December 2015

We recommend that the thesis prepared under our direction Xuanyi Tao entitled Gender Differences in the Pattern of Using Sport-specific Skills of Elite

Badminton Players During Games be accepted as fulfilling the research for the requirement for the degree of [Master of Science].

Approved by:

Zhan Liu

Christa R. Winter Q iXi Dr. Traoey Matthews, Dean I hereby guarantee that no part of the research project that I have submitted for publication has been heretofore published and/or copyrighted in the United States of America, except in cases of passages quoted from other published sources; that I am the sole author and proprietor of said research project; that the research project contains no matter which, if published, will be libelous or otherwise injurious, or infringe in any way the copyright of any other party; and that I will defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Springfield College against all suits and proceedings which may be brought and against all claims which may be made against Springfield College by reason of publication of said research project.

Date

Copyright © [2015] [Xuanyi Taoj GENDER DIFFERENCES IN THE

PATTERN OF USING SPORT-SPECIFIC

SKILLS OF ELITE BADMINTON PLAYERS DURING GAMES

A Thesis

Presented to

the Faculty of Springfield College

In Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Degree

Master of Advanced Level Coaching

By

Xuanyi Tao

December 2015 11

Dedication

I would like to dedicate this thesis project to my parents.

They all have been encourage and support me through the journey of my master degree. I would not be the person I am today with out any of you. I am forever grateful and love you. Ill

Acknowledgments

I would like to acknowledge my appreciation to Dr.

John Liu, Dr. John Gibson, and Dr. Christa Winter for helping me completed my dissertation. Dr. Liu, thank you for being my committee chair and serving on my committee, your encouragement and opinions in me were tremendously helpful. I greatly appreciate Dr. Gibson being my advisor and all of our conversations. And Dr. Winter helping me a lot about the writing and statistics process, without you help, I would not completed my thesis.

I need to extend my .appreciation to the International

Center of Springfield College, helped me knew about how wonderful the Springfield College is. And I also very appreciated the staff at Babson Library - always welling to help me find the materials for my thesis. Thank you again for all the person who gave me a help during my journey of my master degree. IV

Table of Contents Page

Abstract 2

Introduction 4

Method 9

Database 9

Materials and Data-recording Sheet 11

Data Collection and Procedures 12

Statistical Analyses 13

Results 15

Discussion IV

References 26

Appendix A. RESEARCH DESIGN 36

Statement of the Problem 37

Definition of Term 38

Delimitations 41

Limitations 42

Hypothesis 43

Appendix B. REVIEW OF LITERATURE 45

History of Badminton 47

Basic Rules of Badminton 47

Sport Specific Skills of Badminton 49

Gender Differences in Sports 54

Decision-Making 56

Reaction Time 60 V

Elite and Sub-elite Badminton Players 67

Video Method 7 0

Summary 72

Appendix C. ELITE MEN'S AND WOMEN'S SINGLES BADMINTON

PLAYERS 74

Appendix D. DATA RECORDING SHEET 75

BIBLIOGRAPHY 76 VI

List of Tables

Table Page

1. Descriptive Statistics for Use of Six Sport Specific

Shots and Other Shot by Gender in 16 Olympic Badminton

Games 3 0

2. t-tests for Gender Differences in the Use of Six Sport

Specific Shots and Other Shot 31

3 . Descriptive Statistics for Percentages of Forehand and

Backhand Shots in Clear, Drop, and Net Shot by

Gender 32

4. t-test for Gender Differences in the Use of Forehand

and Backhand Shots in Clear, Drop, and Net Shot by

Gender . 33 vii

List of Figures

Figure

1. Gender Differences in 6 Specific Sport Skills and

Other Shot 34

2. Gender Differences in Forehand and Backhand usage of

Clear, Drop, and Net Shot 3 5 Running head: Gender Differences in Badminton Skill 1

GENDER DIFFERENCES IN THE

PATTERN OF USING SPORT-SPECIFIC

SKILLS OF ELITE BADMINTON PLAYERS DURING GAMES

Xuanyi Tao

Springfield College Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 2

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine if a significant difference existed between elite men's and women's singles badminton players' relative frequency of seven different shots (six specific sport shots and the other shot). Twelve games from men's and women's singles badminton games in the

2004, 2008, and 2012 Olympics were included in the study. The specific sport skills of badminton include: a) short serve, b) long serve, c) clear, d) drop, e) smash, f) net shot, and other shot. The percent usage of forehand and backhand shots in clear, drop, and net shot by elite men's and women's players was also analyzed in order to provide more information about gender differences in the patterns of using sport-specific skills. Independent samples t-tests were conducted to examine differences in the usage of sport specific shots and other shot between elite men's and women's singles badminton players. The percent usage of net shots was significantly (p

< .004) higher for elite men's singles badminton players than elite women's singles badminton players. Elite women's singles badminton players, however, presented a significantly

(p < .004) higher percent usage of long serves and clear shot than elite men's singles badminton players. No significant Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 3 differences (p > .004) between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of drop shots, smash, and other shots were found, respectively.

Differences in forehand usage and backhand usage of clears between elite men's and women's singles badminton players were significant (p < .004). No significant (p>.004) differences were found in forehand usage of drop shots and net shots, and backhand usage of drop shots and net shots between elite men's and women's singles badminton players.

Gender Differences in the

Pattern of Using Sport-Specific

Skills of Elite Badminton Players During Games

Since the Barcelona Olympic Games in 1992, Badminton has Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 4 been an Olympic sport (Badminton, 2015) . Badminton is characterized by short-duration, high intensity bursts of energy, and is physically demanding on the body. Age, gender, physical, technical, and psychological components will all influence the performance of the badminton player.

Correct and proficient specific sport skills will affect the performance of badminton players, especially for the singles badminton player due to his or her needs to handle all the situation by himself and herself. The specific sport skills of badminton include: a) short serve, b) long serve, c) clear, d) drop, e) smash, f) net shot, and other shot.

Acquiring perfection of these skills is necessary for badminton players. For example, the player could hit a fault because of an uncorrected drop shot, which will lead to a free point for the opponent. Muscular strength and power are less important than speed, agility, coordination, and accuracy in the badminton game. Therefore, specific sport skills of badminton are essential for badminton players.

Given the well-known gender differences in neuromuscular

(Lemmer et al., 2000), cardiovascular (Deschenes, Hillard,

Wilson, Dubina & Eason, 2006), and metabolic performance

(Charkoudian & Joyner, 2004, women's badminton players could Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 5 attain similar metabolic and cardiovascular responses to badminton match play despite showing different activity patterns. Fernandez-Fernandez, de la Aleja Tellez,

Moya-Ramon, Cabello-Manrique and Mendez-Villanueva (2013) found significant differences in the activity pattern of match play between men's and women's singles badminton players . The men's players had longer rallies, executing more strokes per rally, and had more rest time than women's players between rallies. The researchers also found slightly different physiological and perceptual responses between genders in the activity patterns of badminton matches, a difference which needs to be considered when designing training programs

(Fernandez-Fernandez et al., 2013).

