Ch. 16: Application of Motor Control and Motor Learning

t/f: simple motor tasks require a high degree of attention and are generally more engaging

false

Children with motor deficits, such as children with sensory integrative dysfunction or DCD, may have difficulty with-

flexible movements which results in timing and sequencing deficits, poor postural control, slow reaction time responses, and/or difficulty with sensory-perceptual function

Postural control should be examined in-

stationary and dynamic movement tasks

what does motor learning refer to?

strategies and techniques used to teach others how to move; process, conditions, and rate in which a person learns motor skills.

Physical appearance includes-

symmetry between the right and left sides of the body, muscular structures (including range of motion), and physical stature

what does perception refer to?

the ability to make sense of sensory stimuli and involves cognition and sensory awareness.

Flexibility refers to-

the ability to transfer strategies from familiar situations into new ones or transfer skills from one context to the another.

Body awareness is defined as-

the ability to visually discriminate, recognize, and identify labels for various aspects of the body's physical and motor dimensions.

Temporal aspects include-

the developmental stage of the child.

Agency refers to-

the discovery in early childhood of the ability to control aspects of an event through one's own action.

Personal contexts include-

the features of the child that promote or inhibit movement.

Body image refers to-

the image one has of oneself as a physical entity; it includes the perception that one has of the body's physical or structural characteristics and of one's physical performance abilities.

t/f: expectation of OT intervention is that the child performs movements in a variety of ways versus repeating and learning one pattern of movement.

true

what are the principles of Ecological Theory?

1. Children are sensitive to and perceive information that are natural and embedded within their environments. 2. Goals are externally and internally motivated and motor actions are geared to serve these goals. 3. Motor actions are guided by perception-action information. 4. For goal directed actions to be successful, children must perceive accurately or with close approximation their possibilities for actions; that is known as affordances. 5. An affordance is the fit between a person's physical capabilities or constraints and the properties of the environment that make an action possible. For example, a staicase is climable for a child if their body biomechanics (i.e., step length, balance, range of motion) and stamina alow for them to climb each step. 6. At any given moment children must select their actions and decide how to carry them out. For successful results, these processes occur simultaneously to accommodate rapid changes in the environment. This interactive process is supported by environments that provide opportunities and resources to facilitate specific responses and increase possibilities for action. 7. The interaction between children and their environments involves active perception. Rather than solely seeking information, perception requires a series of learning. According to Gibson (1997) two types of action, exploratory and performatory, are guided by perceptual content. Exploratory action refers to searching for information within the world and performatory action refers to controlling aspects of the environment by executing actions. 8. Learning involves the functional analysis of what is available in the environment to be perceived and learned such as the characteristic features of objects and environments and affordances (that is, opportunities for action). 9. Perceptual information and ultimately learning is a result of events. Children detect distinctive features of objects, events, and environments. For example, they compare and contrast their actions based on task demands. Children select and seek information to guide their actions and reduce uncertainty with the tasks, events, and the environment. For example, when reaching for an object at a certain distance they test whether their balance control can support them in retrieving the object safely. 10. Children use exploratory movements to seek information (i.e., haptic, visual, kinesthetic, etc.) so that they can plan their motor actions. These exploratory movements can be simple or complex (i.e., involving one or two body extremities) and can be extended to using tools (i.e., trying using a hammer up in the air before using it). Children seek experiences to practice what they learn from each task to multiple contexts.

The general principles of motor control approaches based on dynamic system and ecological theories along with occupational therapy philosophy include:

1. Movement is a result of an interaction among systems (person, occupation, environment). 2. There is variability within the systems. § • Systems are adaptable, and flexible. § • Lack of adaptability and environmental constraints leads to motor dysfunction. § • Task modifications and adaptations may change the child's ability to engage in desired occupations. ○ 3. The process of motor learning includes the importance of engagement in meaningful activities within a supportive environment which allows the child to problem solve.

what are the principles of Dynamic Systems Theory?

1. The interaction among systems is essential to adaptive control of movement; 2. Motor performance results from an interaction between adaptable and flexible systems; 3. Dysfunction occurs when movement patterns lack sufficient adaptability to accommodate task demands and environmental constraints; 4. Because task characteristics influence motor requirements, therapists modify and adapt the requirements and affordances of tasks to help children succeed; 5. Motor actions have common parameters (order and control parameters) that helps occupational therapists identify them; - Order parameters define the main components that characterize a specific movement and make it different from other movements (i.e., reaching vs. grasping). These parameters allow for a coordinated pattern to be formed and for frequent movements to become fluent and reproducible; - Control parameters influence the quality of a motor pattern. They influence the stability of an order parameter (i.e., speed, force, etc.) and help occupational therapists identify whether a movement is of adequate quality to support the intended actions. Occupational therapists address this variable to improve the quality of a motor pattern; 6. Shift from one behavioral pattern to a new behavioral pattern is a result of perturbation; 7. A new movement pattern emerges when the system experiences a change in a "control parameter" (such as speed, accuracy, or force).

