Treadmill experience mediates the perceptual-motor aftereffect of treadmill walking

Brennan, A., Bakdash, J., & Proffitt, D. (2012). Treadmill experience mediates the perceptual-motor aftereffect of treadmill walking. Experimental Brain Research, 216(4), 527–534.

Abstract

People have a lifetime of experience in which to calibrate their self-produced locomotion with the resultant optical flow. Contrary to walking across the ground, however, walking on a treadmill produces minimal optical flow, and consequentially, a perceptual-motor aftereffect results. We demonstrate that the magnitude of this perceptual-motor aftereffect—measured by forward drift while attempting to march in-place following treadmill walking—decreases as experience walking on a treadmill is acquired over time. Experience with treadmill walking enables walking in this context to become sufficiently distinguished from walking in other contexts. Consequently, two distinct perceptual-motor calibration states are maintained, each linked to the context in which walking occurs. Experience with treadmill walking maintains perceptual-motor calibration accuracy in both walking contexts, despite changes to the relationship between perception and action.
Last updated on 10/29/2020