Phase Correction Following a Perturbation in Sensorimotor Synchronization Depends on Sensory Information

Abstract

In models of sensorimotor synchronization, it is generally assumed that phase correction occurs in response to information about sensorimotor asynchrony or relative phase. Without such feedback, a phase perturbation in the motor activity should not be followed by phase correction. Alternatively, internally generated temporal expectations could provide a basis for phase correction in the absence of feedback. To test those hypotheses, the author conducted an experiment in which participants (N = 8) tapped their finger in synchrony with isochronous auditory sequences containing a single shifted event onset, after which there could be a gap of up to 3 missing events. Participants were instructed to not react to the shifted event and to continue tapping regularly during any gap. The shifted event caused an involuntary phase shift of the following tap. The shift was corrected if the sequence continued, but during a gap, the shift persisted without correction. Those results confirm that sensory feedback is necessary for phase correction to occur.