INTERACCI�?�?N COMPETITIVA Y PRESI�?�?N AMBIENTAL EN DEPORTES DE COMBATE: APLICACI�?�?N DE LA METODOLOG�?A OBSERVACIONAL

resumen

Xavier Iglesias, Agust�?­ Gasset, Cristina Gonz�?¡lez, M. Teresa Anguera

Combat sports involve a confrontation between two competitors that is subject to environmental pressure. The latter refers to the situational context which is generated in the combat through the influence of space, time and score, and the relevance of these three factors as regards the likelihood of successfully achieving the operational objective, i.e. to score points. The aim of the study was to analyse the influence of this environment pressure on the density and effectiveness of competitive actions performed in two different combat sports: fencing and taekwondo. Systematic and non-participant observational methodology was used in the context of an idiographic, monitoring and multidimensional design. A total of 1,180 combat actions from sixteen world championship bouts were analysed (354 from fencing and 826 from taekwondo). Two ad hoc instruments were developed with a field-format structure. The unit of observation was a combat action in which one or both competitors tried to score. The results showed that the density and effectiveness of actions differed significantly according to the factors of space, time and distance in score. Sequential analysis revealed behavioural patterns in the interactions between competitors.