Movement interference during action observation as emergent coordination.
Previous research has demonstrated that when an actor coordinates with spatially incompatible movements of another individual that motor interference occurs-the rhythmic arm movements of the actor exhibit increased movement variability in the plane orthogonal (non-instructed) to the instructed plane of motion. Here we examine whether this motor contagion reflects not error but the spontaneous recruitment of additional task-specific movement degrees of freedom employed to withstand increasing task difficulty. Participants coordinated congruent and incongruent forearm movements with a confederate moving at a fast, moderate, and slow target frequency. Examining the variability in the non-instructed plane revealed oscillatory non-instructed plane movements that were coordinated with the instructed plane movements of the confederate. The results suggest motor interference during incongruent coordination can be understood as an emergent, task-specific property of the coordination goal.
Richardson
Michael J
MJ
Department of Psychology, Colby College, Waterville, ME 04901, USA. mjrichar@colby.edu
Campbell
Walter L
WL
Schmidt
R C
RC
D000293:Adolescent; D001132:Arm / Q000294:innervation / Q000502:physiology*; D001683:Biological Clocks / Q000502:physiology; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007100:Imitative Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000294:innervation / Q000502:physiology; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult