Ocular Dominance Adaptation amongst Contralateral Adults: A Comparison of Performance in Darts Throwing

• Main Author: Teo, Jia Yang
• Other Authors: Kee Ying Hwa
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2017
• Subjects: DRNTU::Science
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/70061
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Human laterality influences learning and development of motor skills and performance in sports. Individuals with Ipsilateral Dominance Pattern (IDP) have more advantage in aiming-based sports than those with Contralateral Dominance Pattern (CDP). Thus, a mismatch in dominance pattern and type of sport may affect performance. No studies have examined the effect of modulation of dominance pattern by ocular dominance (OD) adaptation via monocular occlusion on sports performance. The effectiveness of modulation was investigated amongst young, healthy adults with CDP in darts performance. Twenty-two recreational darts players (Age: 23.1 ± 2.0) (1-2 years’ experience), randomly assigned to control or occlusion group, performed 90 trials of darts throwing. Participants in the occlusion group wore goggles with their left-eye occluded for the practice and post-test phases. No significant effect was found using ANCOVA after controlling for the pre-test scores, (p = .228), while a significant effect of attenuation in occlusion group was found for the first 15 practice trials after controlling for the pre-test (p = .021). Scores of the 3rd trial of each set during practice session revealed higher consistency and performance in the occlusion group. Findings suggests that CDP individuals are able to perform as well as their pre-test after a short session of neuroadaptation of dominant left-eye occlusion.