Morphology (Sports Science)

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Morphological investigation of the technique of throwing a javelin with the division into preparatory, main and final phases.

Morphology (from the Greek μορφή, morphé , "shape, form", and λόγος, lógos , "word, doctrine, reason") is the doctrine of the externally perceptible form or shape of a situation and its change. It is used in various sciences such as astronomy , linguistics , biology and movement science. In movement science as a branch of sports science , it is one of the holistic approaches to movement analysis.

Motion analysis

The morphological movement analysis breaks down sporting movements into directly perceptible features of the external shape or shape and examines their relationships. Only the externally visible part of a movement is considered. Invisible parts of the movement such as forces , physical laws or internal control processes are not examined. The morphological examination is often the first stage of the analysis of a movement in competitive sport , in the everyday life of a teacher or trainer it is often the only one. In addition to simple observation , there are methods that partially objectify the movements, such as video and images.

The morphology is a pedagogically oriented movement analysis and is of particular importance for sports practice. On the basis of pure observation, it is possible to give the athlete real-time feedback on his movement , which can be formulated appropriately and effectively. Individual characteristics are not evaluated, but the movement is analyzed across characteristics. Different aspects of the scientific approach (description, explanation, change measures) are interpreted as a unit. For the formulation of general categories of movement, such as the phase structure of movement or rhythm of movement, it relies on qualitative external impression analyzes, i.e. observations. The movement is evaluated from a subjective point of view from the experience of the individual.

It is crucial in morphology that all relevant information should be made available to the teacher or trainer. Depending on the pedagogical orientation, any approach that promotes this work is possible. In addition to a subject-related qualitative consideration of the movement, biomechanical findings can therefore be used, provided they serve to describe and explain movements and are suitable for recognizing errors and making corrections.

Morphology is hardly oriented towards theory , it is based on practice and is designed for practice. Accordingly, it is a very early approach that can be used without expensive aids. Aids in morphology are exclusively the eye, video and photo recordings. The athlete can act unrestrictedly in his familiar surroundings and in his movements. The focus is on the goal: Recognizing errors, making corrections in order to optimize the movement.

Movement features

Morphological movement characteristics serve to draw the attention of the teacher or trainer when observing a movement to the essentials of the movement. Since biomechanical measuring devices are not available in everyday school or training , this observation is an important way of recording athletic movement sequences. A morphological feature of the Counter Movement Jump (CMJ), for example, is the range of motion, which reflects the visually perceptible depth of the swinging movement.

Morphological movement characteristics according to Meinel and Schnabel are:

  1. Structure of athletic movements
  2. Rhythm of movement
  3. Motion coupling
  4. Flow of movement
  5. Movement precision
  6. Constancy of movement
  7. Range of motion
  8. Movement pace
  9. Strength of movement

Structure of athletic movements

The elements of the basic morphological structure of athletic movements are the preparatory, main and final phases of the movement.

  1. The preparation phase should optimally prepare the main phase.
  2. In the main phase , the given movement task should be solved directly.
  3. In the end phase, the often unstable equilibrium at the end of the main phase should be stabilized.

When throwing a javelin , running up and stretching the arm backwards would fall into the preparation phase, accelerating and throwing the javelin would be the main phase and stopping to avoid crossing it would be the end phase.

In cyclical movements such as cycling , the final and preparatory phases merge into one another (phase merging).

Rhythm of movement

The movement rhythm describes the temporal order of a sporting movement.

While the object rhythm represents the measurable or externally perceptible rhythm of a movement and is reflected in the force-time curve or in the spatial-temporal curve of a movement, the subject rhythm reflects the perception of the rhythm of a movement by the athlete.

Motion coupling

→ See also: motion coupling

The movement coupling describes the relationship between partial movements. A distinction is made between the four aspects of momentum transfer, the temporal shifting of partial movements, forms of core deployment and the control function of the head.

In contrast to the phases of the structure of athletic movements, the coupling of movements involves partial movements of different parts of the body such as the torso, legs, arms and head. This is intended to enable a differentiated morphological analysis of sporting movement than would be possible with the phase structure alone.

  • The momentum transfer deals with the coupling of swing while footprint movements.
  • In many athletic movements, there is a temporal shift in the start of movement of partial movements close to the trunk and the start of movement of the extremities.
  • Forms of the trunk insert are the arch tension, the twisting, the translatory and rotatory trunk attachment.
  • When coupling head and trunk movements , the control function of the head plays an important role.

