Sensory Contributions to Skilled Performance

Sensory contributions to skilled performance

When you have completed this chapter, you should be able to

• Explain the contributions and limitations of a closed-loop control model of human skills
• Understand the various ways that sensory information is used in movement control,
• Discuss the particular roles of vision in movement control, and
• Understand how sensory contributions to action are part of a conceptual model of movement control

Preview

The rugby player watches the ball leave her teammate’s hand. With but a few tenths of a second of viewing time, the player realizes she must turn her back on the ball and cut sharply to her left to catch it. She predicts the ball’s flight correctly, moves her eyes to focus on it, and times the ball’s arrival into her hands. After a few steps, the player is tackled from behind, senses the ball slipping away, and compensates by grasping it with both hands; all the while trying to maintain her balance.

Overview

Skilled performers seem to be able to receive and process vast amounts of information quickly and accurately and to make effective adjustments when necessary. How does just a brief glimpse of the ball tell the rugby player where to run? How does she know when the ball will arrive? How does she receive and process all this information?

In this chapter we focus on some of the many processes that allow performers to detect patterns of information in the environment and then use this information to determine their future actions. More specifically, we discuss how people use sensory information to plan their actions, correct their movement errors , and regulate their performance. First, we address ways in which the neuromuscular system uses sensory information in general, and then we present some of the principles of visual control of movements. Finally, we add sensory these sensory contributions to the conceptual model of human skilled performance.

Success in skilled performance often depends on how effectively the participants detects, perceives, and uses relevant sensory information. Frequently, the successful performer is the one who most quickly detects the pattern of action of an opponent, as in rugby, or the one who senses her own body movements and positions most precisely, as in dance or gymnastics. Many coaches devote considerable practice time to activites they think will improve the speed and accuracy with thich their athletes detect and process relevant sensory information. In another vein, therapists frequently work wth individuals who have impaired or absent sensation involving one or more systems. These helping professionals must understand the ways people process sensory information in order to provide their patients with the most appropriate guidance and compensation activities.