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Results for “bimanual coordination”

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PubMed2001

Spatial interactions during bimanual coordination patterns: the effect of directional compatibility.

Whereas previous bimanual coordination research has predominantly focused on the constraining role of timing, the present study addressed the role of spatial (i.e., directional) constraints during the simultaneous production of equilateral triangles with both upper limbs. In addition to coordination modes in which mirror-image and isodirectional movements were performed (compatible patterns), new modes were tested in which the left limb lagged with respect to the right by one triangle side (non-compatible patterns). This resulted in the experimental manipulation of directional compatibility between the limbs. In addition, triangles with either horizontal or vertical orientations were to be drawn in order to assess the role of static images on movement production. Results supported the important role of directional constraints in bimanual coordination. Furthermore, triangles in vertical orientations (with a vertical symmetry axis, i.e., one apex pointing up) were drawn more successfully than those in horizontal orientations (with a horizontal symmetry axis, i.e., one apex pointing left or right), suggesting that the static aspects of a geometric form may affect movement dynamics. Finally, evidence suggested that cognitive processes related to integration of the submovements into a unified plan mediate the performance of new coordination patterns. The implications of the present finding for clinical populations are discussed

Adult↗

PubMed2003

The effect of volition on the stability of bimanual coordination.

The authors investigated how the intention to passively perform a behavior and the intention to persist with a behavior impact upon the spatial and temporal properties of bimanual coordination. Participants (N = 30) were asked to perform a bimanual coordination task that demanded the continuous rhythmic extension-flexion of the wrists. The frequency of movement was scaled by an auditory metronome beat from 1.5 Hz, increasing to 3.25 Hz in.25-Hz increments. The task was further defined by the requirement that the movements be performed initially in a prescribed pattern of coordination (in-phase or antiphase) while the participants assumed one of two different intentional states: stay with the prescribed pattern should it become unstable or do not intervene should the pattern begin to change. Transitions away from the initially prescribed pattern were observed only in trials conducted in the antiphase mode of coordination. The time at which the antiphase pattern of coordination became unstable was not found to be influenced by the intentional state. In addition, the do-not-intervene set led to a switch to an in-phase pattern of coordination whereas the stay set led to phase wandering. Those findings are discussed within the framework of a dynamic account of bimanual coordination.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Reduced recruitment of motor association areas during bimanual coordination in concert pianists.

Bimanual motor coordination is essential for piano playing. The functional neuronal substrate for high-level bimanual performance achieved by professional pianists is unclear. We compared professional pianists to musically naïve controls while carrying out in-phase (mirror) and anti-phase (parallel) bimanual sequential finger movements during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). This task corresponds to bimanually playing scales practiced daily by pianists from the beginning of piano playing. Musicians and controls showed significantly different functional activation patterns. When comparing performance of parallel movements to rest, musically naïve controls showed stronger activations than did pianists within a network including anterior cingulate cortex, right dorsal premotor cortex, both cerebellar hemispheres, and right basal ganglia. The direct comparison of bimanual parallel to mirror movements between both groups revealed stronger signal increases in controls within mesial premotor cortex (SMA), bilateral cerebellar hemispheres and vermis, bilateral prefrontal cortex, left ventral premotor cortex, right anterior insula, and right basal ganglia. These findings suggest increased efficiency of cortical and subcortical systems for bimanual movement control in musicians. This may be fundamental to achieve high-level motor skills allowing the musician to focus on artistic aspects of musical performance.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Effects of attention on phase transitions between bimanual coordination patterns: a behavioral and cost analysis in humans.

The present study aimed to obtain a behavioral analysis of the effects of attentional focus on the dynamics of phase transitions in bimanual coordination and to evaluate the central cost expended by the central nervous system to maintain and stabilize such coordination patterns before and after the transition. Eight subjects were asked to execute an anti-phase coordination pattern (180 degrees of relative phase), while gradually increasing the frequency of oscillation. The central cost was assessed using a dual-task paradigm associating the bimanual coordination task with a reaction time task. Results showed that: (1) the transition process was significantly altered by focusing attention on the bimanual coordination task; and (2) the cost involved in sustaining the bimanual patterns was determined by their coordination dynamics.

