Dancers are not robots on auto-pilot

What is it about?

When we learn a new skill, such as how to drive a car, we go through a learning phase that requires intense concentration to arrive at a stage of expertise/competence where we can effectively drive 'on auto-pilot' while thinking about something else. Current theories tend to suggest that we are something like robots, rapidly processing complex information in computer-like brains, the difference being that unlike for the learner, for the expert this process is subconscious so they are unaware of it. This article explores the expertise of sportspeople and argues against the view of the unaware robot. In particular it takes the example of professional dancers, and considers their intuitive grasp of their environment and their hyper-awareness of their place in their surroundings.

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Why is it important?

Both intuition and a particular (often intense) kind of awareness of one's physical presence are central to the experience of high level sports (even if they are not part of our everyday experience of driving a car), but neglected in the dominant theories of what it is to be skilled or an expert at something. The article is important because it demonstrates the need for specific attention to the experience of sporting expertise. It shows how we need to rethink skill to include sportspeople's highly developed capacities for intuition and awareness.