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Published on: March 4, 2014
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Effect of sensory experience on motor learning strategy
Shou-Han Zhou1, Denny Oetomo1, Ying Tan1
1Melbourne School of Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; and.
Journal of Neurophysiology
|November 28, 2014
Summary
Prior learning experiences shape how the central nervous system adapts to visuomotor coordination challenges. Even in the same environment, previous training with task-relevant cues influences the learning strategy employed for new visuomotor tasks.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Motor Learning
- Cognitive Psychology
Background:
- The central nervous system (CNS) is known to automatically correct mismatches in visuomotor coordination.
- The influence of prior learning experiences and environmental factors on these adaptive strategies remains less understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether prior learning experiences modify the visuomotor adaptation learning strategy.
- To examine the impact of task-relevant versus task-irrelevant visual cues on learning strategies.
Main Methods:
- Two groups of subjects performed reaching arm movements in a novel environment with task-irrelevant visual cues.
- One group possessed prior experience with visuomotor learning using task-relevant visual cues, while the control group did not.
Main Results:
- Significant differences in learning strategies were observed between the two groups, despite facing identical visual environments.
- Prior experience with task-relevant visual cues demonstrably influenced the learning strategy adopted for the new task.
Conclusions:
- Visuomotor adaptation learning strategies are not solely determined by the current environment.
- Previous learning experiences play a crucial role in shaping how the CNS adapts to visuomotor discrepancies.
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