The effect of age and skill level on the mental rotation ability of girl swimmers

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of age and level of somersaults swimmerschr('39') on mental rotation ability. This study was conducted as a comparative causal with one-stage and post-event design. The statistical population was female swimmers in Shiraz who were trained in somersaults. Among them, 60 subjects were selected by purposive sampling method and then divided into four groups (7 to 9 years with low skills, 7 to 9 years with high skills, 10 to 12 years with low skills and 10 to 12 years with high skills). Salto skill level was determined based on the average score of three judges. To measure mental rotation, the pen and image paper test (with a reliability of 0.75 by Cronbachchr('39')s alpha method) was used. The results showed that there was no significant difference in mental rotation scores between age groups (p = 0638); Meanwhile, the scores of mental rotation showed a significant difference between the two groups of skill level (P = / 0001). The results show that mental rotation changes with different skill levels. Therefore, it is possible to change the mental characteristics of athletes, including mental rotation,  with by using skill training.