Motor control strategies during bimanual isometric force control among healthy individuals

Abstract

This study aimed to provide a basic description of the motor control strategy during bimanual isometric force control in healthy young adults. Thirty healthy young adults (mean age: 27.4 ± 3.7 years) participated in the study. The subjects were instructed to press both hands simultaneously to match the target force level of 5%, 25%, and 50% bimanual maximum voluntary force using continuous visual feedback. Bimanual motor synergy and bimanual coordination, as well as force asymmetry, force accuracy, and force variability were compared. This study identified the specific motor control strategy of healthy young adults during bimanual isometric force control, indicating that they proportionally increased “good” and “bad” variabilities, resulting in comparable bimanual motor synergy as the target force level increased.