Effects Of Practice On A Mechanical Horse With An Online Feedback On Performing A Sitting Postural Coordination

The present research aims at quantifying the impact of practicing a new coordination pattern with an online visual feedback on the postural coordination performed on a mechanical horse. Forty-four voluntary participants were recruited in this study. They were randomly assigned to four practice groups based on i) with or without feedback (i.e., group 1, control, did not receive the feedback; group 2, 3 and 4 received an online feedback during practice) and ii) the specific trunk/horse coordination to target during practice (group 1, target coordination = 180 degrees (without feedback); group 2, target coordination = 0 degrees; group 3, target coordination = 90 degrees; group 4, target coordination = 180 degrees). All participants performed pre-, practice, post- and retention sessions. The pre-, post- and retention sessions consisted of four trials, with one trial corresponding to one specific target coordination to maintain between their own oscillations and the horse oscillations (spontaneous, 0 degrees, 90 degrees, and 180 degrees). The practice phase was composed of three different sessions during which participants received an online feedback about the coordination between their own oscillations and the horse oscillations. Results showed a significant change with practice in the trunk/horse coordination patterns which persisted even after one month (retention-test). However, all the groups did not show the same nature of change, evidenced by a high postural variability during post-test for 0 degrees and 90 degrees target coordination groups, in opposition to the 180 degrees and spontaneous groups who showed a decrease in coordination variability for the 180 degrees group. The coordination in anti-phase was characterized as spontaneously adopted by participants on the mechanical horse, explaining the ease of performing this coordination (compared to the 0 degrees and 90 degrees target coordination). The effect of online visual feedback appeared not only on the coordination pattern itself, but most importantly on its variability during practice, including concerning initially stable coordination patterns.