An introduction to

Motor control &

learning
By Raven Schippers
Resources
- Textbook: Magill, RA (2001). Motor Learning,
Concepts and Applications 6th Edition. Boston,
McGraw-Hill, ISBN: 0-07-232936-X

note: It is advised to take every class and class

note. Many materials will not be included in the
textbook. They will come from journals and the
other sources
Definitions

Motor Motor
Motor
control developme
learning
nt

Motor
Motor
performanc
behaviour
e
Motor Control, Learning, Development and Behavior
Motor control
How the nervous system operates to coordinate the contractions of
the muscles, and results in the performance of motor skills

Essentially a form of nervous system coordination

- Motor control measurements are made in units of milliseconds, and

these continue to provide basic research data leading to a better
understanding of the way in which the CNS controls behavior
[Kandel et al. 2000, Shumway-Cook and Woollacott 2001]
- It is based on hours, days, weeks, and months in relation to the
acquisition and retention of a motor skill [Schmidt and Lee 1999].
Motor learning
Motor learning is the relatively permanent change in
motor performance which is a result of practice or
experience and not a result of maturation, motivation or
physical training factors. (Sage, 1984:16)

Other reasons of performance improvements:

- Maturation
- Motivation
- Physical fitness
Originally, the study of motor learning developed from the disciplines of physical education and sports science, but it has now definitely
become an integral part of research in neuroscience [Kandel et al. 2000].
Motor learning…Cont
- Learning is a process of acquiring the capability
for skilled action.
- Learning results from experience or practice.
- Learning cannot be measured directly—instead,
it is inferred on the basis of behaviour.
- Learning produces relatively permanent changes
in behaviour, so that short-term alterations
should not be thought of as motor learning.
Motor learning is a complex process reflecting the
response of the nervous system to a task-specific
activity that emerges from an interaction
between the need to perform the task and the
environment within which the task is being
performed [Candia et al. 2003, Nudo 2003, Ward
et al. 2003].
Difference between motor control
and learning?
Motor control is the study of the way in which humans
control movement that has already been acquired.
Motor learning is the study of how humans acquire,
modify, and retain these memory patterns so that they
can be reused

- The acquisition or modification of a movement, or both,

can be in relation to initial learning (e. g., toilet training
a child) or in relation to repeated acquisition following
an injury (e. g., re-learning bowel and bladder control
following a stroke or head injury).
Motor development
- Motor development refers to the patterns of
change in motor perceptual and cognitive
abilities that occur throughout the life span
that have an influence on the performance of
motor skills
- The primary sources of motor development are
the changes in the body that occur as a result
of physical growth and of aging (maturation) of
the nervous system
Motor performance
Motor performance is a general term that simply refers to the execution
of any motion. A motor performance can be voluntary or involuntary. A
motor skill is a kind of motor performance, but so is a muscular spasm

Motor behaviour
- Motor behavior is a general term that is used in academic
writing to refer to any and all aspects of motor performance
- To study motor behavior is to study how motor learning and
motor development influence motor performance
 Definitions
Motor skill Technique
- A motor skill is a voluntary combination - A technique is the ideal “way of performing”
of movements that are organized to the skill. A technique can be thought of as the
achieve a specific goal. Each movement “form” or “style” used when performing the
is considered to be part of the skill. skill.
- A reflex is not a skill because it is an A skill technique is also referred to as the
involuntary movement biomechanics of a motor skill
- A motor skill is also referred to as an
action Understanding the difference between a
technique and the performance of a skill
is important if you want to help people
Baby walking, a boy catching; Learning to learn and improve their skills
swim etc. Basically, most things we do on a Correct (efficient) technique
daily basis are called motor skills, because Incorrect (inefficient) technique
they are ways of moving the body in order
to accomplish a goal
Some movement skills require many more combinations of movements compared to others
Definitions…cont
Perceptual skill
- A perceptual skill is the ability to use your senses to gather and
understand what is happening:
• In your environment
• Within your body

Perceptual skills are used to gather information and to make

interpretations about what is being experienced
Skill analysis
- Schmidt (1991) stated that movements needed to perform a
skill could be analyzed in terms of three major components:
1. Postural component (head and trunk) – provide a
platform to support the actions. These are the body positions
and body shapes. They are critical to balance
2. Body transport component – include any form of
locomotion that moves the location of the body in space
3. Manipulative component – involve actions that cause
objects or other people to move. Throwing, catching, kicking,
pushing etc
The skill continuum
- There are a large variety of motor skills out there.
- The body likes to organize these skills together to makes things simpler
- The concept of a continuum is the organization of something in an
order that ranges from its simplest extreme to its most complex
extreme
- Skills may be simple or complex
- Each skill requires a certain number of parts, the more parts to a skill,
the more complex it will be
The flow of a skill
The flow of a skill may be discrete or continuous
- A skill that has a definite beginning and end is called a
discrete skill
• Batting in cricket, serving in volleyball, baseball etc
• Discrete skills performed in a prescribed order are called serial skills
• Floor exercises in gymnastics, line dancing etc
- A skill in which the same action is repeated over and over
again with no definitive end is called a continuous skill
• Swimming, running etc
Skill outcome
Closed skill definition
- A closed skill is performed in an environment that is stationary (stable)
- Although a closed skill could be technically very simple or very difficult,
the performer has time to prepare for performances; without having to
worry about sudden changes to the performance e.g Trampoline, golf
swing or dive in swimming

Open skill definition

- An open skill sill is performed in an environment that is moving/dynamic
(dynamic) e.g rugby, soccer or tennis
- Although an open skill could be technically very simple or very difficult,
the performer is pressed for time because the performance is constantly
changing. Decisions have to be made quickly and adjustments will need to
be made during the performance
A systems approach to
understanding motor skill
performance
In taking a systems approach to understanding
motor skill performance, two major systems will
be proposed

1. The person who is performing the skills can

be studied as an information processing
system
2. The environment in which the skills are being
performed can be studied as a kind of system
called the performance context
A systems approach to
understanding motor skill
performance…cont
A. The performer as the B. The performance context as a
information processing system of movement situations
system
The characteristics of a movement
- The information processing
approach allows us to define the
situation can be classified in 2 general
performer in any sport in terms of a types
collection of 5 smaller systems that 1. Movement situations that define the
interact to process the information limitations that you must take into
needed to support motor skill
account when performing skills
performance
(constraints)
1. The process of perception
i. Rules, regulations, boundaries,
2. The process of planning equipment
3. The process of producing actions ii. Your opponent, game situations,
4. The motor control processes lack of skills or fitness
(feedback)
5. The memory process 2. Things that you want to see if possible
(affordances)
 Task I Individual I Environment
Movement
Task
T
T I E

Environme Mobility Cognition Regulatory

Individual
nt
I
E
Non-
Stability Perception
regulatory

Manipulatio
Action
n
The Nervous system…Nervous?

Next Week L2

The Nervous System