Paul S. Holmes

• Professor
• Professor (Full) at Manchester Metropolitan University

Researchers from multiple disciplines have studied the simulation of actions through motor imagery, action observation, or their combination. Procedures used in these studies vary considerably between research groups, and no standardized approach to reporting experimental protocols has been proposed. This has led to under-reporting of critical deta...

Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) is characterised by poor motor coordination, which interferes with the ability to execute activities of daily living (ADLs). Combined action observation and motor imagery (AOMI) involves observing movement videos whilst imagining simultaneously the sensations of executing the same movement. Laboratory-based...

Background: Motor (re)learning via technology-dependent therapy has the potential to complement traditional therapies available to older adults living with stroke after hospital discharge and increase therapy dose. To date, little is known about the feasibility of technology-dependent therapy in a home setting for this population. Objective: To...

Objectives Fall-related injuries occur at a similar prevalence rate in middle-aged and older adults and may increase concerns about falling and future falls. No research to date has examined how experiences of falls and related concerns, differ between middle-aged and older fallers. This study aimed to address this using qualitative interviews. Me...

The aim of this research was to establish prevalence estimates for aphantasia, hypophantasia, typical imagery ability, and hyperphantasia in a large multi-national cohort. In Study 1, the Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire was completed by 3,049 participants. Results indicated prevalence estimates of 1.2% for aphantasia, 3% for hypophantasia...

Combined action observation and motor imagery (AOMI) facilitates corticospinal excitability (CSE) and may potentially induce plastic-like changes in the brain in a similar manner to physical practice. This study used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to explore changes in CSE for AOMI of coordinative lower-limb actions. Twenty-four healthy ad...

Combined use of action observation and motor imagery (AOMI) is an increasingly popular motor-simulation intervention, which involves observing movements on video while simultaneously imagining the feeling of movement execution. Measuring and reporting participant imagery-ability characteristics are essential in motor-simulation research, but no mea...

This scientific commentary refers to ‘Explicit and implicit motor simulations are impaired in individuals with aphantasia’, by Dupont et al. (https://doi.org/10.1093/braincomms/fcae072) in Brain Communications

The aim of the present study was to investigate self-efficacy and coping strategies in women who avoided physical activity during menstruation (avoiders), adapted their physical activity during menstruation (adaptors), or maintained their normal physical activity during menstruation (nonavoiders). Using an online survey which included sections on m...

Eaves et al., Psychological Research Psychologische Forschung, 2022) summary review, showing positive behavioural effects of AOMI interventions, is a welcome addition to the field. Several recent studies, however, have reported that AOMI may be no more beneficial than independent MI, and, for some tasks, may add no benefit beyond that obtained via...

Combined action observation and motor imagery (AOMI) facilitates corticospinal excitability (CSE) and may potentially induce plastic-like changes in the brain in a similar manner to physical practice. This study used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to explore changes in CSE for AOMI of coordinative lower-limb actions. Twenty-four healthy ad...

Combined action observation and motor imagery (AOMI) facilitates corticospinal excitability (CSE) and may potentially induce plastic-like changes in the brain in a similar manner to physical practice. This study used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to explore changes in CSE for AOMI of coordinative lower-limb actions. Twenty-four healthy ad...

Researchers from multiple disciplines have studied the simulation of actions through motor imagery, action observation, or their combination. Procedures used in these studies vary considerably between research groups, and no standardized approach to reporting experimental protocols has been proposed. This has led to under-reporting of critical deta...

Research has shown that motor imagery (MI) interventions, involving the systematic and repeated imagination of visual and kinaesthetic components of movements, can enhance performance in sport. Twenty years ago, Holmes and Collins (2001) published the PETTLEP model as a framework to improve the delivery and outcome of MI interventions. The model ou...

Movement is important for children’s health and well-being. Most children find it easy to learn to move but children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) find it hard. It can be tricky for them to plan and control their movements. DCD affects 1 in every 20 children. It makes important tasks difficult, like getting dressed or playing games...

