Goal difficulty level and task self-efficacy belief on volleyball serve learning

BACKGROUND: The level of difficulty of the goal is one factor that can influence the learning of motor skills. The effect of goals of greater or lesser difficulty depends on the learner's characteristics, such as self-efficacy beliefs. AIM: This study examined the effects of goal difficulty on the learning of volleyball serves and self-efficacy beliefs METHODS: Twenty-five male university students (mean age = 21.68 ± 2.69 years) were divided into two groups: a higher difficulty goal group and a lower difficulty goal group. The quasi-experimental design consisted of pretest, acquisition phase (180 trials), and a retention test. RESULTS: Both groups showed improvement in serve accuracy; however, only the lower difficulty group showed a significant increment in movement consistency (p < .001) from the pretest to the retention test. Goal difficulty did not affect self-efficacy beliefs. Furthermore, self-efficacy beliefs did not mediate the effect of goal difficulty level on learning the volleyball serve. INTERPRETATION: These results suggest that lower-difficulty goals facilitate motor learning by reducing performance variability without affecting self-efficacy in beginners.