Other movement features

While the structure, the rhythm of movement and the coupling of movements describe several aspects of sporting movements as complex morphological movement characteristics (multi-dimensionality), the following characteristics characterize only one aspect (one-dimensionality).

feature Motion aspect example
Flow of movement Degree of continuity in the course of an athletic movement Transition from run-up to throwing with inexperienced throwing movements.
Movement precision Degree of correspondence between a sporting exercise and the planned course or goal Course precision when jumping into the water, target precision when taking a free kick or corner kick in football
Constancy of movement Degree of agreement of repeated athletic movements or partial movements in relation to the movement result and characteristics of a movement Constancy of results when shooting, constancy of movement characteristics when jumping in the water
Range of motion Spatial extent or amplitude of an athletic movement Distance of the back swing when throwing, oar stroke
Movement pace Speed ​​and frequency of sporting movements or partial movements Pedal frequency when cycling, stroke frequency when rowing, movement speeds

procedure

The morphological consideration of a movement works according to the following scheme:

  1. The target value for the observer is clearly defined. Since many movements take place very quickly, the observer must be clear about what he wants to observe before the analysis: "You mainly only see what you know."
  2. The positioning of the observer or the video camera must also be chosen consciously depending on what is to be observed. Using the example of the hand support rollover sideways, the leg angle can be observed while standing sideways during the support phase. However, in order to observe the leg extension or the hip bend, the athlete should be observed from the front. In general, the observer needs sufficient distance from the athlete in order to be able to maintain an overview of the overall movement.
  3. Aids such as video or image can be used. An initial analysis of motor skills is usually done through the eye, which is why their quality primarily depends on the skills of the observer. As the speed and complexity of movements increase, this becomes more difficult. This is where the morphological aids come into play, which can compensate for the observer's deficits by recording and reproducing motion sequences.
  4. The observer compares the actual and target value. Errors are recognized through the differences that arise.
  5. The causes of errors are identified and immediate corrections can be made.

Tools

Series photography Salto Backwards (1887).
Chronophotography of a pelican flight, around 1882.
  • In chronophotography , movements are frozen in several phases. With multiple exposure, a sequence of movements can be represented on just one image. The disadvantage of chronophotography as a morphological aid is that it is relatively complex to carry out.
  • In series photography , a sequence of pictures taken in quick succession is combined into a series or series. While the cameras used for this used to limit the application mainly for reasons of cost and effort, today's digital means enable serial photography to be used in various areas of competitive sports as well as popular and school sports.
  • Video analyzes enable precise observation of movements, which can be viewed repeatedly and in slow motion. The movement can thus be broken down and examined from various points of view. In video analysis, the entire movement can be viewed in its complexity and the development of speed during the process. Since this effective tool is very easy to use, it makes movement correction easier for athletes, teachers and coaches in everyday life.
  • Kinegram

advantages

  • From a pedagogical point of view, morphology is the first and necessary stage of cognitive processes in movement science.
  • Morphology as a movement analysis has a positive peculiarity that, as a continuation of the Gestalt theory , it is not just the reproduction of movements, but recognizes more than just individual components. This holistic approach, which focuses on the essentials, deals with its correction tips specifically according to what is primarily relevant for the learner to improve movement.
  • Contrary to the assumption that the morphological approach is nothing more than just collecting, presenting, analyzing and describing the factual material, it reveals regularities within morphological investigations. One example can be seen in the continuous investigation of the same athlete, whose learning process is documented over months or years.
  • A great advantage of the morphology is undisputedly its practical relevance, which not only makes it possible to recognize errors, but also to incorporate corrections directly in order to work effectively and as success- or learning-oriented as possible. This is mainly because the results are available immediately and the motion correction can take effect immediately.
  • The proximity to practice is further supported by the fact that this pedagogical approach is associated with very little (material) effort. Morphology can be used anywhere and by anyone without any financial effort, even among students. Everyone can recognize major errors more or less well and give feedback.
  • Another advantage is that the observation has no mechanical effect on athletes or learners, which means that the natural course of the sporting movement can be analyzed. The practitioner is not restricted by measuring devices attached to the body or his movements are falsified. In addition, morphology is used in the athlete's familiar environment, which ensures the originality of the movement. Accordingly, morphological methods are also used in top-class sport. Determining the B grade in gymnastics, high diving or ski jumping could not be achieved by any other movement science method.
  • Accordingly, morphology is a very economical approach in which the relationship between effort and result is right.

disadvantage

There is much discussion about the extent to which morphological work can be viewed as scientific. For a scientific investigation, the three main quality criteria objectivity , reliability and validity must be met.

