The development of a culturally appropriate analogy for implicit motor learning in a Chinese population

Learning a motor skill by analogy can benefit performers because the movement that is developed has characteristics of implicit motor learning: namely, movement robustness under pressure and secondary task distraction and limited accrual of explicit knowledge (Liao & Masters, 2001). At an applied level the advantages are lost, however, if the heuristic that underpins the analogy conveys abstractions that are inappropriate for the indigenous culture. The aim of the current experiment was to redevelop Masters's (2000) right-angled-triangle analogy to accommodate abstractions appropriate for Chinese learners. Novice Chinese participants learned to hit table tennis forehands with topspin using either a redeveloped, culturally appropriate analogy (analogy learning) or a set of 6 instructions relevant to hitting a topspin forehand in table tennis (explicit learning). Analogy learners accrued less explicit knowledge of the movements underlying their performance than explicit learners. In addition, a secondary task load disrupted the performance of explicit learners but not analogy learners. These findings indicate that a culturally relevant analogy can bring about implicit motor learning in a Chinese population. © 2007 Human Kinetics, Inc.published_or_final_versio

The influence of analogy learning on decision-making in table tennis: Evidence from behavioural data

Objectives: In sports it may be necessary for a performer to make a decision and execute a movement in close succession, or even concurrently. The manner in which a movement is controlled may impact on the degree to which the performer is able to combine decisions and movements effectively. Previous work has shown that if control of the movement has been acquired explicitly, with a high declarative knowledge content, dual-task conditions can be disruptive to performance of the movement. Previous work has also shown that, in contrast, if movement control is acquired by analogical instruction, with a low declarative knowledge content, motor performance is unaffected by dual-task conditions. It was, therefore, hypothesised that analogy learning will reduce the performance cost associated with processing motor responses while making high-complexity decisions. Methods: Participants learnt to hit a table tennis topspin forehand using either a single analogical instruction or a set of written instructions (explicit learning). Motor performance was assessed when decisions about the direction in which to hit the ball were either low in complexity or high in complexity. Results: Low-complexity decisions had no effect on motor performance in either condition. However, high-complexity decisions caused a relative performance deterioration in the Explicit condition, but not in the Analogy condition. Conclusions: These findings extend the implicit motor learning literature by highlighting the role of analogy learning in the complex interaction between decision-making and movement control in sport. © 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.postprin

Implicit motor learning and complex decision making in time-constrained environments

The cost-effectiveness of the implicit (procedural) knowledge that supports motor expertise enables surprisingly efficient performance when a decision and an action must occur in close temporal proximity. The authors argue that if novices learn the motor component of performance implicitly rather than explicitly, then they will also be efficient when they make a decision and execute an action in close temporal proximity. Participants (N = 35) learned a table tennis shot implicitly or explicitly. The authors assessed participants' motor performance and movement kinematics under conditions that required a concurrent low-complexity decision or a concurrent high-complexity decision about where to direct each shot. Performance was disrupted only for participants who learned explicitly when they made high-complexity decisions but not when they made low-complexity decisions. The authors conclude that implicit motor learning encourages cognitively efficient motor control more than does explicit motor learning, which allows performance to remain stable when time constraints call for a complex decision in tandem with a motor action. Copyright © 2008 Heldref Publications.published_or_final_versio

Benefits of an external focus of attention: Common coding or conscious processing?

We conducted two experiments to assess the effect attentional focus has on learning a complex motor skill and subsequent performance under secondary task loading. Participants in Experiment 1 learnt a golf putting task (300 practice trials) with a single instruction to either focus on their hands (internal focus) or the movement of the putter (external focus). No group differences were evident during learning or retention. Differences between the groups were only apparent under secondary task load; the external group's performance remained robust, while the internal group suffered a drop in performance. Verbal protocols demonstrated that the internal group accumulated significantly more internal knowledge and more task-relevant knowledge in general than the external group. Experiment 2 was designed to establish whether greater internal focus knowledge or greater explicit rule build up in general was responsible for performance breakdown. Two groups were presented with a set of six internal or external rules. Again, no performance differences were found during learning or retention. During the secondary task, both groups experienced performance deterioration. It was concluded that accumulation of explicit rules to guide performance was responsible for the internal group's breakdown in performance under secondary task loading and may be responsible for some of the performance differences reported previously. © 2006 Taylor & Francis.postprin

Attention and time constraints in performing and learning a table tennis forehand shot

This is a section on p. S95 of article 'Verbal and Poster: Motor Development, Motor Learning and Control, and Sport and Exercise Psychology' in Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 2010, v.32, p.S36-S237published_or_final_versio

Conscious monitoring and control (reinvestment) in surgical performance under pressure.

