The paper presents the results of numerical calculations, with the finite element method in the ABAQUS program environment, of the vibratory shot peening process with loose peening elements. The behaviour of shot peening elements was analysed in the kinematic aspect. The impact of the initial deployment of vibratory shot peening elements on their behaviour during processing was investigated, including the displacement, velocity, acceleration and the number of collisions. The way of determining the effectiveness of the processing with the vibratory shot peening was illustrated.