In another study, the researchers indicated that the shoulder rotational profiles in men's players had no rotational strength differences between the dominant and nondominant side (Couppe et al. , 2014) . Alternatively, women's players had a higher internal rotation (IR) strength on the dominant side, which was not balanced by a higher external rotation (ER) strength. Kleinwachter and Raschka,

(2009) found that male tennis players were on average significantly taller and heavier than the female tennis Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 6 players. Due to physical differences, differences in the performance of male and female badminton players are expected

(Lemmer et al., 2000. Deschenes et al., 2006; Charkoudian &

Joyner, 2004; Fernandez - Fernandez et al., 2013; Couppe et al.,

2014; Kleinwachter & Raschka, 2009) .

In recent years, coaches and trainers have focused more on physical fitness and strength, and less on the decision-making and the cognitive processes of performance

(Blomqvist, Luhtanen, & Laakso, 2001). Continuously, training and improving the physical capabilities of players is essential (Chin et al., 1995; Fahlstrom, Lorentzon, &

Alfredson, 2002), but emphasizing the training of the cognitive components of badminton players is as essential as physical capabilities training (Blomqvist et al. , 2001) . In order to develop and improve the decision making process of the player, the ideal strategy would be to expose the athletes to all possible situations and scenarios which the players may face (Huynh & Bedford, 2011) . The ideal strategy would also allow players to retain certain responses within their subconscious; leading players to instantaneously execute an appropriate action when similar situations arise (Hall,

Schmidt, Durand, & Buckolz, 1994) . Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 7

Huynh and Bedford (2010) argued cognitive components of badminton must be considered in order to train and improve badminton players. The researchers suggested that players need to incorporate a combination of both physical and cognitive aspects into personal training programs in an attempt to optimize skill proficiency (Huynh & Bedford, 2010) .

Therefore, cognitive and physical aspects of sport skill performance are both important for badminton players.

Due to the importance of how short serve, long serve, clear, drop, and smash skills are used, and the gender differences in the badminton match games, the researcher in the present study examined differences between the elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the use of sport-specific skills during a game . In addition, because the badminton matches also included other shot skills, the researcher included the category "other shot" for data collection and analysis. The percent usage of forehand and backhand shots in clear, drop, and net shot by elite men's and women's players was also analyzed, in order to provide more information about gender differences in the patterns of using sport-specific skills.

The hypotheses of the study were, first, elite men's Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 8

singles badminton players would use more short serves and net

shots than elite women's singles players; second, elite

women's singles badminton players would have more long serves

and clears than elite men's singles players; third, elite

man's singles badminton players would use more drop and smash

skills than elite women's singles badminton players; fourth,

elite men's singles badminton players would use more other

shot skills than elite women's singles badminton players;

finally, elite men's and women's singles badminton players

would use the same percent of forehand and backhand shots in

clear, drop, and net shot.

Video technology is one of the most important tools for

a complete analysis of the skill performed by the player, video

recording and analysis is very useful for improving the

technique of skill execution (Singh & Yogesh, 2010) . The use

of digital technology for data analysis in the study provides an example for coaches and trainers in using modern technology,

it helps coaches and trainers gain information and provide

feedback to elite badminton players for performance improvement.

Method

Due to differences in physical attributes of elite men's Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 9

and women's singles badminton players, the pattern of using

sport-specific skills might also be different. In the present

study, an attempt was made to examine differences in the

pattern of sport-specific skills used by elite men's and

women's singles badminton players during a game. The

researcher adopted the videotape method to collect the data

from 2004, 2008, and 2012 Olympic Games of men's and women's

singles badminton games. The top 4 men's singles badminton

players and top 4 women's singles badminton players as

identified by the official website of the Olympic Movement

were chosen by the researcher for data collection and

analysis.

Database

The data for this study were collected from the 2004 Athens

Olympics, 2008 Beijing Olympics, and 2012 London Olympics via

the Youtube website. Each Olympic Game had 16 badminton men's

and women's singles players which were then subdivided into

1/8 elimination rounds. Then the 8 winners advanced to the quarter finals. The 4 winners of the quarter finals advanced

to the semi- finals. The 2 winners of the semi-finals advanced to the finals in order to compete for the gold medal. The 2 losers of the semi-finals received the bronze medal. Due to Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 10 the fact that the top 4 men's or women's singles badminton players represented the highest level of skill performance in badminton, their patterns of sport - specific skills used during the games were chosen for data analysis in the present study. A total of 12 games from men's and women's singles badminton games in 2 0 04, 2008, and 2012 Olympics were included in the data analyses (Appendix C).

The independent variable in this study was the gender of the top 4 singles game badminton players. The dependent variables were the percent usage of each sport-specific skills

(i.e., short serve, long serve, clear, drop, smash, and net shot) and other shot skills used by elite men's and women's singles badminton players during the game. The six different sport-specific skills include: a) short serve, b) long serve, c) clear, d) drop, e) smash, and f) net shot. The serve skill was divided into short serve and long serve . The other shot skills were skills used by other than the short serve, long serve, clear, drop, smash, and net shot.

Materials and Data-recording Sheet

The researcher used three different data-recording sheets (Appendix D) to collect the top 4 men's and women's singles badminton players in the 2004, 2008, and 2012 Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 11

Olympics. Each data-recording sheet included six different sport - specific skills of badminton (i.e., short serve, long serve, clear, drop, smash, and net shot), other shots, and total number shots. Frequency of use of the six different sport-specific skills, and other shots, was recorded on the data sheet.

The researcher used a computer to download the video tape and to collect and analyze the data. A pencil was used to record the data on the data-recording sheets.

Data Collection and Procedures

The data of the top 4 men's and women's singles badminton players in the 2004, 2008, and 2012 Olympics were collected from the official website of the Olympic Movement. The researcher used video tapes to collect the data because video tapes are a representative technology to watch the game. The video data of elite male and female badminton players' games were collected from the video tapes. The researcher downloaded all games on YouTube Website in order to collect the data. All 12 games were selected from finals and bronze games of men's and women's singles badminton events in the

2004, 2008, and 2012 Olympics. The researcher individually reviewed and recorded the video data of the 12 games on the Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 12 data-recording sheets (Appendix D) . For the six sport specific skills, and other shots, only successful hits of each player were recorded on the data-recording sheets for each game . After recording the data, the number total of each sport specific skill and other shot skills were calculated in each category. Then, the researcher used IBM SPSS version 22 to calculate the percentage of each shot; therefore, the percentages of these six sport specific skills and other shot skills was calculated for each game. Finally, three data-recording sheets with relative frequencies of six sport specific skills, other shots, and total number shots were utilized for the final data analyses.

Statistical Analyses

The relative frequency of shots was used for data analysis. The number of shots recorded in each category for each of the players was divided by the total number of shots observed for each player, resulting in percentage data, referred to as "percent usage" in the research and discussion sections. Before hypothesis testing took place the percentage data were transformed using on arcsine transformation to ensure that the normality assumption of the t-tests was met. A total of 13 independent samples t-tests Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 13 were conducted to examine differences in the usage of sport specific shots and other shot between elite men's and women's singles badminton players. The dependent variables included the percent usage of sport specific skills: a) short serve, b) long serve, c) clear, d) drop, e) smash, f) net shot, and other shot; in addition, forehand and backhand shot in clear, drop, and net shot. The independent variable of total 13 independent samples t-tests was gender. The percentages of the use of forehand and backhand shots in clear, drop, and net shot by male and female players was analysed, in order to provide more information about gender differences in the patterns of using sport specific skills. The Bonferroni adjustment was used to set the significance level for all hypothesis tests at . 004 to minimize the experiment wise error of the study. IBM SPSS version 22 was used for data analysis. Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 14

Results

The current study was conducted to examine if a

significant difference existed between elite men's and women's singles badminton players relative frequency of seven different shots (six specific sport shots and the other shot) .

