A recruitment theory of force-time relations in the production of brief force pulses: the parallel force unit model.

A theory, the parallel force unit model, is advanced in which the buildup and decline of force in rapid responses of short duration are assumed to reflect variability in timing of several parallel force units. Response force is conceived of as being a summation of a large number of force units, each acting independently of one another. Force is controlled by either the number of recruited force units or the duration each unit contributes its force. Several predictions are derived on the basis of this theory and are shown to be in qualitative agreement with empirical findings about both the mean and variability of brief force impulses. The model also has consequences for the temporal properties of a response. For example, under certain circumstances, it predicts a reciprocal relation between reaction time and response force. Although the theory is proposed as a psychological account, relations between the assumptions and basic principles in neurophysiology are considered. Possible future applications and generalizations of the theory are discussed.

[1]  E. G. J. Eijkman,et al.  Model of the electromyographic activity during brief isometric contractions , 2004, Biological Cybernetics.

[2]  K. Newell,et al.  The relationship of impulse to response timing error. , 1982, Journal of motor behavior.

[3]  K. Newell,et al.  On the relationship between peak force and peak force variability in isometric tasks. , 1985, Journal of motor behavior.

[4]  P. Cordo.  Mechanisms controlling accurate changes in elbow torque in humans , 1987, The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience.

[5]  H. Freund.  Motor unit and muscle activity in voluntary motor control. , 1983, Physiological reviews.

[6]  S W Keele,et al.  Force control and its relation to timing. , 1987, Journal of motor behavior.

[7]  J. Desmedt.  Size principle of motoneuron recruitment and the calibration of muscle force and speed in man. , 1983, Advances in neurology.

[8]  E. Godaux,et al.  Ballistic contractions in man: characteristic recruitment pattern of single motor units of the tibialis anterior muscle. , 1977, The Journal of physiology.

[9]  W G Darling,et al.  A linked muscular activation model for movement generation and control. , 1987, Journal of Motor Behavior.

[10]  E G Eijkman,et al.  The motor system in simple reaction time experiments. , 1974, Acta psychologica.

[11]  Les G. Carlton,et al.  Response production factors and reaction time , 1987 .

[12]  A. Angel,et al.  Input-Output Relations in Simple Reaction Time Experiments , 1973, The Quarterly journal of experimental psychology.

[13]  R Ulrich,et al.  Separate-activation models with variable base times: Testability and checking of cross-channel dependency , 1986, Perception & psychophysics.

[14]  David E. Irwin,et al.  Modern mental chronometry , 1988, Biological Psychology.

[15]  R B Stein,et al.  The orderly recruitment of human motor units during voluntary isometric contractions , 1973, The Journal of physiology.

[16]  E. T. Klemmer.  Rate of force application in a simple reaction time test. , 1957 .

[17]  G. Gottlieb,et al.  Organizing principles for single-joint movements. IV. Implications for isometric contractions. , 1990, Journal of neurophysiology.

[18]  A. Wing.  28 The Long and Short of Timing in Response Sequences , 1980 .

[19]  R. Ulrich,et al.  A double-response paradigm to study stimulus intensity effects upon the motor system in simple reaction time experiments , 1984, Perception & psychophysics.

[20]  Sheldon M. Ross,et al.  Introduction to probability models , 1975 .

[21]  R B Ivry,et al.  Force and timing components of the motor program. , 1986, Journal of motor behavior.

[22]  F. Buchthal,et al.  Contraction times and fibre types in intact human muscle. , 1970, Acta physiologica Scandinavica.

[23]  C. Sherrington,et al.  Numbers and Contraction-Values of Individual Motor-Units Examined in some Muscles of the Limb , 1930 .

[24]  R. Schmidt,et al.  The relationship between force and force variability in minimal and near-maximal static and dynamic contractions. , 1980, Journal of motor behavior.

[25]  U Proske,et al.  Tendon stiffness: methods of measurement and significance for the control of movement. A review. , 1987, Journal of biomechanics.

[26]  R. Thouless.  Experimental Psychology , 1939, Nature.

