PSTM WEEK 14 | TEACHING PSYCHOMOTOR SKILLS o Motor Plan: a general preconception of what

movements will be required to perform a skill

PSYCHOMOTOR SKILLS (Movement-oriented)
• Used to provide patient care and ensure the safety of the
team members. There are many ways to perform medically
acceptable skills behaviors.
FIVE LEVELS OF PSYCHOMOTOR SKILLS
1. IMITATION (observing and copying someone else)
• Student repeats what is done by the instructor: “See
one, do one”
• Avoid modeling wrong behavior because the student will
do as you do
• Some skills are learned entirely by observation, with no
need for formal instruction
2. MANIPULATION (guided via instruction to perform a skill)
• Using guidelines as a basis or foundation for the skill
(skill sheets)
• Making mistakes and thinking through corrective actions
is a significant way to learn
• Skill practice is not enough, students must perform the
skill correctly
• The student begins to develop his or her own style and
techniques. Ensure students are performing medically
acceptable behaviors
3. PRECISION (exactness and accuracy)
• The student has practiced sufficiently to perform skill
without mistakes
• Student generally can only perform the skill in a limited
setting
4. ARTICULATION (two or more skills combined, sequenced,
and performs consistently. Coordinating series of action to
achieve a harmony and internal consistency)
• The student is able to integrate cognitive and affective
components with skill performance. Understands why
the skill is done a certain way. Knows when the skill is
indicated
• Performs skill proficiently with style and in context
5. NATURALIZATION (also called "muscle memory")
• Mastery level skill performance w/o cognition &
multitask effectively
• Can perform skill perfectly during scenario, simulation,
or actual patient situation
2. STAGE TWO: FIXATION/DIVERSIFICATION
• Fixation: Practicing the skill in the same way each time
to fix a reproducible pattern in memory. (Requires the
learner to replicate the pattern consistently and
accurately. Conditions are closed)
• Diversification: Practicing the skill in a variety of ways so
that it can be reproduced in a modified way to meet
changing environments at any time. (Requires the
learner to adapt and modify his/her behavior. Conditions
are open)
B. ATTENTION
• The Bottleneck Theory of attention proposes that our
information processing system can handle a limited
number of stimuli at one time. (Through coaching and
practice)
C. PRACTICE
• Massed Practice: continuously repeated practice
sessions with very short or no rest periods between
trials. (Great for basic skills. E.g., long study or practice
sessions to encourage learning)
• Distributed Practice: practice sessions interspersed with
rest periods that are equal to or greater than the
practice time. (Has break time and some topics are
divided into multiple sessions)
• Mental Practice: a technique that has been widely
studied in movement science and applied in physical
education.
D. WHOLE VERSUS PART LEARNING
• The part method should be used for skills that are
extremely complex with many parts; the whole method
should be used with skills of low complexity or where
the parts are extremely interrelated or organized

A. PHASES OF SKILL LEARNING

1. STAGE ONE: GETTING THE IDEA OF THE MOVEMENT
• The initial step in getting the idea of the movement is
having a goal; that is, the learner is confronted with a
clear-cut need or problem.
o Regulatory Stimuli: external conditions that
influence or regulate skill performance and to
which the learner must pay attention
o Nonregulatory Stimuli
o Closed Skill: skill performed under stable
environmental conditions and stimuli
o Open Skill: skill performed under changing
environmental conditions and stimuli