A visual representation and the control of manual aiming movements.
Three experiments were conducted to determine if a representation of the movement environment is functional in the organization and control of limb movements, when direct visual contact with the environment is prevented. In Experiment 1, a visual rearrangement procedure was employed to show that a representation of the environment that provides inaccurate information about the spatial location of a target can disrupt manual target aiming. In Experiment 2, we demonstrated that spatial information about the position of a target can be destroyed by a visual pattern mask, supporting our claim that the representation is visual. A target-cuing procedure was used in Experiment 3 to show that representation of target position can be useful for premovement organization in a target-aiming task. Together our findings suggest that a short-lived visual representation of the movement environment may serve a useful role in the organization and control of limb movements.
Elliott
D
D
Motor Behavior Laboratory, McMaster University, School of Physical Education and Athletics, Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4K1, Canada.
Calvert
R
R
Jaeger
M
M
Jones
R
R