The role of awareness in explicit and implicit visuomotor adaptation

运动适应是我们的感觉运动系统修改或塑造先前学习的动作以满足不断变化的任务需求的过程。例如，我们可能需要调整我们的动作，以适应年龄、疾病或疲劳等带来的内部神经肌肉变化，或外部环境变化，如新的处方眼镜或结冰的人行道。我研究的长期目标是确定大脑如何在不断变化的环境中为目标导向的行动处理感觉信息。在短期内，拟议的研究将调查意识(例如，提供的策略和/或指令)在运动如何适应新的感觉运动需求方面的作用。这种适应既可以是显性的(例如，为了满足不断变化的任务需求而有意识地采用一种策略)，也可以是隐性的(例如，动作是在没有意识的情况下进行适应的)。通过一系列的三个项目，我将解决以下关于意识和运动适应的当前问题：*1.意识是否影响外显和内隐适应的程度随时间的推移？*2.将外显和内隐适应概括为新环境的能力是否依赖于意识？*3.意识是否影响显性和隐性适应动作的准备和执行？*为了评估意识在运动适应中的作用，我将监测当意识被操纵时，人类参与者在新的视觉环境中显性和隐性地适应他们的伸展动作的程度。具体地说，当参与者的手在计算机屏幕上的视觉表示相对于他们的实际手位置发生移动时，参与者将到达虚拟现实环境中(与使用鼠标控制计算机显示器上的光标非常相似)。为了操纵意识，一些参与者将被指导如何在新的环境中行动，而另一些参与者将不会意识到环境已经改变。*结果将提供对运动准备和执行的意识在满足不断变化的任务需求方面的作用的洞察。此外，了解意识对显性和隐性适应的影响对于与虚拟现实设备(例如飞行模拟器)、远程操作(例如远程手术)和机器人的互动以及在运动训练和康复计划期间提供的设计和指导具有重要意义。例如，提供指令可以促进初始学习(即，显式适应)，从而使性能快速提高。然而，这种快速学习可能会有相关的成本。具体地说，持续的唤起策略可能会导致准备时间的增加和长期低效的动作(即有限的内隐适应)。

Motor adaptation is the process whereby our sensorimotor system modifies or shapes previously learned movements to meet changing task demands. For example, we might need to adapt our movements to internal neuromuscular changes brought about by age, disease, or fatigue, etc., or to external environmental changes such as a new pair of prescription glasses or an icy sidewalk. The long-term goal of my research is to determine how the brain processes sensory information for goal-directed action in a continuously changing environment. In the short-term, the proposed research will investigate the role of awareness (e.g., strategies and/or instructions provided) in how movements are adapted to meet novel sensorimotor demands. This adaptation can arise both explicitly (e.g., a strategy is adopted consciously in order to meet changing task demands) and implicitly (e.g., movements are adapted without conscious awareness) at the same time. Through a series of three projects, I will address the following current questions surrounding awareness and motor adaptation:***1. Does awareness influence the extent of explicit and implicit adaptation over time? ***2. Is the ability to generalize explicit and implicit adaptation to novel environments dependent on awareness? ***3. Does awareness influence the preparation and execution of explicitly and implicitly adapted movements? ***In order to evaluate the role of awareness in motor adaptation, I will monitor the extent to which human participants explicitly and implicitly adapt their reaching movements in a novel visual environment when awareness is manipulated. Specifically, participants will reach in a virtual reality environment when the visual representation of their hand on a computer screen is shifted relative to their actual hand location (much the same as using a mouse to control a cursor on a computer monitor). To manipulate awareness, some participants will be instructed on how to act within the novel environment, while others will not be aware that the environment has changed. ***Results will provide insight into the role of awareness on motor preparation and execution to meet changing task demands. Furthermore, understanding the influence of awareness on explicit and implicit adaptation has important implications for interactions with virtual-reality devices (e.g., flight simulators), teleoperations (e.g., remote surgery) and robotics, as well as the design of and instructions provided during motor training and rehabilitation programs. For example, providing instructions may promote initial learning (i.e., explicit adaptation), such that performance improves quickly. However, this quick learning may have an associated cost. Specifically, continually evoking strategies may lead to increased preparation time and inefficient movements in the long term (i.e., limited implicit adaptation).