Acoustic Stimulation↗

PubMed2001

Changes in interhemispheric transfer rate and the development of bimanual coordination during childhood.

In this study, we investigated the effect of the development of interhemispheric communication on age-related change in bimanual coordination. Interhemispheric communication was assessed by comparing the latency of a manual response to a visual stimulus when the hemisphere perceiving the stimulus and the hemisphere controlling the manual response were the same (uncrossed condition) to the latency when they were different (crossed condition). In the first experiment (5- to 10-year-old children) we used a two-choice response-time task, and in the second experiment (3- to 7-year-old children) we used a simple response-time task. In both studies, bimanual coordination was tested on a line-drawing task, and we compared performance on mirror and parallel movements. The crossed-uncrossed difference decreased with age in both experiments. When estimated on the simple response-time task, the crossed-uncrossed difference was related to the difference in performance between mirror and parallel movements on the bimanual task. Thus, improved interhemispheric communication contributes to progress in bimanual coordination, especially that which requires resisting the attraction of mirror movements in order to rotate both hands with parallel movements.

Age Factors↗

PubMed2007

Postural context alters the stability of bimanual coordination by modulating the crossed excitability of corticospinal pathways.

The tendency for movements of the upper limbs to be drawn systematically toward one another and to follow similar spatiotemporal trajectories is well known. Although suppression of this tendency is integral to tasks of daily living, its exploitation may prove to be critical in the rehabilitation of acquired hemiplegias. In general, however, the task-related factors that determine the degree of coupling between the upper limbs and the mechanisms that mediate bilateral interactions between neural pathways projecting to the muscles of the arm and hand are not yet well understood. We present evidence that the postural context in which human participants perform upper limb movements determines the relative stability of patterns of bimanual coordination. Manipulation of the axes of rotation of forearm movements reversed the relative stability of simultaneous and alternating patterns of bimanual coordination. Transcranial magnetic stimulation of motor cortex revealed that these manipulations of postural context altered the crossed modulation of excitability in corticospinal pathways that arises from movement of the opposite limb. Furthermore, modulation of responses to electrical stimulation of the cervicomedullary junction indicated that crossed modulation was also expressed at the level of the spinal motoneurons. Our data support the view that crossed modulation of excitability in corticospinal pathways mediates the stability of bimanual coordination. Furthermore, task-related factors that are sufficient to give rise to changes in the stability of bimanual coordination are accompanied by crossed modulation of excitability at multiple levels of the neuraxis, indicative of a failure of inhibitory control.

Adult↗

PubMed1998

Connecting cortical and behavioral dynamics: bimanual coordination.

For the paradigmatic case of bimanual coordination, we review levels of organization of behavioral dynamics and present a description in terms of modes of behavior. We briefly review a recently developed model of spatiotemporal brain activity that is based on short- and long-range connectivity of neural ensembles. This model is specified for the case of motor and sensorimotor units embedded in the neural sheet. Focusing on the cortical left-right symmetry, we derive a bimodal description of the brain activity that is connected to behavioral dynamics. We make predictions of global features of brain dynamics during coordination tasks and test these against experimental magnetoencephalogram (MEG) results. A key feature of our approach is that phenomenological laws at the behavioral level can be connected to a field-theoretical description of cortical dynamics.

Brain↗

PubMed2004

Cerebellar and premotor function in bimanual coordination: parametric neural responses to spatiotemporal complexity and cycling frequency.

