Loeve, E.S. (Ester) (2017) Ensuring Successful Movement Despite Constraints: Comparing Manual Reaching and Interception. thesis, Human Movement Sciences.
Full text available on request.Abstract
Examining how task constraints influence movement outcomes can teach us about underlying control mechanisms. This study compares two similar manual actions that can be successfully performed by moving an end-effector from an initial location to a target location: goal-directed reaching, and the interception of an approaching object. However, interception has two added constraints, as the interception location is uncertain and the object needs to be intercepted at the right time. Participants performed both actions to identical target distances of 20, 30 and 40 cm. Interceptions were performed under outward, zero and inward angles (-26.5°, 0° and 26.5°). We examined movement time and symmetry of the end-effector, and analysed the structure of motor variability in both actions. We found differences in movement time and symmetry, indicating that the task constraints were of influence on the execution of interception actions. These results can be explained by differences in guiding information between reaching and interception. Additionally, we found more stabilising variability in interception, which can be attributed to the task constraint of uncertainty. Therefore, we conclude that both the use of guiding information and motor variability can be adjusted in order to ensure a successful movement outcome despite constraints. However, more research needs to be done to clarify how guiding information is used in reaching, and how learning may affect motor variability in interception.
| Item Type: | Thesis (UNSPECIFIED) |
|---|---|
| Supervisor name: | Bongers, R.M. and Tuitert, I. |
| Faculty: | Medical Sciences |
| Date Deposited: | 10 May 2022 08:22 |
| Last Modified: | 10 May 2022 08:22 |
| URI: | https://umcg.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/3251 |
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