The role of attention in motor control and learning
Section snippets
Attentional demand on acquisition of motor skills
To learn a new motor skill like a tennis serve, we monitor performance to detect and evaluate movement errors, and also identify key transformations that map sensory experience to update internal models for future use [9]. In such a setting, attention is commonly viewed as a necessary capacity-limited resource that facilitates multiple cognitive functions and resolves competition between these processes [10, 11, 12]. To investigate whether and how attentional demands influence motor skill
Attentional states for motor memory
The studies mentioned thus far demonstrate how allocating attentional resource to a concurrent task interferes with sequence learning, sensorimotor adaptation, and force-field learning [13, 14, 15, 16, 17]; however, these previous studies focused mainly on how divided attention impairs immediate motor performance, thereby not considering how it affects memory formation and retrieval. According to recent work [23,24,25•,26], the success of motor memory retrieval depends on whether participants
Attentional focus and performance outcomes
In addition to considering whether and how to divide attention among several activities, we often need to decide where to engage our attention during motor performance. An intriguing question remains regarding how attentional focus affects movement and performance outcomes: is it better to focus attention on our own movements (i.e. internal focus) or on the effects our movements have on the environment (i.e. external focus)? Here, we discuss practical implications of the locus of attention for
Concluding remarks
Here, we reviewed recent progress made to understand the relation between attention, motor performance, and learning, as well as how these factors affect the success of current performance and the development of long-term motor skills. These findings also highlight important practical implications for designing motor learning programs to be more efficient and generalizable to dynamic, real-world settings. This has direct applications for training drivers, pilots, and athletes, as well as the
Conflict of interest statement
Nothing declared.
References and recommended reading
Papers of particular interest, published within the period of review, have been highlighted as:
• of special interest
•• of outstanding interest
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER BCS-1555006 to J.H.S. We thank Dr. J.D McCarthy for helpful discussion.
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