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Psychology of Sport and Exercise Jan 2024The slowing of heart rate prior to movement onset has been presented as a marker of task-related cognitive processing and linked with performance accuracy. Here we...
The slowing of heart rate prior to movement onset has been presented as a marker of task-related cognitive processing and linked with performance accuracy. Here we examined this event-related bradycardia and task performance as a function of task difficulty. Forty experienced golfers completed a series of golf putting conditions that manipulated task difficulty by varying target distance, target size, and surface contour. Performance was measured by the number of holed putts and finishing distance from the hole. Physiological activity was recorded throughout. Analyses confirmed that performance varied as a function of task difficulty, worsening with longer distances to target, smaller targets, and sloping paths to target. Task difficulty also impacted the cardiac response, including the rate of heart rate deceleration, change in heart rate, and heart rate at impact. These heart rate metrics were found to correlate with performance strongly, moderately, and weakly, respectively. In conclusion, heart rate deceleration in the moments preceding movement onset was affected by task difficulty. Features of this cardiac deceleration pattern were characteristic of successful performance. Our findings are discussed in terms of the role of cognitive and motor processes during the execution of complex motor skills.
Topics: Humans; Psychomotor Performance; Bradycardia; Attention; Motor Skills; Task Performance and Analysis
PubMed: 37813271
DOI: 10.1016/j.psychsport.2023.102548 -
A Methodology to Determine the Psychomotor Performance of Helicopter Pilots During Flight Maneuvers.Aerospace Medicine and Human Performance Jul 2015Helicopter flying is a complex psychomotor task requiring continuous control inputs to maintain stable flight and conduct maneuvers. Flight safety is impaired when this...
INTRODUCTION
Helicopter flying is a complex psychomotor task requiring continuous control inputs to maintain stable flight and conduct maneuvers. Flight safety is impaired when this psychomotor performance is compromised. A comprehensive understanding of the psychomotor performance of helicopter pilots, under various operational and physiological conditions, remains to be developed. The purpose of this study was to develop a flight simulator-based technique for capturing psychomotor performance data of helicopter pilots.
METHODS
Three helicopter pilots conducted six low-level flight sequences in a helicopter simulator. Accelerometers applied to each flight control recorded the frequency and magnitude of movements.
RESULTS
The mean (± SEM) number of control inputs per flight was 2450 (± 136). The mean (± SEM) number of control inputs per second was 1.96 (± 0.15). The mean (± SEM) force applied was 0.44 G (± 0.05 G). No significant differences were found between pilots in terms of flight completion times or number of movements per second. The number of control inputs made by the hands was significantly greater than the number of foot movements. The left hand control input forces were significantly greater than all other input forces.
DISCUSSION
This study shows that the use of accelerometers in flight simulators is an effective technique for capturing accurate, reliable data on the psychomotor performance of helicopter pilots. This technique can be applied in future studies to a wider range of operational and physiological conditions and mission types in order to develop a greater awareness and understanding of the psychomotor performance demands on helicopter pilots.
Topics: Accelerometry; Actigraphy; Aerospace Medicine; Aircraft; Foot; Hand; Humans; Male; Psychomotor Performance; Task Performance and Analysis
PubMed: 26102145
DOI: 10.3357/AMHP.4258.2015 -
Psychological Research Sep 2022The sustained attention to response task (SART) has been used for over 20 years to assess participants' response times and inability to withhold to No-Go stimuli...
The sustained attention to response task (SART) has been used for over 20 years to assess participants' response times and inability to withhold to No-Go stimuli (commission errors). While there is debate in the literature regarding what causes commissions errors in the SART, there is agreement the SART is subject to a speed-accuracy trade-off (SATO). Researchers have demonstrated that performance on the SART can be influenced by directive instructions to participants to prioritize either speed or accuracy during the task. In the present study, we investigated whether real-time performance feedback and whether feedback emphasis (emphasizing speed or accuracy) affected participants' response times and accuracy. We found performance feedback per se had no impact on performance, but performance emphasis did affect performance, apparently shifting the SATO. This finding provides further evidence that the commission errors in the SART are not indicative of sustained attention or vigilance as those terms are commonly used in the literature, but more likely assess response strategy and motor control (or lack of motor control). These findings have implications for the psychological assessment literature, as well as applied areas where SART findings have been utilized such as shoot/no-shoot decision making.
