Measurement of Motor Performance

Concept: The measurement of motor performance is critical to understanding motor learning

Review!
Measurement of motor skills:
Learning objectives
1. Understand when to use & how to calculate different
types of error
2. Know different ways to measure movement including
kinematics, kinetics, & muscle, nerve, & brain activity
Why Study the Measurement of Motor
Performance?
Performance measurement is essential for:
1. Performance Assessment/ Evaluation
2. Motor Learning and control research
 Two general categories of performance
measurements
1. Performance outcome measures
• Category of motor skill performance that indicates
Measuring the outcome or result of performing a motor skill
(eg how far did a person throw the ball)

Motor Skill • Does NOT tell us about the behaviour of the limbs of
the body that led to the outcome
• Does not provide info about the activity of various
Performance muscles involved
2. Performance production measures
• Measures of motor skill performance that indivate
the performance of specific aspects of the motor
control system during the performance
• EMG, EEG, recordings
Two categories of Motor Skill Performance
Measures Table 2.1
Category Example of Measures of
Measurement Device
1. Performance Outcome Measures Time to complete a task
Ie) Reaction time, sec, min, hr
Amount of error in performing
criterion movement
Ie) AE, CE, VE
Number of percentage errors
Number of successful attempt
Time on/off target
Time on/off balance
Distance
Trials or repetitions to complete
Performance Examples
Amount of time to run a mile, time
between starter’s gun and
beginning of movement
Number of cm away from target
Number of free throws missed
Number of times the beanbag hit
the target
Number of seconds in stork stance
Height of vertical jump
Number of trials or repetitions until
all responses are correct
 Two Categories of Motor Skill Performance Measures Table 2.1
Category
2. Performance production measures
Examples of Measures of Measurement Performance Example2
Device
Displacement Distance limb traveled while moving a
cursor
Velocity Speed limb moved while moving a
cursor
Acceleration Acceleration/deceleration pattern while
moving a cursor
Joint Angle Angle of each joint of arm at impact in
hitting a ball
Joint Torque Net joint torque of knee at takeoff
Electromyography (EMG) Time which the biceps initially fired
Electroencphalogram (EEG) Brain wave pattern while shooting an
arrow in archery
Positron-emitting topography (PET) Brain areas active while typing
Functional Magnetic Resonance imaging Brain areas active while finger tapping
(fmri) to a metronome
 • Error measures
allow us to evaluate
Error performance for
skills that have
Measures spatial or temporal
accuracy action
goals
 Spatial: Where something is
occurring
Spatial and • Throwing darts, high jump
Temporal Temporal: When something is
Accuracy occurring or the timing of the
skill
• One timer’s, musical instrument,
volleyball spike/serve
Magill & Anderson 2017

Assessing Error for Skills with one-Dimension

Accuracy Goals

Absolute Error Constant Error Variable Error

-Consistency/
-Size of error -Direction of error
variability
Assessing Error for Skills with One-Dimension
Accuracy Goals

1. Absolute Error (AE):

• Absolute value of difference between the actual performance on each trial and the
criterion for each trial
• Tells us the MAGNITUDE of error
• Provides general index of performance accuracy- but does not tell us enough
• AE= Goal- Actual
• Average of the absolute values
Error measurement: One-dimensional

- +
5.0
-0.5
-2.5

-2.0 Image from: 123rf.com

-4.5

In Lab 1: Your ACTUAL time vs. GOAL time of 2000 ms

Error measurement: One-dimensional

1. Absolute error - +
= average of absolute values
=((|-2.5|) + (|-4.5|) + (|-0.5|) +
(|5.0|) + (|-2.0|))/5 -0.5 5.0

= 2.9 -2.5

• MAGNITUDE of -2.0
error -4.5

Magill & Anderson 2017

Assessing Error for Skills with One-Dimension
Accuracy Goals

2.Constant Error (CE)

