Exploring the relationships between psychophysiological abilities and agility in novice karate practitioners

Purpose: to determine the correlation between psychophysiological abilities and agility in novice karate practitioners. Material and methods. In this study, the following research methods were employed: theoretical analysis and synthesis of scientific and methodological literature; pedagogical observation; pedagogical research; psychophysiological measurements and mathematical-statistical research methods. The study involved 20 athletes (14 males, 6 females) with an average age of 10,8±1,1 years (Mean±SD) who practiced karate. To assess agility, participants were required to perform a special relay race. The relay race, with a length of 15 meters, included the following exercises: ball translation, jumping, crawling, and running. To determine the speed component, athletes were instructed to run the distance of the relay race. Psychophysiological characteristics were assessed using tests such as reaction to a moving object, choice reaction, short-term visual memory, and the tapping test (duration 1 minute). Results: according to the results of cluster analysis, it is noted that classes were formed based on the age of the athletes. Thus, younger karate practitioners (9-10 years old), including participants 6, 7, 1, 9, belonged to the first class, while older karate practitioners (12 years old), including participants 17, 19, 20, 14, 18, primarily comprised the second class. The third class mainly included karate practitioners aged 10-11. Correlation analysis of the obtained data, specifically determining the relationships between agility and psychophysiological indicators, indicates statistically significant connections. Notably, there are correlations between relay race results and tapping test results at 5s (r=0,69), 10 s (r=0,55), 1 min (r=0,69). There are also correlations regarding choice reaction at the 2nd (r=0,65), 3rd (r=0,51), 4th (r=0,58) stages and overall test (r=0,60). A statistically significant correlation between the age of athletes and results, practically demonstrated in all tests (on average r=0,67), is also observed. The presence of these correlations can be explained by the fact that agility is a complex quality influenced by various factors such as age, neural process mobility, intermuscular coordination, reaction time, and others. The results of 11-12-year-old athletes surpass those of 9-10-year-olds in all tests. Statistically significant differences (p<0,05) were recorded in tests such as running, relay race, tapping test (5 s, 1 min), short-term visual memory coefficient, and choice reaction. A comparison of the results of the investigated groups of karate practitioners indicates that statistically significant improvement in short-term visual memory and choice reaction is the result not only of an increase in the athletes' age but also the influence of specific training tasks on the functional state of the athletes. Conclusions. Agility, based on motor reactions and spatial-temporal anticipations, underlies the activities of martial artists in unpredictable and rapidly changing situations. The study results indicate that psychophysiological parameters and agility performance are age-dependent, with older athletes demonstrating statistically better results in various agility tests. The significant improvement in short-term visual memory and choice reaction in 11-12-year-old karate practitioners is attributed not only to their age but also to the influence of specific training tasks incorporating martial arts elements. Keywords: sensorimotor skills, psychophysiology, coordination, agility, novice, karate, study.