Deck 12: Learning Motor Skills

Question 1

If practicing a tennis stroke makes it harder to learn a correct stroke in ping-pong,this would be an example of

A)positive transfer
B)negative transfer
C)an ironic error
D)intermittent KR

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Negative transfer is most likely to be observed when two motor tasks involve

A)similar responses to similar stimuli
B)different responses to similar stimuli
C)different responses to different stimuli
D)either a or c

Answer 2

B

Question 3

The finding that delay of feedback on slow positioning tasks does not have much of an effect on learning can be interpreted as

A)evidence supporting the importance of reinforcement in motor learning
B)evidence against the importance of reinforcement in motor learning
C)evidence supporting the guidance hypothesis of motor learning
D)evidence against the guidance hypothesis of motor learning

Answer 3

C

Question 4

According to the guidance hypothesis of motor learning,

A)physically guiding the learner's movements will improve long-term performance
B)physically guiding the learner's movements will impair long-term performance
C)giving feedback on every trial will improve long-term performance
D)giving feedback on every trial will impair long-term performance

Question 5

Research on knowledge of performance (KP)has shown that in learning a complex motor skill,the best feedback

A)is simply telling the learner "right" or "wrong"
B)is giving a quantitative estimate of the error
C)often involves giving the subject detailed information on exactly which movements were good and which were not
D)is no feedback at all

Question 6

In a study in which subjects were blindfolded and tried to draw lines that were exactly 3 inches long,Thorndike found that

A)reinforcement was more effective than punishment
B)practice with reinforcement was more effective than practice without reinforcement
C)both a and b
D)neither a nor b

Question 7

Studies have found that ________ can be helpful in motor learning.

A)observing a model perform the task
B)practicing with a partner
C)video self-modeling
D)all of the above

Question 8

If a golf instructor tells a student to slow down his backswing,this is an example of

A)qualitative KR
B)quantitative KR
C)irrelevant KR
D)knowledge of performance (KP)

Question 9

If a person's task is to draw a 12-inch line while blindfolded,which of the following types of feedback would probably produce the fastest learning-

A)being told "Correct" if an attempt is within 1 inch of the desired length
B)being told "Incorrect" if an attempt is more than 0.1 inches from the desired length
C)being told the amount an attempt is long or short,to the nearest half inch
D)being told "Long" if the attempt is too long,and "Short" if the attempt is too short

Question 10

According to Adams's two-stage theory of motor learning,if knowledge of results (KR)is withdrawn very early in training,one should observe

A)a decrease in performance,back to the baseline level
B)a decrease in performance,but some savings
C)no change in performance
D)further improvements in performance

Question 11

Keeping in contact with a target on a moving turntable is an example of a

A)discrete,closed-loop movement
B)discrete,open-loop movement
C)continuous,closed-loop movement
D)continuous,open-loop movement

Question 12

Compared to Schmidt's schema theory,a limitation of Adams's two-stage theory is that it

A)does not apply to open-loop movements
B)does not apply to continuous movements
C)does not apply to movements that must be different every trial
D)none of the above

Question 13

In a continuous tracking task,such as tracing a line drawing,delay of visual feedback has

A)little or no effect on learning or performance
B)a small but temporary effect on the rate of learning
C)a small but permanent effect on performance
D)a large and permanent effect on performance

Question 14

Positive transfer is most likely to be observed when two motor tasks involve

A)similar responses to similar stimuli
B)different responses to similar stimuli
C)different responses to different stimuli
D)either a or c

Question 15

The distinguishing characteristic of an open-loop movement is that it

A)involves a sequence of responses
B)is completed before the individual receives any feedback
C)typically includes several mid-course corrections
D)none of the above

Question 16

According to Adams's two-stage theory of motor learning,if knowledge of results (KR)is withdrawn late in training,one should observe

A)a decrease in performance,back to the baseline level
B)a decrease in performance,but some savings
C)no change in performance
D)further improvements in performance

Question 17

In a slow positioning task in which feedback is given after each trial is over,such as turning a pointer toward an unseen target,delay of feedback has

A)little or no effect on learning or performance
B)a small but temporary effect on the rate of learning
C)a small but permanent effect on performance
D)a large and permanent effect on performance

Question 18

According to Adams's two-stage theory of motor learning,when a person shifts from the verbal-motor stage to the motor stage,the person has

A)a fairly good perceptual trace
B)a fairly good motor trace
C)both a and b
D)neither a nor b

Question 19

As long as an individual receives feedback,it should be possible to learn from trials on which the individual's movement is off-target.This is a prediction of

A)Adams's two-stage theory
B)Schmidt's schema theory
C)both a and b
D)neither a nor b

Question 20

Research findings suggest that when learning a new motor skill,using massed practice

A)is better than using distributed practice
B)is worse than using distributed practice
C)is helpful early in training but not later in training
D)is about equally effective as using distributed practice

Question 21

A characteristic of a motor program is that it

A)involves a sequence of responses
B)makes use of sensory feedback to guide the successive movements
C)is innate
D)all of the above

Question 22

To improve a variable skill such as shooting a basketball from different places on the court,the data suggest that the best way to practice is

A)shoot all practice shots from one location,such as the foul line
B)shoot all practice shots from a small number of different locations
C)shoot from many different locations,and change locations after every practice shot
D)shoot from many different locations,but shoot a group of shots from one location before switching to another location

Question 23

If one task involves making two consecutive movements and another involves making four consecutive movements,research suggests that a person will

A)take longer to begin the longer sequence
B)take longer to begin the shorter sequence
C)pause before completing the last movement of the long sequence
D)pause before completing the last movement of the short sequence

Question 24

According to the response chain approach,when we have learned to produce a sequence of movements well

A)we can plan several steps in the sequence simultaneously
B)sensory feedback from one movement serves as a stimulus for the next movement in the sequence
C)we get better at the task by grouping the movements into chunks
D)we may make errors of anticipation by starting one movement out of order

Question 25

Some evidence for the existence of motor programs is that

A)some movement sequences can continue when sensory feedback has been removed
B)errors of anticipation suggest that the individual is planning ahead
C)both a and b
D)neither a nor b