• Algebraic value of difference between the actual performance
on each trial and the criterion for each trial
• DIRECTION OF ERROR
• CE= (performance- criterion) / number of trials
• Provides an index of tendency for the performance error to be
directionally biased
Error measurement: One-dimensional

• Error = goal – actual

- +
2. Constant error
= average of actual values
=((-2.5) + (-4.5) + (-0.5) + (5.0) + (- -0.5 5.0
2.0))/5 -2.5
= -0.9

• DIRECTION of error
-2.0

-4.5

Magill & Anderson 2017

Assessing Error for Skills with One-Dimension
Accuracy Goals

3. Variable Error (VE)

• The Standard deviation of the CE scores
• CONSISTENCY of Error
• High VE shows a lack of basic movement patterns and may need to re-teach basic skills
Error measurement: One-dimensional
• Error = goal – actual

- +
3. Variable error
= SD of constant error
=√(Σ(x-mean)2/(N-1)) -0.5 5.0
-2.5
= 3.6

• CONSISTENCY of -4.5
-2.0

error

Magill & Anderson 2017

Types of Error Measurement

Size (2.9)
Different results
Direction (-0.9) Different interpretations

Consistency (3.6)

Magill & Anderson 2017

Measurement of motor skills:
Learning objectives

1. Understand when to use & how to

calculate different types of error
2. Know different ways to measure
movement including kinematics,
kinetics, & muscle, nerve, & brain
activity
 Assessing
Error for Two-
Dimension • Skill requires accuracy in the vertical and horizontal
directions.
Movement • Performance bias and consistency are difficult to
Goals quantitatively assess, although can do qualitative
assessment
 1. Radical Error
• Similar to AE in one
direction accuracy
• Calculate the
Measuring hypotenuse of the
right angle triangle
Error in Two- formed by the
intersection of the x-
Dimensional axis and y-axis

Accuracy 2. Qualitative
Assessment of Bias
and Consistency
• General approach
to assessing bias and
consistency
• Look at the group of
locations
Error measurement
• Consistency errors = difficulty in learning the skill
• Bias errors = difficulty in adapting the skill

Show of Hands:
A B If distances to the left are –
ve and to the right are +ve,
which scenario presents
• The most variable error?
• The largest constant
error?
CONSISTENCY ERRORS BIAS ERRORS
Magill & Anderson 2017 Adapted from Figure 2.4
Error measurement: Two-dimensional

• Radial error = √(error in height)2 + (error in length) 2

Radial error
height

length

Magill & Anderson 2017

Assessing Error for Continuous Skills
Some continuous skills also require accuracy.
- Continuous skills require spatial accuracy over a period of time
ie) walking along a path, x-country
1. Root Mean-Squared Error (RMSE)
• Error measure for continuous skills to indicate the amount of error between
the performance curve produced and the criterion performance curve for a
specific amount of time during which the performance is sampled.
• AE for a continuous task
• Ie) Pursuit tracking
 Error measurement: Continuous skills
• Root-mean-squared error (RMSE)
• Amount of error sampled at different times throughout task
• RMSE=√((x12+…xn2)/n)

Error at tn = xn

t1 tn Time

Magill & Anderson 2017

Adapted from figure 2.5
Measurement of motor skills:
Learning objectives
1. Understand when to use & how to
calculate different types of error
2. Know different ways to measure
movement including kinematics,
kinetics, & muscle, nerve, & brain
activity
Magill & Anderson 2017

• Kinematics: Description of motion without regards to force

or mass
• Includes the following measures:
• Displacement:
• Spatial position of a limb or joint over a period of
time
• Velocity:
Kinematic • Rate of change in an object position with respect
to time (speed)
Measures • = displacement/time
• Acceleration:
• Change in velocity during movement
• = Velocity/time
Measuring kinematics: marker-based
Image from Qualysis.com

