“Ponk, ugh!” “Ponk, aiy!” “Ah!” Wild applause. Must be time for Wimbledon, again. The grunts and exclamations of tennis players may drive viewers crazy or heighten the suspense of a match, yet for opposing players, scientists have found that they are literally driving them to distraction.
Researchers tested how well undergraduates determined the direction of swings viewed on a monitor with and without grunting. The guttural sound caused a significant delay in response time and far more mistakes in perceiving the correct direction of the shot.
More testing in real-world situations may lead to further discussions like the one had in 2009 by Wimbledon officials, who considered fining “serial grunters” after receiving numerous complaints from players. I will be breathlessly awaiting the study testing the effects of flashy finery.
Full story at LiveScience.