Motor learning ch 4-6

brain and spinal cord

peripheral nerves that extend from the spinal cord connecting the body and CNS, divided into afferent and efferent nerves

sensory nerves that conduct the impulses about the environment from the body to the CNS

Motor nerves that conduct impulses away from the CNS or to the muscles or gland or effectors

detect stimuli outside of the body, located at or near the body's surface (pressure, pain, touch, temp., vibrations, hearing, vision, smell, taste)

detect stimuli from internal viscera/organs (hunger)

located in the muscles, tendons, joints, and internal ear (vestibular system), provide info regarding body position and movement, detect changes in muscle tension, joint position, and equilibrium

first to develop in babies and first for "age" and causes balance

visual system predominates 70% of the body's sensory receptors are in the eyes, 40% of the cerebral cortex is thought to be involved with processing of visual info

light rays are focused on the retina, image formed and converted to nerve impulse (rods and cones)

are more numerous, do not detect wavelength (color), specialized for dim light, enable us to see shapes and movement

do best in bright light, specialized for color vision and acuity(clearness), located in the fovea

some fibers from each optic nerve cross

central region of the visual field, strongly linked to consciousness, voluntary control (changes in the trail)

subconscious level, spatial localization and orientation, involves the entire retina, serves both central and peripheral fields, not affected by changes in light level (aware of the surroundings and where things are)

one eye is dominant in everyone, carries out information processing a few milliseconds faster

technique used in rotational skills, reduces dizziness, keeps performer oriented, rotation of the head is delayed relative to the body's location

strategies of gaze behavior (scanning)

during active scanning the gaze lands on numerous objects

final fixation located on a specific target or object before the initiation of movement; elite performers have a significantly longer, earlier onset, and more optimal duration (they can see key cues sooner and they have more time to process them)

typically involve accurately propelling an object toward a target (targets are fixed, abstract, or moving)

stable or predictable in position (basketball hoop), performer fixates on the specific target prior to executing a response

(golf putt) hole is fixed but the aiming is not

anticipating the target's location, passing or kicking, fencing, martial arts, boxing

performer tracks the stimulus, decides when/where it will arrive, and executes appropriate limb movements

sensory information received from muscles, tendons, joints, and inner ear; where the body is in space

located at the junction of tendon with a muscle , protect tendons and muscles from excessive tension

in skeletal muscle fiber belly (middle of the muscle), muscles is stretched and the spindles give info on how fast and how much the muscle is stretching

one stage overlaps the next, learners can be in different stages for different skills, and stages of learning are not dependent on age

learners go through three distinct stages defined by behavior tendencies (cognitive, associate, and autonomous stages)

hight degree of cognitive activity, ask lots of questions, trial and error, attention demands are high, basic movement pattern; instructors should point out similarities and differences with other movements and provide demonstrations and verbal feedback

refinement of movement pattern, performance is more consistent, ability to time movements with external objects and events improve, can detect their own errors and make changes; instructors decrease instruction, if open skill, practice session should provide experience that develop visual search strategies (quiet eye needs to be faster and longer)

countless hours of practice,highest level of performance and it is automatic, attention is relocated to decision making, can perform multiple task simultaneously, very few errors, independent with error and correction; instructor is responsible for practice design, error feedback, and motivator

learner's perspective, emphasizes the learner's goal and influence of task and environmental characteristics on the goal. Getting the idea of the movement then fixation for closed skill or diversification for open skill

develop an understanding of the movement requirements necessary to meet demands of the task and environment in which the skill is performed and organize a movement, selectively attentive to info; instructor should focus on the basic movement pattern

environmental conditions that specify the movement characteristics necessary to perform the task

conditions that dont affect the movement pattern

learner's goal is to refine

successful performance is to replicate the movement pattern consistently and accurately; fixation:refinement of movement pattern

objective is to diversify the movement pattern; diversification:adaptation of movement to conform to ever-changing environmental demands

Is not directly observable

Novice vs. expert movement patterns distinguish level of learning

They learn to control the degrees of freedom involved in the movement

Reduce the available degrees of freedom or fix a joint in order to accomplish the goal

Stiff, rigid, ineffectively timed movements. You must consider the skill when deciding whether freezing of joints will be more novice or more skilled

Number of activated muscles to produce the movement will be reduced with learning

Beginners typically expend more energy doing the same task as experts. This relates to activating the right muscles

When increased consistency occurs in a movement, you can infer that learning has occurred and it is more permanent in nature. Can be good or bad habits

Changes in the amount of attention focused on just movement execution occurs with learning and performance improvements. This allows for increased movement preparation and reduction in response times

As learning occurs and skill proficiency develops, less attention is paid to execution and it becomes automatic, allowing the learner to focus more on strategy and environmental cues or AUTOMATICITY

If you ask someone to consciously focus on an already automated skill, you often see hesitant and choppy performance

Experts direct visual attention to information-rich areas (visual search) whereas beginners focus on too many things and have trouble discriminating between relevant and irrelevant stimuli

Knowledge base and memory of a skill increases does skill performance

Rules

What to do in a situation, need to practice this

Increased ability for the learner to detect their own errors and correct them; more easily detect the exteroceptive and proprioceptive feedback that sensory receptor provide

As skill increases so does confidence in ability, allow learner to achieve some level of success during each practice

Typically follow 4 types of patterns

Demonstrates the power law of practice; large gains in the beginning with slower gains later in practice, most common (arch up/beginning of rainbow)

Little initial improvement with larger gains later (

Direct relationship between performance and time (slanted line /)

Combination of the negative and positively accelerating curve

No practice for a while, then test to see if the skill was learned

Measures the degree to which a learning can adapt the practiced skill to a different performance situation

Before the practice period

Administered directly following a practice period

A period of time during the learning process in which no overt changes in performance occur

Unique preferences for receiving and processing new information

Learning styles inventory as found some use in motor skill acquisition

An individual's learning style can be determined by assessing five areas

Sound, light, temp.

Motivation, persistence, responsibility, structure

Individual, pairs, peer, team, adult

Perception, intake (chewing, eating), time, mobility

Analytical mode (details to big picture or big picture to details), hemispherically (right or left brain dominant), action

Learning profiles that are based on processing

Learning more easily when they are first presented with the big picture and then asked to concentrate on the details

New information presented in a step-by-step, sequential manner. Builds toward main concept. Likes rules, guidelines

Easiest to use in motor skill learning. This is the way information is received and processed

Preferred mode of taking in information

Understand better with visual cue words: watch, see, and look. Use demo videos, pictures, models, and mirrors

Understand better when they can feel what the movements feel like. Strategies like simulations, guidance, repeated practice, and cue words like: feel, move, and experience help

Approach the movement from a problem solving perspective. Scientific concepts and cue words like: analyze, why, and investigate

Prefer sounds and rhythms. Cue words like: hear, pace, and tempo. Benefit from verbal descriptions

The learning of a new skill or its performance under novel conditions can be influenced by past experience with another skill or skills. Three types

Learner's past experience with one skill facilitates learning a new skill or using a skill in a different context. Accelerates the rate of learning

Past experience with a skill hinders or obstructs learning a new skill or performing the skill under novel conditions

Experience with a skill has no influence on the second skill