Increased error-correction leads to both higher levels of variability and adaptation

In order to intercept moving objects, we need to predict the spatiotemporal features of the motion of both the object and our hand. Our errors can result in updates of these predictions to benefit interceptions in the future (adaptation). Recent studies claim that task-relevant variability in baseline performance can help adapt to perturbations, because initial variability helps explore the spatial demands of the task. In this study, we examined whether this relationship is also found in interception (temporal domain) by looking at the link between the variability of hand-movement speed during baseline trials, and the adaptation to a temporal perturbation. 17 subjects performed an interception task on a graphic tablet with a stylus. A target moved from left to right or vice versa, with varying speed across trials. Participants were instructed to intercept this target with a straight forward movement of their hand. Their movements were represented by a cursor that was displayed on a screen above the tablet. To prevent online corrections we blocked the hand from view, and a part of the cursor’s trajectory was occluded. After a baseline phase of 80 trials, a temporal delay of 100 ms was introduced to the cursor representing the hand (adaptation phase: 80 trials). This delay initially caused participants to miss the target, but they quickly accounted for these errors by adapting to most of the delay of the cursor. We found that variability in baseline movement velocity is a good predictor of temporal adaptation (defined as a combination of the rate of change and the asymptotic level of change after a perturbation), with higher variability during baseline being associated with better adaptation. However, cross-correlation results suggest that the increased variability is the result of increased error correction, rather than exploration.