Motor Learning Final Exam
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- 1.Shooting a free throw in basketball is an example of an open motor skill.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 2.If a motor skill requires the use of large musculature but does not require precision of movement for successful performance, then the skill would best be classified as a
- A.
Discrete motor skill
- B.
Fine motor skill
- C.
Gross motor skill
- D.
Open motor skill
- 3.What is the difference between “motor ability” and “skill”?
- A.
Motor ability is a personal characteristic; skill is a task
- B.
Motor ability is temporary; skill is enduring
- C.
Not everyone has skill, but everyone has some motor ability
- D.
Skill is temporary; motor ability is enduring
- E.
They mean the same thing
- 4.Research has demonstrated that reaction time (RT) and movement time (MT) are
- A.
Independent motor abilities
- B.
Moderately related motor abilities
- C.
Highly related motor abilities
- D.
None of these
- 5.Returning a serve in tennis is an example of which of the following types of motor skills?
- A.
Self-paced motor skill
- B.
Stationary motor skill
- C.
Closed motor skill
- D.
Open motor skill
- 6.Which type of reaction time situation occurs when there are several signals but only one response is to be made to one signal; and other signals are ignored and no response made?
- A.
Simple RT
- B.
Discrimination RT
- C.
Choice RT
- D.
Serial RT
- 7.Reaction time is the interval of time between which two events?
- A.
Warning signal and stimulus signal
- B.
Stimulus signal and the completion of the response
- C.
Stimulus signal and initiation of the response
- D.
Warning signal and the initiation of the response
- 8.If you measure the distance achieved or the accuracy of a movement, you are measuring:
- A.
Performance production
- B.
Duration
- C.
Reaction time
- D.
Variable time
- E.
Performance outcome
- 9.Measuring error helps indicate movement accuracy and also
- A.
Possible causes of performance problems
- B.
Reaction time
- C.
Movement time
- D.
Coordination
- E.
Referee mistakes
- 10.Which of these is a way to measure performance production?
- A.
Absolute error
- B.
Radar gun
- C.
Stopwatch
- D.
EMG
- E.
FMRI
- 11.In lab 1 we used AE, VE and CE to measure performance in drawing 10cm lines blindfolded. Which of the following would represent a subject who always drew their line short with a high error?
- A.
High AE, Low CE, High VE
- B.
Low AE, High CE, Low VE
- C.
High AE, High CE, Low VE
- D.
Low AE, Low CE, High VE
- 12.The nerve fiber that transmits information from the neuron is known as the
- A.
Axon
- B.
Dendrite
- C.
Synapse
- D.
Myelin
- 13.Parkinson’s disease is the result of a dysfunction of which area of the brain?
- A.
Basal ganglia
- B.
Cerebellum
- C.
Cerebral cortex
- D.
Diencephalons
- 14.The area of the cortex that is commonly considered to be the location for the transition between the perception of sensory information and the resulting action is the
- A.
Sensory cortex
- B.
Association cortex
- C.
Motor cortex
- D.
Sensorimotor complex
- 15.Which of the following areas of the cerebral cortex is primarily responsible for organizing movements before they are initiated?
- A.
Premotor area
- B.
Parietal lobe
- C.
Supplementary motor area
- D.
Primary motor complex
- 16.Which of the following is not a part of a motor unit?
- A.
Muscle fiber
- B.
Dendrite
- C.
Interneuron
- D.
Axon
- E.
Motorneuron
- 17.An important difference between the open- and closed-loop control systems is that the
- A.
Open-loop system involves feedback; the closed-loop system does not.
- B.
Closed-loop system involves movement commands; the open-loop system doesn't
- C.
Open-loop system involves movement commands; the closed-loop system doesn't
- D.
Closed-loop system involves feedback; the open-loop system does not.
- 18.Which of the following types of motor control theories emphasizes the role of a memory representation in the control of coordinated action?
- A.
Dynamic pattern theories
- B.
Motor program theories
- C.
Chaos theories
- D.
All of these
- 19.According to Schmidt’s motor program-based theory of motor control, which of the following would be controlled by the same generalized motor program (GMP)?
- A.
Using either hand to reach for and grasp an object
- B.
Hitting a golf ball and hitting a pitched baseball
- C.
Throwing a ball overhand and underhand
- D.
Walking and running
- 20.A sensory neuropathy involving a limb provides a non-surgical technique for the investigation of deafferented humans.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 21.According to a dynamic pattern view of motor control, skilled action occurs on the basis of action units which
- A.
Act according to motor program commands
- B.
Receive commands from a control executive
- C.
Self organize
- D.
