Factors affecting the accuracy and performance of shooting in both military and sports fields: A review of the literature

Shooting plays an important role among acquired skills and is considered one of the main criteria for assessing ability. This comprehensive review aimed to summarize the effective and key factors on the accuracy and performance of shooting in both military and sports fields.

This review study was done by searching in Persian and English databases from 1995 to 2022. The keywords were “shooting” with “pistol, accuracy, precision, stress, performance, technique, rifle,, elite”, as well as “sports, dynamic balance, military, skilled and unskilled archers, police, soldiers, and marksmanship”.

After reviewing the full text of the articles, 21 articles were selected in military (n=15) and sports (n=6) field. The results showed that the studies investigated some effective factors such as 1) muscle strength and endurance, 2) stress and anxiety, 3) fatigue and visual acuity, 4) caffeine and supplements, and 5) skill on performance and shooing accuracy.

The results of the studies showed that fatigue and anxiety have a negative effect on shooting performance, but the training and practice of these conditions will improve shooting performance. It was also found that improving the central muscles of the body and physical fitness factors have a positive effect on shooting performance. In addition, the results showed that the consumption of drinks depending on its type and dosage can have a negative or positive effect on shooting performance. Therefore, paying attention to these variables improves the performance and accuracy of shooting in both military and sports fields.