Contextual interference enhances vertical transfer of fine motor skill from upper to lower limbs

IF 1.9 3区心理学 Q4 NEUROSCIENCES

Human Movement Science Pub Date : 2026-02-01 Epub Date: 2025-12-18 DOI:10.1016/j.humov.2025.103428

Satoshi Kasahara , Hiroshi Saito , Linjing Jiang , Kazumasa Yoshimi , Shikino Abe , Tomoya Ishida , Yuta Koshino , Mina Samukawa , Harukazu Tohyama

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

While contextual interference (CI) is known to facilitate motor learning, its role in promoting interlimb transfer—particularly from the upper to the lower limb—remains underexplored.

Objective

This study examined how different practice schedules (random vs. serial) influence the transfer of fine force control both horizontally (to the contralateral hand) and vertically (to the contralateral ankle).

Methods

Thirty healthy young adults (N = 30; Male = 21, Female = 9; Mean age: 21.9 ± 1.6 years) were divided equally into a random (RTG: N = 15) or serial (STG: N = 15) schedule group. Most participants were right-handed, with three left-handed individuals included across the two groups. Participants practiced a force-matching task with their non-dominant hand using either a random or serial schedule. Transfer effects were assessed in the contralateral hand and ankle at four target force levels (20–80 % of maximal voluntary contraction, MVC).

Results

Both practice conditions improved force control in the contralateral hand (p < .05), indicating horizontal transfer. However, vertical transfer to the foot emerged only after random practice (p < .05) and was limited to moderate and high force levels. These findings suggest that the interaction between task difficulty and practice variability critically influences the extent and direction of interlimb transfer.

Conclusion

High CI practice promotes vertical transfer of motor skill when task demands are sufficiently challenging. These results highlight the importance of training structure in facilitating the generalization of motor control across limbs, offering practical implications for skill acquisition in both athletic and rehabilitation settings.

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环境干扰增强精细运动技能从上肢到下肢的垂直转移

虽然上下文干扰（CI）被认为可以促进运动学习，但其在促进肢体间转移（特别是从上肢到下肢）中的作用仍未得到充分研究。目的研究不同的训练计划（随机与连续）如何影响精细力控制在水平（对侧手）和垂直（对侧踝关节）的转移。方法30例健康青年（男21例，女9例，平均年龄21.9±1.6岁）随机分为随机组（RTG: N = 15）和连续组（STG: N = 15）。大多数参与者都是右撇子，两组中有三个左撇子。参与者使用随机或连续的时间表，用他们的非优势手练习了一项力匹配任务。在4个目标力水平（最大自主收缩的20 - 80%，MVC）下评估对侧手和踝关节的转移效果。结果两种练习条件均能改善对侧手的力控制（p < 0.05），提示水平转移。然而，垂直转移到足部只有在随机练习后才会出现（p < 0.05），并且仅限于中等和高强度的力量水平。这些发现表明，任务难度和练习变异性之间的相互作用对肢体间转移的程度和方向有重要影响。结论当任务要求具有足够的挑战性时，高CI练习促进了运动技能的垂直转移。这些结果强调了训练结构在促进四肢运动控制泛化方面的重要性，为运动和康复环境中的技能习得提供了实际意义。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Human Movement Science 医学-神经科学

CiteScore

3.80

自引率

4.80%

发文量

审稿时长

42 days

期刊介绍： Human Movement Science provides a medium for publishing disciplinary and multidisciplinary studies on human movement. It brings together psychological, biomechanical and neurophysiological research on the control, organization and learning of human movement, including the perceptual support of movement. The overarching goal of the journal is to publish articles that help advance theoretical understanding of the control and organization of human movement, as well as changes therein as a function of development, learning and rehabilitation. The nature of the research reported may vary from fundamental theoretical or empirical studies to more applied studies in the fields of, for example, sport, dance and rehabilitation with the proviso that all studies have a distinct theoretical bearing. Also, reviews and meta-studies advancing the understanding of human movement are welcome. These aims and scope imply that purely descriptive studies are not acceptable, while methodological articles are only acceptable if the methodology in question opens up new vistas in understanding the control and organization of human movement. The same holds for articles on exercise physiology, which in general are not supported, unless they speak to the control and organization of human movement. In general, it is required that the theoretical message of articles published in Human Movement Science is, to a certain extent, innovative and not dismissible as just "more of the same."