non-leading limbs is known to hamper the individual progress.

10-12 year-old beginner basketball players (n=40) trained at sport schools were sampled for the study. The sample was split up into a Reference Group (RG) and Experimental Group (EG) of 20 people each, with the RG trained as required by the standard CYSS/ CYORSS curriculum; and the EG trained basically under the same curriculum complemented by the sensory-motor asymmetry lateralizing practices. The sensory-motor asymmetry lateralizing training model was found beneficial as verified by the EG progress in the sensory-motor asymmetry mitigating aspects.