Research on intraoperative stressors has focused on external factors without considering individual differences in the ability to cope with stress. One individual difference that is implicated in adverse effects of stress on performance is "reinvestment," the propensity for conscious monitoring and control of movements. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of reinvestment on laparoscopic performance under time pressure

Muscle damage response in female collegiate athletes following repeated sprint activity

Exercise induced muscle damage (EIMD) is a well-investigated area, however there is a paucity of data surrounding the damage response in females. The aim of this study was to examine the damage responses from a sport-specific bout of repeated sprints in female athletes. Eleven well-trained females (mean ± SD; age 22 ± 3 y, height 166.6 ± 5.7 cm, mass 62.7 ± 4.5 kg) in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle completed a repeated sprint protocol designed to induce EIMD (15 × 30 m sprints). Creatine kinase (CK), countermovement jump height (CMJ), knee extensor maximum voluntary contraction force (MVIC), muscle soreness (DOMS), 30 m sprint time and limb girth were recorded pre, post, 24 h, 48 h and 72 h post exercise. CK was elevated at 24, 48 and 72 h (p < 0.05), peaking at 24 h (+418%) and returning towards baseline at 72 h. CMJ height was reduced immediately post, 24 and 48 h (p < 0.05). Sprint performance was also negatively affected immediately post, 24 h, 48 h and 72 h post exercise. Muscle soreness peaked at 48 h (p<0.01) and remained significantly elevated at 72 h post exercise (p<0.01). Limb girth and MVIC did not alter over time. The current study provides new information on the EIMD response in trained females following a sport specific bout of repeated sprints. Importantly, this damage response has the potential to negatively affect performance for several days post-exercise

The possible benefits of reduced errors in the motor skills acquisition of children

An implicit approach to motor learning suggests that relatively complex movement skills may be better acquired in environments that constrain errors during the initial stages of practice. This current concept paper proposes that reducing the number of errors committed during motor learning leads to stable performance when attention demands are increased by concurrent cognitive tasks. While it appears that this approach to practice may be beneficial for motor learning, further studies are needed to both confirm this advantage and better understand the underlying mechanisms. An approach involving error minimization during early learning may have important applications in paediatric rehabilitation

Multitask training promotes automaticity of a fundamental laparoscopic skill without compromising the rate of skill learning.

A defining characteristic of expertise is automated performance of skills, which frees attentional capacity to better cope with some common intraoperative stressors. There is a paucity of research on how best to foster automated performance by surgical trainees. This study examined the use of a multitask training approach to promote automated, robust laparoscopic skills.Eighty-one medical students completed training of a fundamental laparoscopic task in either a traditional single-task training condition or a novel multitask training condition. Following training, participants' laparoscopic performance was tested in a retention test, two stress transfer tests (distraction and time pressure) and a secondary task test, which was included to evaluate automaticity of performance. The laparoscopic task was also performed as part of a formal clinical examination (OSCE).The training groups did not differ in the number of trials required to reach task proficiency (p = .72), retention of skill (ps > .45), or performance in the clinical examination (p = .14); however, the groups did differ with respect to the secondary task (p = .016). The movement efficiency (number of hand movements) of single-task trainees, but not multitask trainees, was negatively affected during the secondary task test. The two stress transfer tests had no discernable impact on the performance of either training group.Multitask training was not detrimental to the rate of learning of a fundamental laparoscopic skill and added value by providing resilience in the face of a secondary task load, indicative of skill automaticity. Further work is needed to determine the extent of the clinical utility afforded by multitask training

Development and Validation of a Surgical Workload Measure: The Surgery Task Load Index (SURG-TLX)

Background: The purpose of the present study was to develop and validate a multidimensional, surgery-specific workload measure (the SURG-TLX), and to determine its utility in providing diagnostic information about the impact of various sources of stress on the perceived demands of trained surgical operators. As a wide range of stressors have been identified for surgeons in the operating room, the current approach of considering stress as a unidimensional construct may not only limit the degree to which underlying mechanisms may be understood but also the degree to which training interventions may be successfully matched to particular sources of stress. Methods: The dimensions of the SURG-TLX were based on two current multidimensional workload measures and developed via focus group discussion. The six dimensions were defined as mental demands, physical demands, temporal demands, task complexity, situational stress, and distractions. Thirty novices were trained on the Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS) peg transfer task and then completed the task under various conditions designed to manipulate the degree and source of stress experienced: task novelty, physical fatigue, time pressure, evaluation apprehension, multitasking, and distraction. Results: The results were supportive of the discriminant sensitivity of the SURG-TLX to different sources of stress. The sub-factors loaded on the relevant stressors as hypothesized, although the evaluation pressure manipulation was not strong enough to cause a significant rise in situational stress. Conclusions: The present study provides support for the validity of the SURG-TLX instrument and also highlights the importance of considering how different stressors may load surgeons. Implications for categorizing the difficulty of certain procedures, the implementation of new technology in the operating room (man-machine interface issues), and the targeting of stress training strategies to the sources of demand are discussed. Modifications to the scale to enhance clinical utility are also suggested. © 2011 The Author(s).published_or_final_versionSpringer Open Choice, 21 Feb 201