Contextual Interference Effects on Approach Motivation When Learning Timing Tasks: A Frontal Electroencephalography (EEG) Alpha Asymmetry Study in Older Adults.

In this study, we aimed to explore the effects of contextual interference on motivational regulation, as measured by EEG (frontal alpha asymmetry), in older adults. Participants practiced a sequenced timing task in random, algorithmic, or blocked schedules in both similar and dissimilar task difficulty conditions, with task difficulty defined by absolute timing goals (in ms) that were either close to each other (1350, 1500, 1650) or far from each other (1050, 1500, 1950), respectively. We assessed older participants' timing accuracy in these conditions, during acquisition and delayed retention learning, using the frontal alpha asymmetry index, recorded during practice, to measure motivation. On the accuracy measure in delayed retention, the algorithm practice schedule (in both similar and dissimilar conditions) was associated with significantly more accurate performance than random and blocked practice schedules. Also during delayed retention and in both task difficulty conditions, performance was better with a random schedule than a blocked schedule. On the EEG motivational measure, frontal alpha asymmetry was more often higher as practice progressed in the algorithm practice condition than in other practice conditions. However, in the random practice schedule, in late, versus early, acquisition, motivational regulation was higher. The blocked groups showed decreased motivation as practice progressed. We interpreted these findings to be in accordance with the challenge point framework and with OPTIMAL motor learning theory and valence hypothesis.

Utilizing the Variability of Practice in Physical Execution, Action Observation, and Motor Imagery: Similar or Dissimilar Mechanisms?

The simulation theory argues that physical execution, action observation, and imagery share similar underlying mechanisms. Accordingly, applying a high-level psychological variable (variability of practice) should have a similar effect on all three modes. To test this theory, a total of 90 right-handed students participated in this study and were randomly divided into variable versus constant groups in three practice conditions, including physical, observational, and imagery. After a pretest (10 random trials of the putting task), the participants completed 50 practice trials. The groups performed/observed/imagined the task in the variable (different distances to different goals) or constant (fixed distance and goal) practice conditions. Also, there was an extra variable group in the physical and observational conditions, deprived of watching the feedback from the action. The participants completed a retention test 24 hr after the training. The effect of practice variability was observed in physical and observational conditions, but was not seen in the imagery condition. The no-feedback groups did not perform significantly differently from the imagery groups. The reason could be the lack of actual visual feedback during imagery.

The effect of how to perform movement sequences on absolute and relative timing transfer

Depending on the difficulty of the task in terms of movement duration and the number of elements forming the sequence, recent research has shown that movement sequences are coded in visual-spatial coordinates or motor coordinates. An interesting question that arises is how a specific manner of performance without a change in such functional difficulties affects the representation of movement sequences. Accordingly, the present study investigated how the way in which a movement sequence is performed affects the transfer of timing properties (absolute and relative timing) from the practised to unpractised hand under mirror (same motor commands as those used in practice) and non-mirror (the same visual-spatial coordinates as those present during practice) conditions in two experiments each with segment movement time goals that were arranged differently. The study showed that after a limited amount of practice, the pattern of results obtained for relative timing differed between the two experiments. In the first experiment, there was no difference between retention and non-mirror transfer, but performance on these tasks was significantly better than that for mirror transfer, whereas in the second experiment, there was no difference between the mirror and non-mirror transfer. For total errors, no significant difference was found between the retention and transfer tests in both experiments. It was concluded that the way in which a sequence is performed could affect the representation of the task and the transfer of relative timing, while absolute timing could purposefully be maintained if necessary

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Effects of Physical and Observational Practice on Intermanual Transfer.

Some studies have shown that different coordinate systems in the coding of movement sequences develop during observational and physical practice. According to Newell's (Newell, 1986) constraintsled approach, such contradictions could possibly depend on task characteristics. Accordingly, in the present study, two experiments were designed using a five-segment sequence timing task, in which the instructions on how to perform the sequence were different. The task in the first experiment comprised an alternating shift of fast and slow segments, whereas the second experiment involved an incremental procedure from slow to fast. In these experiments, the intermanual transfer of absolute and relative timing through observational and physical practice was examined. Transfer conditions were such that they required the same motor commands (mirror transfer) or the same visual-spatial coordinates (non-mirror transfer) as those in the practice conditions. The first experiment showed that the transfer to the non-mirror condition for relative timing in the physical group was better than that to the mirror condition, while the transfer was similar for both conditions in the observational group, indicating a different pattern of transfer for relative timing. The relative timing transfer pattern in the second experiment was the same for both experimental groups, such that the physical and observational practice resulted in a similar transfer to both mirror and non-mirror conditions. In both experiments, observational and physical practice participants exhibited similar intramanual transfer of absolute timing under both transfer conditions. Thus, the task itself as a constraint was revealed to be an effective factor influencing the behavioral results derived from physical and observational practice.