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COGNITIVE CONTROL IN MOTOR SEQUENCE LEARNING AN ANALYSIS OF POST-ERROR SLOWING AND SEQUENCE SWITCHING OVER THE LIFESPAN

Weersink, Linda (2013) COGNITIVE CONTROL IN MOTOR SEQUENCE LEARNING AN ANALYSIS OF POST-ERROR SLOWING AND SEQUENCE SWITCHING OVER THE LIFESPAN.

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Abstract:This study investigated the role of cognitive control in motor sequence learning over the lifespan. The differences in the phenomena “post-error slowing (PES)” and “sequence switching (SS)” in motor sequence learning were analyzed for four age groups. Both phenomena had already been demonstrated for simple reaction times tasks, but in this study it was investigated if they did also emerge in more complex tasks. An existing data-set, collected in three previously performed studies, was analyzed. The data was gathered from participants from four age groups; children, young adults, middle-aged and elderly people; 96 participants in total. They all performed a discrete sequence production task (DSP task), whereby a distinction could be made between short (3-key) and long (6-key) sequences. Results confirmed the hypothesis that PES developed in an U-shaped form, but this is only the case for the short sequences, not for the long sequences. The young adults show the least signs of PES. Likewise, for the SS data the development occurred in an U-shaped form, but only for the short sequences, not for the long sequences. In conclusion, it is stated that both PES and SS showed an U-shaped form in their development over the lifespan, but only at the short sequences. Future research should focus on sequences longer than three key presses, to discover their exact development over the lifespan.
Item Type:Essay (Bachelor)
Faculty:BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences
Subject:77 psychology
Programme:Psychology BSc (56604)
Link to this item:https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/64196
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