PhD conferral Ms Melanie Kleynen, MSc.

Keywords: neurological rehabilitation, physiotherapy, movement, learning, implicit, explicit

"Perspectives on theory and application of implicit and explicit motor learning in neurological rehabilitation"

Many people who have suffered a stroke have to re-learn certain movements, like walking. This can take many different forms. Physiotherapists and other healthcare professionals can offer detailed verbal instructions (explicit learning) or have patients experience a movement subconsciously through the use of metaphors or challenging environments (implicit learning). In this project, the knowledge and experience of international experts on explicit and implicit learning methods for movement were combined to develop a conceptual model for therapists. Applied studies have revealed that implicit learning is the most manageable and the most successful at helping patients learn how to walk.