Archers who hold concentration better shoot higher scores

The summary today

Studies on archers are divided, and the disagreement follows the instrument used to measure concentration. The largest and oldest study, over a hundred archers of mixed level up to world level, asked each archer how concentrated they felt and measured attention with a standard questionnaire: neither went with the score (r = 0.16 for self-rated concentration), while confidence and not dwelling on past mistakes did. Those who use an attention test instead, a task done against the clock, nearly always find the same sign: the firmest result comes from sixty-one archers in the Chinese national squad, where a pencil-and-paper test is linked to performance in the following week's competition (correlation 0.43), and three Indonesian studies from 2026 using a grid test find correlations between 0.62 and 0.79, in groups of fifteen to forty-five archers. Here too the picture cracks: in forty-five traditional Turkish archers only two indices of the d2 test are linked to the score and the others are not, in one of the 2026 studies the link disappears once arm strength is taken into account, and electroencephalography measures do not pick out the better archers. They are all associations collected at a single moment, almost all in regional journals, and they do not say which way the cause runs or whether training attention raises the score.

Also phrased as: "concentration test and score"; "concentration grid"; "using Schulte tables in archery"; "d2 test and archery"; "measured attention and results"; "concentration makes the score"; "the more focused archer shoots better"; "concentration and accuracy in archery"; "staying focused for the whole competition"; "ability to concentrate and results"

Evidence

• 1986
  Against Archers Published later

  Archers of mixed level, from nine at world level (average 1,272.5 points) down to a group of twelve averaging 1,054, tested between 1982 and 1984: self-rated concentration goes with the score at r = 0.16 (n = 115), below the study's threshold (r above 0.25, p < 0.005); the attention scales of the Test of Attentional and Interpersonal Style, on 117 to 119 archers, lie between -0.16 and 0.17, none significant. In the same comparison the use of mental imagery (r = 0.33), confidence (0.32) and thinking about past mistakes (-0.28) do pass the threshold.

  A Psychobiological Study of Archery Performance · Daniel M. Landers, Stephen H. Boutcher, Min Q. Wang

• 2018
  For Archers Published later

  11 Ukrainian beginners aged 18 to 20 in the experimental group, after the intervention: the score correlates with the mental stability index on the Schulte tables at r = -0.55 (p < 0.05, a lower index meaning more stability), while it does not correlate with holding time at full draw (0.14 and 0.26), push-ups (-0.17) or squats (0.06). Regional journal.

  Influence of application of special means of development of equilibrium and precision-target movements on the level and structure of psychophysiological indicators, physical and technical readiness of archers · V.V. Artiuh, Zh.L. Kozina, V.O. Koval, D.V. Safronov, S.V. Fomin, Yu.O. Novikov

• 2022
  For Archers Published later

  61 archers in the Chinese national squad: attention measured with a pencil-and-paper test (distribution, breadth and shifting) one week before a competition is linked to performance in that competition with beta 0.344 (95% CI 0.068 to 0.581, f² = 0.148) and a correlation of 0.426.

  Effect of Cognitive Reappraisal on Archery Performance of Elite Athletes: The Mediating Effects of Sport-Confidence and Attention · Dongling Wang, Ti Hu, Rui Luo, Qiqi Shen, Yuan Wang, Xiujuan Li, et al.

• 2023
  Against Archers Published later

  30 male archers split into three groups of ten by training performance, concentration read as a single-channel electroencephalography index computed by the manufacturer's software: 43.34 ± 8.25 in the best group, 40.28 ± 10.08 in the middle one and 48.81 ± 8.48 in the group whose arrows missed the target, which comes out significantly higher (P < 0.05). The abstract states the opposite of the table, and the venue is flagged as questionable: it does not decide the status.

  CONCENTRATION IMPROVEMENT TEST FOR ATHLETES IN ARCHERY TRAINING Questionable venue · Chen Feng

• 2025
  For Archers Published later

  45 traditional Turkish archers, 25 men and 20 women: the corrected total result on the d2 test is linked to the score in women (r = 0.558, p = 0.011) and in men (r = 0.469, p = 0.018); in men the number of items marked is too (r = 0.453, p = 0.023). Regional journal, and a discipline other than Olympic archery.

  The Effects of Physical Fitness and Physiological Variables on Archery Performance in Traditional Turkish Archers · Muhammed Raşit Eyibil, Oğuz Gürkan

• 2025
  Against Archers Published later

  In the same 45 archers the other d2 indices have no relationship with the score: concentration performance r = 0.321 in women and 0.175 in men, error percentage -0.365 and -0.058, fluctuation rate 0.214 and 0.191, all not significant.

  The Effects of Physical Fitness and Physiological Variables on Archery Performance in Traditional Turkish Archers · Muhammed Raşit Eyibil, Oğuz Gürkan

• 2025
  Context Archers Published later

  36 beginner archers aged 14 to 18 in three groups over eight weeks: the Bourdon test improves in all of them (p ≤ 0.002) and more with imagery or breathing added (between-group comparisons p ≤ 0.018). It shows that measured attention can be trained, not that its improvement brings points.

  Effects of breathing and imagery exercises on postural sway and shooting performance in Olympic archers · Cansu Keskin, Ayşe Nur Tunali Van Den Berg

• 2026
  For Archers Published later

  45 juniors from Indonesia's national division, every registered archer in one district, tested once in April 2026: grid test with 14 to 29 numbers found in sixty seconds (average 21.82 ± 4.16) and a score over 36 arrows at 30 m (315.11 ± 13.89 out of 360). Concentration goes with the score at r = 0.702 (p < 0.001), arm endurance in push-ups at r = 0.633, and together they account for 58.1% of the differences in score.

