whether mental imagery can influence performance on a reaction time task.?

Question

Question associated with human movement aspect of sport psycology

Answer 1

From my studies, the mental imagery of one performing and completing a task does aid the subject when it comes to actual performance of the task in comparison to the subject who hadn't practiced the mental imagery. If one can create the mental image of how the task is to be completed, the rate of speed the taks is to be completed, and as many detailed factors as the subject is able to incorporate into the imagery, the better that subject's performance will be.

Answer 2

Yes. Mental rehearsal stimulates the nerves that are involved in the physical performance of actually, eg, running a race, causing the relevant muscles to twitch. Training is the overt and true way of rehearsing these muscles but the visual imagery reinforces the whole experience. Practice makes perfect and this plays an important part in performance.

Try it yourself - imagine you are running a race with your eyes closed. You can feel the muscles that you are using in that image being stimulated, your breathing pattern will change, your whole sense of being changes and you can nearly hear the crowd, feel the air, see yourself pass the finish line.... It's actually what successful athletes do in addition to their punishing training regimes.