In addition, the researcher of the present study also examined differences in the percent usage of forehand and backhand shot

in clear, drop, and net shot between elite men's and women's

singles badminton players. Data were collected from three

Olympic badminton games in 2 0 04, 2008, and2012. Percentages of the seven shots were calculated for each game from the top

four men's and women's badminton games.

The descriptive statistics for percent usage of six sport

specific shots and other shot between elite men's and women's

singles badminton players are presented in Table 1. Seven

independent samples t-tests were used to examine differences

in the percent usage of each six sport specific shots and other shot among elite men's and women's singles badminton players.

The results of the seven independent samples t-tests are presented in Table 2. The percent usage of net shots was Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 15 higher for elite men's singles badminton players than elite women's singles badminton players , t (20.86 ) = 6.045, p = .000.

Elite women's singles badminton players, however, presented a higher percent usage of long serves than elite men's singles badminton players, t(22) = -3.478, p = .002. Furthermore, elite women's singles badminton players used the clear shot more often than elite men's singles badminton players , t (21.06)

= -3.977, p = .001. No significant differences (p > .004) between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of drop shots, smash, and other shots were found, respectively.

To examine gender differences in the percent usage of the forehand and backhand shot in clear, drop, and net shots, six independent samples t-tests were conducted. The descriptive statistics for percent usage of forehand and backhand shot in clear, drop, and net shot between elite men's and women's singles badminton players are presented in Table

3 , and the results were presented in Table 4 . The differences in forehand usage and backhand usage of clears between elite men's and women's singles badminton players was significant, t (21.995) = -5.61, p = .000, t (2 0.9 95) = 5.3 52, p = .000. No significant difference was found in forehand usage of drop Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 16

shots (p = .809) and net shots (p = .922) , and backhand usage

of drop shots (p = .699) and net shots (p = .915) between elite

men's and women's singles badminton players in the present

study.

Discussion

While many researchers have compared gender differences

in neuromuscular (Lemmer et al., 2000), cardiovascular

(Deschenes et al., 2006), and metabolic performance

(Charkoudian & Joyner, 2004), few have examined a possible

gender difference in the playing pattern during a badminton

game. The purpose of the current study was to examine

differences between the elite men's and women's singles

badminton players in the pattern of using sport-specif ic shots

and other shots during a game. The elite men's and women's

singles badminton players in the study were the top four

badminton players in 2004, 2008, and 2012 Olympics badminton

games.

According to the results, there were significant

differences between elite men's and women's singles badminton players when players used the six specific sport shots and

the other shot. The rank by percent usage of the seven different shots for male players was clear, net shot, smash, Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 17 short serve, other shots, drop, and long serve. Furthermore, the rank of percent usage of the seven different shots by female players was clear, smash, net shot, drop, long serve, other shots, and short serve . In addition, the rank of percent usage of all seven shots was clear, net shot, smash, drop, other shots, short serve, and long serve.

The shot used most often was the clear both by male and female players. A high, deep clear, or return rally, is the most-often recommended strategy to gain time to return to center court to have better access to the court (Grice, 2008) .

Using more clears could help the player to be effective in defense. For example, the opponent performed a smash and the player could use the clear to gain more time to adjust his or her position; or using the clear to let the opponent move to the backside of the court and waste his or her energy, then he or she will present an unsuccessful shot.

The second highest percent usage of shot out of the total seven shots was the net shot. Hong and Tong (2 000) found that the highest effective rate with the nine main shots was the net shot in elite male players. Furthermore, the net shot was ranked the second highest kill shot for male players, because the net shot could finish a rally and win a point if it was Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 18 a good net return. Similar to the study by Hong and Tong, the elite male and female players preferred to use the net shot.

The advantage of the net shot is that it may force the opponent to move very quickly in a long distance in order to get the shuttlecock, especially when the player uses a clear first and then uses a net shot. Performing more net shots is a good strategy to waste the energy of the opponent and put the player in a defensive position during the match.

The third highest percent usage of seven shots was smash.

The smash ranked third among the shots of male players chosen to use, and second among the shots of female players. The smash is hit fast, downward with force, and steep in order to win a point when the shuttlecock has been hit up and short

(Grice, 2008) . The smash may be unreturnable if the angle is steep enough. The smash, which was the top ranked killing shot of elite male players in the study conducted by Hong and Tong

(2000) , needs a strong force to win a point. In the present study, the male players performed more clears and net shots than smashes. If the smash is not powerful and efficient, the opponent can quickly return a shot, then an advantage phase will turn into a disadvantage phase. Seeking a good Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 19

opportunity to go for a kill using the smash may be a reliable

strategy for elite players.

The drop shot was the fourth ranked percentage in seven

shots. The drop shot usually requires the use of deception

to hit the shuttlecock downward softly to the rear or mid court

of opponent (Hong & Tong, 2 000) . Hong and Tong (2000)

indicated the drop shot was the third most effective shot among

the nine main shots . The drop shot can trick the opponent to

miss the shot, but if the velocity of the shuttlecock in drop

shots is not fast enough or the opponent is not tricked, the

opponent can hit the shuttlecock very hard to win a point.

Using the drop shot combined with the smash could create more

deception to trick the opponent into losing a point (Hong &

Tong, 2 000) .

Fernandez-Fernandez et al. (2013) indicated male players

executed more strokes per rally than female players. In

contrast, both genders demonstrated a similar pattern of using

drop shots, smashes, and other shots during a badminton game

in the current study. The difference between the current

study and the study by Fernandez-Fernandez et al. is that in

the study by Fernandez-Fernandez et al. all 16 youth elite badminton players were under 19 and not at the Olympic level. Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 20

In the current study, the elite men's and women's singles badminton players were the top 4 players all around the world.

The different levels of athletes in the current study and the study by Fernandez-Fernandez et al. (2013) may explain the different results.

Although there was no statistically significant difference between male players and female players in the use of the short serve in current study, there was a tendency of male players using the short serve more often than female players. The finding is in agreement with the results in the study by Chen, Wu, and Chen (2011), in which researchers indicated that male players also preferred to use a short serve rather than a long serve. The short serve allowed the server to be less defensive than when serving long and high (Hong

&Tong, 2000; Pearce, 2002), because the chance of the opponent making an attack return shot, such as a smash or drop shot, could be eliminated or reduced. In contrast, female players, in the current study were more likely to use the long serve than male players during a badminton game. The finding of the present study suggest that the short serve is an effective tactical approach to deter opponent's offensive smash shot for male players. Male players can perform more powerful Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 21 return shots than female players and the movements of male players are also quicker compared to female players. Female players could use more long serves but alternating with some short serves is a good strategy in a match, because female players may be less concerned about attaching return shots compared to male players.