  Concentration Level and Arm Muscle Endurance Relationship to Archery Accuracy · Muhammad Fadhil Nurida, Mugiyo Hartono

• 2026
  For Archers Published later

  15 archers from an Indonesian youth centre, compound and recurve: concentration measured with the grid test goes with the average training score at r = 0.794 (p < 0.001), more than self-confidence (r = 0.701, p = 0.004) and goal setting (r = 0.575, p = 0.025). The three measures overlap little (VIF between 1.15 and 1.32), so concentration is not confidence under another name. The correlations come from the same sample cited in the entry on confidence, and the score is a training score, not a competition one.

  The Correlation of Self-Confidence, Concentration, and Goal Setting with Routine Training Scores among Archery Athletes at BPPLOP Central Java · Richa Lintang Amtajawi, Heny Setyawati, Tommy Soenyoto

• 2026
  For Archers Published later

  20 club archers: the Grid Concentration Test correlates with accuracy at r = 0.616 (p = 0.004), but in the regression alongside arm strength its weight drops to beta = -0.098 (p = 0.453). Venue with questionable editorial standards.

  Relationship Between Arm Muscle Strength and Concentration on Archery Accuracy in VIJAS Archery Club Athletes Questionable venue · Oktavia Suci Sulistiyowati, Muhammad, Dewangga Yudhistira, Muhammad Labib Siena Ar Rasyid, Kunjung Ashadi

• 2026
  Context Archers Published later

  12 young Indonesian archers aged 12 to 15, 15 shots with an electronic bow at a screen 1.5 m away, frontal electroencephalography (AF7 and AF8): beta power, read as an index of concentration, averages 39.18 ± 2.63 µV², and the archer with the highest value (42.24) is below average in both score and grouping, while the best in both sits at 38.65. More beta activity does not mean better shooting, but the task is far from real shooting and the sample is tiny.

  EEG-Based Analysis of Concentration with Shooting Accuracy and Precision in Archery Athletes: A Quantitative Correlational Study · Ainun Rahmansyah Gaffar, Pringgo Widyo Laksono, Bambang Suhardi, Rahmaniyah Dwi Astuti, Minoru Sasaki

Status history

1. 1986 Contradicted The first study to ask the question, on over a hundred archers of mixed level, up to world level, does not find the link: archers' self-rated concentration goes with the score at r = 0.16, and none of the attention scales of the standard questionnaire exceeds r = 0.17, while confidence and mental imagery do go with it. The concentration measured, though, is the one each archer attributes to themselves, not one measured with a task. A single study, and it goes against: contradicted.
2. 2018 Contested The first supporting data arrive, from an attention test: in eleven Ukrainian beginners, after two months of training, the only index that moves with the score is mental stability on the Schulte tables (r = -0.55, where a lower index means more stability). Eleven people, a single correlation among many examined together, in a regional journal; but with the 1986 study against and this one in favour, studies on archers point in opposite directions: contested.
3. 2022 Contested Among sixty-one archers in the Chinese national squad, a pencil-and-paper test of attentional distribution, breadth and shifting predicts performance in the following week's competition (beta 0.34; correlation 0.43). It is the best supporting sample and the first with the test taken before the competition, but it remains an association, and the 1986 study of self-rated concentration still points the other way: contested.
4. 2023 Contested A study of thirty archers, with concentration read from electroencephalography, finds the highest index precisely in the group whose arrows missed the target, the opposite of what its own abstract states. The venue is questionable and decides nothing: the picture stays divided.
5. 2025 Contested Forty-five traditional Turkish archers take the d2 test and then shoot: those who score higher on the main index shoot slightly higher scores, in both sexes (women 0.56, men 0.47), but concentration performance, errors and the fluctuation rate from the same sheet are not linked to anything. The study points partly in favour and partly against, and shows that which index is examined matters; the same year, in thirty-six young archers, eight weeks of imagery or breathing improve attention more than training alone, without linking it to the score. Contested.
6. 2026 Contested Three small studies using a grid test point the claim's way, with correlations between 0.62 and 0.79 in groups of fifteen to forty-five archers; in one the link vanishes once arm strength is taken into account, and one sits in a venue with questionable editorial standards. The same year a small electroencephalography study finds that frontal beta activity does not pick out the better archers. Attention tests nearly always go with the score, self-rated concentration does not: contested.

Related

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• Concentration in archery: how it is measured, how much it matters and whether it can be trainedWhat studies on archers say about concentration: how it is measured, whether it tracks score, whether it fades late in a round and whether it can be trained.
• How to improve your archery score: where to start and what to work onHow to measure your level, what sets better archers apart and the levers on your score, from release to mind and load, and how well the evidence holds.
• Talent identification: tests and assessment batteriesWhat talent tests in archery actually measure: coaches' ratings, physical tests, attention, years of practice and predictive models, and where their limits lie.

Research lines

• 55 studiesAttention and cognition in archers: research since 1986
• 63 studiesThe archer's physical profile: strength, endurance and size

Other claims in this domain

• ReportedA larger working memory does not make an archer more accurate3 studies · 79 archers measuredStatus since 2012
• ReportedA longer quiet eye improves shooting accuracy3 studies · 58 archers measuredStatus since 2017
• ReportedA mental profile tells archers apart from athletes in other sports only in part5 studies · 550 archers measuredStatus since 2018
• ReportedA mental training programme improves the elite archer's mood1 study · 16 archers measuredStatus since 2023
• ReportedA mental training programme reduces burnout in elite archers1 study · 16 archers measuredStatus since 2023

See all claims on mind and attention