IMPACT OF MOVEMENT REPETITION AND BARRIER ORIENTATION ON PHYSICAL AND IMAGINED MOVEMENTS

Introduction: Motor planning relies on the ability to anticipate and adapt movements based on environmental constraints. This study examined the impact of repetition on physical execution and motor imagery. The objective was to evaluate how repetition of a movement influences performance, and whether this effect transfers between real and imagined movements.
Methods: Thirty-two participants took part in this experiment (22.7 ± 3.4 years old). The task consisted of making a reaching movement from a start to an end position as quickly and accurately as possible. The start and end points were always in the same position but were surrounded by barriers with apertures that required participants to move with specific trajectories. Participants completed 240 trials requiring them to either physically execute or imagine (using visual 1^st person and kinesthetic imagery) movements; manipulating the barrier orientation allowed us to study the effects of requiring trajectories that either repeated or differed from one trial to the next. Reaction times (RT) and movement times (TimeMov) were analysed.
Results: The results show a significant decrease in RT and TimeMov when the barrier orientation and condition (physical or imagined) are repeated, suggesting that repetition has a facilitating effect on motor planning and execution. This effect is also observed when the orientation is the same, but the condition is different for reaction times only.
Conclusion: These results reinforce the idea that repetition optimises motor planning and performance and confirm the validity of motor imagery as a relevant tool for studying movement planning processes.