Unit 1 Motor learning in Performance

Based on the slides of Chapter 1,2 & 3

What is a theory

Human made structure that explains ow various phenomena occur

What is a skill

A well defined environmental goal

what is the point of a skill

Maximize certainty, efficiency, and minimize physical and cognitive energy cost

Three elements critical to a skill

Perceiving environmental features, decision making, organized muscular activity

Open Skill

Performed in a variable, unpredictable environments, where performers adapt their movementsE

Open skill example

driving in traffic

Closed Skill

Performed in a stable, predictable environment, where context doesn’t change during performance

Discrete Skill

Skills with a clear beginning and end

Serial Skills

A series of discrete skills linked together to form a complex coordinated movement sequence. Where order is essential

Serial Skill example

Driving a manual transmission vehicle

Continuous skill

Skills with no beginning or end like running or swimming

Error Scores

computing an error score for a participant

Constant Error (CE)

Looks at the over all accuracy/tendency of if the participant under or overthrew the target

Absolute Error (AE)

Looks at the average of the error scores to see if someone is more on or off target

Variable Error

A measurement of inconsistency

Error scores in continuous task

Are capable of producing many error scores on a single trial

Root mean square error (RMSE)

Represents two types of behaviors:

Subjects bias tendency

Inconsistency in the tracking behavior

1st stage of information processing

Stimulus identification

2nd stage of information processing

Response Selection

3rd Stage of information processing

Movement programming

Stimulus Identification Stage

Components of stimuli are assembled in this stage (like patterns)

Examples of stimulus identification

Hearing, smelling, seeing, touching

Where does the the stim ID stage take place

Parietal cortex

Response selection stage

The systems job to decided what to do (depending on nature of situation and/or environment)

Where does the response selection stage take place

Mostly through the prefrontal cortex

Movement Programming Stage

To organize the motor system to make the desired movement (based on the response selection phase)

What must happen before movement production

Retrieve and organize a motor program (they are like files on a computer)

Activate lower level mechanisims ( ____________ and _________ ) for an actionable output

Brainstem and spinal cord

First two places of the brain that work during an action

Parietal cortex ——→ Prefrontal cotrex

2nd two areas of the brain that work during an action

Premotor area ————→ Supplementary motor area

Last two areas of the brain that work during an action

M1 —————→ Motor area

3 Parts of the spinal Cord

Cervical, Thoracic, Lumbar

Cervical nerves control what

Arms and traps

Thoracic nerves control what?

Thoracic cavity (Abdominal area, posterior and anterior)

Lumbar Nerves

Lower Half of the body

Reaction Time

Interval is a measure of the accumulated durations of ALL three stages of the information processing

Reaction time + Movement time = _______________

Response time

RT Factor 1:

Number of Stimulus-Response alternatives

As the number of S-R alternatives increase

There is an increase in the response time of any one stimuli

Hicks law

as the number of S-R alternatives increases, reaction time increases at a LINEAR rate

RT Factor 2:

Stimulus Response Compatibility

For a given number of S-R alternatives, Increasing the S-R compatibility_____i

Shortens choice RT

What can help overcome low S-R compatibility

Practice on that one thing

RT Factor 3:

Population Stereotypes