Motor Learning Models and Motor Program Formation

Vocabulary flashcards covering motor control stages, degrees of freedom, Bernstein's model, Gentile's model, and motor program formation.

Bernstein's 3 Stage Model

A model of motor learning focused on controlling the degrees of freedom (DOF) of the body segments involved in movement across Novice, Advanced, and Expert stages.

Novice Stage (Bernstein)

The initial stage of motor learning characterized by a reduction of the number of degrees of freedom (DOF) of joints to be controlled by freezing joints or lowering potential joint motion.

Advanced Stage (Bernstein)

The stage of motor learning where a person begins to release additional degrees of freedom (DOF) by allowing movements at more joints.

Expert Stage (Bernstein)

The stage where an individual has released all degrees of freedom (DOF) necessary to perform the task in the most efficient and coordinated way, taking advantage of gravity, friction, and momentum.

Freezing Degrees of Freedom (DOF)

A strategy used by beginners to reduce movement complexity by stiffening joints and locking motion to maintain control and balance.

Gentile's 2 Stage Model

A motor learning model that focuses on developing an understanding of task dynamics in Stage 1 and refining movement through fixation/diversification in Stage 2.

Stage 1 (Gentile's Model)

The initial stage focused on developing an understanding of the task dynamics, including the goal of the task, important strategies, and environmental features.

Stage 2 (Gentile's Model)

The stage focused on fixation and diversification, refining movement to perform consistently and efficiently while adapting to task and environmental demands.

Stages of Motor Program Formation

The process of reorganizing complex behavioral components into motor programs that control larger units of behavior until the whole behavior is controlled as a single unit.