In the present functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, we assessed the neural network governing bimanual coordination during manipulations of spatiotemporal complexity and cycling frequency. A parametric analysis was applied to determine the effects of each of both factors as well as their interaction. Subjects performed four different cyclical movement tasks of increasing spatiotemporal complexity (i.e., unimanual left-right hand movements, bimanual in-phase movements, bimanual anti-phase movements, and bimanual 90 degrees out-of-phase movements) across four frequency levels (0.9, 1.2, 1.5, and 1.8 Hz). Results showed that, within the network involved in bimanual coordination, functional subcircuits could be distinguished: Activation in the supplementary motor area, superior parietal cortex (SPS), and thalamic VPL Nc was mainly correlated with increasing spatiotemporal complexity of the limb movements, suggesting that these areas are involved in higher-order movement control. By contrast, activation within the primary motor cortex, cingulate motor cortex (CMC), globus pallidus, and thalamic VLo Nc correlated mainly with movement frequency, indicating that these areas play an important role during movement execution. Interestingly, the cerebellum and the dorsal premotor cortex were identified as the principal regions responding to manipulation of both parameters and exhibiting clear interaction effects. Therefore, it is concluded that both areas represent critical sites for the control of bimanual coordination.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Unraveling interlimb interactions underlying bimanual coordination.

Three sources of interlimb interactions have been postulated to underlie the stability characteristics of bimanual coordination but have never been evaluated in conjunction: integrated timing of feedforward control signals, phase entrainment by contralateral afference, and timing corrections based on the perceived error of relative phase. In this study, the relative contributions of these interactions were discerned through systematic comparisons of five tasks involving rhythmic flexion-extension movements about the wrist, performed bimanually (in-phase and antiphase coordination) or unimanually with or without comparable passive movements of the contralateral hand. The main findings were the following. 1) Contralateral passive movements during unimanual active movements induced phase entrainment to interlimb phasing of either 0 degrees (in-phase) or 180 degrees (antiphase). 2) Entrainment strength increased with the passive movements' amplitude, but was similar for in-phase and antiphase movements. 3) Coordination of unimanual active movements with passive movements of the contralateral hand (kinesthetic tracking) was characterized by similar bilateral EMG activity as observed in active bimanual coordination. 4) During kinesthetic tracking the timing of the movements of the active hand was modulated by afference-based error corrections, which were more pronounced during in-phase coordination. 5) Indications of in-phase coordination being more stable than antiphase coordination were most prominent during active bimanual coordination and marginal during kinesthetic tracking. Together the results indicated that phase entrainment by contralateral afference contributed equally to the stability of in-phase and antiphase coordination, and that differential stability of these patterns depended predominantly on integrated timing of feedforward signals, with only a minor role for afference-based error corrections.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2001

Learning of a new bimanual coordination pattern is governed by three distinct processes.

Learning of a new bimanual coordination pattern was investigated by practicing rhythmical arm movements with a required relative phase of phi=90 degrees. To quantify the learning process, we determined the mean and the standard deviation of the relative phase, and the switching time from a well-established coordination pattern to the to-be-learned pattern. We then calculated for each parameter the time constant of improvement. We found that with practice, all three parameter improved but each following a significantly different time-course. We therefore conclude that the learning of a new bimanual coordination pattern is governed by three separate processes, which can be visualized in a potential landscape of the intrinsic dynamics as distinct topographical features--namely, the location, depth, and steepness of the attractor basin.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1995

Hand preferences for a coordinated bimanual task in 110 chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): cross-sectional analysis.

Hand preference for a coordinated bimanual task was assessed in a sample of 110 chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Subjects were presented with opaque tubes, the inside of which was coated with peanut butter. The hand and finger used to extract the peanut butter was recorded in 2 test sessions. A population right-hand bias was found. Juvenile and adolescent subjects were less lateralized than adults. All subjects primarily used their index finger to extract peanut butter. Use of the index finger was higher in adults and adolescents compared with juveniles. The results suggest that coordinated bimanual tasks (a) elicit strong hand preferences at the individual level and (b) elicit population level right-handedness.

