85 The importance of reflection and evaluation for progressing toward the elite level 5 Introduction Youth swimmers who aspire to become elite swimmers must demonstrate outstanding progress (Allen et al., 2014; Post et al., 2020a, 2020b). To reach such expertise, the importance of an extensive period of training is widely acknowledged and usually starts during adolescence or even before (Howe et al., 1998; Starkes 2000). However, not only do aspiring swimmers need to invest in extensive training in terms of quantity (e.g., ~12,000 hours of training, Koninklijke Nederlandse Zwembond [KNZB], 2021), it is also essential that they get the most out of their training sessions in terms of quality (Ericsson et al., 1993; Young et al., 2021). With respect to the latter, self-regulated learning (SRL) is considered as an important variable on athletes’ capacity to improve (Elferink-Gemser et al., 2015, Tedesqui & Young, 2015, McCardle et al., 2019). Consequently, SRL is an intriguing concept in the study of underlying individual characteristics that contribute to progression toward elite level swimming performance. SRL indicates the extent to which individuals are metacognitively, motivationally and behaviorally proactive in their own learning processes (Zimmerman 1986, 2006). Conceptually, it refers to an individual’s engagement in a set of psychological subprocesses and beliefs that (1) makes them think about their own thinking (meta-cognitive processes like evaluation and reflection) and (2) motivates them to engage in meta-cognitive and behavior control (e.g. through effort and self-efficacy; Zimmerman, 2011). Zimmerman’s (2000) social-cognitive SRL model, which is the most commonly used model in the SRL literature, posits that these subprocesses and beliefs fall into three structurally interrelated and cyclically sustained phases: the forethought phase (before learning), the performance phase (during learning) and the self-reflection phase (after learning). Feedback from prior performances (the self-reflection phase) is applied during the forethought phase to make adjustments for current and future efforts (the performance phase), thus completing a selfregulatory cycle (Ertmer & Newby, 1996; Zimmerman, 2000). It has been posited that engagement in SRL subprocesses and beliefs increase learners’ awareness and control of the functional relationships between their patterns of thought and action, and outcomes in the real-world (Zimmerman, 1986). Learners who set clear goals, formulate a plan to practice, monitor the strategy’s implementation, and evaluate practice outcomes to adjust subsequent behavior or goals, gain clarity on what they want to achieve, what they have to do to achieve their self-designated goals, what they should actually do during practice, and the effectiveness of their thoughts, strategies, and actions. Consequently, they acquire a better understanding of what can be learned from past performances in order to improve current and future performances. Thus, SRL is thought to help individuals to learn more effectively and efficiently (Zimmerman, 1986, 2006; Jonker et al., 2010a), which is major source of motivation for continued self-regulation and investment of effort in the learning process (Zimmerman & Paulsen, 1995; Bandura, 1997)
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