Temporal Organization of Perception and Action

Abstract

Theories of perception and action must account for three basic aspects of skilled behavior, and so far, the book has examined only the first two: What components underlie the organization of everyday action and perception, and what mechanisms activate these components in proper sequence?

The production of rhythm in general is made possible by the preparation of movements and their coordination…. Without preparation, performance is a series of discrete reactions to external events. The development of motor skill can be traced as the progress from reactive movement to movement fluency, coupled with a flexibility in tailoring action to the details of an infinite variety of contingencies.

(Shaffer, 1982, p. 110)