External vs Combined Focus Effects on Landing in Female Athletes

Summary

Female athletes are at higher risk of knee injuries, particularly non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries, often caused by dynamic knee valgus during landing. Proper landing techniques and neuromuscular training are crucial for injury prevention. Attentional focus strategies, such as external focus (EF) and internal focus (IF), can influence movement patterns, muscle activation, and skill transfer during landing tasks. EF generally promotes safer and more controlled landings, while IF offers certain kinematic benefits. However, real-world sports often require a combination of attentional strategies, and the effects of combined EF + IF instructions on landing mechanics and muscle activation have not been fully studied.

This study will investigate the effects of EF and combined attentional focus instructions on lower extremity and trunk movement, muscle activation, and skill transfer in young female athletes with asymptomatic dynamic knee valgus. The investigators aim to determine whether combined attentional focus training provides greater improvements in landing mechanics, muscle activation, and skill transfer than EF training alone.

Conditions

• Valgus Deformity, Not Elsewhere Classified, Knee
• Injury, Knee

Interventions

OTHER

Single-Leg Drop Vertical Jump

Single-Leg Drop Vertical Jump test will be performed with the dynamic knee valgus leg.

OTHER

Combined Focus of Attention Instruction

\- Combined focus group: "When you land, keep your knee over your toes while directing your knee toward the cone."

OTHER

External Focus of Attention Instruction

\- External focus group: "When you land, direct your movement toward the cone placed on your side."

OTHER

No instruction

Control group: No specific instructions.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• California State University, Long Beach

  collaborator OTHER

• Bahçeşehir University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Pelin Pişirici, PT, PhD · Bahçeşehir University

• Sharon Teng, PT, PhD · California State University, Department of Physical Therapy

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

30 Years

Sex

FEMALE

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2026-02-17

Primary Completion

2026-05-31

Completion

2026-05-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations