The influence of tempo upon the rhythmic motor control in macaque monkeys.
We examined behavioral features of isochronous repetitive movements in two macaques. The monkeys were required to press a button repetitively in response to external cues. If the cue-intervals were constant (isochronous) and sub-second, the reaction time was shorter than in random-interval condition. In contrast, in the supra-second isochronous conditions, the reaction time was not different from random-interval condition. The results suggest that the monkeys can acquire isochronous rhythms if the intervals are sub-second, probably depending on the automatic timing system. However, the conscious timing system for supra-second intervals is not well developed in monkeys, unlike humans.
Cognitive Neuroscience Section, Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Kanrin 41-2, Inuyama City, Aichi 484-8506, Japan. konoike.naho.77s@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp
Naho
N
Konoike
Akichika
A
Mikami
Shigehiro
S
Miyachi
D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D003463:Cues; D008251:Macaca; D010507:Periodicity; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D013997:Time Factors