  • Objectivity includes the standardization of the test, i.e. the degree to which test results are independent of the examiner. It is a prerequisite that a target value is known, which is mostly unstable and in some cases greatly varied by the examiner. It has also been proven that a well-trained and experienced observer can recognize errors better than a “layperson” who is not aware of when to focus his attention on which characteristics, that is, who is not sufficiently aware of the target value . Another problem is the concentration of the observer. The environment and the personal feelings of the trainer / teacher inevitably mean that his / her full attention cannot be devoted to the athlete. This aspect occurs above all in spontaneous analyzes. In addition, each observer defines his own standard of weighting of the movement categories. In order to actually evaluate a result, a binding standard would have to be defined for everyone. Further standardization would be necessary in the observation language: “Quite stretched” or “a little too fast” would have to be associated with precise angles and speeds, which, however, would clearly exceed the possibilities of the morphology.
  • Reliability is the reliability of a measurement. It relates to the dispersion of the results, i.e. the accuracy of the measuring instrument. On the one hand, the accuracy is limited because the gaze motor skills are not sufficiently fast, and on the other hand, the focus is too low. The trainer / teacher is therefore physically unable to do justice to reliability.
  • The validity indicates how precisely a test measures what it claims to be measuring. Limiting factors here are the knowledge of the target value and the competence of the observer. In addition to the empirical gaps in objectivity, reliability and validity, morphology has other disadvantages. The speed of the correction feedback of morphology seems to be an undisputed advantage, but with the current state of technology, information from biomechanical devices can reach the athlete just as quickly. Usually he can do much more with this type of information than with morphological results. In top-class sport, marks are still given to the athlete based on morphological considerations by the judges, which now and then leads to clearly wrong decisions.

Morphology seems to be suitable for practical use, but as soon as it comes to determining data, that is, to substantiate facts, it becomes unusable. The consideration of separated movement sequences or the analysis of individual body parts exceed the capabilities of the morphology. Morphological investigations should therefore be supplemented by other methods. While morphological work is more of an initial sub-area in competitive sports, it has a central position in schools.

literature

  • Norbert Olivier, Ulrike Rockmann: Basics of movement science and theory . Hofmann, Schorndorf 2003, ISBN 3-7780-9111-5 , p. 73-84 .
  • Klaus Roth, Klaus Willimczik: Movement Science . Rowohlt-Taschenbuch-Verl., Reinbek bei Hamburg 1999, ISBN 3-499-18679-9 , p. 78-92 .
  • Kurt Meinel, Günter Schnabel: Movement theory - sports motor skills . 11th edition. Meyer & Meyer, Aachen 2007, ISBN 978-3-89899-245-9 .

Web links

Wiktionary: Morphology  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Rudolf Eisler: Dictionary of Philosophical Terms. Volume 1. Berlin 1904, pp. 333–337, accessed October 8, 2012.
  2. ^ Rudolf Eisler: Dictionary of Philosophical Terms. Volume 1. Berlin 1904, pp. 618–620, accessed October 8, 2012.
  3. ↑ a b Norbert Olivier, Ulrike Rockmann: Fundamentals of movement science and theory . Hofmann, Schorndorf 2003, ISBN 3-7780-9111-5 , p. 73 .
  4. ^ Rainer Wollny: Exercise Science . Meyer and Meyer, Aachen 2007, ISBN 978-3-89899-183-4 , pp. 32 .
  5. ^ Klaus Roth, Klaus Willimczik: Exercise Science . Rowohlt-Taschenbuch-Verl., Reinbek bei Hamburg 1999, ISBN 3-499-18679-9 , p. 75-78 .
  6. ↑ Norbert Olivier, Ulrike Rockmann: Fundamentals of movement science and theory . Hofmann, Schorndorf 2003, ISBN 3-7780-9111-5 , p. 74 .
  7. ↑ Kurt Meinel, Günter Schnabel: Movement theory - sport motor skills . 11th edition. Meyer & Meyer, Aachen 2007, ISBN 978-3-89899-245-9 , pp. 75-143 .
  8. ↑ Norbert Olivier, Ulrike Rockmann: Fundamentals of movement science and theory . Hofmann, Schorndorf 2003, ISBN 3-7780-9111-5 , p. 75-79 .
  9. ↑ a b Norbert Olivier, Ulrike Rockmann: Fundamentals of movement science and theory . Hofmann, Schorndorf 2003, ISBN 3-7780-9111-5 , p. 79-83 .
  10. ↑ Norbert Olivier, Ulrike Rockmann: Fundamentals of movement science and theory . Hofmann, Schorndorf 2003, ISBN 3-7780-9111-5 , p. 83, 84 .
  11. ↑ Flavio Bessi: Materials for trainer training in apparatus gymnastics . F. Bessi, Herbolzheim, Hohestr. 11a 2006, ISBN 3-00-017823-6 .
  12. ^ Klaus Roth, Klaus Willimczik: Exercise Science . Rowohlt-Taschenbuch-Verl., Reinbek bei Hamburg 1999, ISBN 3-499-18679-9 , p. 78-92 .