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Skill, Technique & Ability

Skill Training
Coaching Skills
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A question often asked is what is the difference between skill, technique and
ability?

Whatisaskill?

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Skill is an athlete's ability to choose and perform the right techniques at the
right time, successfully, regularly and with a minimum of effort. Athletes use
their skill to achieve athletic objectives e.g. sprinting a 10.0 second 100
metres. Skill is acquired and therefore has to be learned.

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Typesofskills

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Cognitive - involves thought processes

Perceptual - involves interpretation of information
Motor - involves movement

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Psychologists have categorised human behaviour into three broad domains:

Cognitive skill (knowing) - know and understand the vital aspects of the
sport
Affective behaviour (feeling) - success at the sport depends on mental
attitude and developing psychological skills to cope with stress
Psychomotor skill (doing) - excellence in sport requires the execution of
precise, fluent and effective movement patterns which require the
combination of perceptual and motor skills

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WhatisTechnique?
Techniques are the basic movements of any sport or event e.g. a block start
in a 100 metre race is a technique. We combine a number of techniques into a

pattern of movement e.g. triple jump - running and then the hop, step and
jump phases.

Whatisability?
Ability is the make up of an athlete that we inherit from our parents. Abilities
underpin and contribute to skills. Abilities can be essentially perceptual,
essentially motor or a combination of both. Most abilities to do with action are
a combination and are referred to as psychomotor abilities. Now there is no
definitive list of psychomotor abilities.
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[1]

Stallings (1982)
identified the following psychomotor abilities: Muscular
power and endurance, flexibility, balance, coordination and differential
relaxation (selective adjustment of muscle tension).
[1]

Fleishman (1972)
identified the following nine psychomotor abilities
(referred to as gross motor abilities): Extent flexibility, dynamic flexibility,
explosive strength, static strength, dynamic strength, trunk strength, gross
body coordination, gross body equilibrium and stamina.
If you are of average height, strong, good coordination and have an
abundance of fast twitch fibres in your legs then you have the natural ability
to be a sprinter.

Relationshipbetweenskill,abilityandtechnique
SKILL=ABILITY+TECHNIQUE

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References
1. STALLINGS, L. M. (1982) Motor Learning: From theory to Practice. USA:
Mosby
2. FLEISHMAN, E. A. (1972) The structure and measurement of
psychomotor abilities. In: ROBERT, N. The psychomotor domain:
Movement behaviors. Philadelphia: Lea and Febiger. p. 78-106

RelatedReferences
The following references provide additional information on this topic:
STEVENS, M. J. and CAMPION, M. A. (1994) The knowledge, skill, and
ability requirements for teamwork: Implications for human resource
management.Journal of management, 20 (2), p. 503-530
SCHMIDT, R. and WRISBERG, C. A. (2004) Motor learning and
performance
SCHMIDT, R. and LEE, T. (2013) Motor Learning and Performance, 5E
With Web Study Guide: From Principles to Application. Human Kinetics

PageReference
If you quote information from this page in your work then the reference for
this page is:
MACKENZIE, B. (2001) Skill, Technique and Ability [WWW] Available
from: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/skills.htm [Accessed 29/10/2016]

RelatedPages
The following Sports Coach pages provide additional information on this topic:
Articles on Skill training

Biomechanics
Levers
Running Economy
Skill Development
Skill Classification
Skill, Technique and Ability

AdditionalSourcesofInformation
For further information on this topic see the following:
BEASHEL, P. and TAYLOR, J. (1996) Advanced Studies in Physical
Education and Sport. UK: Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd.
BEASHEL, P. and TAYLOR, J. (1997) The World of Sport Examined. UK:
Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd.
BIZLEY, K. (1994) Examining Physical Education. Oxford; Heinemann
Educational Publishers
DAVIS, B. et al. (2000) Physical Education and the Study of Sport. UK:
Harcourt Publishers Ltd.
GALLIGAN, F. et al. (2000) Advanced PE for Edexcel. Oxford;
Heinemann Educational Publishers
McARDLE, W. et al. (2000) Essentials of Exercise Physiology. 2nd ed.
Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins

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