Introduction to Movement & Structure I - Lower Extremity and Lifespan Motor Control

Vocabulary flashcards covering core definitions from PTH 521: Introduction to Movement & Structure I - The Lower Extremity, including motor control, motor learning, anatomical terminology, planes of movement, skill classification, and gait requirements.

Human Movement System

The anatomical structures and physiological functions that interact to move the body or its component parts.

Motor Control

The study of how the neuromuscular system functions to activate and coordinate muscles and limbs involved in performance of a motor skill.

Motor Learning

The study of the acquisition of new motor skills, performance enhancement of well-learned skills, and reacquisition of skills following injury or disease.

Motor Development

The study of human motor behavior across the lifespan from infancy to old age, including issues related to motor learning and motor control.

Motor Skill

An activity or task that has a specific purpose or goal to achieve, serving as an indicator of quality, competence, or capacity of performance.

Movement

Specific patterns of motion among joints and body segments used to accomplish an action goal.

Neuromotor Processes

Mechanisms within the nervous and muscular systems that underlie the control of movements and actions.

Perception

The integration of sensory impressions into psychologically meaningful information, encompassing peripheral mechanisms and higher-level central nervous system processing.

Perception-Action Cycle

The circular cybernetic flow of cognitive information linking an organism to its environment through action, outcome, perception, and prediction.

Motor Systems

Neuromuscular and biomechanical systems that function together to control functional movement.

Cognitive Systems

Systems essential to motor control that encompass attention, planning, problem-solving, motivation, and emotional aspects underlying the establishment of intent or goals.

Open Movement

Movement performed in a constantly changing, unpredictable environment requiring continuous adaptation of movement strategies.

Closed Movement

Movement performed in a relatively fixed or predictable environment.

Regulatory Features

Aspects of the environment that directly shape and constrain the movement itself.

Nonregulatory Features

Features of the environment to which movement does not have to conform.

Motor Abilities

Fundamental, relatively stable traits that establish achievement potentials for specific motor skills.

External Timing

Movement timing based on or synchronized with an external source (externally-paced).

Internal Timing

Movement timing governed by an individual's internal representation of time (self-paced).

Median (Sagittal) Plane

The plane dividing the body into symmetrical right and left halves, where flexion and extension actions occur.

Frontal (Coronal) Plane

The plane dividing the body into front and back halves, where abduction and adduction actions occur.

Transverse (Horizontal) Plane

The plane dividing the body into upper and lower parts, where rotational actions occur.

Extension

Movement in the sagittal plane that straightens a joint, bringing the bones at a joint farther apart.

Flexion

Movement in the sagittal plane that bends a joint, bringing the bones at a joint closer together.

Plantar Flexion

Ankle movement that points the foot downward toward the ground.

Dorsiflexion

Ankle movement that pulls the foot upward toward its dorsal surface.

Adduction

Movement of a limb in the frontal plane medially toward the body's midline.

Abduction

Movement of a limb in the frontal plane laterally away from the body's midline.

Medial Rotation

Internal rotational movement turning a limb inward toward the midline.

Lateral Rotation

External rotational movement swinging a limb outward away from the midline.

Supination

Pivoting action of the forearm or midfoot where the palm turns upward ("carries the bowl") or the foot's medial side elevates.

Pronation

Pivoting action of the forearm or midfoot where the palm turns downward ("spills the bowl") or the foot's lateral side elevates.

Inversion

Movement elevating the foot's medial side, causing the sole of the foot to turn inward.

Eversion

Movement elevating the foot's lateral side, causing the sole of the foot to turn outward.

Circumduction

Cone-shaped movement occurring at ball-and-socket joints (shoulder and hip) combining flexion, extension, adduction, and abduction.

Proximal

Anatomical directional term designating a structure located closer to the trunk.

Distal

Anatomical directional term designating a structure located farther away from the trunk.

Gross Motor Skill

A motor skill requiring the use of large musculature to achieve its goal.

Fine Motor Skill

A motor skill requiring control of small muscles to achieve its goal, typically involving hand-eye coordination.

Discrete Motor Skill

A motor skill characterized by specified, simple beginning and end points.

Continuous Motor Skill

A motor skill with arbitrary beginning and end points, governed by ongoing environmental features.

Serial Motor Skill

A motor skill composed of a continuous series of discrete movements.

Progression (Gait)

The requirement of locomotive gait involving basic rhythmic stepping to move the body in a desired direction and the ability to initiate and terminate locomotion.

Postural Control (Gait)

The requirement of locomotive gait involving establishing and maintaining posture and dynamic balance to counteract gravitational and unexpected forces.

Adaptation (Gait)

The requirement of locomotive gait involving the ability to adjust gait strategies according to individual goals and environmental demands.

Central Pattern Generator (CPG)

Neural circuits within the central nervous system capable of producing rhythmic patterns of neural activity without receiving rhythmic inputs.