In the current study, male players performed more net shots than female players during a badminton game, more male players preferred to return shots to the opponent's forecourt as compared to female players. When a player performed a shot close to the net, the opponent has less of a chance to hit the shuttlecock downward (Hong & Tong, 2000) . The opponent would have to lift the shuttlecock up, and then the player would have a chance to attack. In contrast, female players used more clears than male players during a badminton game, and female players preferred to return shots to the backcourt of the opponent compared to male players . The current finding suggests female players should practice the net shot and improve the net shot skill in order to use more net shots during a game. This is due to the net shot makes the opponent lift the shuttlecock up and when returning the net shot which can set up a smashing offence. Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 22

In order to find more information on gender differences in the use of the various shots during a badminton game, the researcher examined differences in the use of the forehand shot and backhand shot in combination with the clear, drop, and net shot. In the present study, female players performed more forehand shots in clear than male players, but female players demonstrated a similar pattern of forehand shot in drop and net shot to male players . Male players performed more backhand shots in clear than female players. However, both elite men's and women's singles badminton players used the backhand shot in drop and net shot in a similar fashion. The findings suggest that female players might benefit from practicing the backhand shot in clears so that the backhand shot will be as effective as the forehand shot in clears.

In summary, gender differences were observed in the use of the sport-specific skills of elite badminton players.

Specifically, male players used more net shots than female players during a game to facilitate an offensive strategy.

However, female players applied more long serves and clears than male players during a game. Regarding differences between genders for forehand shot and backhand shot in clear, drop, and net shot, the percent usage of forehand shot and Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 23 backhand shot in clear was significantly different between elite men's and women's singles badminton players. However, there were no significant gender differences of forehand shot and backhand shot in drop and net shot. The findings indicate that there were significant differences between the elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the pattern of using sport-specific shots and other shot skills during a game. Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 24

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Table 1

Descriptive Statistics for Use of Six Sport Specific Shots and Other Shot by Gender in 16 Olympic Badminton Games

Shots Gender f M SD

Short Serve Male 506 0.0810 0.0206

Female 227 0.0423 0.0390

Long Serve Male 81 0.0144 0.0271

Female 324 0.0651 0.0426

Clear Male 2003 0.3136 0.0571

Female 2144 0.4162 0.0690

Drop Male All 0.0739 0.0260

Female 434 0.0850 0.0334

Smash Male 1185 0.1869 0.0312

Female 965 0.1829 0.0630

Net Shot Male 1669 0.2558 0.0434

Female 841 0.1583 0.0349

Others Male 447 0.0745 0.0226

Female 269 0.0503 0.0267

Total Male 6368 1.000 -

Female 5204 1.000 - Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 29

Table 2

t-tests for Gender Differences in the Use of Six Sport Specific

Shots and Other Shot

M Diff t df P

Short Serve . 039 3.039 22 . 006

Long Serve - . 051 -3.478 22 . 002

Clear - . Ill -3.977 21.060 .001

Drop - . Oil -0.905 20.755 .376

Smash . 004 0.184 22 . 855

Net Shot . 100 6.045 20.855 .000

Others . 024 2.389 21.418 . 026

Note . a. . 004 . Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 30

Table 3

Descriptive Statistics for Percentages of Forehand and

Backhand Shots in Clear, Drop, and Net Shot by Gender

Shots Gender f M SD

FH Clear Male 1108 0.5655 0.0825

Female 1568 0.7373 0.0715

BH Clear Male 898 0.4357 0.0838

Female 576 0.2627 0.0715

FH Drop Male 242 0.5529 0.2279

Female 186 0.5160 0.2566

BH Drop Male 235 0.4471 0.2279

Female 248 0.4840 0.2566

FH Net Shot Male 883 0.5265 0.1184

Female 439 0.5217 0.1189

BH Net Shot Male 784 0.4725 0.1178

Female 402 0.4783 0.1189

Note. FH = Forehand, BH = Backhand

Table 4 Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 31 t-test for Gender Differences in the Use of Forehand and

Backhand Shots in Clear, Drop, and Net Shot by Gender

M Oif£ t df P

Forehand Clear - .230 -5.610 21.995 . 000

Backhand Clear .186 5.352 20.995 .000

Forehand Drop .031 0.245 21.226 .809

Backhand Drop - . 046 -0.392 21.788 . 699

Forehand Net Shot .006 0.099 22.000 .922

Backhand Net Shot -.006 -0.108 21.997 .915

Note. a. = .004. Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 32

0.45 0.4162

0.4

0.35 0.3136

Clear Net Shot Smash Drop Other Shot Short Serve Long Serve

■ Male Female

* Figure 1. Gender Differences in 6 Specific Sport Skills and

Other Shot Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 33

0,8 0.7373

0.7

0.6 0.5529

0.5

0,4

0.3

0.2

0.1

0 Forehand Clear Forehand Drop Forehand Net Backhand Clear Backhand Drop Backhand Net Shot Shot

■ Male Female

Figure 2. Gender Differences in Forehand and Backhand usage of Clear, Drop, and Net Shot

APPENDIX A

RESEARCH DESIGN Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 34

Since members of the British Army and Diplomatic Corps wrote the first rules in 1877, the sport of badminton has undergone considerable development. Since the Barcelona

Olympic Games in 1992, Badminton has been an Olympic sport.

Today, the Olympic game has five full-medal events of badminton program (men's singles, men's doubles, women's singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles). With the shuttle velocity following a smash being over 100 ms and average shuttle velocity during match-play ranging from 50 to 75 ms, badminton is claimed to be the world's fastest racket sport (Gowitzke & Waddell, 1978) . The demands of badminton require a blend of fine basic skills, intelligent game tactics, specific physiological fitness, and thorough psychological preparation to succeed at elite international level (Omosegaard, 1996) .

Statement of the Problem

The researcher compared elite men's and women's singles badminton players in their use of sport - specific skills and Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 35 other shot skills. In addition, gender differences in forehand and backhand shot of clear, drop, and net shot were also examined, in order to provide more information about gender differences in the patterns of using sport-specific skills. The researcher examined if, first, elite men's singles badminton players would use more or less short serve and long serve than elite women's singles players; second, elite women's singles badminton players would have more or less net shots and clears than elite men's singles players; third, elite man's singles badminton players would use more or less drop and smash skills than elite women's singles badminton players ; fourth, other shot skills would happen more or less on elite men's singles badminton players than elite women's singles badminton players; finally, elite men's singles badminton players would use the same percent of forehand and backhand shots in clear, drop, and net shot as elite women's singles badminton players.

Definition of Terms

The following definitions were used within the context of this study:

Badminton Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 36

Two or four players using lightweight rackets and a shuttlecock which is a cork ball fitted with stabilizing feathers, is a game called badminton (Ooi et al., 2009).

Operational definition of badminton in the present study referred to the top 4 male and female badminton matches of

2004, 2008, and 2012 Olympic Games.

Long Serve

The long serve is a serve higher the shuttlecock to hit high, deep into the court, and must fall as close to the back boundary line as possible . The operational definition of long serve in the present study was the number of times male and female players performed the long serve in the game.

Short Serve

In the short serve is the shuttlecock needs to be low to the net and fall as close to the front two corners of the short service 1 ine as possible (Grice, 2008) . The operational definition of short serve in the present study was the number of times male and female players performed the short serve in the game.

Clear

In the clear the player throws the racket upward, meeting the shuttlecock with a flat racket with the elbow extended Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 37 when the player moves into position to hit the clear so that the highest possible contact point is made (Grice, 2008) . The operational definition of clear in the present study was the number of times male and female player performed the clear shot in the game.

Drop

The drop shot is hit low, just over the net, and slow, so the shuttlecock drops directly down toward the floor after it passes over the net (Grice, 2008). The operational definition of drop in the present study was the number of times male and female players performed the drop shot in the game.

