Force and Timing Components of the Motor Program.

Abstract

Three experiments assess the effects of variations of force and time on response latency on both simple and choice reaction time. The first two experiments demonstrate that, while latency does not vary as a function of force, increasing timing demands by requiring that a response be maintained led to increases in reaction time. These results led to the development of a model of motor programming in which force and timing are dissociated as separate components. However, the data also indicated that the force component may be further analyzed into two subcomponents--force activation and force deactivation. The model predicts that the latter subcomponent may be programmed on-line provided sufficient time elapses between the implementation of the two subcomponents. The results of Experiment 3 support this prediction and further validate the proposed model. Keywords: Motor control, programming components.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 15, 1985
Accession Number
ADA157584

Entities

People

  • R. B. Ivry

Organizations

  • University of Oregon

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accuracy
  • Applied Psychology
  • Brain
  • Computer Programming
  • Computers
  • Construction
  • Control Systems
  • Human Factors Engineering
  • Information Processing
  • Measurement
  • Nervous System
  • Physiology
  • Plastic Explosives
  • Psychology
  • Reaction Time
  • Strain Gages
  • Time Intervals

Fields of Study

  • Psychology

Readers

  • Computational Modeling and Simulation
  • Database Systems and Applications
  • Robotics and Automation.