Adaptation to rotated visual feedback: a re-examination of motor interference

• Published in: Experimental brain research Vol. 154; no. 2; pp. 201 - 210
• Main Authors: MIALL, R. Christopher, JENKINSON, Ned, KULKARNI, Kunal
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin Springer 2004; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adaptation, Physiological - physiology; Adolescent; Adult; Biological and medical sciences; Cues; Feedback, Psychological - physiology; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Humans; Learning - physiology; Male; Memory, Short-Term - physiology; Middle Aged; Motor control and motor pathways. Reflexes. Control centers of vegetative functions. Vestibular system and equilibration; Movement - physiology; Photic Stimulation; Psychomotor Performance - physiology; Rotation; Verbal Behavior - physiology; Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs; Visual Perception - physiology; Human; Manual task; Acquisition process; Consolidation; Memory; Motor consolidation; Short-term memory; Perturbation; Motor learning; Motor control; Rotation; Visuomotor control
• ISSN: 0014-4819; 1432-1106
• DOI: 10.1007/s00221-003-1630-2

We have tested human visuo-motor adaptation in rotated-feedback tasks in which subjects first learn to move a cursor to visual targets with a rotational perturbation between joystick and cursor, and are then challenged with the opposing rotation. We then retest the subjects in the original adaptation task, to measure retention of a short-term memory of its earlier learning. Others have used similar tasks and report retrograde interference between one task and the short-term motor memory of the preceding task, such that later performance is impaired. However, we show that in the short-term conditions tested here, these effects can be considered as anterograde interference effects between the two tasks and we find no evidence of retrograde interference.