Receive feedback as movement occurs
- 22.Although researchers have reported various findings, the most reasonable estimate of the amount of time required for visual feedback to enable a movement correction during the performance of a simple manual aiming task is
- A.
Between 100 and 160 msec
- B.
Between 500 and 560 msec
- C.
More than 1000 msec
- D.
No time is required; corrections are instantaneous
- 23.Why is binocular vision superior to monocular vision for perceiving distance to objects and the size of objects?
- A.
Central vision is more precise than peripheral vision
- B.
Binoculars improve vision at distances
- C.
Having two views aids depth perception
- D.
Two eyes are better than one
- E.
A and B
- 24.If you want to rapidly move the cursor on your computer screen to an icon, when during the movement of the cursor would you shift your visual point of gaze to the icon?
- A.
Just before the cursor reaches the icon
- B.
Just after the cursor reaches the icon
- C.
As soon as you initiate the cursor movement
- D.
At the same time as you reach the icon
- 25.When you walk across a street, the optical variable tau influences the initiation of your leg movement to step up onto the curb on the basis of the
- A.
Distance you are from the curb
- B.
Amount of time remaining to contact the curb
- C.
Width of the street
- D.
Height of the curb
- 26.Fitts’ Law specifies that performance will show a speed-accuracy trade-off in a rapid manual aiming task according to the relationship between which two characteristics of the task?
- A.
Distance to move and target size
- B.
Distance to move and movement speed
- C.
Target size and type of target
- D.
Target size and movement speed
- 27.In dynamic pattern terminology, an attractor refers to a
- A.
Complex movement
- B.
State of coordination instability
- C.
Movement pattern stable state
- D.
Motor program
- 28.Which of the following is not a potential benefit of motor control theories?
- A.
Create new intervention strategies
- B.
Predict effectiveness of intervention strategies
- C.
Measure movement accuracy in different contexts
- D.
Develop systematic approach to increase skill performance
- 29.Proprioceptors are not found in which of the following?
- A.
Joints
- B.
Bones
- C.
Muscles
- D.
Tendons
- 30.Which of the following techniques that researchers use to study the role of proprioception in motor control does not completely remove proprioceptive feedback but only distorts it?
- A.
Tendon vibration
- B.
Nerve block
- C.
Surgical deafferentation
- D.
Sensory neuropathy
- 31.One of the current views of how we control prehension is that the transport and grasp phases function
- A.
As one unit
- B.
As two motor programs
- C.
Independently
- D.
Synergistically
- 32.Because we can write our signature relatively legibly with a pen held by either hand, either foot, or even by our teeth, researchers often describe handwriting as a good example of Bernstein’s concept of motor
- A.
Complexity
- B.
Programs
- C.
Equivalence
- D.
Independence
- 33.The playing of a guitar is a good example of performing
- A.
A symmetric bimanual skill
- B.
A prehension skill
- C.
A manual aiming skill
- D.
An asymmetric bimanual skill
- 34.The reason we have difficulty tapping our heads and rubbing our stomachs at the same time with our two hands is that our motor control system is organized in such a way that our two hands prefer to move in the same way at the same time.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 35.The most common performance measure used for inferring the amount of time required for action preparation is
- A.
Movement time
- B.
Reaction time
- C.
Motor time
- D.
Response time
- 36.Hick’s Law states that reaction time (RT) will increase logarithmically as the
- A.
Number of response choices increases
- B.
Distance required by the movement increases
- C.
Movement complexity increases
- D.
Arousal level of the individual increases
- 37.
- A.
The hand with the ID of 4 will arrive much earlier than the hand with the ID of 2
- B.
The hand with the ID of 2 will arrive much earlier than the hand with the ID of 4
- C.
The preferred hand will arrive first regardless of the ID
- D.
The two hands will arrive at approximately the same time
- 38.If you are standing with your arms at your side, and must move one arm as rapidly as possible to point to a target located at shoulder level in front of you, EMG would show that the muscles you activated first were the
- A.
Agonist arm muscles
- B.
Antagonist arm muscles
- C.
Postural leg muscles
- D.
Arm muscles of the opposite arm
- 39.What does an increase in reaction time (RT) mean?
- A.
Time to start moving is shorter
- B.
Movements are quicker
- C.
Time to start moving is longer
- D.
Movements are slower
- 40.Which of the following will increase reaction time (RT)?
- A.
Movement complexity
- B.
Repetition
- C.
Fewer choices
- D.
Foreperiod regularity
- 41.“Transport”, “grasp”, and “manipulation” are three components of what?
- A.
Impulse-timing
- B.
Prehension
- C.
Motor equivalence
- D.
Dynamic pattern theory
- E.