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) causes difficulties with hand movements, which few studies have addressed therapeutically. Training with action observation (AO) and motor imagery (MI) improves performance in healthy individuals, particularly when the techniques are applied simultaneously (AO + MI). Both AO and MI have shown promising effects...

Cholinergic degeneration is a key feature of dementia in neurodegenerative conditions including Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD). Quantitative EEG metrics are altered in both conditions from early stages, and recent research in people with Lewy Body and AD dementia suggests these changes may be associated with atrophy in cholin...

Action observation (AO) and motor imagery (MI) have been used separately across different populations to alleviate movement impairment. Recently these two forms of covert motor simulation have been combined (combined action observation and motor imagery; AOMI), resulting in greater neurophysiological activity in the motor system, and more favourabl...

Background Parkinson’s disease (PD) causes difficulties with everyday manual activities, but few studies have addressed these therapeutically. Training with action observation (AO) and motor imagery (MI) can significantly improve performance in healthy individuals, particularly when these techniques are applied simultaneously (AO+MI). Both AO and M...

Background There is an urgent need to identify individuals at risk of postural instability and gait difficulties, and the resulting propensity for falls, in Parkinson's disease. Objectives Given known relationships between posture and gait and degeneration of the cholinergic pedunculopontine nucleus, we investigated whether metrics of pedunculopon...

A range of cognitive skills that support the development of sport potential have been suggested to be important for athletes and coaches. This study explored performers' psychological characteristics within orienteers. The psychological skills of World Elite orienteers and athletes in the National Junior Squads of both Great Britain and Switzerland...

The internal modelling deficit (IMD) hypothesis suggests that motor control issues associated with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) are the result of impaired predictive motor control. In this study, we examined the benefits of a combined action observation and motor imagery (AO+MI) intervention designed to alleviate deficits in internal m...

There is evidence that action observation (AO) and the processing of action-related words are associated with increased activity in cortical motor regions. Research has examined the effects of AO and action verb processing on activity in the motor system independently. The aim of this experiment was to investigate, for the first time, the modulatio...

The dual-action simulation hypothesis proposes that both an observed and an imagined action can be represented simultaneously in the observer's brain. These two sensorimotor streams would either merge or compete depending on their relative suitability for action planning. To test this hypothesis, three forms of combined action observation and motor...

In the present study we compared the effectiveness of concurrent action observation and motor imagery (AO+MI), observing with the intent to imitate (active observation; AO) and passive observation (PO) training interventions for improving eye-hand coordination. Fifty participants were assigned to five groups (AO+MI, AO, PO, physical practice (PP);...

Background: Sensitivity-related trait characteristics involving physical and emotional sensitivities and high trait anxiety personality types have been observed in individuals with non-specific chronic low back pain (NSCLBP). High trait sensitivity to sensory stimulation combined with interpretation biases based on personality type may contribute...

Background: Individuals with nonspecific chronic low back pain (NSCLBP) and central sensitization (CS) exhibit sensory hypersensitivity that may be related to pre-existing trait characteristics. Sensory profiles and trait anxiety-related characteristics have sensory sensitivity in common with CS. Objectives: The objectives of this study were 1)...

Research into attentional biases and threatening, pain-related information has primarily been investigated using reaction time as the dependent variable. This study aimed to extend previous research to provide a more in depth investigation of chronic back pain and individuals’ attention to emotional stimuli by recording eye movement behavior. Indiv...

Action observation produces activity in similar regions of the brain to those involved in action execution and can offer an effective intervention for motor (re)learning, although optimal viewing conditions for such interventions remain to be established. In this experiment, single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and eye-tracking were...

Background: Physical therapy evaluations of motor control are currently based on subjective clinical assessments. Despite validation, these can still be inconsistent between therapists and between clinics, compromising the process of validating a therapeutic intervention and the subsequent generation of evidence-based practice (EBP) guidelines. EB...

The development of objective assessment tools to complement subjective evaluations could have a major impact in the evaluation of the consequences of neuromotor disabilities, specifically in the assessment of trunk control in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Current assessments are subjective and typically assess the general control status of a c...

