CMA Movement Observation & Pattern Recognition 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In the LMA Space Harmony framework, which spatial pull refers to movement oriented toward the High-Right-Forward diagonal?
- Right-high-forward diagonal (RHF) (Correct answer)
- Left-low-back diagonal
- Door plane vertical
- Sagittal forward axis
Correct answer: Right-high-forward diagonal (RHF)
Space Harmony maps movement pulls along diagonals, axes, and planes within the Kinesphere; RHF is one of four primary diagonals.
Question 2: When a CMA notes that a mover's Flow Effort is primarily Bound, what behavioral tendency might this indicate?
- Restraint, control, and readiness to stop (Correct answer)
- Ease, release, and going-ness
- Strength and grounded stability
- Lightness and upward levity
Correct answer: Restraint, control, and readiness to stop
Bound Flow indicates controlled, held movement that can be stopped at any moment, often linked to caution or precision.
Question 3: Which aspect of Laban Movement Analysis specifically addresses HOW the mover relates to inner impulse and outer expressivity?
- Effort (Correct answer)
- Shape
- Space
- Body
Correct answer: Effort
Effort addresses the qualitative dynamics of movement — the inner attitudes that color how a movement is performed.
Question 4: A CMA observes that a subject's Kinesphere is consistently very small and contracted. What movement pattern is being noted?
- Reduced Kinesphere / Near Reach Space (Correct answer)
- Vertical plane dominance
- Sagittal retreating effort
- Homolateral shrinkage
Correct answer: Reduced Kinesphere / Near Reach Space
The Kinesphere is the bubble of personal space a mover occupies; a consistently small Kinesphere indicates Near Reach Space habituation.
Question 5: In movement observation, what does the term 'Transition' specifically refer to?
- The movement connecting one posture or phrase to the next (Correct answer)
- The peak moment of an action
- The spatial path from Point A to Point B
- The pause between movement phrases
Correct answer: The movement connecting one posture or phrase to the next
Transitions are how a mover moves between actions or postures, and they carry significant expressive and patterning information.
Question 6: Which LMA concept describes the simultaneous occurrence of Effort changes throughout the whole body rather than in isolated body parts?
- Whole-body Effort phrasing (Correct answer)
- Partial body actuation
- Segmental effort
- Distal Effort expression
Correct answer: Whole-body Effort phrasing
Whole-body Effort phrasing indicates that Effort qualities suffuse the entire soma simultaneously, reflecting full-body expressive commitment.
Question 7: When recognizing a 'Postural' movement (as opposed to a 'Gestural' movement), what is the key distinguishing feature?
- The whole body participates in the movement quality (Correct answer)
- Only the limbs are involved
- The movement follows a spatial pathway
- The movement involves weight transfer
Correct answer: The whole body participates in the movement quality
Postural movement involves the whole body sharing the same movement quality, whereas Gesture involves partial body movement without whole-body support.
CMA Movement Observation & Pattern Recognition 3
In the LMA Space Harmony framework, which spatial pull refers to movement oriented toward the High-Right-Forward diagonal?