Smash

The smash is hit fast, downward with force, and steep in order to win a point when any shuttlecock that has been hit up and short (Grice, 2008) . The operational definition of smash in the present study was that the number of times male and female player performed the smash shot in the game.

Net Shot

A shot hit from the forecourt that just clears the net and drops sharply is called net shot (Chau, 2012) . The operational definition of net shot in the present study was Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 38 the number of times male and female players performed the net shot in the game.

Other Shot Skills

The operational definition of other shot skills in the present study was the number of times male and female players used a skill other than short serve, long serve, clear, drop, or smash.

Forehand Shot

The operational definition of forehand shot in the present study was the number of times male and female players performed the forehand shot in the game.

Backhand Shot

The operational definition of backhand shot in the present study was the number of times male and female players performed the backhand shot in the game.

Elite Men's Singles Badminton Players

The elite men's singles badminton players were the top

4 athletes of men's singles badminton game in the 2004, 2008, and 2012 Olympics.

Elite Women's Singles Badminton Players Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 39

The elite women's singles badminton players were the top

4 athletes of women's singles badminton game in the 2004, 2008, and 2012 Olympics.

Delimitation

This study was delimited by the following factors:

1. Male and female athletes in the 2004, 2008, and 2012

Olympic Games were selected for this study.

2. Elite men's singles badminton players were the top

4 of men's singles game in the 2004, 2008, and 2012 Olympics.

3 . Elite women's singles badminton players were the top

4 of women's singles game in the 2004, 2008, and 2012 Olympics .

4. Sport-specific skills included short serve, long serve, clear, drop, smash, and net shot.

5. Other shot skills included the shot which was not short serve, long serve, clear, drop, smash, and net shot.

6. Video tapes were coded for data collection.

Limitations

The following limitations should be considered when interpreting the results of this research study: Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 40

1. The researcher assumed that the coding of data would be valid and reliable.

2. The researcher assumed that all sport - specific skills and other shot skills were clearly visible in the videotapes.

3. The accuracy of data collection was limited to the knowledge and training of the researcher.

4 . The influence of the evolution of badminton sport and technical selection of the use of sport-specific skills and other shot skills over the past three Olympic Games (i . e. ,

12 year span) could not be controlled in the present study.

Hypotheses

The following hypotheses were tested within the context of this research study:

1. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of short serve.

2. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of long serve. Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 41

3. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of clear.

4. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of drop.

5. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of smash.

6. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of net shot.

7. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of other shot.

8 . There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of forehand clear shot.

9. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of backhand clear shot. Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 42

10. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of forehand drop shot.

11. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of backhand drop shot.

12. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of forehand net shot.

13. There would be no significant difference between elite men's and women's singles badminton players in the percent usage of backhand net shot.

Appendix B

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Badminton is a game for two or four players using lightweight rackets and a shuttlecock, what is a cork ball fitted with stabilizing feathers. Currently, the Olympic program has five full-medal events, which are men's singles, men's doubles, women's singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles (Ooi et al., 2009).

Badminton is one of the fastest paced games in the world Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 43 with its long history spanning more than 2,000 years (Bankosz,

Nawara, & Ociepa, 2013) . The fastest measured smash shot was

executed by a Chinese doubles player Fu Heifeng, who hit the

shuttlecock with the speed of 332 km/h during the Sudirman

Cup in 2 005, according to the Badminton World Federation. The

current Guinness World Record in shuttlecock speed is 421 km/h

(Ziemowit, Henryk, & Marcin, 2013) .

Regular badminton training enhances physical fitness,

especially movement coordination, speed, strength, and

stamina. Reaction time and decision making also need to be

a focus for players in order to improve their performance.

Badminton players must be able to react precisely and quickly

in order to improve their assessment and anticipation skills,

because players need to constantly analyze the continuously

changing situation on the court. Based on the records above,

fast reaction time and quick physical movements are very

essential for badminton players, especially for the singles

badminton player. Singles badminton player only has one

player on the court to control every stroke, compared to a

doubles badminton game.

Badminton players need to have acquired a perfection of

basic skills. The basic skills in badminton are the serve, Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 44 clear, drop, and smash. For example, the server could hit a fault because of an uncorrected serve, which will lead to a free point for the receiver. Speed, smoothness, and accuracy are more important than muscular strength and power in badminton games. Standard basic skills will affect the rank of badminton players, especially for the single badminton player. Precise and quick basic skills are more important for single badminton players; therefore the single badminton player need to handle all the situation on the court.

This review of literature will explain the connection between decision making and reaction, as well as elite badminton player and sub-elite badminton player. The following review of literature is structured into the following main sections: history of badminton, basic rules of badminton, basic skill of badminton, decision making, reaction time, elite and sub-elite badminton players, video method, and summary.

History of Badminton

Some of researchers have traced badminton back to 2,000 years ago in China and Siam, while other researchers traced forms of badminton to 12th century England and 17th Century

Poland (Krotee & Turner, 1984) . Today, however, most Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 45 researchers and badminton enthusiasts tend to agree that modern badminton has its roots in a game known as poona, which was derived from the town of Poona, India, where an early form of the game apparently flourished.

Basic Rules of Badminton

Badminton is a racket and net game played by either two

(a singles game), or four (a doubles game) players, with opponents on either side of the net. The object of the game is to propel the shuttlecock over the 5 ft (1.524 m) net, 5 ft one in. (1.55 m) at the net posts, into the opponent's side of the court in such a manner that the opposition cannot return the shuttlecock without it hitting the ground (Krotee & Turner,

1984) . The singles badminton player's court is 44 ft long

(13.4 m) and 17 ft wide (5.2 m) (Grice, 2008) . The doubles badminton players' court is 44 ft long and 20 ft wide (6.1 m) . A court could be indoors or outdoors, and could be made of clay, grass, synthetic material, or wood. Due to the existing hardwood floors available in most university and school gymnasiums, most competitive badminton games are played indoors, and wood is the most commonly used surface.

A match consists of the best of three games, each game played to 21 points. A 2-min rest interval between each game Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 46 is allowed. Players have a 60-s interval in order to change ends of the court, when the leading score reaches 11 points.

For a singles badminton game, the server serves from the right service court at the beginning of the game and when the server's score is even numbered. The server serves from the left service court when the server's score is odd numbered.

The receiver scores a point and becomes the new server if the receiver wins a rally. The side winning a rally adds a point to its score. A player wins when an individual has 21 points.

If the singles' players is tied at 20 points, the player who gains a 2-point lead wins the game. The highest amount of points to be gained is 30. In a singles badminton game, if the server wins a rally, the server scores a point and then serves from the alternate service court.

Sport Specific Skills of Badminton

Players often strategize to receive the serve because receiving the serve is perceived as a defensive shot that must be hit below waist level with the racket head below the wrist

(Grice, 2008). The long serve is the basic singles serve . The shuttlecock needs to be high, deep into the court, and must fall as close to the back boundary line as possible. This makes the shuttlecock more difficult to time and hit solidly, Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 47

which will make the returns of opponents less effective.

Because the doubles service court is 30 in. (76 cm)

shorter and 18 in. (46 cm) wider than the singles service court,

a short, low serve is most often used in doubles play (Grice,

2008) . The low serve could be hit on the forehand or backhand

side. The shuttlecock needs to be low to the net and fall as

close to the front two corners of the short service line as

possible, making the shuttlecock is harder to reach and to

hit effectively. When an opponent receives long or short

serves from the player, the serves provide a different look

for the opponent and force the opponent to play more honestly

without using fake or deceptive movements.

