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Related Concept Videos

Hierarchy of Motor Control01:18

Hierarchy of Motor Control

The hierarchy of motor control refers to the different levels of organization and processing involved in controlling movement in the body. These levels range from higher cortical areas involved in planning and decision-making to lower spinal cord reflexes that respond automatically to external stimuli.
Direct Motor Pathways01:11

Direct Motor Pathways

The direct motor pathways, also known as the pyramidal tracts, are a group of neural pathways that originate in the brain and descend through the spinal cord. They control the voluntary movement of the body. There are two major direct motor pathways: the corticospinal and the corticobulbar tracts.
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Indirect Motor Pathways01:22

Indirect Motor Pathways

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Methods to Explore the Influence of Top-down Visual Processes on Motor Behavior
09:49

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Published on: April 16, 2014

Hierarchies in action and motor control.

Sebo Uithol1, Iris van Rooij, Harold Bekkering

  • 1Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands. S.Uithol@donders.ru.nl

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience
|February 1, 2012
PubMed
Summary

The study challenges traditional action and control hierarchies in motor system neuroscience. It proposes a new temporal dynamics-based hierarchy for a more coherent explanation of neural control processes.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Neuroscience
  • Motor System Research
  • Computational Neuroscience

Background:

  • Traditional analyses of the motor system posit two hierarchies: action and control.
  • These are assumed to be consistent and complementary in describing neural control.
  • Existing models lack a complete explanation and attention to temporal dynamics.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To critique the limitations of current action and control hierarchy models.
  • To propose an alternative hierarchical organization based on temporal dynamics and causality.
  • To offer a more coherent and complete explanation of neural control processes.

Main Methods:

  • Conceptual analysis of existing hierarchical models in motor control.
  • Exploration of an alternative hierarchy grounded in temporal extension and causality.
  • Theoretical framework development for dynamic, time-based hierarchical organization.

Main Results:

  • Identified logical and conceptual inconsistencies in traditional action and control hierarchies.
  • Demonstrated that existing models inadequately address the dynamics and temporal aspects of neural control.
  • Proposed a novel hierarchy where higher levels represent stable, goal-related information and lower levels represent transient kinematics.

Conclusions:

  • Traditional action and control hierarchies are insufficient and irreconcilable for explaining motor control.
  • A new hierarchical model based on temporal extension and inherent causality offers a more coherent framework.
  • This dynamic hierarchy better accounts for the temporal aspects of neural control processes in the motor system.