JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Exergames, the combination of physical activity with video gaming, have shown promising effects in enhancing motor skills and fitness. However, their application in skill-based sports like tennis, which requires complex coordination and decision-making, remains underexplored. Existing research has largely focused on endurance sports, with limited attention to psychological outcomes (e.g., motivation, confidence) and skill transfer in novice players. This study addresses these gaps by comparing exergame-based tennis training (EBTT) to on-court tennis training (OCTT) in improving technical skills, grip strength, confidence, and motivation.

Objective:

The purpose of this study is to assess the effect of Exergaming tennis in developing a person’s tennis technical skills, grip strength, confidence level, and motivation level.

Methods:

A 12-week quasi-experimental trial was conducted with 66 novice tennis players (aged 18–40) randomly assigned to either EBTT or OCTT groups. The EBTT group had one weekly session of on-court training and one session of exergame training using Virtual Tennis on PlayStation 3 Move, while the OCTT group completed two weekly on-court sessions. Outcomes included tennis technical skills (via Hewitt Tennis Test), grip strength (using a hand-held dynamometer), confidence (via Sports Confidence Inventory), and motivation (via Sport Motivation Scale). Data were collected pre- and post-intervention and analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA (α = 0.05) and Pearson correlations. Effect sizes were calculated using partial eta squared (Ƞp²), where values ≥0.14 indicated large effects.

Results:

Both EBTT and OCTT groups showed significant improvements in tennis technical skills, grip strength, and confidence levels after 12 weeks of training (P < .001). Confidence levels increased significantly in both groups (P < .001). These outcome measures have large effect sizes (Ƞp² = 0.84–0.92), however these outcome measures did not significantly differ across the groups when compared (Pgrip strength = .24, Phit = .97, Paccuracy = .86, Pspeed= .72, Pconfidence = .31). In terms of motivation, EBTT retained intrinsic motivation better than OCTT, with significant reductions in intrinsic motivation (IM-to-know and IM-to-accomplish) observed in the OCTT group (P < .001). Grip strength, confidence, and motivation levels (except amotivation) showed positive correlations with tennis technical skills (r = 0.39–0.80).

Conclusions:

Exergaming can improve tennis skills and psychological outcomes similarly to OCTT while better sustaining motivation. Thus, EBTT may serve as a supplementary tool for novice players.