Lower Left Temporal-Frontal Connectivity Characterizes Expert and Accurate Performance: High-Alpha T7-Fz Connectivity as a Marker of Conscious Processing During Movement

Germano Gallicchio, Andrew Cooke, Christopher Ring

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

27 Citations (Scopus)
303 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

The Theory of Reinvestment argues that conscious processing can impair motor performance. The present study tested the utility of left temporal-frontal cortical connectivity as a neurophysiological marker of movement specific conscious processing. Expert and novice golfers completed putts while temporal-frontal connectivity was computed using high alpha Inter Site Phase Clustering (ISPC) and then analyzed as a function of experience (experts versus novices), performance (holed versus missed putts), and pressure (low versus high). Existing evidence shows that left temporal to frontal connectivity is related to dispositional conscious processing and is sensitive to the amount of declarative knowledge acquired during learning. We found that T7-Fz ISPC, but not T8-Fz ISPC, was lower in experts than novices, and lower when putts were holed than missed. Accordingly, our findings provide additional evidence that communication between verbal/language and motor areas of the brain during preparation for action and its execution is associated with poor motor performance. Our findings validate high-alpha left temporal-frontal connectivity as a neurophysiological correlate of movement specific conscious processing.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)14-24
JournalSport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology
Volume5
Issue number1
Early online date14 Dec 2015
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 29 Feb 2016

Keywords

  • conscious processing
  • Inter Site Phase Clustering (ISPC)
  • motor control
  • Reinvestment Theory
  • temporal-frontal connectivity

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