Pistol shooting accuracy as dependent on experience, eyes being opened and available viewing time

A study of the shooting accuracy of three groups of pistol shooters is reported. The groups included (i) experienced gas pistol shooters; (ii) persons with experience in video shooting games; and (iii) persons with no shooting experience. The viewing time was varied in the tests. The results showed that experience had a significant effect on the mean and root mean square (RMS) shooting errors at the target. The results also showed that the viewing time does not need to exceed about 2 s for an experienced pistol shooter and about 3 s for a novice shooter to reach the best performance. Two models for the effects of limited viewing time are proposed; both models fit the data well when the viewing time is less than about 2 s. The results indicated that the differences occurring with varying levels of experience are due to postural balance and not due to the aiming or cognitive component of the task.