Neural representations of different features in the observation of table tennis actions

Objective

This study investigated the neural representations at different features of table tennis serve observation and examined the moderating effects of experience on these representations.

Methods

Twenty-four table tennis athletes and twenty-six nonathletes watched videos of four types of table tennis serves, categorized by serve technique (forehand vs. backhand) and target location (left-side vs. right-side). Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and behavioral data were collected during video viewing.

Results

Observing different action features activated the action observation network (AON), including the lateral occipital-temporal cortex (LOTC), ventral premotor cortex (PMv), and superior parietal lobule (SPL). Multivariate pattern analysis revealed the distinct functional contributions of different regions within the AON: table tennis players exhibited higher decoding accuracy in the PMv for action types than for action targets, whereas the SPL showed greater decoding accuracy for action targets over action types. Notably, players demonstrated significantly higher PMv decoding accuracy for action types compared to nonathletes.

Conclusions

These findings highlight the differential involvement of AON subregions of different features of action observation and emphasize the crucial role of experience in shaping neural representations of observed actions. This study provides theoretical insights for optimizing sports training and skill acquisition.