scholarly journals Emergence of perceptuomotor relationships during paleolithic stone toolmaking learning: intersections of observation and practice

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristel Yu Tiamco Bayani ◽  
Nikhilesh Natraj ◽  
Nada Khresdish ◽  
Justin Pargeter ◽  
Dietrich Stout ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Motor Learning ◽  
Skill Acquisition ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Action Observation ◽  
Performance Improvements ◽  
Motor Skill Acquisition ◽  
Gaze Patterns ◽  
Archeological Evidence ◽  
And Performance

AbstractStone toolmaking is a human motor skill which provides the earliest archeological evidence motor skill and social learning. Intentionally shaping a stone into a functional tool relies on the interaction of action observation and practice to support motor skill acquisition. The emergence of adaptive and efficient visuomotor processes during motor learning of such a novel motor skill requiring complex semantic understanding, like stone toolmaking, is not understood. Through the examination of eye movements and motor skill, the current study sought to evaluate the changes and relationship in perceptuomotor processes during motor learning and performance over 90 h of training. Participants’ gaze and motor performance were assessed before, during and following training. Gaze patterns reveal a transition from initially high gaze variability during initial observation to lower gaze variability after training. Perceptual changes were strongly associated with motor performance improvements suggesting a coupling of perceptual and motor processes during motor learning.

New roles for dopamine in motor skill acquisition: Lessons from primates, rodents, and songbirds

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alynda N Wood
Keyword(s):  
Basal Ganglia ◽  
Motor Learning ◽  
Associative Learning ◽  
Skill Acquisition ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Skill Learning ◽  
Motor Skill Acquisition ◽  
Model Free ◽  
Species Comparisons

Motor learning is a core aspect of human life, and appears to be ubiquitous throughout the animal kingdom. Dopamine, a neuromodulator with a multifaceted role in synaptic plasticity, may be a key signaling molecule for motor skill learning. Though typically studied in the context of reward-based associative learning, dopamine appears to be necessary for some types of motor learning. Mesencephalic dopamine structures are highly conserved among vertebrates, as are some of their primary targets within the basal ganglia, a subcortical circuit important for motor learning and motor control. With a focus on the benefits of cross-species comparisons, this review examines how "model-free" and "model-based" computational frameworks for understanding dopamine's role in associative learning may be applied to motor learning. The hypotheses that dopamine could drive motor learning either by functioning as a reward prediction error, through passive facilitating of normal basal ganglia activity, or through other mechanisms are examined in light of new studies using humans, rodents, and songbirds. Additionally, new paradigms that could enhance our understanding of dopamine's role in motor learning by bridging the gap between the theoretical literature on motor learning in humans and other species are discussed.

scholarly journals Sensorimotor cortex beta oscillations reflect motor skill learning ability after stroke

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Svenja Espenhahn ◽  
Holly E Rossiter ◽  
Bernadette C M van Wijk ◽  
Nell Redman ◽  
Jane M Rondina ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Motor Learning ◽  
Sensorimotor Cortex ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Skill Learning ◽  
Motor Skill Learning ◽  
Healthy Controls ◽  
Stroke Patients ◽  
Beta Oscillations ◽  
And Performance

Abstract Recovery of skilled movement after stroke is assumed to depend on motor learning. However, the capacity for motor learning and factors that influence motor learning after stroke have received little attention. In this study, we first compared motor skill acquisition and retention between well-recovered stroke patients and age- and performance-matched healthy controls. We then tested whether beta oscillations (15–30 Hz) from sensorimotor cortices contribute to predicting training-related motor performance. Eighteen well-recovered chronic stroke survivors (mean age 64 ± 8 years, range: 50–74 years) and 20 age- and sex-matched healthy controls were trained on a continuous tracking task and subsequently retested after initial training (45–60 min and 24 h later). Scalp electroencephalography was recorded during the performance of a simple motor task before each training and retest session. Stroke patients demonstrated capacity for motor skill learning, but it was diminished compared to age- and performance-matched healthy controls. Furthermore, although the properties of beta oscillations prior to training were comparable between stroke patients and healthy controls, stroke patients did show less change in beta measures with motor learning. Lastly, although beta oscillations did not help to predict motor performance immediately after training, contralateral (ipsilesional) sensorimotor cortex post-movement beta rebound measured after training helped predict future motor performance, 24 h after training. This finding suggests that neurophysiological measures such as beta oscillations can help predict response to motor training in chronic stroke patients and may offer novel targets for therapeutic interventions.

