Interactive effects of visuomotor perturbation and an afternoon nap on performance and the flow experience

The present study was designed (1) to clarify the relationship between the flow experience and improvements in visuomotor skills, (2) to examine the effects of rotating the axis of a computer mouse on visuomotor skills, and (3) to investigate the effects of sleep for improving visuomotor skills. Participants (N = 18) responded to Perturbation and nap (PER+Nap), No-perturbation and nap (NoPER+Nap) and Perturbation and rest (PER+Rest) conditions. In the PER+Nap condition, participants conducted a visuomotor tracking task using a computer mouse, which was accompanied by perturbation caused by rotating the axis of their mouse. After the task, they took a 90 min nap. In NoPER+Nap condition, they conducted the same visuomotor task without any perturbation and took a nap. In the PER+Rest condition, participants conducted the task with the perturbation and took a 90 min break spent reading magazines instead of taking a nap. Results indicated (1) the flow experience did not occur when participants’ skills and the degree of the visuomotor challenge were matching, (2) improvements of visuomotor skills occurred regardless of the perturbation, (3) improvements of visuomotor skills occurred unrelated to the flow experience, or to mood states, and (4) improvements of visuomotor performance occurred regardless of sleep. These findings suggest that improvements of visuomotor skills occur regardless of mood status and occur independently of perturbations by axis rotation. The study also suggests that the acquisition of skills is related to merely the time elapsed since learning, rather than to sleep.