GUIDE 07 / 07
Does Dynamic Vision Training Work — What Research Shows About Its Potential and Limits
A study reporting improved batting stats after vision training, and another finding no KVA improvement after 8 weeks of training. Here's what you can expect and what to watch for.
"Training to improve dynamic vision" is popular in sports. Research shows both promise and limits. The key point is that a rising test score and actual performance improving aren't the same thing.
Positive reports
Clark et al. (2012) applied vision training to the University of Cincinnati baseball team for 6 weeks before the season, and reported that team batting average rose from 0.251 the previous year to 0.285, with slugging percentage up 0.033. However, since this wasn't a randomized controlled experiment but a comparison with the previous season, it's hard to rule out the effects of roster changes or other training.
There are also reports, as in the martial arts study (Muiños and Ballesteros, 2015), that people who consistently do exercise requiring long tracking of moving targets have good dynamic vision and less decline even in old age — a result linked more to long-term actual exercise than short training.
Reports of no effect
A review summarizing Japanese KVA research notes that college baseball players given 8 weeks of visual training — either with professional coaching or commercial software — showed no improvement in KVA, and a follow-up study on middle schoolers had similar results (Sawaki et al., 2022).
Why do the results differ?
- What was actually trained — Some research suggests that individual differences in DVA mainly come from the eye's ability to track a target (Uchida et al., 2012). Training that doesn't directly use this ability may have little effect.
- Familiarity — Repeating the same test builds a knack for it, raising the score. This can be task learning rather than an improvement in visual ability.
- Transfer problem — Whether getting better at seeing a ring on screen carries over to seeing a ball on the field needs to be checked separately.
Things worth trying
- Measure and record regularly — Testing about once a week under the same conditions lets you see how condition, fatigue, and sleep affect your results. The first few times are a familiarization process, so exclude them when looking at your trend.
- Test with 8-direction C — The chance of guessing correctly is lowest at 12.5%, so luck plays less of a role.
- Check your correction — If your glasses or lens prescription isn't right, correcting that comes before any training.
Things to be careful about
- Watching fast movement for a long time tires your eyes. Do only a few rounds at a time and take breaks.
- If you're sensitive to light or have a history of photosensitive seizures, avoid rapidly flickering screen tests.
- If you've suddenly found it hard to see moving objects, part of your vision is blurry, or you're seeing double, that may be a sign you need an eye exam rather than training.