<abstract xml:lang="en" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><italic>Study aim</italic>: To assess whether in a special area, such as football, formal thinking may appear as early as at the age of 10 years.<italic>Material and methods:</italic> In total 50 children divided into three groups took part in the study: 10-year-old football players from the Premier League Team - level 1 (Group 1; n = 22), 10-year-old football players from the Football League Team - level 3 (Group 2; n = 13) and 13-year-old football players from the Premier League Team - level 1 (Group 3; n = 15). With the help of specific motor tests, the kinetic memory, level of thinking and technical level were assessed.<italic>Results</italic>: The 10-year-old children representing lower levels of football proficiency (Group 2) were significantly (p&lt;0.05) inferior to their mates from the Premier League in both the level of thinking as well as in kinetic memory. No significant differences were found between members of Group 1 and Group 3 in any of the studied variables.<italic>Conclusions</italic>: The results support the thesis that 10-year-old children are able to use formal thinking in a particular area, such as football. To be aware of this would be of great importance to those experts who deal with selection and talent identification.</abstract>

Study aim: To assess whether in a special area, such as football, formal thinking may appear as early as at the age of 10 years.Material and methods: In total 50 children divided into three groups took part in the study: 10-year-old football players from the Premier League Team - level 1 (Group 1; n = 22), 10-year-old football players from the Football League Team - level 3 (Group 2; n = 13) and 13-year-old football players from the Premier League Team - level 1 (Group 3; n = 15). With the help of specific motor tests, the kinetic memory, level of thinking and technical level were assessed.Results: The 10-year-old children representing lower levels of football proficiency (Group 2) were significantly (p<0.05) inferior to their mates from the Premier League in both the level of thinking as well as in kinetic memory. No significant differences were found between members of Group 1 and Group 3 in any of the studied variables.Conclusions: The results support the thesis that 10-year-old children are able to use formal thinking in a particular area, such as football. To be aware of this would be of great importance to those experts who deal with selection and talent identification.

Measurement of cognitive ability and thinking level of 10- and 13- year-old football players with football-specific tasks

Faculty of Physical Education and Sport Science, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary

Biomedical Human Kinetics

Study aim: To assess whether in a special area, such as football, formal thinking may appear as early as at the age of 10 years.Material and methods: In total...

Measurement of cognitive ability and thinking level of 10- and 13- year-old football players with football-specific tasks

Published Online: Jul 24, 2012

Page range: 49 - 53

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/v10101-012-0009-x

Keywords
Football, Developmental psychology, Thinking level, Cognitive ability

This content is open access.

Measurement of cognitive ability and thinking level of 10- and 13- year-old football players with football-specific tasks

Published Online: Jul 24, 2012

Page range: 49 - 53

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/v10101-012-0009-x

KeywordsFootball, Developmental psychology, Thinking level, Cognitive ability

This content is open access.

Keywords
Football, Developmental psychology, Thinking level, Cognitive ability