PhD Project - Scanning Behaviour in Sport: Extending the Concept Across Sports and Linking Scanning to Fundamental Visual Functions
Applications for this PhD project are now open. The deadline for applications is 6 April 2026.
Overview
Expert performance in sport relies on the ability to perceive, interpret, and act upon visual information in dynamic and time-pressured environments. As a result, perceptual–cognitive skill has been a long-standing focus within sport psychology (Mann et al., 2007). Recent reviews have reinforced the importance of visual information pickup and attentional control in supporting skilled performance, while also highlighting variability in how visual capabilities relate to performance outcomes across sports (Lochhead et al., 2024).
Within this literature, scanning has emerged as a behaviour of interest, particularly in football. Research has demonstrated that scanning behaviour varies systematically with contextual constraints such as opponent pressure and pitch location, and that higher scanning frequency before ball reception is positively associated with subsequent on-ball actions (Jordet et al., 2020). Complementing this work, mobile eye-tracking studies conducted during full 11-vs-11 match play show that scans typically involve brief visual sampling rather than prolonged fixation, suggesting efficient extraction of environmental information (Aksum et al., 2021).
Despite these advances, scanning research remains narrowly focused on football and is largely descriptive. There is a lack of empirical work linking sport-specific perceptual behaviours to underlying visual functions such as saccadic control and peripheral awareness. Addressing this gap may contribute to a more mechanistic understanding of perceptual–cognitive expertise in sport.
Project Contact:
Dr Zoe Wimshurst
Email: zoe.wimshurst@hsu.ac.uk
Details
To investigate scanning behaviour across sports and examine its relationship with fundamental visual skills.
Indicative research questions include:
- How does scanning behaviour vary across sports?
- Are individual differences in scanning behaviour associated with measures of saccadic eye movement performance and peripheral awareness?
- Do higher-level athletes exhibit distinct scanning–visual function profiles compared to lower-level performers?
Teams from ball sports such as rugby or hockey will be recruited. Different performance levels may be considered subject to feasibility and access.
Scanning behaviour can be measured using video analysis and/or eye-tracking during representative sport-specific tasks. Variables may include scanning frequency, timing relative to task events, and coordination of head and eye movements.
Laboratory-based assessments of core visual skills may include:
- Saccadic latency, accuracy, and velocity
- Measures of visual attention and peripheral awareness
Tasks will be selected based on relevance to information acquisition demands in sport and make use of equipment already owned by the university.
Analyses are expected to focus on associations between scanning behaviour, visual function measures, and performance level.
- Produce novel empirical descriptions of scanning behaviour across sports, extending existing football-based findings.
- Identify whether key characteristics of scanning (e.g. frequency, timing, coordination) vary according to sport-specific perceptual demands.
- Provide initial evidence on the relationship between scanning behaviour and fundamental visual functions.
- Inform applied understanding of whether scanning reflects trainable behaviour, underlying visual capability, or an interaction between the two.
- Extend existing work on scanning beyond football and explore how scanning relates to underlying visual and oculomotor processes, addressing a clear gap in the sport performance literature.
- Contribute to the understanding of perceptual–cognitive expertise by combining behavioural analysis with vision science, supporting high-quality research outputs within REF UOA24.
- Provide applied insight for sport science practice, particularly in relation to perceptual–cognitive training, talent identification, and athlete development.
- Create clear opportunities for impact through engagement with professional clubs, governing bodies, and high-performance teams, supported by applied dissemination
Funding 
HSU is offering up to three fee waivers for UK home applicants starting in October 2026. All eligible UK home applicants will automatically be considered for fee waiver support, which is awarded competitively based on the excellence of the candidate.
International applicants are unfortunately not eligible for fee waivers.
All applicants are expected to have financial plans in place to cover their studies and should not rely on a fee waiver.
Self-funded students are also welcome to apply for this project. Self-funded students can be UK home students or international students.
Availability
Available to both UK and International students
Potential Supervisors
References
Aksum, K. M., Brotangen, L., Bjørndal, C. T., Magnaguagno, L., & Jordet, G. (2021). Scanning activity of elite football players in 11 vs. 11 match play: An eye-tracking analysis on the duration and visual information of scanning. Plos one, 16(8), e0244118.
Jordet, G., Aksum, K. M., Pedersen, D. N., Walvekar, A., Trivedi, A., McCall, A., … & Priestley, D. (2020). Scanning, contextual factors, and association with performance in English premier league footballers: an investigation across a season. Frontiers in psychology, 11, 553813.
Lochhead, L., Feng, J., Laby, D. M., & Appelbaum, L. G. (2024). Training vision in athletes to improve sports performance: A systematic review of the literature. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 1-23.
Mann, D. T., Williams, A. M., Ward, P., & Janelle, C. M. (2007). Perceptual-cognitive expertise in sport: A meta-analysis. Journal of sport and exercise psychology, 29(4), 457-478.
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