Learning of trunk rotation movement on striking action

Abstract

We examined the effect of learning on trunk rotation during the striking action when the subjects participated in a program designed to teach the striking actions involved in tee-ball, badminton, tennis, table tennis, and golf. The program emphasized both counterclockwise and clockwise trunk rotation to facilitate exploration of the perceptual-motor learning workspace. Twenty-nine right-handed male undergraduates participated in this program for 14 weeks as a university physical education class. In tee-ball, the striking actions in both batter boxes were observed before and after the program using the direct linear transformation method, and we analyzed the range of trunk rotation and peak angular velocity, classifying it into four movement patterns based on the kinetic link principle. A greater range of trunk rotation and higher peak angular velocity were seen in the counterclockwise action than in the clockwise action, and learning effects on the peak angular velocity of both shoulder and hip rotation and the range of hip rotation were demonstrated. In addition, the movement patterns of counterclockwise action showed a significant learning effect from arm domination to unitary action or an opening pattern. These results suggest the effectiveness of this alternative multiple-striking-action program for exploring the perceptual-motor workspace in motor learning based on the dynamic system approach.