Investigating the Speed and Accuracy of Human Movement Corrections to Visual, Somatosensory, and Tactile Perturbations: Evidence for Distinct Sensorimotor Processes

Abstract

Humans can adapt their movements in response to expected and unexpected perturbations. The speed and accuracy of these movement corrections may depend on the type of sensory information driving the perception of these perturbations. While previous research has indicated that corrections based on somatosensory information, comprised of proprioceptive and tactile inputs, are faster than corrections based on visual information, other studies have found comparable correction speeds in response to visual and tactile inputs. The purpose of this study was to systematically investigate the latencies (how fast) and magnitudes (how large) of movement corrections in response to perturbations of external visual targets, as well as somatosensory (proprioceptive and tactile), and tactile targets on the non-reaching limb. Participants performed reaching movements to a light-emitting diode (i.e., visual target), the felt position of a brush touching the index finger of the non-reaching hand (i.e., a tactile target), and the index finger of their non-reaching hand (somatosensory target). During some trials, the target was displaced 3 cm away or toward the participant either before or after movement onset. Participants demonstrated faster and larger corrections to somatosensory target perturbations than to visual or tactile target perturbations. However, corrections to visual targets were more accurate than corrections to tactile targets. These findings support the hypothesis that distinct sensorimotor processes may underlie the adjustments made in response to somatosensory information versus those made in response to visual and tactile information.

Significance Statement This study focused on systematically comparing the latencies and magnitudes of corrections in response to visual, somatosensory, and tactile cues. We found that corrections to somatosensory cues, consisting of both proprioceptive and tactile information, were faster and larger than corrections to visual and tactile cues, although visual corrections were more accurate (reduced endpoint error) and precise (reduced endpoint variability) than tactile corrections. These findings support the hypothesis that distinct sensorimotor processes underlie movement corrections across different sensory modalities and emphasize the critical role of proprioceptive feedback in facilitating rapid, online adjustments.