Electromyographic Biofeedback for Tension Control during Gross Motor Skill Acquisition

1978 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 883-889 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen N. French
Keyword(s):  
Skill Acquisition ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Tension Control ◽  
Biofeedback Training ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Motor Skill Acquisition ◽  
Electromyographic Biofeedback ◽  
Improved Performance ◽  
And Performance

This study investigated the effects of tension-control training by electromyographic biofeedback on learning and performance of a stabilometer balancing task. 30 young adult males were pretested for stabilometer balancing skill, ranked by performance scores, and divided into identical triplicates to form two experimental groups and a control group. All subjects were reevaluated on the stabilometer test following feedback training of the experimental subjects. Analysis of variance of difference means, scores representing performance and tension, indicated that the biofeedback training significantly reduced tension induced by the novel motor skill and significantly improved performance of the motor skill.

The Effect of Kinesthetic Stimulation on Acquisition and Retention of a Gross Motor Skill

1995 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tal Jarus ◽  
Yael Loiter
Keyword(s):  
Skill Acquisition ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Motor Task ◽  
Movement Pattern ◽  
Gross Motor ◽  
Feedback Information ◽  
Stimulus Group ◽  
Motor Skill Acquisition ◽  
Stable Representation ◽  
And Performance

The role of kinesthetic stimulation in motor learning and performance of a gross motor task was investigated. Forty healthy female adult volunteers, ages 20 to 30 years old, were required to learn a gross motor task involving the kicking of a ball. Subjects were randomly assigned to one of two training groups, a kinesthetic stimulus group or a non-kinesthetic stimulus group. Results indicated that kinesthetic stimulation during practice and retention phases seemed to enhance task acquisition. Kinesthetic stimulation may have provided important feedback information for the learners that might have enabled them to make the necessary adjustments during performance. In addition, it appears that the stimulation affected the motor memory processes and left a more stable representation of the movement pattern. The use of continuous pressure as a means of kinesthetic stimulation for the facilitation of motor skill acquisition is recommended, although further research is required in order to generalize these findings to the clinic.

Knowledge and Motor Performance

1992 ◽  
Vol 74 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1195-1202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Kerr ◽  
Jean-Louis Boucher
Keyword(s):  
Motor Skills ◽  
Skill Acquisition ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Task Analysis ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Schema Theory ◽  
Motor Ability ◽  
General Motor ◽  
Motor Skill Acquisition ◽  
Strategic Allocation

Traditionally, motor skill acquisition has implied that the performance of a given individual on a particular skill is dependent on the amount of prior practice of that skill. However, concepts such as schema theory, or kinetic formulae, or the strategic allocation of resources imply that, even when practising specific skills, performers gain knowledge about their own motor performance which can be used or applied to related or novel situations. An attempt was made to relate the performance of a complex psychomotor task to differing levels of motor skill expertise or knowledge (athlete and nonathlete). 20 subjects performed (1600 responses) on a novel pursuit or tracking task. Analysis indicated that the athletes performed significantly better. Their main advantage appeared to be more in their ability to control and produce fast, accurate movements than in their decision-making. Accepting Henry and Rogers' 1960 proposition that there is no such thing as a general motor ability or coordination factor does not imply that the only alternative is for all motor skills to be specific. It is argued that the differences in the present study arose from the athletes' greater knowledge (schema, kinetic formulae) related to their understanding of their own motor capabilities.

The Impact of Conceptions of Ability on Self-Regulatory Factors and Motor Skill Acquisition

1991 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 213-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Forest J. Jourden ◽  
Albert Bandura ◽  
Jason T. Banfield
Keyword(s):  
Skill Acquisition ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Acquisition Rate ◽  
Subsequent Performance ◽  
Motor Skill Acquisition ◽  
Regulatory Processes ◽  
And Performance ◽  
High Level ◽  
The Impact

This study tested the hypothesis that conceptions of ability affect self-regulatory processes and the acquisition rate of a perceptual-motor skill. Subjects performed a rotary pursuit task under induced cognitive sets that task performance reflected inherent aptitude or acquirable skill. Their perceived self-efficacy, affective self-reactions, and performance attainments were measured over a series of trials. Subjects who performed the task under the inherent-aptitude conception of ability displayed no growth in perceived self-efficacy across phases, negative self-reactions to performances, low interest in the activity, and a limited level of skill development. In contrast, those who performed the task under the conception of ability as an acquirable skill displayed growth in perceived self-efficacy, positive self-reactions to their performances, widespread interest in the activity, and a high level of skill acquisition. The stronger the positive self-reactions, the greater the subsequent performance attainments.

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