A high, deep clear, or return rally, is the most-often

recommended strategy to gain time to return to center court

to have better access to the court (Grice, 2 008) . An underhand

or overhand stroke from either the forehand or backhand might

be used in clearing, which forces the opponent deep into the

backcourt. Badminton players try to hit the shuttlecock as

quickly as possible in order to give their opponent less time

to get to the players' shot. The player throws the racket upward, meeting the shuttlecock with a flat racket with the

elbow extended when the player moves into position to hit the Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 48 clear so that the highest possible contact point is made. The player swings the racket forward and up with their hand leading

in order to make the shuttlecock go high and deep. Then, the player follows through, continuing in the direction of the shuttlecock's flight.

The clear could keep the shuttlecock away from the opponent and make the opponent move quickly during competition

If the player is able to hit the shuttlecock behind the opponent or force the opponent to move more rapidly than they would like, the opponent will expend more energy during play and experience greater amounts of fatigue. The opponent must hurry to execute returns accurately and effectively, if the player clears correctly (Grice, 2008) . The offensive clear is a flatter, faster clear, which is useful in getting the shuttlecock behind the opponent and potentially make an opponent hit weak returns . The defensive clear has a high and deep trajectory.

The drop shot is hit low, just over the net, and slow, so the shuttlecock drops directly down toward the floor after it passes over the net (Grice, 2008). Compared to the overhead clear, the shuttlecock in the drop shot is hit farther in front of the body, and the racket face is angled to direct the Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 49 shuttlecock more downward. The shuttlecock is hit lighter instead of hit with power.

Deception is the most important characteristic of a good overhead drop shot (Grice, 2008) . The drop shot might not be returned at all if the player was deceptive enough. The slow flight of the shuttlecock is the main drawback of the drop shot. If the shuttlecock moves slowly, the opponent will have more time to defend the shot.

The value of the overhead or underhand drop shot is to combine the drop shot with the clear in order to move the opponent around and force the opponent to defend the entire court (Grice, 2008) . To be effective, the drop shot could be directed toward one of the four corners of the court, and the opponent will have to move quickly to cover as much of the court as possible.

The smash is hit fast, downward with force, and steep in order to win a point when the shuttlecock has been hit up and short (Grice, 2008) . The smash can be hit only from the overhead position. The player needs to get the right timing and balance before trying to get excessive speed on the smash, when the shuttlecock is hit with power. Besides speed, the downward angle is the most important characteristic of a good Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 50

overhead smash. The shuttlecock is contacted by the racket

further in front of the body compared to the clear or the drop

shot. The racket face is angled to direct the shuttlecock more

downward. The smash may be unreturnable if the angle is steep

enough.

Some problems are also presented for the player executing

a smash. Firstly, the player will have very little time to

recover if the smash is returned. Secondly, the player could

be tired out because the overhead smash requires a lot of energy.

Thirdly, the further from the net the player is, the less steep

the player's smash will be. The shuttlecock will lose more

velocity as the shuttlecock travels to the opponent, thus

making the shuttlecock easier to return. It is important for

the player to choose the correct opportunity to use the smash

most effectively.

The use of standard basic skills of badminton are very

essential for badminton players. Also, how to use basic

skills affect the performance of badminton players. In recent

study, it has been showed that badminton players need to pay more attention to decision-making (Blomqvist, Luhtanen, &

Laakso, 2001).

Gender Difference in Sports Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 51

The varying body constitution of athletes in different sports is easily recognized (Kleinwachter & Raschka, 2009).

For example, there are the tall basketball players besides whom everybody else with an average height looks like a dwarf.

Also, the male and female shot putters and hammer throwers who are typically also fairly tall, but appear especially bulky and heavy (Raschka, 2 0 06) .

In the study by Kleinwachter and Raschka (2009), researchers wanted to compare male and female tennis players with respect to their body construction and to identify possible anthropometrical differences. The results showed the male tennis players were significantly taller and heavier than female tennis players. Male players who played at the higher level showed a lower body fat percentage than male players who played at the lower level. Also, male tennis players at the higher level were higher and lighter than male tennis players at the lower level. No body construction specific disparities related to the different performance levels were identified for the female tennis players

(Kleinwachter & Raschka, 2009) .

In other studies, researchers found out that the shoulder rotational profiles in male players did not differ between Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 52 the dominant and nondominant side (Couppe et al. , 2014) . In female players a higher internal rotation (IR) strength on the dominant side was not balanced by a higher external rotation (ER) strength, which may leave the external rotators vulnerable to large eccentric forces during forceful internal rotational movements (Couppe et al., 2014).

Fernandez-Fernandez, de la Aleja Tellez, Moya-Ramon,

Cabello-Manrique and Mendez-Villanueva (2013) provided insight, which between into the physiological and perceptual responses of elite male and female badminton players. The researchers showed significant differences in the activity patterns during the badminton match play between male and female players. Female players engaged in shorter rallies, executing less strokes per rally, and resting less between rallies than male players. The researchers indicated no significant differences between male and female players in the average physiological perceptual responses to badminton match (Fernandez-Fernandez et al., 2013) .

Based on the above studies (Kleinwachter & Raschka, 2 009;

Raschka, 2 006 ; Couppe et al. , 2 014; Fernandez - Fernandez, de la Aleja Tellez, Moya-Ramon, Cabello-Manrique, &

Mendez-Villanueva, 2013), it is assumed that due to Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 53

differences in the physical conditions of male and female

athletes, gender differences are likely to be observed during

a badminton match.

Decision-Making

In the traditional training method, coaches and trainers

are more focused on the movement execution component and tend

to overlook the significance of the cognitive processes of

perception and decision-making (Blomqvist et al., 2001).

Thus, Blomqvist et al. (2001), and Thomas (1994) considered

that the quality of decision-making in a game situation was

often as important as the execution of the motor skills.

Although, continuously training and improving players'

physical capabilities was very essential (Chin et al., 1995;

Fahlstrom, Lorentzon, & Alfredson, 2002), emphasis on

training the cognitive components of badminton players was

as essential as athletes' physical capabilities training

(Blomqvist et al., 2001).

In order to develop and improve players' decision making,

the ideal strategy would be to expose the athletes to all possible situations and scenarios that they may face (Huynh

& Bedford, 2011) » This will allow players to retain certain responses within their subconscious, leading players' bodies Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 54 to instantaneously execute an appropriate action when similar situations arise.

In other research, Huynh and Bedford (2010) argued cognitive components of badminton must be considered in order to train and improve badminton players. The researchers suggested that players need to incorporate a combination of both physical and cognitive aspects into their training program in attempting to optimize skill proficiency (Huynh

& Bedford, 2010) .

A new visual based training (VBT) method of identifying and improving a badminton player's reaction time and awareness, the Skills Acquisition Trainer for Badminton (SATB), was introduced by Huynh and Bedford (2010) . Utilizing the method, the researchers stated that by noticing the visual cues when other players executing an action could improve badminton players' reaction time, awareness and decision-making skills

(Huynh & Bedford, 2010) .

In a study by Macquet and Fleurance (2007), the researcher aimed to reveal the contextual decision-making of high-level badminton players during competition and to help coaches to understand the preferential mode of player cognitive functioning. Decision-making was studied in a Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 55 synchronic and in a diachronic way. In order to unveil any similarities and differences between circumstances and to comprehend mechanisms that structure decision-making,

Macquet and Fleurance considered decision-making within the time constraints of the match. Decision-making was shown to depend highly on understanding of the immediate situation

(Macquet & Fleurance, 2007) .

