Perception in Motor Development

What is Perception?

• A multistage process that takes place in the BRAIN.

• It includes– Selection– Processing– Organization – Integration of Information received from the SENSES

Senses

• Sight - Visual • Hearing - Auditory• Smell - Olfactory• Taste • Touch - Tactile• Kinesthetic

Sensory or Sensation is…

• The neural activity triggered by some stimulus that activates a sensory receptor and results in sensory nerve impulses traveling the sensory nerve pathways to the brain, back to body and parts, body reacts & moves

• Stimulus examples are…– Light– Sound– Smell

• Stimulus in Athletics– Sprinter hears the gun– Outfielder hears the bat

hit the ball, sees the ball flying

– Golfer feels the ball hit the sweet spot

Kinesthetic Perception

• Tactile Localization• Multiple Tactile Points• Perception of Objects

• Perception of the Body– Body Awareness

• Laterality• Lateral Dominance• Limb Movements• Spatial Orientation

• Perception of Direction– Directionality

Proprioception

• Proprioception means "sense of self". – In the limbs, the proprioceptors are sensors that

provide information about joint angle, muscle length, and tension, which is integrated to give information about the position of the limb in space.

Kinesthetic Receptor

Location Perceives What

Muscle Spindles Muscles Joint Angle, Muscle Length, & Degree of tension

Golgi Tendon Muscle-tendon junctions

Change in tension

Proprioceptors

Joint Receptors

Joint Capsule & Ligaments

Direction, Rate, Extent of Joint Movement, Steady Position, Stationary Joint Position

Vestibular Apparatus

Inner Ear Rotation, Acceleration, Deceleration,Linear Movements (body position relative to gravity)

Cutaneous Receptors

Skin & Underlying Tissue

TouchTemperaturePain

“Like a Cat”

• Vestibular Apparatus is crucial to sport & especially sport activity that involves the body moving in space (spinning, twisting, rotating, etc.

• What are 3 specific sport examples whose athletes have a keen a vestibular apparatus or sense of body in space?

Visual Perception

• Perception of Size Constancy• Perception of Figure-and-Ground• Perception of Whole Objects versus Parts• Depth Perception• Perception of Spatial Orientation• Perception of Movement