Action observation has been suggested to be an effective adjunct to physical practice in motor (re)learning settings. However, optimal viewing conditions for interventions are yet to be established. Single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was used to investigate the effect of two different screen positions and participants’ screen posi...

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) research has shown that corticospinal excitability is facilitated during the observation of human movement. However, the relationship between corticospinal excitability and participants’ visual attention during action observation is rarely considered. Nineteen participants took part in four conditions: (i) a...

Full trunk control in sitting is demonstrated only when the head-trunk are aligned and upper limbs remain free of contact from mechanical support. These components represent a Controlled Kinetic Chain and can be evaluated in people with neuromotor disability using the Segmental Assessment of Trunk Control (SATCo) when a therapist provides manual tr...

Advances in technology have allowed research in cognitive neuroscience to contribute significantly to the discipline of sport psychology. In most cases, the research has become more rigorous and has directed current thinking on the mechanisms subserving a number of psychological theories and models of practice. Currently, the three most common neur...

A range of cognitive skills that support the development of sport potential have been suggested to be important for athletes and coaches. This study explored performers’ psychological characteristics within orienteers. The psychological skills of World Elite orienteers and athletes in the National Junior Squads of both Great Britain and Switzerland...

Motor imagery (MI) and action observation (AO) have traditionally been viewed as two separate techniques, which can both be used alongside physical practice to enhance motor learning and rehabilitation. Their independent use has largely been shown to be effective, and there is clear evidence that the two processes can elicit similar activity in the...

Motor imagery (MI) and action observation (AO) have traditionally been viewed as two separate techniques, which can both be used alongside physical practice to enhance motor learning and rehabilitation. Their independent use has largely been shown to be effective, and there is clear evidence that the two processes can elicit similar activity in the...

Maintenance of a vertically aligned posture of the head and trunk in sitting is a fundamental skill that demonstrates the presence of neuromotor control. Clinical assessments of posture are generally subjective. Studies have quantified posture using different technologies, but the application of such technologies in a clinical environment remains d...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Posture can be assessed either subjectively or objectively. In the literature there are detailed subjective descriptions of ’ideal alignment’ in standing but no agreement of an ’ideal seated postural alignment’. The use of radiographs [1, 2], rastersterography , and three-dimensional (3D) motion capture systems have addressed ma...

Action observation interventions may have the potential to contribute to improved motor function in motor (re)learning settings by promoting functional activity and plasticity in the motor regions of the brain. Optimal methods for delivering such interventions, however, have yet to be established. This experiment investigated the effect on corticos...

Background: Self-led therapy has the potential to extend rehabilitation and enhance recovery after stroke. Evolving technology can add support and structure to this approach. Our objective was to develop and evaluate the See, Imagine, Move; Upper Limb Action Therapy (SIMULATe) application; an iPad-based, cognitive and physical training intervention...

Attentional biases reflect an individual's selective attention to salient stimuli within their environment, for example an experience of back pain. Eysenck suggests that different personality types show different attentional biases to threatening information. This study is the first to test Eysenck's theory within a chronic back pain population by...

The image numbers of the pictures used for the positive and neutral images are listed in the S1 Appendix. (DOCX)

The raw data from this study can be found in the S1 Table. (PDF)

This chapter describes important issues regarding research students' participation in a virtual community. Within a virtual community, university staff can communicate with research students without geographical/space constraints, and research students can exchange views, materials, and experience with their peers and/or academics in a flexible lea...

The combined event is a crucial aspect of the modern pentathlon competition, but little is known about how shooting performance changes through the event. This study aimed to identify (i) how performance-related variables changed within each shooting series and (ii) how performance-related variables changed between each shooting series. Seventeen m...

Introduction: Eye movement metric congruency across motor simulation states is appealing for proponents of shared representation models; data supporting this contention are, however, conflicting. This study used a novel method for normalizing and analyzing gaze metrics to compare eye movements during action observation (AO) and motor imagery (MI) f...

