A mode hypothesis for finger interaction during multi-finger force-production tasks

Finger forces are known to change involuntarily during multi-finger force-production tasks, even when a finger's involvement in a task is not consciously changed (the enslaving effect). Furthermore, during maximal force-production (MVC) tests, the force produced by a given finger in a multi-finger task is smaller than the force generated by this finger in its single-finger MVC test (the force-deficit effect). A set of hypothetical control variables - modes - is introduced. Modes can be estimated based on individual finger forces during single-finger MVC tests. We show that a simple formal model based on modes with only one free parameter accounts for finger forces during a variety of multi-finger MVC tests. The free parameter accounts for the force-deficit effect, and its value depends only on the number of explicitly involved fingers. This approach offers a simple framework for the analysis of finger interaction during multi-finger actions.