A Case Study of Forms of Sharing in a Highly Interdependent Soccer Team During Competitive Interactions

Abstract

This case study was designed to investigate the forms of sharing on a soccer team during matches. Specifically, we focused on how objectives and contextual information were shared between players during offensive transition situations. Data were collected and processed using a procedure for psycho-phenomenological analysis (Vermersch, 2012). The results describe how the changing relationships between objective and contextual information sharing affected team coordination. We discuss the factors underlying the emergence of these forms of sharing and how they changed (i.e., the level of interdependence between players' actions), and we offer soccer coaches some practical applications.

Notes

1 The present study selected the notion of an objective, as this was assumed to be broad enough to deal with the concepts used in various frameworks, such as intention, goal, or involvement.

2 The shared contextual information refers to team situation awareness (e.g., Poizat et al., 2009), which is a form of dynamic yet fleeting shared understanding between teammates during an unfolding situation (e.g., meaningful elements of the situation, expectations, constructed interpretations, prior knowledge used).

3 A move in which Player A passes to Teammate B and expects an immediate return pass. It is often used in a triangular movement to get past an opposing player or players.