Effects of attentional focus (internal vs. external) and swing type (short vs. long) on skill acquisition, long-term retention, and motor learning in child golf beginners

Motor learning traditionally advocates for the superiority of an external attentional focus; however, its universality remains questioned across variations in other influential factors. This study examined the effects of internal vs. external attentional focus across two distinct motor tasks during short-term skill acquisition, long-term retention, and motor learning in primary school beginners aged 8–12 years ( n = 187, 98 males, 89 females; n = 100, 51 males, 49 females). The participants completed an 8-h golf course within their physical education curriculum during two consecutive academic years, separated by a long-term retention period (10–11 months). They were assigned to either an internal or external attentional focus group and performed two distinct tasks. Performance was tracked through pre- and post-tests for each of the two interventions and for each swing type (short-game and long-game swing). During short-term skill acquisition, a statistically significant Time × Focus interaction emerged for the short-game, F(1, 185) = 5.45, p = .021, η p 2 = .029, driven by greater performance improvements in the external focus group compared to the internal focus group. For the long-game, no statistically significant Time × Focus interaction was detected, F(1, 185) = 1.97, p = .163, η p 2 = .011. These findings indicate that attentional focus advantages were confined to short-term post-intervention skill acquisition for the short-game swing. The study did not detect a statistically significant difference in focus efficacy between swing types. Furthermore, initial gains tended to decay over extended non-practice intervals regardless of the attentional cue used.