The Effect of Cognitive Dual-Task on Athletic Performance Parameters in Volleyball Players With and Without Chronic Ankle Instability

Cognitive test protocol

This protocol is designed to assess participants' attention, concentration, working memory, and mental calculation abilities. It is particularly used to evaluate the cognitive load accompanying motor performance within the dual-task paradigm. First, the test will be explained to the participants, after which a 20-second practice period will be provided. Subsequently, starting from a randomly determined number between 200 and 250 (excluding numbers ending in 7 and 0), participants will be asked to continue by verbally subtracting 7. While performing this subtraction, participants will be instructed to do so as accurately as possible, and the errors made during the test will be recorded.

Single-Leg Balance Test

This test evaluates static postural control based on the number of errors made. Protocol Participants will be asked to stand barefoot on one leg with their hands placed on their hips. The supporting knee will be slightly flexed (approximately 10°), hands on the waist, and eyes closed, and they will be asked to maintain the balance position. Participants will attempt to maintain balance in this position for 20 seconds. Prior to the test, two practice trials will be performed for each foot for familiarization purposes. Test Termination The trial will be considered invalid and repeated if the participant removes their hands from their hips, flexes or abducts the thigh more than 30°, lifts the heel or forefoot of the supporting foot off the ground, is unable to maintain the test position for more than 5 seconds, or opens their eyes. Measurement The test will be performed once for each lower extremity. The total number of errors made for each leg will be counted and recorded by the assesso

Side Hop Test

Protocol The test will be performed by having participants hop laterally on one leg across a distance of 30 cm. One repetition is defined as hopping 30 cm laterally and then returning to the starting point in the same manner. Each participant will be asked to complete 10 repetitions of this movement as quickly as possible. Test Termination The trial will be considered invalid and repeated if the participant falls, places the contralateral foot on the ground for support, or fails to fully exceed the 30 cm distance during hopping. Measurement The time (seconds) required to complete 10 valid repetitions will be recorded. The validity and reliability of the test were found to be good, with a value of 0.84, as reported by Caffrey et al.

Closed Kinetic Chain Upper Extremity Stability Test (CKCUEST)

Protocol The participant will assume a push-up position with the hands placed on two parallel lines spaced 91.4 cm (36 inches) apart. During the test, the participant will lift one hand to touch the opposite line and then repeat the same movement with the other hand, performing as many touches as possible. Measurement The total number of touches performed within 15 seconds will be recorded. The test will be conducted in three trials with 45 seconds of rest between trials, and the average of these three trials will be used as the final score. The validity and reliability of the test were evaluated by Lee et al. and reported as 0.97.

Countermovement Jump Test

Protocol Participants will start in an upright standing position with their hands placed on their hips, then they will be instructed to flex their knees as quickly as possible (approximately 90°) and, in the subsequent concentric phase, to jump as high as possible without performing any arm movement. Participants will be instructed to leave the ground by extending their knees and ankles during the jump and to land in a similarly extended position, and they will be asked to perform consecutive jumps as high and as quickly as possible for 15 seconds. Measurement Three trials will be obtained with 30-second rest intervals between trials. Using the OptoGait photoelectric system (Microgate, Italy), the flight time (ms) of each jump will be recorded and converted into jump height (cm) by the system software. The average jump height of all jumps recorded within the 15-second period will be used as the performance score.

Squat Jump Test

Participants will start in an upright standing position with their hands placed on their hips, then they will be asked to flex their knees and maintain a predetermined knee position (approximately 90°). While the knees are held in the flexed position, the assessor will count for 3 seconds, after which participants will be instructed to jump as high as possible without performing any arm movement. Participants will be instructed to leave the ground by extending their knees and ankles during the jump and to land in a similarly extended position, and they will be asked to perform consecutive jumps as high and as quickly as possible for 15 seconds. Three trials will be obtained with 30-second rest intervals between trials. Using the OptoGait photoelectric system, the flight time (ms) of each jump will be recorded and converted into jump height (cm) by the system software. The average jump height of all jumps recorded within the 15-second period will be used as the performance score.

Running Test

A pair of OptoGait photoelectric systems (Microgate, Bolzano, Italy), each one meter in length, will be placed on both sides of a treadmill, at the same level as the contact surfaces. Participants will be asked to warm up by walking on the treadmill at their own comfortable, natural walking speeds and to become familiar with the treadmill. Data collection will be initiated after the participant reaches a constant speed of 2.78 m/s, and recordings will be obtained for a total duration of 1 minute, with the final 30 seconds taken into consideration. Measured Parameters Ground contact time, step angle, flight time, step length, stride length, step frequency, and cadence. The validity and reliability of the test were evaluated by Garcia-Pinillos et al., who reported a high level of agreement between systems in all examined spatiotemporal parameters (ICC \> 0.89).