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Power and precision grip force control in three-to-five-year-old children: velocity control precedes amplitude control in development

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Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine the development of underlying motor control strategies in young children by characterizing the changes in performance of a visually guided force regulation task using two different grip formations; a whole-hand power grip (developmentally easier) and a thumb-index finger precision grip (developmentally more advanced). Typically developing preschool children (n=50, 3.0–5.5 years) used precision and power grips to perform a ramp and hold task with their dominant and non-dominant hands. Participants performed five trials with each hand and grip holding the force at 30% of their maximum volitional contraction for 3 s. The data were examined for both age-related and performance-related changes in motor performance. Across ages, children increased in strength, decreased in initial overshoot of the target force level, and decreased in rate of force release. Results of a cluster analysis suggest non-linear changes in the development of force control in preschool children, with a plateau in (or maturation of) velocity measures (rate of force increase and force decrease) earlier than in amplitude-related measures (initial force overshoot and force variability).

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Notes

  1. It is recognized that young children easily elicit contralateral motor overflow and/or bilateral activation; the output from each hand is not solely a unimanual activity. However, the children were just as likely to squeeze the other hand whether or not there was an object in it.

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Acknowledgments

This study was completed as a partial requirement for a Ph.D. by the first author at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences, Washington State University, P.O. Box 1495, Spokane, WA 99210-1495, USA

    Nancy L. Potter

  2. Department of Communicative Disorders, University of Wisconsin, 459 Waisman Center, 1500 Highland Ave, Madison, WI 53705, USA

    Raymond D. Kent

  3. Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, University of Wisconsin, Box 4675, Clinical Science Center-K6, 600 Highland Ave, Madison, WI 53792, USA

    Mary J. Lindstrom

  4. Department of Kinesiology, University of Wisconsin, 2043 Gymnasium-Natatorium, 2000 Observatory Dr, Madison, WI 53706, USA

    Jo-Anne C. Lazarus

Authors
  1. Nancy L. Potter
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  2. Raymond D. Kent
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  3. Mary J. Lindstrom
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  4. Jo-Anne C. Lazarus
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nancy L. Potter.

Appendix A: Force regulation parsing rules

Appendix A: Force regulation parsing rules

The following criteria were used to select the child’s best (most adult-like) trial for analysis.

First, select the trial that upon:

  1. 1.

    Initial inspection inspect has a:

    1. a.

      Flat stability line.

    2. b.

      Rise time after go.

    3. c.

      Release time closest within 90 samples of stop. If more than one trial meets criteria number 1 then select the trial using the following criteria:

  2. 2.

    Stability:

    1. a.

      Flattest stability period:

      1. 1.

        Least drops below target at −125 samples before the release.

      2. 2.

        Least rises above target at −125 samples before the release.

      3. 3.

        Longest stability period within task “go” and “stop” boundaries.

  3. 3.

    Initiation:

    1. a.

      Straight rise line.

    2. b.

      Steepest slope.

    3. c.

      After “go”.

    4. d.

      Minimal overshoot on height.

  4. 4.

    Release:

    1. a.

      Straight release line.

    2. b.

      After “stop”. Include in the selection:

    3. c.

      10 samples before rise point or go, whichever comes first.

    4. d.

      10 samples after return to baseline or stop, whichever comes last.

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Potter, N.L., Kent, R.D., Lindstrom, M.J. et al. Power and precision grip force control in three-to-five-year-old children: velocity control precedes amplitude control in development. Exp Brain Res 172, 246–260 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-005-0322-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-005-0322-5

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