Tonkelaar, J. (Jasper) (2016) The differences in synergistic control of joint angle variability between reaching and interception. thesis, Human Movement Sciences.
Full text available on request.Abstract
Within the motor control literature there are two commonly investigated manual actions, namely reaching and interception. The main difference between these two actions is that reaching is performed towards a stationary target and interception towards a moving target. These tasks have revealed differences in the movement kinematics of the hand that is either reaching for or interception the target. The position of the hand is dependent on the configuration of the abundant number of joints within the upper extremity. The abundant number of joints allows for multiple solutions in terms of joints angles to a motor task. The concept of synergies is based on the notion that there can be variability in joints angle configurations to stabilize the performance of the task. The uncontrolled manifold (UCM) method was used to quantify this variability and determine the strength of the synergy. Studies investigating reaching have already shown the use of synergies, but it has not yet been investigated in interception. The current study examined the use of synergies in both reaching and interception to make the direct comparison between the two tasks. The results showed that the fingertip was stabilized by a synergy in both reaching and interception. The strength of the synergies in reaching and interception was similar, however the amount of joint angle variability was higher in the interception tasks. This higher amount of variability in interception was thought to be the result of a greater task complexity in interception, which causes the neuromotor system to employ more flexible solutions in order to maintain stable performance.
| Item Type: | Thesis (UNSPECIFIED) |
|---|---|
| Supervisor name: | Bongers, R. and Tuitert, I. |
| Faculty: | Medical Sciences |
| Date Deposited: | 04 May 2022 07:29 |
| Last Modified: | 04 May 2022 07:29 |
| URI: | https://umcg.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/3197 |
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