Intermanual transfer of visuomotor learning is facilitated by a cognitive strategy

Abstract

Humans continuously adapt their movement to a novel environment by recalibrating their sensorimotor system. Recent evidence, however, shows that explicit planning to compensate for external changes, i.e. a cognitive strategy, can also aid performance. If such a strategy is indeed planned in external space, it should improve performance in an effector independent manner. We tested this hypothesis by examining whether promoting a cognitive strategy during a visual-force adaptation task performed in one hand can facilitate learning for the opposite hand. Participants rapidly adjusted the height of visual bar on screen to a target level by isometrically exerting force on a handle using their right hand. Visuomotor gain increased during the task and participants learned the increased gain. Visual feedback was continuously provided for one group, while for another group only the endpoint of the force trajectory was presented. The latter has been reported to promote cognitive strategy use. We found that endpoint feedback produced stronger intermanual transfer of learning and slower response times than continuous feedback. In a separate experiment, we confirmed that the aftereffect is indeed reduced when only endpoint feedback is provided, a finding that has been consistently observed when cognitive strategies are used. The results suggest that intermanual transfer can be facilitated by a cognitive strategy. This indicates that the behavioral observation of intermanual transfer can be achieved either by forming an effector-independent motor representation, or by sharing an effector-independent cognitive strategy between the hands.

Novel Approach to Transfer of Coordination Skills to the Paretic Hand by Improving the Efficiency of Cortical Network

“…This finding agrees with previous evidence showing that interlimb coordination can be enhanced after bimanual training in stroke patients [31,33,34]. Additionally, visual feedback can promote cognitive strategy to cause greater generalization of intermanual transfer [35]. Thus, our findings open the possibility that the visual feedback contributes to the transfer coordination skills to the paretic hand.…”

The Romberg's sign: from walking in the dark to tests on the force plate

“…В норме при закрывании глаз (например, во второй фазе пробы Ромберга) существенных позных колебаний не возникает, что говорит о достаточных сочетанных компенсаторных возможностях проприоцепторов и вестибуляров [27,28]. Зрительный компонент задействуется во всех вариантах пробы Ромберга, и оценка его вклада позволяет установить такие важные аспекты, как, например, «сенсорный профиль» человека, то есть преобладание влияния зрения или проприоцепции в организации движений и поддержании позы [29]. Зрение в целом вносит достаточно большой вклад в организацию позы и движений, особенно в сознательный контроль, восприятие положения собственного тела в пространстве (подробнее см.…”