Probabilistic Movement Models Show that Postural Control Precedes and Predicts Volitional Motor Control.

ABSTRACT: Human motor skill learning is driven by the necessity to adapt to new situations. While supportive contacts are essential for many tasks, little is known about their impact on motor learning. To study the effect of contacts an innovative full-body experimental paradigm was established. The task of the subjects was to reach for a distant target while postural stability could only be maintained by establishing an additional supportive hand contact. To examine adaptation, non-trivial postural perturbations of the subjects' support base were systematically introduced. A novel probabilistic trajectory model approach was employed to analyze the correlation between the motions of both arms and the trunk. We found that subjects adapted to the perturbations by establishing target dependent hand con

SUBMITTER: Rueckert E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4916463 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature