Postural stability against full-field dynamic visual disturbance in archery players

Objectives : The effects of full-field dynamic visual disturbance on body sway were examined in archery players (n = 24), ball game players (n = 35), and untrained subjects (n = 34). Methods : Participants were asked to stand on a platform surrounded a box, the inside of which was randomly dotted. After the box suddenly began to swing and continued to swing back and forth at a frequency of 0.42 Hz for 60 seconds in a damped sinusoidal waveform, the body center sway was recorded using a stabilometer. Results : Standard deviation (SD) of body center sway in the anterior-posterior direction suddenly increased just after the box began to swing, and gradually decreased as the box swung in a damped sinusoidal waveform. After a sudden initial increase in SD of body center sway, it significantly decreased in archery players, compared with that of ball game players 20 seconds or untrained subjects 15 and 20 seconds after the onset of the box motion. Conclusion : Archery players showed higher stability against visual disturbance, compared with ball game players and untrained subjects, suggesting that they rely on proprioceptive inputs to maintain balance, and that their training re-weights sensorimotor dominance from vision to proprioception for posture regulation to increase shooting accuracy.