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Combined Peripheral Nerve Stimulation and Controllable Pulse Parameter Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation to Probe Sensorimotor Control and Learning

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Using predictive motor control processes in a cognitive task: behavioral and neuroanatomical perspectives.

James Stanley¹, R Christopher Miall

¹School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, UK. j.stanley@bham.ac.uk

Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology

|February 21, 2009

Summary

Executing actions primes cognitive tasks by predicting visual outcomes. This motor-visual priming, involving the superior parietal lobule, enhances visual feedback processing for visually guided tasks.

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Area of Science:

Cognitive Neuroscience
Motor Control
Visual Perception

Background:

Action execution influences cognitive task performance.
Forward modeling predicts the sensory consequences of actions.
Visually guided tasks rely on processing visual feedback.

Purpose of the Study:

To review evidence on the predictive relationship between action execution and cognitive task performance.
To explore the role of forward modeling in processing visual feedback.
To investigate "motor-visual priming" and its neural underpinnings.

Main Methods:

Review of behavioral experiments on action-effect prediction.
Neuroimaging study (fMRI or similar) to identify brain regions involved.
Analysis of cognitive task performance in relation to motor actions.

Main Results:

Action execution, via forward modeling, aids in processing visual stimuli.
Behavioral evidence suggests "motor-visual priming" enhances performance.
Neuroimaging implicates the superior parietal lobule in integrating movement and visual feedback.

Conclusions:

Forward modeling of actions facilitates cognitive tasks by predicting visual outcomes.
The superior parietal lobule is crucial for motor-visual integration.
This predictive system is accessible for cognitive processing and task performance.