A variety of assessments are available to measure musculoskeletal factors influencing movement, such as

Peabody Developmental Motor Scales-2, Pediatric Balance Scale, and Movement Achievement Battery for Children (M-ABC).

what are two assessments that provide observational assessments to measure interest, motivation, and approach toward activity (play)?

Pediatric Volitional Questionnaire and the Test of Playfulness

Cognition factors include-

a child's attention, motivation, problem-solving, and self-efficacy.

Facilitating a child away from an attractor state is often referred to as a perturbation—

a force that alters the movement pattern.

To demonstrate postural control,

a person maintains the center of mass over the base of support

Emotion is-

a psychological state that may affect motor performance.

what kind of occupations are impacted by motor problems?

activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, play, academics, and social events at home, school, and in the community.

Meaning is derived from-

an individual's experience and viewpoint; thus occupational therapists involve the child in selecting and designing the activity.

Movement is a result of

an interaction among many systems (i.e., person, occupation, and environment).

Depth perception refers to-

an understanding of how far apart things are.

OTs examine personal factors using knowledge of

biomechanics, neurology, and kinesiology to identify areas that may be interfering with motor performance.

development of the concept of the physical self involves at least three major components:

body schema, body image, and body awareness

what kind of conditions are associated with movement deficits?

cerebral palsy (CP), DCD, autism spectrum disorder, Down syndrome, sensory integration disorders, and acquired brain injury.

Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) refers to-

children whose acquisition and execution of motor skills is substantially below that expected for their chronologic age and opportunity for skill learning and use. Difficulties are manifested as clumsiness, slowness, and inaccuracy of performance of motor skills.

Dynamic systems theorists use the term attractor state to-

describe the tendency to stay in the patterns of the status quo, preferred state, or the state requiring the fewest degrees of freedom to maintain

Children with CP exhibit-

difficulty with postural control because of neuromuscular and sensory impairments, which leads to motor deficits; Abnormal muscle tone and spasticity interfere with voluntary muscle control and the effective and timely coactivation of muscles to produce coordinated movement patterns; sensory impairments that may result in poor motor planning and slower and less efficient movements

Children with hypertonicity exhibit-

excessive muscle tone, resulting in limited movements; those with hypotonicity exhibit low muscle tone, which results in extreme range of movement and limited control over movement.

The principles of motor control are supported in interprofessional research including

exercise science, exercise physiology, kinesiology, physical therapy, physical education athletic training, and psychology.

Part-task training creates conditions for learning a plan through a process of-

exploration (gathering information), agency (the child problem solves the task) and perceiving affordances (able to learn what possibilities for action are possible).

t/f: Children are less motivated to engage in difficult motor skills if they find the activity important and fun and if they believe they can be successful clinicians use tasks with high object affordance to promote optimal motor performance.

false

t/f: Children with poor body awareness may not bump into objects; they do not have an internal representation of their body in space.

false

t/f: Overall, learning the whole motor task is not effective and unmotivating than learning only a part of the movement

false

t/f: Part-task training cannot be an effective way to enhance learning, especially in motor tasks that require multiple steps (sequential tasks) that can be difficult to plan and execute and at the initial stages of learning a complex movement.

false

t/f: Understanding a child's motivation or interests does not help the occupational therapists design fun and inviting activities to promote effective motor performance.

false

t/f: children may not have difficulty performing at their best when they are experiencing negative emotions (such as anxiety or fear).

false

t/f: closed tasks involve supporting surfaces, objects, or people in the environment that are in motion.

false

t/f: complex tasks require minimal attention and brief motor responses.

false

t/f: external aspects of body awareness (e.g., reflective self-awareness, laterality, sensory dominance, body part identification, right-left discrimination) tend to develop slightly in advance of external components

false

t/f: internal aspects (e.g., directionality, spatial orientation) are associated with development and awareness of the relationship of the body to the environment.

false

t/f: open tasks involve objects, people, and terrain that are stationary; the learner decides the start and finish.

false

The Child Occupational Self-Assessment provides a measure to-

help the child identify activities in which he or she would like to engage.

what does motor control refer to?

how the body directs movement and how the musculoskeletal system interacts to carry out movements; addresses how the CNS organizes movement, how we quantify movement, and the nature of movement, including quality and timing of movement.

Tactile processing provides children with-

information about the environment through direct body contact.

what are some evidence-based interventions that utilize a combination of whole-task and part-task training for designing activities to learn motor skills?

intensive bimanual therapy, Hand Arm Bimanual Intensive Training (HABIT), and Constraint Induced Movement Therapy (CIMT)

Typical muscle tone allows movement-

into and out of positions with ease, fluidity of movement, and variety in movement.

what is the Test of Environmental Supportiveness?

measures the influence of the environment on play and can provide occupational therapists with a structure when analyzing the play environment

Cultural expectations may influence-

motor actions.

Virtual contexts include-

motor interactions with a computer screen.

Visual stimuli motivates children to-

move and provides cues from the environment for balance, positioning, and motor planning.

Engaging in a whole activity (occupation) facilitates-

multiple systems and interactions required for effective movement

what is body schema?

neural substrate for body awareness.

Self-efficacy refers to

one's belief in his or her abilities

Posture refers to

one's core stability and involves the trunk and neck musculature.

what kind of motor problems are there?

poor coordination, timing, sequencing, bimanual control, force production, balance, sensory processing, and motor planning.

children with autism spectrum disorder fall into two areas:

poor integration of information for motor planning and increased variability in sensory inputs and motor output

poor kinesthetic or proprioceptive perception can result in-

poor quality of movement and inefficient motor control.

Children with Down syndrome experience-

poor timing, decreased strength, decreased postural control, and delayed visual orientation.

Degrees of freedom are defined as

possible planes of motion in the joints controlled by the musculoskeletal and CNS

Children with CP, DCD, or other movement difficulties may have difficulty with-

postural control and exhibit awkward movements or inadequate balance

Prospectivity is the-

predictive component of actions.

Auditory input may motivate children to-

respond and explore the environment by turning and locating the source of the noise.

Muscle tone refers to

resting state of the muscle, during which, the muscle is in partial contraction that is maintained at least in part by a continuous bombardment of motor impulses originating reflexly, and serves to maintain body posture

Vestibular processing allows the child to-

sense changes in movement or position that allow the body to respond.

Kinesthetic awareness allows children to-

sense that the body is in motion, whereas proprioception provides a sense of the position of one's muscles and joints.

Part-task training refers to-

shaping the child's ability so that they may perform a task.

Children with DCD experienced-

slower reaction times, less accuracy in bimanual tasks, and timing and sequencing problems; difficulty with anticipatory movement, rhythmic coordination, executive function (e.g., set shifting, attention, flexibility), gait and postural control, catching and interceptive action, and aspects of sensory-perceptual function (e.g., visuo-sensory processing, tactile perception, kinesthesia, processing speed).

Task characteristics refer to-

the nature, object properties, goals, and rules.

Ambiguity refers to-

the possibilities for accomplishing the task successfully or not.

affordance refers to

the purposefulness of the object.

Kinesthesia refers to-

the sense and direction that one is moving.

Motor learning literature explores the process of learning, including how kids develop-

their skills and transfer learning to other contexts; type of feedback, type and amount of practice to learn motor skills; and the role of error-based learning, timing, and mental rehearsal.

t/f: A child's participation in motor tasks is influenced by the extent to which he or she can identify his or her own interests and goals and believes he or she will be effective in those motor tasks.

true

t/f: A degree of trunk strength is required to maintain posture.

true

t/f: According to dynamic systems theory, the difficulty planning and executing movement may be changed by altering the degrees of freedom required to accomplish a movement

true

t/f: Activities that are goal directed and involve variability are likely to elicit more learning.

true

t/f: Attention is required to explore the environment and move around objects and through space

true

t/f: Children learn movement best when they are challenged at a level in which success is achievable and they are emotionally ready to engage in problem solving.

true

t/f: Children perform whole tasks more efficiently and with better coordination than when they are asked to perform only a part or component of the movement

true

t/f: Children with DCD showed academic difficulties due to poor handwriting ability, difficulty with performing everyday activities, feeling left out (socially), and thinking differently

true

t/f: Lack of adaptability and environmental constraints (such as barriers in the physical environment) lead to motor dysfunction.

true

t/f: Movement requires an ability to adapt to changes within and between systems; in other words, variability is central to functional movement

true

t/f: Object affordance is a property of an object or an environment that allows an individual to perform an action

true

t/f: Occupational therapists consider the flexibility, adaptability, and interactions within systems when providing intervention and teaching kids strategies to engage in daily occupations

true

t/f: Tasks that are possible and rewarding for the child spark interest and elicit a variety of responses, exploratory strategies, and active seeking of information to be mastered.

true

t/f: The ability to respond in variable ways is a hallmark of functional movement.

true

t/f: The personal aspects such as the child's age, body stature, and neuromotor status interact with the task and environment

true

t/f: Variability is a hallmark of efficient movement.

true

t/f: Varying task constraints can facilitate learning as the child adapts to the variable conditions and problem solves using or modifying existing strategies

true

t/f: Visual perception is required to understand letter formations (visual closure, figure-ground) and identify letters (shape recognition).

true

t/f: Watching the child's expressions during motor performance can provide cues to therapists about the child's emotions and perceived task difficulty.

true

t/f: motor skill deficits in DCD must significantly and persistently interfere with activities of daily living and impact academic/school, productivity, prevocational and vocational activities, leisure, and play.

true

t/f: task needs to be complex enough to challenge the learner, but also possible for the learner to solve, to be able to maximize the process of learning.

true

sensory systems that relate to motor control include-

visual, auditory, vestibular, kinesthesia, proprioception, and tactile.

Strength-

voluntary recruitment of muscle fibers.