Postural Coordination Modes Considered as Emergent Phenomena

The coordination of multiple body segments (torso and legs) in the control of standing posture during a suprapostural task was studied. The analysis was motivated by dynamical theories of motor coordination. In 2 experiments it was found that multisegment postural coordination could be described by...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of experimental psychology. Human perception and performance 1999-10, Vol.25 (5), p.1284-1301
Main Authors: Bardy, Benoît G, Marin, Ludovic, Stoffregen, Thomas A, Bootsma, Reinoud J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Activity levels. Psychomotricity
Adult
Biological and medical sciences
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Head - physiology
Human
Humans
Leg (Anatomy)
Male
Models, Psychological
Motor ability
Motor Coordination
Movement - physiology
Posture
Psychological Theory
Psychology
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Psychomotor activities
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Summary:The coordination of multiple body segments (torso and legs) in the control of standing posture during a suprapostural task was studied. The analysis was motivated by dynamical theories of motor coordination. In 2 experiments it was found that multisegment postural coordination could be described by the relative phase of rotations around the hip and ankle joints. The effective length of the feet, the height of the center of mass, and the amplitude of head motions in a visual tracking task were varied. Across these variations, 2 modes of hip-ankle coordination were observed: in-phase and anti-phase. The emergence of these modes was influenced by constraints imposed by the suprapostural tracking task, supporting the idea that such tasks influence postural control in an adaptive manner. Results are interpreted in terms of a dynamical approach to coordination in which postural coordination modes can be viewed as emergent phenomena.
ISSN:0096-1523
1939-1277
DOI:10.1037/0096-1523.25.5.1284