Jennifer Larson
Boston Children's Hospital, University of California, Irvine
Papers
2
Total Citations
118
H-Index
2
About
Jennifer Larson is a leading researcher in motor control and learning, with a focus on how the nervous system adapts to constraints like development and fatigue. Her work explores the fundamental limits of motor performance, particularly in children and during physical exertion. In her highly cited 2003 study (71 citations), Larson demonstrated that while children exhibit greater neuromotor noise—or movement variability—this noise limits their motor performance but does not impair their ability to adapt to new tasks, challenging assumptions about developmental motor skill acquisition. She further advanced the field with her 2005 work (47 citations) on muscle fatigue, showing that fatigue disrupts the formation and retention of internal models—the neural representations that predict required muscle forces for skilled movement. This research has implications for rehabilitation, sports training, and understanding motor disorders. Larson’s contributions illuminate how the motor system balances variability and adaptation, providing a foundation for designing interventions to improve motor learning across the lifespan. Her work remains a cornerstone for students and researchers studying the intersection of biomechanics, neuroscience, and development.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1
- 2