Topics: Feedback; Humans; Psychomotor Performance; Reaction Time
PubMed: 34623490
DOI: 10.1007/s00426-021-01602-6 -
Scientific Reports Jan 2021It well-known that mental training improves skill performance. Here, we evaluated skill acquisition and consolidation after physical or motor imagery practice, by means...
It well-known that mental training improves skill performance. Here, we evaluated skill acquisition and consolidation after physical or motor imagery practice, by means of an arm pointing task requiring speed-accuracy trade-off. In the main experiment, we showed a significant enhancement of skill after both practices (72 training trials), with a better acquisition after physical practice. Interestingly, we found a positive impact of the passage of time (+ 6 h post training) on skill consolidation for the motor imagery training only, without any effect of sleep (+ 24 h post training) for none of the interventions. In a control experiment, we matched the gain in skill learning after physical training (new group) with that obtained after motor imagery training (main experiment) to evaluate skill consolidation after the same amount of learning. Skill performance in this control group deteriorated with the passage of time and sleep. In another control experiment, we increased the number of imagined trials (n = 100, new group) to compare the acquisition and consolidation processes of this group with that observed in the motor imagery group of the main experiment. We did not find significant differences between the two groups. These findings suggest that physical and motor imagery practice drive skill learning through different acquisition and consolidation processes.
Topics: Adult; Biomechanical Phenomena; Electromyography; Female; Humans; Male; Motor Skills; Neurosciences; Psychomotor Performance; Young Adult
PubMed: 33504870
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-81994-y -
Progress in Neuro-psychopharmacology &... Apr 2019Major depressive disorders are common conditions with relatively limited response to treatment. In order to improve response to treatment, a better understanding of... (Review)
Review
Major depressive disorders are common conditions with relatively limited response to treatment. In order to improve response to treatment, a better understanding of functional neuroanatomy is necessary to improve treatment targets at brain level. This work summarises the literature of longitudinal functional magnetic resonance imaging studies in major depression to identify brain regions where aberrant neural activity normalises after clinical response following treatment with pharmacological compounds with known antidepressant properties. Hyperactivity in regions such as the amygdala and the ventral components of the anterior cingulate cortex were some of the most replicated findings of functional MRI studies in major depression and normalisation of aberrant activity one of the best predictive biomarkers of treatment response.
Topics: Antidepressive Agents; Brain; Depressive Disorder, Major; Humans; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Psychomotor Performance; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 30099082
DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2018.08.004 -
Behavior Research Methods Feb 2022Post-error slowing is one of the most widely employed measures to study cognitive and behavioral consequences of error commission. Several methods have been proposed to...
Post-error slowing is one of the most widely employed measures to study cognitive and behavioral consequences of error commission. Several methods have been proposed to quantify the post-error slowing effect, and we discuss two main methods: The traditional method of comparing response times in correct post-error trials to response times of correct trials that follow another correct trial, and a more recent proposal of comparing response times in correct post-error trials to the corresponding correct pre-error trials. Based on thorough re-analyses of two datasets, we argue that the latter method provides an inflated estimate by also capturing the (partially) independent effect of pre-error speeding. We propose two solutions for improving the assessment of human error processing, both of which highlight the importance of distinguishing between initial pre-error speeding and later post-error slowing.
Topics: Humans; Psychomotor Performance; Reaction Time
PubMed: 34240334
DOI: 10.3758/s13428-021-01631-4 -
Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology Sep 2021This study investigated the relationships among neural activity related to pitch stimuli and task feedback, self-regulatory control, and task-performance measures in...
This study investigated the relationships among neural activity related to pitch stimuli and task feedback, self-regulatory control, and task-performance measures in expert and novice baseball players. The participants had their event-related brain potentials recorded while they completed a computerized task assessing whether thrown pitches were balls or strikes and received feedback on the accuracy of their responses following each pitch. The results indicated that college players exhibited significantly larger medial frontal negativities to pitch stimuli, as well as smaller reward positivities and larger frontocentral positivities in response to negative feedback, compared with novices. Furthermore, significant relationships were present between college players' neural activity related to both pitches and feedback and their task performance and self-regulatory behavior. These relationships were not present for novices. These findings suggest that players efficiently associate the information received in their feedback to their self-regulatory processing of the task and, ultimately, their task performance.
Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Athletic Performance; Baseball; Brain; Electroencephalography; Humans; Male; Psychomotor Performance; Task Performance and Analysis; Young Adult
PubMed: 34470908
DOI: 10.1123/jsep.2020-0325 -
Hormones and Behavior Mar 2020A growing body of research suggests that hormonal contraceptive (HC) use may be associated with lower self-control, as well as structural and functional differences in...
A growing body of research suggests that hormonal contraceptive (HC) use may be associated with lower self-control, as well as structural and functional differences in women's brains that could contribute to differences in perseverance on tasks requiring cognitive control. Here, we sought to extend this research by examining the relationship between HC use and college-aged women's perseverance (i.e., time spent) and performance on tasks requiring cognitive control. Across two studies, we find that, compared to naturally-cycling women, women using HCs display less perseverance on both simple (i.e., a spot-the-difference game) and challenging (i.e., Graduate Record Examination quantitative problems) tasks. Moreover, these differences in perseverance were found to predict performance decrements across tasks, with women taking HCs performing worse because they spent less time on the tasks. By demonstrating how HC use may influence perseverance and thereby performance, these results contribute to a growing body of research examining the unintended implications of HC use on cognition, learning, and memory.
Topics: Adaptation, Psychological; Adult; Brain; Cognition; Contraceptives, Oral, Hormonal; Executive Function; Female; Humans; Problem Solving; Psychometrics; Psychomotor Performance; Resilience, Psychological; Self Concept; Self-Control; Young Adult
PubMed: 31812533
DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2019.104652 -
Human Movement Science Feb 2021The effects of slow-motion and real time video speed demonstration, under mixed-modeling conditions (skilled model plus self-observation), were examined to identify...
The effects of slow-motion and real time video speed demonstration, under mixed-modeling conditions (skilled model plus self-observation), were examined to identify whether there was an optimal demonstration speed, or combination thereof, for learning the dance pirouette en dehors skill. Fifty-one participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups with different video demonstration speeds: (1) slow-motion, (2) real-time, or (3) a combination of slow-motion and real-time. Following a pre-test, participants completed eight blocks of nine training trials (comprised of five physical and four observational practice trials). Physical performance and cognitive representation assessments revealed that participants' scores significantly improved for both assessments throughout acquisition (p's < 0.05), as well as from pre- to post-test (p's < 0.001), indicating learning of the skill. There were no significant differences, however, between the three experimental groups. These findings suggest that both real-time and slow-motion video demonstration, or their combined presentation, do not yield differences in motor learning outcomes related to the pirouette en dehors.
Topics: Adult; Cognition; Dancing; Female; Humans; Learning; Male; Motor Skills; Movement; Psychomotor Performance; Young Adult
PubMed: 33421652
DOI: 10.1016/j.humov.2020.102749 -
Psychonomic Bulletin & Review Dec 2023We aimed to better understand the link between vocalization and grasping. We especially test whether neurocognitive processes underlying this interaction are not...
We aimed to better understand the link between vocalization and grasping. We especially test whether neurocognitive processes underlying this interaction are not grasping specific. To test this hypothesis, we used the procedure of a previous experiment, showing that silently reading the syllable KA and TI can facilitate power- and precision-grip responses, respectively. In our experiment, the participants have to silently read the syllable KA or TI but, according to the color of the syllables, have merely to press a large or small switch (we removed the grasping component of responses). Responses on the large switch were faster when the syllable KA was read compared with TI and conversely for the responses carried out on the small switch. This result supports that the influence of vocalization is not restricted to grasping responses, and, in addition, it supports an alternative, non-grasping-specific model of interactions between vocalization and grasping.
Topics: Humans; Hand Strength; Psychomotor Performance
PubMed: 37227672
DOI: 10.3758/s13423-023-02307-0