Are postural adjustments in catching equilibrium control or movement support?

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The purpose of this study was to investigate postural adjustments that are made in response to raising the arm in one-handed ball catching, given that postural balance might be decisive for successful catching performance [1]. Specifically, it was examined if postural adjustments are a response to overcome the disturbance of balance or merely a consequence of the movement at hand. METHODS: Full body kinematics, kinetics and postural muscle activity while raising the arm when catching a fast-moving ball were compared to a well-studied reaction-time arm raising task. RESULTS: The focal movement of arm raising showed more elbow flexion in catching compared to the reaction-time task (Wilcoxon test, p