[27]  Les G. Carlton,et al.  Reaction time and response dynamics , 1987 .

[28]  R. Lachman.  The model in theory construction. , 1960, Psychological review.

[29]  D. Meyer,et al.  Models for the speed and accuracy of aimed movements. , 1982, Psychological review.

[30]  L. Stark,et al.  Glissadic overshoots are due to pulse width errors. , 1978, Archives of neurology.

[31]  H. Zelaznik,et al.  Motor-output variability: a theory for the accuracy of rapid motor acts. , 1979, Psychological review.

[32]  D Siegel,et al.  Fractionated Reaction Time and the Rate of Force Development , 1988, The Quarterly journal of experimental psychology. A, Human experimental psychology.

[33]  B. Conrad,et al.  Human ballistic finger flexion: Uncoupling of the three-burst pattern , 2004, Experimental Brain Research.

[34]  D. Raab.  Statistical facilitation of simple reaction times. , 1962, Transactions of the New York Academy of Sciences.

[35]  H. P. Bahrick,et al.  Response generalization as a function of intratask response similarity. , 1956, Journal of experimental psychology.

[36]  M. Posner,et al.  Processing of visual feedback in rapid movements. , 1968, Journal of experimental psychology.

[37]  Will Spijkers,et al.  Fractioned reaction time as a function of response force , 1987 .

[38]  R. Duncan Luce,et al.  Response Times: Their Role in Inferring Elementary Mental Organization , 1986 .

[39]  H. Freund,et al.  Impairment of rapid movement in Huntington's disease. , 1987, Brain : a journal of neurology.

[40]  K. Newell,et al.  Force variability in isometric responses. , 1988, Journal of experimental psychology. Human perception and performance.

[41]  M. Posner.  Chronometric explorations of mind , 1978 .

[42]  B. Calancie,et al.  Human motor-unit recruitment during isometric contractions and repeated dynamic movements. , 1987, Journal of neurophysiology.

[43]  K. Newell,et al.  Kinetic analysis of response variability , 1984 .

[44]  F Buchthal,et al.  Motor unit of mammalian muscle. , 1980, Physiological reviews.

[45]  A. Wing.  Timing and Co-Ordination of Repetitive Bimanual Movements , 1982 .

[46]  A. Kristofferson,et al.  Response delays and the timing of discrete motor responses , 1973 .

[47]  R. Schmidt.  A schema theory of discrete motor skill learning. , 1975 .

[48]  R. Stein,et al.  Motor-unit recruitment in human first dorsal interosseous muscle for static contractions in three different directions. , 1986, Journal of neurophysiology.

[49]  W. O. Jenkins.  The discrimination and reproduction of motor adjustments with various types of aircraft controls. , 1947, The American journal of psychology.

[50]  Feller William,et al.  An Introduction To Probability Theory And Its Applications , 1950 .

[51]  R. Burke.  Motor Units: Anatomy, Physiology, and Functional Organization , 1981 .

[52]  George E. Stelmach,et al.  The preparation and production of isometric force in Parkinson's disease , 1988, Neuropsychologia.

[53]  William J. Williams,et al.  Transfer Characteristics of Dispersive Nerve Bundles , 1972, IEEE Trans. Syst. Man Cybern..

[54]  E. B. Delabarre,et al.  Studies from the Harvard Psychological Laboratory IX: The force and rapidity of reaction movements , 1897 .

[55]  M. Bunge,et al.  Scientific Research I: The Search for System , 1967 .

[56]  E. G. J. Eijkman,et al.  Distributions of simple RT with single and double stimuli , 1977 .

[57]  R. Schmidt,et al.  Knowledge of results and motor learning: a review and critical reappraisal. , 1984, Psychological bulletin.

[58]  E. Henneman.  Relation between size of neurons and their susceptibility to discharge. , 1957, Science.

[59]  W. J. Williams.  Velocity dispersion in skeletal muscle efferent nerve bundle and its effect upon time and frequency response , 1969, Medical and biological engineering.

[60]  James T. Townsend,et al.  The Stochastic Modeling of Elementary Psychological Processes , 1983 .