ABSTRACT

Mental chronometry has often been used to provide a temporal comparison between executed and imagined movements, with smaller discrepancies indicating more accurate image production and better imagery performance. In this study, we examined the importance of retinal and extra-retinal information in the performance of simple, sequential movements. After physical practice of four activities of daily living (Southampton Hand Assessment Procedure), nineteen participants imagined completing the same tasks with: 1) free eye-movements and visible objects, 2) free eye-movements and no visibility of the objects, and 3) constrained eye-movements and visible objects. Results suggested imagery performance was slower/less accurate compared to physical execution when the eyes were constrained. Conversely, chronometric imagery performance was unaffected with free eye movements, even when task-specific visual information was occluded. This study highlights the crucial role that eye-movements play in the regulation of the temporal aspects of imagery even when retinal information is absent, suggesting that temporal sequencing of imagined actions is largely dependent on extra-retinal information sources.

摘要

心理测时法通常用于提供已执行和想象中的运动之间的时间比较，差异较小则表明图像产生的精度更高，图像性能更好。在这项研究中，我们检查了视网膜和视网膜外信息在简单，连续运动中的重要性。在进行了四项日常生活活动（南安普敦手评估程序）的体育锻炼之后，十九名参与者想象完成了以下相同任务：1）眼睛自由活动和可见物体； 2）眼睛自由活动且物体无可见度； 3 ）约束眼动和可见物体。结果表明，与眼睛受约束时的物理执行相比，图像性能较慢/准确性较差。反过来，即使遮挡了特定任务的视觉信息，计时图像的性能也不会受到眼睛自由运动的影响。这项研究强调了即使在没有视网膜信息的情况下，眼球运动在图像时间方面的调节中也起着至关重要的作用，这表明想象中的动作的时间顺序在很大程度上取决于视网膜外信息源。