Bimanual coordination
- 42.According to Fitts’ Law, a person’s movement time will be faster for a task with an ID of 6 than for an ID of 3.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 43.Consider the following performance situation: You are a basketball player guarding an opponent who has the ball. You know that about 80% of the time in this situation the player will move to your right and take a shot. So, you prepare to move in that direction. But, unexpectedly the player moves to your left. Which of the following describes your RT in this situation?
- A.
It is not possible to predict RT without more information about the situation
- B.
RT will be the same as if you had not prepared to move to the right
- C.
RT will be faster than if you had not prepared to move to the right
- D.
RT will be slower than if you had not prepared to move to the right
- 44.Central pattern generators, which are involved in the control of gait, are thought to be located primarily in the brain.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 45.For skills that involve a starting signal and require movement as quickly as possible after this signal (e.g., swimming, sprint), the amount of time between the warning and start signal should be
- A.
The same for every start
- B.
Varied for every start
- C.
As constant as possible for every start
- D.
As short as possible for every start
- 46.Which of the following was not a theory discussed in chapter 9 of how attention affects motor performance?
- A.
Bottleneck theories
- B.
Filter theories
- C.
Multiple resource capacity theories
- D.
Central resource capacity theories
- E.
Dual task theories
- 47.The action effect hypothesis suggests optimal performance results from
- A.
Internal focus of attention
- B.
Increased arousal
- C.
External focus of attention
- D.
Decreased arousal
- 48.Studies comparing experts and novices in motor skill performance show that
- A.
Experts have better visual activity
- B.
Experts focus only on certain aspects of the visual cues
- C.
Experts focus better on all of the visual cues in the environment
- D.
Experts are better at tracking fast-moving objects
- 49.In addition to serving as a temporary storage system, working memory also serves as a
- A.
Procedural knowledge storage location
- B.
Library of information
- C.
Permanent storage system
- D.
Temporary workspace
- 50.If you are asked to demonstrate how you tie your shoes, you would base your demonstration on knowledge stored in long-term memory in the
- A.
Procedural memory system
- B.
Episodic memory system
- C.
Muscle memory system
- D.
Semantic memory system
- 51.In a memory experiment, when information not to be recalled is presented after information to be recalled, the experiment is designed to test the effect of
- A.
Trace decay
- B.
Proactive interference
- C.
Retroactive interference
- D.
Context effects
- 52.The most commonly accepted reason serial discrete motor skills seem to be forgotten more quickly than continuous motor skills is that serial discrete motor skills are
- A.
Largely verbal
- B.
Not attention demanding
- C.
Very complex
- D.
Difficult to perform
- 53.Which of the following describes why verbal labels and visual metaphoric imagery aid the learning of complex motor skill? They
- A.
Direct the performer's attention to the movements to be performed
- B.
Increase the cognitive processing requirement for learning the skill
- C.
Change an abstract array of movements to a more meaningful form
- D.
Reduce the complexity of the skill that needs to be performed
- 54.A recognition test is an example of an implicit memory test.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 55.Telling a beginning golf student that the backswing should stop when the club is pointing at a certain clockface hour is an example of attaching a meaningful verbal label to a movement that must be remembered.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 56.The encoding specificity principle predicts that practicing basketball free-throws as they would be shot in an actual game increases the probability of successful free-throw shooting in a game.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 57.The encoding specificity principle suggests that
- A.
Game-like practice should be used to prepare for best performance
- B.
Skilled performers organize information better
- C.
Visual imagery improves memory
- D.
Telling people what will be tested improves performance
- 58.Which of the following is generally not considered a characteristic of learning?
- A.
Improved consistency
- B.
Improved performance
- C.
Increased persistence
- D.
Improved adaptability
- E.
Increased strength
- 59.Which of the following is not classified as a “performance variable”?
- A.
Anxiety
- B.
Practice
- C.
Alertness
- D.
Fatigue
- E.
Environmental conditions
- 60.Which of the following characteristics of learning best explains the description of the later stages of learning open skills in Gentile’s model?
- A.
Adaptability
- B.
Persistence
- C.
Improvement
- D.
Consistency
- E.
Stability
- 61.Why does negative transfer of learning occur?
- A.
Not enough practice of the original task
- B.
Too much practice of the original task
- C.
A familiar stimulus requires a new response
- D.
Lack of positive transfer feedback during practice
- 62.The identical elements theory for explaining why transfer occurs...
- A.
Applies to positive transfer
- B.
Applies to negative transfer
- C.
Is based on bilateral symmetry
- D.
Has not been supported by research
- 63.Which term is used in the motor learning research literature when referring to an observed behavior?