Qualysis Vicon
 • Kinetics: Force as a cause of motion
• Human movements involve both
internal and external sources of force
• Internal: Muscles
• External: Gravity, wind
• Important: All three of Newton’s Laws
Kinetics of motion refer to force
• Force measurement:
• Direct: Force plates, strain gauges,
force tranducers
• Indirect: Use calculations to
determine force
Measuring kinetics
Loading Unloading
• Kinetics = the study of the
role of force as a cause of
motion
• Internal & external forces
• Force plates, strain gauges,
force transducers
• Forces & moments
• Fluid dynamics
• Lift & drag forces through air & water
Measuring
muscle
activity

Image from: Dideriksen et al 2018

Measuring muscle activity

• Electromyography (EMG) =
measurement of the electrical activity
of muscle
• Insight into neural control of movement
• Onset
• Magnitude
• Duration
• Whole muscle mechanomyography
(wMMG) (FYI)
• Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) (FYI)
Magill & Anderson 2017 Figure from Oates 2007
Describe a scenario where there may be
muscle activity but no observable
movement
 • Adopted brain activity measures commonly used in
hospitals and clinics for diagnostic purposes
• Common Measures for Motor Learning and Control
Brain Activity Research:

Measures • EEG
• PET
• fMRI
• MEG
Measuring brain activity: EEG

• Electroencephalography (EEG)=
detection of cortical activity via
scalp electrodes
• Active brain regions produce
electrical activity

Image from CNSforum.com

Magill & Anderson 2017
Measuring brain activity: EEG

• Limitations:
• Only records surface activity
• Does not show which
anatomical structures are active

Jacob as a participant in a study using EEG

Magill & Anderson 2017
 Mental activity

Measuring
brain activity:
EEG
Non-dreaming
sleep and coma

Image from: arstechnica.com

Fig 2: EEG showed no epileptiform discharges during the episode
of chorea movement

Yim, S., Choi, Y.H., Heo, K. et al. A case of dyskinesia after levetiracetam administration. BMC Neurol 19, 292
(2019). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12883-019-1519-8
Brain-computer interfaces
• Measure brain activity using EEG
• Transform activity into motion
• Robots
• Wheelchairs
• Someone else’s arm
 Measuring brain activity: PET
• Positron emission topography (PET) =detection of metabolic brain
activity
• Radioactive positrons interact with blood
• Scans detect activity in various locations

Limitations:
•Subject must be stationary
•Injection of isotope

Image from: www.schoolbehavior.com Magill & Anderson 2017

Measuring brain • Functional magnetic resonance
activity: fMRI imaging (fMRI) = brain activity
detected by changes in blood
oxygenation
• Blood oxygenation level
dependent (BOLD) amplitudes
• Limitation:
• Subject must be stationary

Image from: www.pbs.org

Magill & Anderson 2017
Measuring brain

Image from: www.kumc.edu

activity: MEG
• Magnetoencephalography (MEG)=
measures magnetic fields created
by neuronal activity
• Higher temporal resolution
compared to fMRI and PET
• Increased accuracy of activity
location compared to EEG
• Limitation:
• Subject must be stationary
• Does not show anatomical
structures that are active
Image from: www.ese.wustl.edu/~nehorai/research/eegmeg/megarray.html

Magill & Anderson 2017

Measuring the effect of brain stimulation on
movement: TMS
• Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
= magnetic pulse delivered to brain
either excites or inhibits brain activity
• Movement caused artificially through
stimulation
• Temporary
• Limitations:
• Must estimate location of stimulus
• May have discomfort at stimulation site

Image from: www.intra.ninds.nih.gov

Magill & Anderson 2017
Measuring peripheral nerve activity: Microneurography

• Measures impulses in peripheral

nerves
• Used to understand function of
various nerves
• E.g., cutaneous responses from the Image from jp.physoc.org
feet for balance control
• E.g., muscle spindle responses
Warning: This image
• Limitations: shows needles inserted
into a leg.
• Fine wire needle must be inserted
• Only small movements tested
Image from www.mc.vanderbilt.edu