The aim, for coaches, was to facilitate performance.

Coaches should increase understanding of the conditions of the situation. Macquet and Fleurance (2007) revealed that taking account of context and previous, current and anticipated events during a rally was essential for understanding and for naturalistic decision-making. Macquet and Fleurance's study could be continued through a longitudinal approach by consideration of play at different stages of the match and in extended rallies or at different stages of a competitive season. This study may show further differences in decision-making that depend on the advantage gained during the match and performance-based fluctuations throughout a season (Macquet & Fleurance, 2007).

There is a limited amount of research that has considered some of the over-learned, highly coordinated skills that are Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 56 present within the high-level sport. In Hollnagel's (1998) study, coordination had little influence on decision making.

According to Hollnagel's study, coordination can, therefore, affect decision-making if the athlete is involved in an unfamiliar situation and if coordination is not adapted to the situation. In this situation, the athlete had to create a new coordination pattern and use scrambled control

(Hollnagel, 1998) .

Hollnagel (1998) showed that, decision-making for badminton players is an essential point towards improving their performance during the match. Many factors will affect a badminton player's decision-making. Macquet and Fleurance

(2007) suggested that the decision-making process has two key stages. The first is related to situation assessment: the definition of the problem; awareness of risks; and the time available . The second is the choice of a course of action that depends upon available situation possibilities. Therefore, the time available is also essential for badminton player since it can affected the decision-making.

The badminton player should react quickly and precisely in order to perform a high standard basic skills. Thus, the reaction time also is an important factor which was impact Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 57 the performance of badminton players.

Reaction Time

Advanced and experienced badminton players show the ability of anticipation of the opponent's movements and quick analysis of the situation during the game (Stelter, 2001).

They also are able to make instant decisions relating the type of the opponent's move, shuttlecock aiming position, the applied force, etc. Stelter (2001) showed that a player had

0.1-s to react to the opponent's attack when he or she is in defensive position. Because of swift pace of badminton, continuous changeability of the situation on the court, and complexity and precision of players' movements, the decisive factor in the game was speed and following elements, which included (Starosta, 2003; Raczek, Mynarski, & Ljach, 2002):

- reaction time (simple and complex - choice and differential);

- speed of an individual movement (movement time);

- frequency of movements.

Reaction time and movement time have been commonly used for evaluation of the reactive ability of athletes of different sports modalities (Akarsu, Caliskan, & Dane, 2009;

Barcelos, Morales, Maciel, Azevedo, & Silva, 2009; Junge, et Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 58 al. , 2000 ; Zwierko, 2007), including badminton (Dane, Hazar,

& Tan, 2008; Yong-min, Yue-Ping, Sc Cheng-mou, 2006) . The interval between the sudden presentation of an imperative stimulus and the beginning of the motor action has been defined as reaction time, while the interval between the beginning and the end of the motor action has been defined as movement time.

The time needed for the information processing (e.g. detection and identification of the stimulus, response selection and movement planning) was represented by reaction time, movement, and the capacity of the musculoskeletal system in dislocating one or more body segments or the body as a whole from an initial to a final and desirable position (Ghez &

Krakauer, 2000; Schmidt &Lee, 2005) . Inf ormat ion was, inmost cases, as fast as possible.

Reaction time has been defined as the period of time that lapses between the occurrence of a stimulus and initiation of movement, consisting of the following 5 segments (Mackala

& Cych, 2011) :

1. Stimulation of the receptor, which depends on the level of concentration and the precision of peripheral vision, among others, that can be trained to a certain extent. Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 59

2. Transmission of stimulation to the central nervous

system, which depends on the constant conduction speed in

nervous tracts.

3 . Transmission of stimulation through nervous centers

and formation of an executory signal, both of which depend

on the motility of nervous processes - it is the longest and

quantitatively most diversified parameter determining the

general time of reaction.

4. Transmission of the signal from the central nervous

system to the muscle, whose speed remains constant and cannot

be improved by training.

5. Stimulation of the muscle - a change in its tension,

such as an initiation of movement.

Mackala and Cych (2011) had frequently explored the issue

of reaction time and its significance in sport. The

researchers argued that reaction time depended on the type

of stimulus - a reaction to a visual stimulus requires a little more time than a reaction to an auditory one. Reacted to a visual stimulus needed 150-200 ms, but the reaction to an

auditory stimulus needed 120-160 ms. Reaction time of player

also depended on the player's individual properties of the nervous and muscular systems, initial alertness of the Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 60 opponent, and current condition (e.g. hunger, drowsiness, tiredness, motivation, attitude to the performed activities, body temperature) . The age, sex, type of personality, medical condition or the extent of functional asymmetry also affect the time span between the occurrence of the stimulus and initiation of movement (Mackala & Cych, 2011; Sozanski,

Witczak, & Starzynski, 1999).

Kochanowicz (2001) indicated that reaction time substantially affected the acquired results. Kochanowicz examined the correlations between reaction time and effectiveness of effort and showed that elite players react more quickly than sub-elite players. In Borysiuk's (2002) study of fencers, the reaction time of fencers did not find any substantial differences in their reaction time values.

Borysiuk concluded that this was possibly because of prior selection of fencers, they were all characterized by quick reactions (simple and complex) (Kochanowicz, 2001; Borysiuk,

2002) .

However, conclusions of other researchers were less categorical. Fontani et al. (2006) established that beginning beginner players reacted more slowly to visual stimuli than elite players, while researchers found that Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 61 sub-elite volleyball players displayed shorter reaction times than elite players. In the study of sprinters, similar conclusions were drawn, where Mackata, Alonczyk, and

Michalski (2008) showed that less experienced athletes

(students) acquired results similar to those attained by advanced sprinters . After several years of research of female sprinters participating in the World Athletics Championships,

Pilianidis and Mantzouranis (2011) concluded that a shorter reaction time was not necessarily tantamount to a better result at the finishing line.

Comparisons of competitors representing various disciplines was included in the research of reaction time values (Bhupinder, 2007) . One hundred and ninety-two female athletes practiced different disciplines in Bhupinder's (2007) study, and Bhupinder concluded that the female athletes displayed different reaction times. The longest reaction times to auditory and visual stimuli were shown by gymnasts and athletes, while the shortest reaction times were displayed by basketball players. Bhupinder (2007) also argued that female athletes who were on a team practiced displayed shorter reaction times than females in individual sports.

Ziemowit, Henryk, and Marcin (2013) considered the fact Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 62 that badminton was regarded as a discipline requiring high levels of all constituent speeds; therefore, Ziemowit et al. were interested in whether or not elite players displayed

short reaction times. Based on the few in the area, badminton players were characterized by a great movement speed and a higher level of nervous conductivity and agility (Hoyle & Holt,

1983) .

Wang, Yan, and Zhang (2008) claimed that there was a correlation between the reaction times of upper and lower limbs of badminton players, while there were significant differences between men and women and between players with various degrees of experience. Yuan, Fan, Chin, and So (1995) concluded that, compared to a control group of students, a shorter reaction time and a lower number of committed errors characterized the precision of reaction at the highest speeds badminton players . Wang, Zhang, and Yin (2009) indicated that, especially in situations typical of badminton, elite badminton players reacted more quickly and more precisely than non-training controls, while not displaying any better results in terms of movement speeds.