Age Factors↗

PubMed2006

Development of hand-arm bimanual intensive training (HABIT) for improving bimanual coordination in children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy.

Constraint-induced (CI) movement therapy is a physical intervention that has been receiving increasing attention in pediatric rehabilitation. So far, the evidence suggests that practice associated with CI therapy may improve impaired unimanual hand function in some children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy (CP). However, CI therapy has several important limitations. Most importantly, children with hemiplegia have impairments in bimanual coordination beyond their unilateral impairments. Thus, an intervention approach to increase functional independence during activities of daily living by using both hands in cooperation is needed. Here we briefly review the etiology of hemiplegic CP, describe studies of pediatric CI therapy efficacy in relation to the etiology, discuss the conceptual and practical limitations of CI therapy for this population, and describe bimanual coordination impairments in children with hemiplegia. Finally, we introduce a new intervention for children with hemiplegia, hand-arm bimanual intensive training (HABIT), to address the limitations of CI therapy and to improve bimanual coordination. HABIT retains the two major elements of pediatric CI therapy (intensive structured practice and child-friendliness). The proposed methodology demonstrates that extensive targeted practice can be provided in a child-friendly manner without using a physical restraint, although the efficacy of such an approach remains to be determined.

Arm↗

PubMed2004

Bimanual coordination in alcohol-exposed children: role of the corpus callosum.

The corpus callosum (CC) is one of several brain structures affected in children prenatally exposed to alcohol. This structure plays a major role in coordinating motor activity from opposite sides of the body, and deficits in bimanual coordination have been documented in individuals with agenesis of or damage to the CC, particularly when the task is performed without visual feedback. The Bimanual Coordination Test was used to assess speed and accuracy on a task where both hands must coordinate to guide a cursor through angled pathways providing measures of interhemispheric interaction or the ability of the two hemispheres to coordinate activity via the corpus callosum. Twenty-one children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) and 17 non-exposed control children (CON), matched closely in age, sex, and ethnicity were tested. For trials with visual feedback (WV), children with FASD were slower than CON children but were equally accurate. Although statistically significant group differences were not observed on most trials completed without visual feedback (WOV), accuracy of the FASD group on WOV trials was highly variable. Group differences in accuracy on WOV angles approached significance after accounting for performance on the WV angles, and children with FASD were significantly less accurate on an individual angle believed to be particularly sensitive to interhemispheric interaction. These results indicate that children with FASD are slower than CON children but equally accurate on basic visuomotor tasks. However, as task complexity and reliance on interhemispheric interaction increases, children with FASD demonstrate variable and inaccurate performance.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

The use of (symmetry) group theory as a predictive tool for studying bimanual coordination.

Symmetry groups-rules that connect different configurations of a given set of components-represent a compact means of coding for effects, a feature that is desirable in both model- and theory-building. The present study was designed to compare the effects of spatial orientation differences with the various other asymmetries (e.g., timing differences, handedness preferences, the direction of attention) that are accommodated by current models of bimanual coordination. The authors used symmetry groups to predict specific patterns of results. In 2 experiments, participants (N = 13, Experiment 1; N = 9, Experiment 2) coordinated the movements of differently oriented (1 downward and 1 upward) pendulum pairs at a low (0.62 Hz) or high (0.82 Hz) movement frequency to establish an in-phase or antiphase pattern. Consistent with previous results (P. G. Amazeen, E. L. Amazeen, & M. T. Turvey, 1998a), the downward-oriented pendulum tended to lead slightly. In contrast to the effects of other bimanual asymmetries, the downward-oriented pendulum lead was amplified at low frequencies. Although the results contradicted the predictions of existing models of bimanual coordination, they were consistent with predictions from symmetry group theory. In the discussion, the authors focus on the application of symmetry groups to both bimanual coordination and other phenomena with more complex symmetric structures.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Perceptual and motor contributions to bimanual coordination.

