Simulated motion negatively affects motor task but not neuromuscular performance

Abstract

The objectives of this thesis were 1) to describe how motor task and neuromuscular performance is affected by various types of environmental perturbations and 2) to examine the effects of simulated motion on motor task and neuromuscular performance, conduct an experiment to examine the effects of one hour of simulated ship motion on motor task and neuromuscular performance. Sixteen males participated in two one-hour experimental testing conditions; 1) motion and 2) control. Motor task performance was measured through a simple reaction time and computerized visuomotor accuracy tracking task, while neuromuscular performance was measured through maximal voluntary contractions, voluntary activation, evoked muscle contractile properties and biceps brachii electromyography of the elbow flexors. Results indicated that motor task but not neuromuscular performance was affected by simulated motion due to ongoing sensorimotor adaptation that results in an overload of cognitive resources.iii Dedication I would like to dedicate this thesis to my deceased mother, Kerry Lorraine (Butt) Pearcey.Her unconditional love and kindness has molded me to become the person I am today.iv

The Effect of Wave Motion Intensities on Performance in a Simulated Search and Rescue Task and the Concurrent Demands of Maintaining Balance

“…Our finding that the SAR task performance decreased in the high-motion environment is consistent with prior work involving standardized physical tasks, including visuomotor tracking tasks, speed of lifting and lowering loads, speed of trackball manipulation, pen-and-paper tracing tasks, and computer tracing tasks (Crossland & Lloyd, 1993; Duncan et al, 2012; Pearcey et al, 2015; Wertheim, 1998). Our results are also consistent with previous research that demonstrated that vigilance performance in rough seas was reduced relative to the same participants completing the same tasks in mild seas (Yu, Yank, Katsumata et al, 2010, Yu, Yank, Villard et al, 2010).…”

Small Boat Recovery Task Performance in a Moving Environment

“…Studies investigating human performance in a moving environment conducted in a laboratory setting have been limited to low amplitude simulators (Greve et al, 2007; Pearcey et al, 2015; Stoffregen et al, 2000). Studies that have been conducted on a vessel while underway have nearly always been conducted on a much larger ship than the OTH, with a limited range of sea conditions due to time and resources constraints (Crossland & Lloyd, 1993; Grech et al, 2008; Langlois et al, 2009).…”