Imagined actions aren't just weak actions: Task variability promotes skill learning in physical practice but not in mental practice.

2012 ◽  
Vol 38 (6) ◽  
pp. 1759-1764 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chase J. Coelho ◽  
Howard C. Nusbaum ◽  
David A. Rosenbaum ◽  
Kimberly M. Fenn
1982 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-63 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven G. Zecker

Although mental practice has often been demonstrated to result in improved learning of a motor skill, theoretical accounts of the reasons for this improvement are lacking. The present experiment examined the role of knowledge of results (KR) in motor skill learning, because KR is believed to be crucial to such learning, yet is lacking during mental practice. Subjects in four conditions (mental practice, physical practice, physical practice without KR, and control), tossed beanbags at a target. Results showed that of the four conditions, mental practice showed the largest performance increment, whereas physical practice showed a decrement attributed to massed practice without adequate rest periods. Results suggest that (a) knowledge of results is not always essential for improved performance; (b) mental practice is most beneficial following sufficient experience with the task; and (c) mental practice may be best suited for a massed practice learning situation.


Author(s):  
Melanie Perreault ◽  
Christopher Brown ◽  
Robert Doan ◽  
David Dolbow

Purpose: The amount of information required for an allied health professional has increased dramatically. In-class practice time and large amounts of practice materials may be difficult for instructors to acquire. Mental practice is a method of practice that does not involve physical movement or materials. This study investigated the effect of mental practice, physical practice, and a combination of mental and physical practice on kinesiology students learning three manual muscle tests. Method: Fifty-six students aged 18 to 26 years (M = 20.09, SD + 1.58), pursuing a degree in kinesiology with an emphasis in either athletic training or kinesiotherapy participated in this study. Participants underwent two days of practice that included either mental practice, physical practice, or a combination of mental and physical practice for three Manual Muscle Tests (MMTs). Approximately 48 hours later, participants completed a post-test of the MMTs that was evaluated by two trained examiners. Participants also completed a survey related to demographics, difficulty of the MMTs, and intentions for using mental practice. Results: The MMT post-test ANOVA revealed no significant learning differences between groups for all three Manual Muscle Tests. There were no significant differences in Manual Muscle Tests difficulty ratings between groups; however, there was a significant difference in participants’ difficulty ratings across the Manual Muscle Tests. A majority of participants indicated they would use mental practice in the future. Conclusions: The results indicated that kinesiology students seemed to learn equally well regardless of practice type. Utilization of mental practice in or outside of the classroom may be a strategy to supplement student learning in situations where class time and/or resources for physical skill practice may be more difficult to obtain.


1983 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah L. Feltz ◽  
Daniel M. Landers

A longstanding research question in the sport psychology literature has been whether a given amount of mental practice prior to performing a motor skill will enhance one's subsequent performance. The research literature, however, has not provided any clear-cut answers to this question and this has prompted the present, more comprehensive review of existing research using the meta-analytic strategy proposed by Glass (1977). From the 60 studies yielding 146 effect sizes the overall average effect size was .48, which suggests, as did Richardson (1967a), that mentally practicing a motor skill influences performance somewhat better than no practice at all. Effect sizes were also compared on a number of variables thought to moderate the effects of mental practice. Results from these comparisons indicated that studies employing cognitive tasks had larger average effect sizes than motor or strength tasks and that published studies had larger average effect sizes than unpublished studies. These findings are discussed in relation to several existing explanations for mental practice and four theoretical propositions are advanced.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 51-61
Author(s):  
Anas R. Alashram ◽  
Giuseppe Annino ◽  
Mohammed Al-qtaishat ◽  
Elvira Padua

Background: Upper extremity deficits are one of the most common impairments in individuals with stroke. Mental practice is exercised cognitively in the absence of the physical trials. The effects of the combination of mental and physical practice remain unclear. Objectives: This study aimed to examine the effects of combined physical practice and mental practice on the upper extremity functional ability poststroke, to identify which stroke population is most likely to benefit from the intervention, and to determine the effective treatment dosage. Methods: We searched in the PubMed, SCOPUS, National Rehabilitation Information REHABDATA, PEDro, and Web of Science until February 2020. Randomized clinical trials examined the effects of combined physical practice and mental practice on the upper extremity functional ability in people with a stroke. The risk of bias was evaluated and the effect sizes were calculated. Results: Nine studies met our inclusion criteria. In total, 230 stroke survivors were included in this analysis (mean age: 60.84 years). This review found that combining physical practice and mental practice has beneficial effects in improving the upper extremity functional ability poststroke. Conclusion: Combining physical practice and mental practice improves the upper extremity functional ability poststroke, this improvement can extend for 3 months after the treatment intervention. We propose that using 30 to 60 min of physical practice followed by 30 min of mental practice, 2 to 3 times weekly for 6 to 10 weeks, may give meaningful effects in individuals with stroke.


2004 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 106-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip L. Jackson ◽  
Julien Doyon ◽  
Carol L. Richards ◽  
Francine Malouin

Objective. To investigate the effect of mental practice on the learning of a sequential task for the lower limb in a patient with a hemiparesis resulting from a stroke. Design. A single-case study. Setting. Research laboratory of a university-affiliated rehabilitation center. Patient. A right-handed 38-year-old man who had suffered a left hemorrhagic subcortical stroke 4 months prior. Intervention. The patient practiced a serial response time task with the lower limb in 3 distinct training phases over a period of 5 weeks: 2 weeks of physical practice, 1 week of combined physical and mental practice, and then 2 weeks of mental practice alone. Main Outcome Measures. Performance on the task measured through errors and response times. Imagery abilities measured through questionnaires. Results . The patient’s average response time improved significantly during the 1st 5 days of physical practice (26%) but then failed to show further improvement during the following week of physical practice. The combination of mental and physical practice during the 3rd week yielded additional improvement (10.3%), whereas the following 2 weeks of mental practice resulted in a marginal increase in performance (2.2%). Conclusion. The findings show that mental practice, when combined with physical practice, can improve the performance of a sequential motor skill in people who had a stroke, and suggest that mental practice could play a role in the retention of newly acquired abilities.


2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 263-271 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorenna Marques de Melo Santiago ◽  
Daniel Antunes de Oliveira ◽  
Louise Gabriella Lopes de Macêdo Ferreira ◽  
Hyanne Yasmim de Brito Pinto ◽  
Ana Paula Spaniol ◽  
...  

1978 ◽  
Vol 47 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1195-1199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dwight Mendoza ◽  
Harvey Wichman

To explore the effects of mental rehearsal on the performance of a motor skill, 32 college undergraduates were scored on dart-throwing ability and randomly assigned to one of 4 practice conditions: no-practice controls, mental rehearsal only, mental rehearsal with simulated dart-throwing motor movements, and direct physical practice. Following 6 days of mental or physical practice by the experimental groups, the performance level on the dart-throwing task was again measured for all subjects. Comparison of improvement showed statistically significant differences between the groups. Follow-up tests showed that all experimental groups differed significantly from the no-practice group, there were no significant differences between mental practice groups and direct physical practice resulted in improvements significantly higher than any other form of practice.


2007 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glenna Batson ◽  
Rebecca Feltman ◽  
Chris McBride ◽  
Jennifer Waring

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