Effectiveness of 360° virtual reality and match broadcast video to improve decision-making skill

Video-based training is a commonly used method to develop decision-making in athletes and officials. This method typically uses match broadcast footage, yet technological advancements have made 360° Virtual Reality (360°VR) a possible effective tool to investigate. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of both 360°VR and match broadcast footage on improving decision-making. Amateur Australian football umpires (N= 32) participated in a randomised control trial. Participants completed a 5-week training intervention in either a 360°VR, match broadcast or control group. Decision-making was assessed at pre-training, 1-week post-training and 4-week retention points using reliable and valid 360°VR and match broadcast decision-making tests. Participants completed a short questionnaire detailing their perceptions of psychological fidelity, enjoyment, relevance, concentration and effort for each video mode. The 360°VR performed significantly better (p < 0.05) than the control group in the 360°VR retention test. No groups statistically improved over the intervention. Remaining pairwise comparisons for this test and the match broadcast test were not significantly different. 360°VR was rated significantly higher (p < 0.05) than match broadcast footage for psychological fidelity, enjoyment and relevance. 360°VR appears to be a beneficial training tool compared to a control, with stronger engagement from the participants than previously used match broadcast footage.