Loureiro and Freitas (2012) stated that in order to avoid the opponent from planning elite badminton player's movement Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 63 in anticipation, the elite player used deceptive movements during some strokes that made the shuttlecocks' trajectory and the approximate final position unknown by the opponents until the shuttlecock had touched the racket (e.g. before the shuttle contacts the racket). Thus, the badminton players should be able to quickly react in the situations in which an individual is not able to anticipate the shuttle trajectory and final destination in to be successful in this sport and reach high performance levels.

Therefore, decreasing reaction time is essential for a badminton player to improve overall performance. Less reaction time can offer badminton player have more movement time, so one can has more time to decide what basic skills to usage for the offensive or defensive of the game.

Elite and Sub-elite Badminton Players

The elite badminton players and sub-elite badminton players have so many differences, such as: decision making, reaction time, and physical capabilities. Abernethy and

Russell (1987), Cheng and Liu (2009), Hagemann and Memmert

(2006) , indicated that the elite badminton players (e.g. who play for national teams or are well positioned in the world ranking) showed a better ability to use visual hints obtained Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 64 from the opponents' movements when compared to the sub-elite badminton players. The elite badminton players were able to achieve a higher index of success in predicting the correct trajectory and landing site of the shuttlecock in court

(Abernethy & Russell, 1987; Cheng & Liu, 2009; Hagemann &

Memmert, 2 0 06) .

Abernethy and Russell (1987) showed differences between the elite and sub-elite badminton players in how to use visual cues. Abernethy and Russell suggested that elite badminton players had superior anticipatory skills due to the ability to detect information regarding advanced cue sources, but sub-elite badminton players were unable to detect information

Specifically, the researchers stated that due to the opponent's racket and arm placement, the elite badminton players would utilize the visual cues to predict stroke direction and speed, whereas sub-elite badminton players were only capable of extracting advance information from the racket itself (Abernethy and Russell, 1987) .

Ooi et al. (2009) tried to establish the physical and physiological attributes of elite and sub-elite Malaysian male badminton players, and to determine whether these attributes discriminate elite players from sub-elite players . Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 65

On two occasions, measurements were conducted to test basic anthropometry, explosive power, anaerobic recovery capacity, badminton-specific movement agility, maximum strength, and aerobic capacity (Ooi et al., 2009) .

Ooi et al. (2009) indicated that compared with the sub-elite players, the elite players had greater maximum absolute strength in one-repetition maximum bench press

(PM0.015). Instantaneous lower body power estimated from vertical jump height between the elite and sub-elite groups

(P50.01) had significant differences. However, there was no significant difference between groups in shuttle run tests and on-court badminton-specific movement agility tests. Ooi et al. concluded that elite Malaysian male badminton players were taller, heavier, and stronger than their sub-elite counterparts. However, the test of Ooi et al. did not allow to discriminate between the elite and sub-elite players.

Therefore, suggesting that at the elite level tactical knowledge, technical skills, and psychological readiness could be of greater importance (Ooi et al. , 2009) .

Based on the studies reviewed (Abernethy & Russell, 1987;

Cheng & Liu, 2009; Hagemann & Memmert, 2006; Abernethy and

Russell, 1987; Ooi et al., 2009), finding the differences Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 66

between elite and sub-elite badminton players are important

because it can give sub-elite badminton players right

suggestions to improve their performance. The coaches also

can use the differences between elite and sub-elite badminton

players to make right practice plan in order to enhance the

performance of sub-elite badminton players.

Video Method

Badminton is the fastest racket game, and nowadays there

are great changes in the playing pattern and speed.

Technological innovations have had a great influence in

today's game of badminton (Singh & Yogesh, 2010) . Singh and

Yogesh (2010) explained how technology has changed the

standard of the game by use of technology and new material

in construction of the equipment, like court, racket, shuttle,

shoes and clothing. The game of badminton is now more skill

and technology oriented. Video technology is the most

important technology for a complete analysis of the skill performed by the player, video recording and analysis is very useful for improving the technique of skill execution (Singh

Sc Yogesh, 2010) .

Raiola, Parisi, Giugno, and Di Tore (2013), analyzed the performance of volleyball players. The software, Kinovea, Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 67 was used to analyze the performance of volleyball players.

Kinovea is a free software and open source solution for video analysis during the study by Raiola et al. . It is mostly used by sports' coaches and trainers to study or comment a performance. The Kinovea video controls allow coaches and trainers to focus on a specific action in the video and explore the structure of the movement, frame by frame or in slow motion.

In addition, the drawing tools are used to enrich the video with the addition of arrows, descriptions and other content for key images . Tools and online stopwatch are used to measure distance and time. A semi-automatic plotting instrument allows the trainer to follow the path of a point, or of a body, in order to calculate the trajectory and, consequently, the distance traveled or the speed expressed (Raiola, Parisi,

Giugno, and Di Tore, 2 013) .

The video analysis, which is the analysis of sports performance by watching the video, is used primarily for use in the quantitative performance of athletes through the notational analysis (Raiola et al., 2013).

Summary

Badminton is considered the fastest racket sport in the world; therefore, the players should quickly plan and perform Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 68 movements for temporal and spatial accuracy in the racket position for interception of the shuttlecock. Studies have shown that elite badminton players, on national or world level teams, have a better ability to use visual ques from the opponent as opposed to sub-elite level players; therefore, the elite players are able to have a higher level of success in estimating the correct trajectory and landing of the shuttlecock in the court (Abernethy & Russell, 1987; Cheng

Sc Liu, 2009; Hagemann & Memmert, 2006) . Such skill allows badminton players to plan and start movements before the end of the opponent's stroke, and consequently, have a better chance to be successful in their moves.

Striking a badminton shuttlecock required precise prospective control of the interceptive action and must be prepared in advance to allow the body time to organize (Huynh

& Bedford, 2010). A difficult task is to learn how to anticipate moving objects, and it is not easily mastered unless given an appropriate form of training. In any fast paced sport, the ability to anticipate approaching objects when they reach a desired goal or target is of particular importance. Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 69

APPENDIX C

ELITE MEN'S AND WOMEN'S SINGLES BADMINTON PLAYERS

Olympics Men's Players Women's players

2004 Athens Taufik Hidayat (INA) Zhang Ning (CHN)

Olympics Shon Seung-mo (KOR) Mia Audina (NED)

Sony Dwi Kuncoro (INA) Zhou Mi (CHN)

Boonsak Ponsana (INA) Gong Ruina (CHN)

2008 Beijing Lin Dan (CHN) Zhang Ning (CHN)

Olympics Lee Chong Wei (MAS) Xie Xingfang (CHN)

Chen Jin (CHN) Maria Kristin

Yulianti (INA) Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 70

Lee Hyunil (KOR) Lu Lan (CHN)

2012 London Lin Dan (CHN) Li Xuerui (CHN)

Olympics Lee Chong Wei (MAS) Wang Yihan (CHN)

Chen Long (CHN) Saina Nehwal (IND)

Lee Hyunil (KOR) Wang Xin (CHN)

APPENDIX D

DATA RECORDING SHEET

Date :

Olympics:

Gender Name Short Long Clear Drop Smash Net Others

Serve Serve Shot

Men's

Player Gender Differences in Badminton Skills 71

Women'

s

Player

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