Spontaneous motor tempo over the course of a week: the role of the time of the day, chronotype, and arousal.

ABSTRACT: The spontaneous motor tempo (SMT) or internal tempo describes the natural pace of predictive and emergent movements such as walking or hand clapping. One of the main research interests in the study of the spontaneous motor tempo relates to factors affecting its pace. Previous studies suggest an influence of the circadian rhythm (i.e., 24-h cycle of the biological clock), physiological arousal changes, and potentially also musical experience. This study aimed at investigating these effects in participants' everyday life by measuring their SMT four times a day over seven consecutive days, using an experience sampling method. The pace of the SMT was assessed with a finger-tapping paradigm in a self-developed web application. Measured as the inter-tap interval, the overall mean SMT was 650 ms

SUBMITTER: Hammerschmidt D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8818276 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature