The use of videotape assisted recall as a means of assessing the attentional style of elite tennis players : an exploratory study

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent of consensus between female intercollegiate tennis players' scores on the Test of Attentional and Interpersonal Style (TAIS) (Nideffer, 1976a), the Tennis-Specific Test of Attentional and Interpersonal Style (T-TAIS) (Van Schoyck & Grasha, 1981) and their responses during Videotape Assisted Recall (VAR) (Elliot, 1986; Powell & Hector, 1987) of two competitive matches. Two intercollegiate female tennis players competing at the NCAA Division I level were the subjects used in this study. The TAIS (Nideffer, 1976a) was administered to assess the general (non sport-specific) attentional and interpersonal style of each athlete. The TTAIS (Van Schoyck & Grasha, 1981) was administered to assess the sport-specific attentional profile of each athlete (there are no interpersonal subscales). Two VAR sessions were conducted with each athlete; one session occurred immediately after the completion of one match and one session was delayed seven to nine days after the completion of another match. The VAR responses of the athletes were audiotaped, transcribed, and then factored into one of the four TAIS attentional categories (broad internal, broad external, narrow internal, narrow external). The category containing the highest percentage of responses was considered the athlete's dominant attentional style. The results from both subjects suggested consensual validation of the scores obtained on the TAIS, T-TAIS, and during VAR V sessions. Subject responses from the VAR sessions suggested that the VAR technique may be a useful adjunct to paper and pencil assessments and may, based on the athlete's own reflections, serve to clarify discrepancies in the results of such tests.