To date, no research has investigated score predictions and anxiety interpretation in high-anxious, low-anxious, defensive high-anxious and repressor individuals. This study examined Eysenck’s (1997) predictions for cognitive biases on future performance expectations in all four groups. This study was conducted in an ecologically-valid sporting env...

This chapter describes important issues regarding research students’ participation in a virtual community. Within a virtual community, university staff can communicate with research students without geographical/space constraints, and research students can exchange views, materials and experience with their peers and/or academics in a flexible lear...

This chapter describes important issues regarding research students’ participation in a virtual community. Within a virtual community, university staff can communicate with research students without geographical/space constraints, and research students can exchange views, materials, and experience with their peers and/or academics in a flexible lea...

Observation and imagery of movement both activate similar brain regions to those involved in movement execution. As such, both are recommended as techniques for aiding the recovery of motor function following stroke. Traditionally, action observation and movement imagery (MI) have been considered as independent intervention techniques. Researchers...

Imagery can improve sport performance, although its efficacy is mediated by the ease with which athletes can generate images. Establishing techniques that improve this imagery ability factor is desirable to enhance the effectiveness of imagery interventions. Twenty-seven club-level female golfers were assigned to imagery, action observation, or phy...

Movement based interventions such as imag-ery and action observation are used increasingly to support physical rehabilitation of adults during early aging. The efficacy of these more covert approaches is based on an intuitively appealing assumption that move-ment execution, imagery and observation share neural substrate; alteration of one influence...

Patients with low back pain often demonstrate elevated paraspinal muscle activity compared to asymptomatic controls. This hyperactivity has been associated with a delayed rate of stature recovery following spinal loading tasks. The aim of this study was to investigate the changes in muscle activity and stature recovery in patients with chronic low...

The aim of this paper is to provide a review of eye movements during action execution, action observation, and movement imagery. Furthermore, the paper highlights aspects of congruency in gaze metrics between these states. The implications of the imagery, observation, and action gaze congruency are discussed in terms of motor learning and rehabilit...

The concept of shared motor representations between action execution and various covert conditions has been demonstrated through a number of psychophysiological modalities over the past two decades. Rarely, however, have researchers considered the congruence of physical, imaginary and observed movement markers in a single paradigm and never in a de...

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) studies indicate that the observation of other people's actions influences the excitability of the observer's motor system. Motor evoked potential (MEP) amplitudes typically increase in muscles which would be active during the execution of the observed action. This 'motor resonance' effect is thought to resul...

Abstract Despite the importance of the Combined Event to the modern pentathlon competition, little is known about performance in the event. This study aimed to (i) identify the key variables affecting Combined Event shooting performance, and the extent to which these corresponded with those identified for precision shooting and (ii) investigate the...

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. The publisher does not give any warranty express or implied or make any representation that the cont...

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. The publisher does not give any warranty express or implied or make any representation that the cont...

Experts in a skill produce movement-related cortical potentials (MRCPs) of smaller amplitude and later onset than novices. This may indicate that, following long-term training, experts require less effort to plan motor skill performance. However, no longitudinal evidence exists to support this claim. To address this, EEG was used to study the effec...

Action observation (AO) and movement imagery (MI) have been reported to share similar neural networks. This study investigated the congruency between AO and MI using the eye gaze metrics, dwell time and fixation number. A simple reach-grasp-place arm movement was observed and, in a second condition, imagined where the movement was presented from th...

Studies using transcranial magnetic stimulation have demonstrated that action observation can modulate the activity of the corticospinal system. This has been attributed to the activity of an 'action observation network', whereby premotor cortex activity influences corticospinal excitability. Neuroimaging studies have demonstrated that the context...

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has been used widely in research investigating corticospinal (CS) excitability during action observation. Generally, this work has shown that observation of an action performed by others, in the absence of overt movement, modulates the excitability of the CS pathway in humans. Despite the extent of the litera...

To test the hypothesis that patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP) would have reduced paraspinal muscle activity when wearing a heat wrap and that this would be associated with increased stature recovery and short-term improvements in psychological factors. A within-subject repeated-measures design. Muscle activity and stature recovery were ass...

