Effect of Error Augmentation on Brain Activation and Motor Learning of a Complex Locomotor Task

Frontiers in Neuroscience, 2017 · DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2017.00526 · Published: September 27, 2017

Assistive Technology Neurology Neurorehabilitation

Simple Explanation

This study investigates how different robotic training strategies affect the brain and motor learning during a complex walking task. The training strategies either augmented errors (increased or randomly changed them) or provided no assistance. Researchers used a robotic stepper within an MRI scanner to monitor brain activity while participants coordinated their legs to follow a pattern on a screen. They found that the best training strategy depended on the person's initial skill level. Those who were initially less skilled learned best with no assistance, while those who were more skilled benefited from having their errors amplified. Random disturbances also helped everyone learn and transfer the skill to a similar task.

Study Duration

Not specified

Participants

34 healthy subjects

Evidence Level

Not specified

Key Findings

1
Training without perturbations enhanced motor learning in initially less skilled subjects, while error amplification benefited better-skilled subjects.
2
Training with error amplification, however, hampered transfer of learning.
3
Randomly disturbing forces induced learning and promoted transfer in all subjects, probably because the unexpected forces increased subjects’ attention.

Research Summary

The study evaluated the impact of three error-modulation robotic training strategies on brain activation and motor learning of a complex locomotor task: No perturbation, error amplification, and random force disturbance. Behavioral results confirmed that the training strategy that enhances learning depended on subjects’ initial skill level. Training without perturbations benefited learning in novices, while amplifying tracking errors during training enhanced learning in initially more skilled subjects. FMRI analysis revealed main effects of strategy and skill level during training. These neuroimaging findings indicate that gait-like motor learning depends on interplay between subcortical, cerebellar, and fronto-parietal brain regions.

Practical Implications

Personalized Rehabilitation

Tailoring robotic training strategies based on a patient's initial skill level could enhance rehabilitation outcomes.

Explicit vs. Implicit Learning

Error amplification might promote implicit learning, while random force disturbance encourages explicit motor learning, influencing skill transfer.

Attentional Control

Strategies that increase attention, such as random disturbances, can improve motor learning and transfer, potentially by pushing subjects out of their comfort zone.

Study Limitations

1
The study involved healthy subjects, and the impact on neurological patients may differ.
2
The optimal challenge point for patients with lower initial skill levels might be different.
3
The fMRI results, while cluster-corrected, did not survive a voxel threshold of p < 0.05 using familywise error correction.

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