Following earlier work by Mechsner et al. (Nature 414 (2001) 69), the purpose of this experiment was to determine the perceptual and motoric contributions to bimanual coordination. Twenty right-handed, healthy, young adults performed continuous, horizontal, linear movements of both upper limbs at frequencies of 1.5 and 2.0 Hz. The goal was to control the spatial-temporal displacement of two flags by coordinating upper limb movements in two perceptual conditions. In a congruent condition, the movement of the flags matched the movement of the upper limbs. In an incongruent condition, the movement of the flags was opposite to the movement of the upper limbs. Measures of error in coordination provided support primarily for a motor view of bimanual coordination, and failed to replicate the earlier findings of Mechsner et al.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Normal development of bimanual coordination: visuomotor and interhemispheric contributions.

The corpus callosum is one of the last cortical pathways to develop, continuing to myelinate through the end of the first decade of life. However, the functional consequences of this late development are not entirely known. The importance of callosal development for bimanual motor coordination is suggested by the fact that bimanual coordination in younger children is similar to that of persons with commissurotomy or callosal agenesis. This study focused on the development of bimanual coordination in 67 normally developing children between 6 and 15 years of age using the computerized Bimanual Coordination Test (cBCT). Results indicated that right- and left-hand unimanual motor speed was significantly correlated with age (r = -.26 and -.44, respectively). Age was also significantly associated with accuracy of performance on trials demanding both symmetric (r = -.46) and asymmetric (r = -.50) bi-manual responding. The correlation with asymmetric bimanual responding (requiring greater interhand coordination) remained significant when covarying performance on symmetric response trials. Accuracy on asymmetric bimanual trials requiring greater left- than right-hand speed accounted for the largest portion of this unique, age-related variance. Thus, cBCT performance reveals child development in motor speed and visuomotor processing, as well as the unique contributions of interhemispheric interactions to bimanually coordinated motor activity.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2001

The use of bouts and frequencies in the evaluation of hand preferences for a coordinated bimanual task in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): an empirical study comparing two different indices of laterality.

Hand preferences for a coordinated bimanual task were assessed in 109 chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Hand preference was evaluated for 4 test sessions using bouts and frequencies of hand use to compare the sensitivity of each level of analysis in evaluating individual variation in handedness. Overall, significant population-level right-handedness was found using several different measures of hand use. Handedness indices based on bouts and frequencies were highly and significantly correlated. Moreover, hand preferences were consistent across tests despite efforts to situationally bias preference during each test. Taken together, these data do not support the view that bouts are a better level of analysis for evaluating hand preference. The results further suggest that hand preferences for coordinated bimanual actions are not influenced by situational factors and may reflect an inherent specialization of the left hemisphere for motor skill.

Animals↗

PubMed2006

Neural correlates of performance trade-offs and dual-task interference in bimanual coordination: an ERP investigation.

Previous behavioural studies have provided a framework for understanding coordination dynamics using traditional dual-task methodology. The central cost associated with stabilising bimanual coordination patterns has been inferred from performance trade-offs during the concurrent performance of a probe reaction time (RT) task. The present study aimed to provide a direct measure of central cost by assessing electrophysiological correlates of performance trade-offs under dual-task conditions. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded from 16 participants while an anti-phase bimanual coordination task and a visual three-stimulus task were performed under single task conditions and under dual-task conditions in which either task was prioritised. The visual task required a foot response to low probability target stimuli, while low probability distracter and high probability standard stimuli were ignored. Consistent with previous research, there was a performance trade-off between pattern stability and RT to visual targets when the coordination task was prioritised relative to when the visual task was prioritised. This was accompanied by a significant reduction in central P3a amplitude elicited by distracter stimuli and parietal P3b amplitude elicited by target stimuli. These findings indicate that prioritisation and thus stabilisation of the motor task reduced the amount of central/perceptual and automatic attentional resources available to perform the visual task providing insight into CNS mechanisms that constrain the coordination of movement through the allocation of attentional resources.

Adolescent↗