Movement control in skilled motor performance.

1968 ◽  
Vol 70 (6, Pt.1) ◽  
pp. 387-403 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven W. Keele
Keyword(s):  
Motor Performance ◽  
Movement Control

scholarly journals The Piano Keyboard as Task Constraint: Timing Patterns of Pianists’ Scales Persist Across Instruments

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 205920431987073
Author(s):  
Tracy Lipke-Perry ◽  
Darren J. Dutto ◽  
Morris Levy
Keyword(s):  
Motor Performance ◽  
Degrees Of Freedom ◽  
Movement Control ◽  
The Body ◽  
Musical Structure ◽  
Piano Performance ◽  
Task Constraint ◽  
Task Constraints ◽  
Action Model ◽  
Human Motor

Variation in one form or another is an inevitable aspect of human motor performance as the body negotiates the degrees of freedom problem while also adapting to ever-changing task constraints. The constraints to action model suggests that movement patterns arise from within a framework of environmental, task, and personal constraints. Like athletes, musicians adapt to a wide variety of constraints such as the presence and effect of spectators; acoustics in different performing spaces; humidity affecting tuning; and interpersonal interactions characterizing chamber and ensemble music. A crucial constraint particular to piano performance is adapting to the unique attributes of a wide variety of keyboard instruments. Pianists often refer to the distinct “feel” of a particular instrument: its responsiveness and sensitivity; key resistance; and the evenness and predictability of the instrument. Movement control both within and across pianos is essential for optimal performance, and in that sense, each instrument presents a type of task constraint. In this study, seven pianists performed 10 bimanual, two-octave, C major scales on 3 different piano keyboards to facilitate comparison of performance characteristics across instruments. Pianists performed 4 keystrokes per second, paced by a metronome set at 60 BPM. No timing differences were observed among keyboards as consistent patterns emerged, specifically anticipatory adjustments prior to thumb strokes. These results suggest that pianists are able to produce performances of similar musical structure across different instruments.

Cognitive Load Affects Speech Motor Performance Differently in Older and Younger Adults

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (5) ◽  
pp. 1258-1277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan K. MacPherson
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Incongruent Condition ◽  
Sentence Production ◽  
Movement Duration ◽  
Production Task ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Speech Motor

PurposeThe aim of this study was to determine the impact of cognitive load imposed by a speech production task on the speech motor performance of healthy older and younger adults. Response inhibition, selective attention, and working memory were the primary cognitive processes of interest.MethodTwelve healthy older and 12 healthy younger adults produced multiple repetitions of 4 sentences containing an embedded Stroop task in 2 cognitive load conditions: congruent and incongruent. The incongruent condition, which required participants to suppress orthographic information to say the font colors in which color words were written, represented an increase in cognitive load relative to the congruent condition in which word text and font color matched. Kinematic measures of articulatory coordination variability and movement duration as well as a behavioral measure of sentence production accuracy were compared between groups and conditions and across 3 sentence segments (pre-, during-, and post-Stroop).ResultsIncreased cognitive load in the incongruent condition was associated with increased articulatory coordination variability and movement duration, compared to the congruent Stroop condition, for both age groups. Overall, the effect of increased cognitive load was greater for older adults than younger adults and was greatest in the portion of the sentence in which cognitive load was manipulated (during-Stroop), followed by the pre-Stroop segment. Sentence production accuracy was reduced for older adults in the incongruent condition.ConclusionsIncreased cognitive load involving response inhibition, selective attention, and working memory processes within a speech production task disrupted both the stability and timing with which speech was produced by both age groups. Older adults' speech motor performance may have been more affected due to age-related changes in cognitive and motoric functions that result in altered motor cognition.

Development of the corticospinal system and hand motor function: central conduction times and motor performance tests

2000 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
pp. 220-227 ◽  
Author(s):  
U M Fietzek ◽  
F Heinen ◽  
S Berweck ◽  
S Maute ◽  
A Hufschmidt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Motor Function ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Performance Tests ◽  
Corticospinal System

A new motor performance test in a prospective study on children with suspected myopathy

2006 ◽  
Vol 48 (09) ◽  
pp. 739 ◽  
Author(s):  
Willeke A van den Beld ◽  
Gitty AC van der Sanden ◽  
Ton Feuth ◽  
Anjo JWM Janssen ◽  
Rob CA Sengers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prospective Study ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Performance Test ◽  
A Prospective Study

Cognitive Aging in a Precision Sport Context

1996 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 166-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bo Molander ◽  
Lars Bäckman
Keyword(s):  
Older Adult ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Cognitive Aging ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Intervention Programs ◽  
Laboratory Studies ◽  
High Arousal ◽  
Memory And Attention ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Principal Finding

Highly skilled miniature golf players were examined in a series of field and laboratory studies. The principal finding from these studies is that young and young adult players (range = 15-38 years) score equally well or better in competition than in training whereas older adult players (range = 46-73 years) perform worse in competitive events than under training conditions. It was also found that the impairment in motor performance on the part of the older players is associated with age-related deficits in basic cognitive abilities, such as memory and attention. These results support the hypothesis that older players may be able to compensate for age-related deficits under relaxed conditions, but not under conditions of high arousal. The possibility of improving the performance of the older players in stressful situations by means of various intervention programs is discussed.

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