- A.
Skill
- B.
Performance
- C.
Learning
- D.
Practice
- 64.Which of the following is an essential component of the definition of learning?
- A.
It can be observed during practice
- B.
It can be directly observed
- C.
It results in relatively permanent improvement
- D.
It results in consistently correct performance
- 65.Which type of performance curve shows larger increases in performance during early practice trials than in later trials?
- A.
Negatively accelerating curve
- B.
Positively accelerating curve
- C.
Ogive curve
- D.
Linear curve
- 66.Which method of assessing learning is used when people are required to perform a skill one week after they completed practicing that skill?
- A.
Performance test
- B.
Transfer test
- C.
Retention test
- D.
Practice observation
- 67.If a person is required to perform a practiced skill in a new situation, which method of assessing learning is being used?
- A.
Transfer test
- B.
Retention test
- C.
Practice observation
- D.
Performance test
- 68.If you ask a person to perform a variation of a practiced skill, which method of assessing learning are you using?
- A.
Performance test
- B.
Practice observation
- C.
Retention test
- D.
Transfer test
- 69.If a fatigue condition depresses practice performance but not retention test performance, then fatigue would be called a
- A.
Learning variable
- B.
Performance and learning variable
- C.
Performance variable
- D.
Practice variable
- 70.An important performance characteristic associated with learning is that the person becomes increasingly more capable of adapting performance of the skill to new performance contexts and situations.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 71.Suppose you did an experiment that compared the effect of two practice conditions (A & B) on learning a skill. The results showed that during practice, performance for condition B was better than for A. But, on the transfer test, A was better than B. What should you conclude about which practice condition is better for learning?
- A.
Condition A is better for learning
- B.
Condition B is better for learning
- C.
Neither A nor B is better for learning
- D.
No conclusion about learning is possible
- 72.What term is used when a performance reaches a steady state after showing steady improvement during practice and then begins to show improvement again?
- A.
Ceiling effect
- B.
Floor effect
- C.
Performance plateau
- D.
Steady-state performance
- 73.Practice performance provides a reliable means of determining how well a person will perform in a transfer test situation.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 74.Which of the following is least likely to be evident about a performer from a performance curve?
- A.
Improvement
- B.
Persistence
- C.
Age
- D.
Consistency
- E.
Adaptability
- 75.According to Fitts and Posner, the learner moves through three stages when learning a motor skill. These are the cognitive, the associative, and the
- A.
Verbal
- B.
Autonomous
- C.
Diversified
- D.
Fixated
- 76.Gentile’s learning stages model indicates that in the first stage of learning, the learner must learn to discriminate between which two types of environmental context conditions?
- A.
Regulatory vs. nonregulatory
- B.
Visual vs. verbal
- C.
Real vs. not real
- D.
Environmental vs. internal
- 77.Gentile’s learning stages model indicates that in the second stage of learning, one goal of the learner is related specifically to closed skills. This goal is called
- A.
Diversification
- B.
Relevant
- C.
Irrelevant
- D.
Fixation
- 78.When a person learning handwriting moves the three arm segments as if two of the segments were one, this person demonstrates an early learning characteristic known as
- A.
Freeing degrees of freedom
- B.
Freezing degrees of freedom
- C.
He power law of practice
- D.
Movement specific learning
- 79.Research evidence has shown that learning continues during a performance plateau.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 80.Performing a skill with a minimum expenditure of energy is usually associated with which stage of learning?
- A.
Beginning stage
- B.
Intermediate stage
- C.
Advanced stage
- D.
All stages of learning
- 81.The brain areas that are active during the early stage of learning are typically
- A.
Not the same as the areas active in the later stages of learning
- B.
The same as the areas active in the later stages of learning
- C.
Only those areas associated with cognitive and verbal activity
- D.
The same for the learning of all types of motor skills
- 82.If a novice and highly skilled typist were required to perform a verbal secondary task while typing on a keyboard the novice’s typing performance would be
- A.
Impossible to assess
- B.
More positively influenced than the skilled typist's
- C.
More negatively influenced than the skilled typist’s
- D.
No different from the skilled typist's
- 83.Learners in the later stages of learning typically “freeze degrees of freedom” in their attempt to control the multiple degrees of freedom of a complex motor skill.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 84.Which of the following do transfer tests in motor learning research not involve?
- A.
A different, although related, skill than was practiced
- B.
A novel variation of the practiced skill
- C.
The practiced skill in a new situation
- D.
The practiced skill one day after practice ends
- 85.The general rule of thumb for predicting positive transfer between two motor skills is that the degree of positive transfer is related to the
- A.