ABSTRACT: Research using neuroscientific techniques has shown that less cortical activity occurs in the brains of experienced musicians and athletes than in the brains of novices when they plan and prepare to perform a motor skill. We used electroencephalography to observe cortical activity in the brains of experienced and novice guitarists prepari...

It is commonly reported that transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) of the motor cortex during action observation and motor imagery results in increases in the amplitude of motor evoked potentials (MEPs) in muscles specific to the observed or imagined action. This study aimed to determine whether MEP amplitude was related to the motor imagery abil...

Individuals with low back pain (LBP) often exhibit elevated paraspinal muscle activity compared to asymptomatic controls during static postures such as standing. This hyperactivity has been associated with a delayed rate of stature recovery in individuals with mild LBP. This study aimed to explore this association further in a more clinically relev...

The influence of motor skill learning on movement-related brain activity was investigated using electroencephalography. Previous research has indicated that experienced performers display movement-related cortical potentials (MRCPs) of smaller amplitude and later onset compared to novices. Unfortunately, previous studies have lacked ecological vali...

Sport and exercise psychologists provide some interventions for clients based on limited direct evidence and partial understanding of the mechanisms that underpin their efficacy. The authors review a recent technique, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), which offers a tested procedure for investigating cortical activity during observation and...

Several researchers have reported the importance of maintaining a longer final fixation on the target (termed the quiet eye period, QE) before performing an aiming task. We present an innovative, perceptual training intervention intended to improve the efficiency of gaze behavior (i.e., QE) in shotgun shooting. A sample of 20 international-level sk...

We tested the predictions of Attentional Control Theory (ACT) by examining the effect of anxiety on attention control and the subsequent influence on both performance effectiveness and performance efficiency within a perceptual-motor context. A sample (N = 16) of elite shotgun shooters was tested under counterbalanced low (practice) and high (compe...

The movement-related cortical potential (MRCP) is a low-frequency negative shift in the electroencephalographic recording that occurs about 2 s before voluntary movement production. The MRCP is thought to reflect the cortical processes involved in movement planning and movement preparation. In recent years, researchers have used this potential to i...

Full-text of this article is not available in this e-prints service. This article was originally published in International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, published by and copyright Fitness Information Technology Inc. This investigation examined the predictions of psychoneuromuscular theory (Richardson, 1967) and the effectiveness of men...

Full-text of this article is not available in this e-prints service. This article was originally published following peer-review in Manual Therapy, published by and copyright Churchill Livingstone.

Full-text of this article is not available in this e-prints service. This article was originally published following peer-review in European Journal of Sport Science, published by and copyright Taylor & Francis Ltd.. In this study, we examined whether movement imagery results in greater physiological responses and greater imagery ability when the i...

To explore eight individuals' experiences and responses to taking part in a personalised observation-based intervention for stroke rehabilitation. Eight participants who had experienced a cerebrovascular accident were recruited to a 16-week observation-based intervention. Participants were interviewed face-to-face to explore their responses to, and...

No literature exists to document skill-related differences in shotgun shooting and whether these may be a function of eye movements and control of gun motion. We therefore conducted an exploratory investigation of the visual search behaviors and gun barrel kinematics used by elite and subelite shooters across the three shotgun shooting subdisciplin...

This chapter reviews the literature evidencing that motor imagery and observation can modulate skill. It considers the neuroscientific processes thought to be involved in physical movement skill acquisition and modulation. It evaluates the case for movement imagery and observation, supporting change within the neuronal system through similar proces...

This metadata relates to an electronic version of an article published as International review of sport and exercise psychology, 2009, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 38-53. International review of sport and exercise psychology is available online at informaworldTM at http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/1750984X.asp In the last decade, collective efficacy ha...

Imagery and observation are multicomponential, involving individual difference characteristics that modify the processes. The authors propose that both imagery and observation function by offering effective routes to access and reinforce neural networks for skilled performance. The neural isomorphism with overt behaviors offers a tempting mechanism...