Skilled motor performance and working memory in rowers: body patterns and spatial positions

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Motor Control
• Human Movement Science

Background:

• Previous research suggests working memory for external (positional) and body-based (patterned) movements are dissociable.
• These distinctions were primarily shown using unfamiliar laboratory tasks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if the dissociation between positional and patterned working memory holds for well-practiced, everyday motor tasks.
• To examine the specific demands patterned and positional memory tasks place on complex motor skill execution.

Main Methods:

• Experiment 1 replicated previous findings using adapted laboratory tasks.
• Experiment 2 utilized experienced rowers, disrupting their motor task timing with concurrent patterned or positional memory tasks.

Main Results:

• The dissociation between working memory for positional and patterned movements was replicated.
• Concurrent positional memory tasks selectively disrupted the positional elements of the rowing stroke.
• Concurrent patterned memory tasks selectively disrupted the patterned elements of the rowing stroke.

Conclusions:

• Well-practiced, everyday motor tasks involve separate control mechanisms for patterned and positional movement elements.
• These distinct movement elements place separable demands on working memory.
• This supports the idea of dissociable working memory systems underlying complex motor behavior.