Overview of Motor Control

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Lecture 1

• Overview of Motor Control

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What is Motor Control?
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The big picture...
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Motor Behavior

• An area of study stressing primarily the
  principles of human skilled movement generated at
  a behavioral level of analysis.

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Motor Behavior

• Action
• Perception
• Cognition
• Interaction of individual, task and environment.

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Motor Control

• An area of study dealing with the understanding
  of the neural, physiological and behavioral
  aspects of movements.

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Two main aspects of motor control

• Stabilizing the body in space, postural and
  balance control.
• Moving the body in space, movement.

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Motor Learning

• A set of internal processes associated with
  practice or experience leading to relatively
  permanent changes in the capability of motor
  skill.

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Motor Development

• A field of study concerning the changes in motor
  bahavior occuring as a result of growth,
  maturation and experience.

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Task
Individual
Motor control
Environment
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Why should we study motor control?

• Improving movement capability following injury to
  guide clinical intervention.
• Improving motor performance.
• Generating and building theory.

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Theory vs. Model in Motor Control

• A theory of motor control is a group of abstract
  ideas about the nature and cause of movement.

• A model is a represetation of something, usually
  a simplified version of the real thing.

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Theories of Motor Control
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Reflex theory

• The building blocks of complex behavior.
• Sir Charles Sherrington, neurophisiologist (The
  Integrative Action of the Nervous System), 1906.
• Classified the major responses to stimuli, and
  believed that most of the voluntary movements
  resulted from these fundamental reflexes.

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• Stimulus Response Response
• Sensory receptor Effector(muscle)

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Information processing model

• Input
• (Signals)
• Processing
• (The human)
• Output
• (Motor response)

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Information processing model

• Stimulus Stimulus Response Response
  Movement
• (Input) iden. selection progra.
  output
• REACTION TIME
• THE HUMAN

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Hierarchical Theory

• Top - down structure
• Reflexes are part of this hierarchy, normally
  higher centers inhibit them
• (Chart to be scanned)
• Motor control emerges from reflexes, later on
  integrated with higher control levels.
• Limitations

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Motor programming theories

• Sensory input not essential to drive movement but
  important function in modulating it.
• Try for yourself (signature) demo.
• Limitations

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Dynamical Systems theory

• Bernstein-characteristics of acting systems,
  external and internal forces.
• Distributed model of motor control-no need for
  higher center of control.
• Interaction of elements, physical and neural
  components.
• Limitations

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• Parallel distributed processing theory.
• NS processes information in serial and parallel.
• Limitations

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Task oriented theories

• Control of movement is organized around
  goal-directed functional behaviors such as
  walking or talking.
• Limitations

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Ecological theory.

• How do we detect information in our environment
  that is important to our actions?
• Limitations