Degree of similarity between the parts of the two skills
- B.
Degree of similarity of the performance contexts of the two skills
- C.
Amount of practice on each of the two skills
- D.
Number of component parts of the two skills
- 86.The transfer-appropriate-processing theory accounts for why positive transfer occurs by stating that positive transfer is due to the similarity of the
- A.
Movements of two motor skills
- B.
Cognitive processes required by two motor skills
- C.
Components of two motor skills
- D.
Environmental context characteristics of two motor skills
- 87.The generally accepted view about the direction of bilateral transfer between two limbs is that it is
- A.
Either symmetric or asymmetric, depending on the side dominance of the person
- B.
Either symmetric or asymmetric, the direction is equally distributed among the population
- C.
Asymmetric
- D.
Symmetric
- 88.The motor control explanation for bilateral transfer has been supported by research evidence showing
- A.
EMG activity in the non-performing limb when the opposite limb performs the skill
- B.
EEG activity during practice with one limb
- C.
Kinematic characteristics are similar for performance of the skill by each limb
- D.
The cognitive processing similarity for performing the skill with each limb
- 89.One of the reasons for negative transfer is the initial cognitive confusion that occurs when a person must make a different movement in a familiar environmental context.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 90.When you perform a motor skill with your right arm, activity in the same muscles can be detected in your left arm.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 91.Verbal instructions that direct the performer’s attention to the intended movement outcomes will lead to better learning and performance than instructions that direct attention to the movements used to perform the skill.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 92.A limitation of the contextual interference effect is that it has been demonstrated in laboratory conditions but not in conditions outside the laboratory.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 93.A limitation of the contextual interference effect is that it applies only to beginners and not to more skilled performers of motor skills.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 94.Research has shown that beginners who observe other beginners practicing a skill will perform at a higher level when they begin to perform the skill than the beginners they observed.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 95.To help beginning dancers learn the rhythmic structure of a dance routine, either auditory or visual demonstration will be similarly effective for learning.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 96.Quantitative KR leads to better motor skill learning than qualitative KR.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 97.Concurrent augmented feedback always has negative effects on motor skill learning.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 98.The guideline for implementing practice variability for the learning of open skills is to vary both regulatory and nonregulatory conditions.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 99.Before you determine whether to use a whole or part strategy to practice a skill, it is important to first do a task analysis to assess the complexity and organization characteristics of the skill.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 100.Research has shown that people who practice in a blocked practice schedule tend to overestimate how well they are learning during practice.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 101.Research has shown that the segmentation part-practice strategy will facilitate the learning of a musical score on a piano.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 102.The terms mental practice and meditation can be used interchangeably.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 103.Research has shown that mental practice is effective as a performance preparation strategy but not as an aid to learning a new motor skill.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 104.When mental practice involves visual imagery, it can take the form of internal or external imagery.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 105.Only the brain activity hypothesis is generally accepted as an explanation of the effectiveness of mental practice for motor skill learning and performance.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 106.The Elaboration Hypothesis states that contextual interference improves learning because as learners create new skill variations during random practice they create a more distinct memory representation of the skill.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 107.Bilateral transfer occurred in lab if practice of a mirror tracing task with the preferred arm resulted in performance improvement of the non-preferred arm, which did not practice the task.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 108.Research has demonstrated that mental imagery ability is an individual-difference variable that influences the success of mental practice.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 109.When mental practice trials and physical practice trials are included in practice sessions, skill learning can be as good as when the same number of trials involve only physical practice.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 110.The terms modeling and observational learning often are used interchangeably with the term demonstration when they refer to the learning of motor skills.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 111.If you see where your golf ball goes after you hit it, the visual feedback you receive is known as knowledge of results.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 112.Augmented feedback that tells a beginner those aspects of the performance that were correct can serve a motivational role to encourage the person.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 113.A schedule that organizes the practice of several skill variations in a serial order is an example of a practice schedule that involves a low amount of contextual interference.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 114.Research has shown that beginners who observe other beginners practicing a skill will perform at a higher level when they begin to perform the skill than the beginners they observed.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 115.Research evidence shows that you can hinder the learning of a motor skill by a beginner by delaying the augmented feedback too long.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 116.Giving augmented feedback to a beginner only when he or she requests it is better than giving the augmented feedback on every trial.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 117.The term practice variability refers to the variety of movement and context characteristics the learner experiences while practicing a skill.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 118.Research has shown that the overlearning strategy benefits the learning of all types of motor skills.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 119.Before you determine whether to use a whole or part strategy to practice a skill, it is important to first do a task analysis to assess the complexity and organization characteristics of the skill.
- A.
True
- B.
False
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