Dataset Information

Movement planning with probabilistic target information.

ABSTRACT: We examined how subjects plan speeded reaching movements when the precise target of the movement is not known at movement onset. Before each reach, subjects were given only a probability distribution on possible target positions. Only after completing part of the movement did the actual target appear. In separate experiments we varied the location of the mode and the scale of the prior distribution for possible targets. In both cases we found that subjects made use of prior probability information when planning reaches. We also devised two tests (Composite Benefit and Row Dominance tests) to determine whether subjects' performance met necessary conditions for optimality (defined as maximizing expected gain). We could not reject the hypothesis of optimality in the experiment where we varied the mode of the prior, but departures from optimality were found in response to changes in the scale of prior distributions.

SUBMITTER: Hudson TE

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2638584 | biostudies-other | 2007 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Movement planning with probabilistic target information.

Hudson Todd E TE Maloney Laurence T LT Landy Michael S MS

Journal of neurophysiology 20070926 5

We examined how subjects plan speeded reaching movements when the precise target of the movement is not known at movement onset. Before each reach, subjects were given only a probability distribution on possible target positions. Only after completing part of the movement did the actual target appear. In separate experiments we varied the location of the mode and the scale of the prior distribution for possible targets. In both cases we found that subjects made use of prior probability informati ...[more]

PMID: 17898140

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Project description:During goal-directed behaviors, individuals can be required to start a movement before deciding on the final goal. Previous studies have focused on the initial movement direction in situations involving multiple targets in different directions from the starting position and have shown that the movement is initiated in the average direction among the target directions. However, the previous studies only included situations with targets at equivalent distances, and the characteristics of motor planning in situations with multiple movement possibilities over different potential distances are unclear. In such situations, movement velocity is another important control variable. Furthermore, while previous studies examined situations with an uncertain motor target position, uncertainty can also exist in the effector position (e.g., body or tool locations). Therefore, we examined (1) whether the average output is confirmed in the initial movement velocity during execution in situations involving two potential movements with different distances. In addition, we examined (2) whether planning of the movement velocity can differ depending on the presence of uncertainty in the cursor or the target. In the main conditions, the participants were required to start a reaching movement with two potential movement distances; in the two-cursor condition, two cursors were presented before the start of the trial, and in the two-target condition, two targets were presented. As a control condition, a distance condition corresponding to each main condition was also performed. In the control condition, the initial movement velocity varied linearly with distance. Then, we tested whether the initial movement velocity in situations with two potential movement distances would follow the averaging output of the corresponding control condition. The results revealed that while the initial movement velocity in the two-target condition was slower than the averaging output, that in the two-cursor condition approached the averaging output. These results suggest that the velocity profile of the goal-directed movement is not simply averaged in a situation where two potential targets exist, and that there is a difference in the planning policy of the initial movement depending on whether the known uncertainty is for the movement goal or the effector.

Dataset Information

Movement planning with probabilistic target information.

Publications

Movement planning with probabilistic target information.

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