Max Robotics — Global Service Robot Directory + US Certification

About

Patricia A. Shewokis is a leading researcher in motor learning, surgical training, and neuroergonomics, whose work bridges engineering, neuroscience, and education. She is best known for investigating how surgeons acquire complex motor skills, particularly in comparing laparoscopic and robotic surgery. Her highly cited 2013 study, "Do laparoscopic skills transfer to robotic surgery?" (66 citations), established foundational insights into skill transfer between surgical platforms—a critical question for training curricula. Shewokis has also pioneered the use of mental workload and self-efficacy dynamics to understand motor performance, as seen in her 2019 study (16 citations) examining reaching movements across multiple practice sessions. Her innovative work extends to neural interfaces, including reconstructing surface EMG from scalp EEG during closed-loop prosthetic control (2013, 11 citations). More recently, she has compared behavioral and neural activity changes during surgical training (2025, 4 citations), using prefrontal cortex hemodynamics to assess cognitive workload. By applying team dynamics perspectives to motor performance (2017, 10 citations), Shewokis has advanced our understanding of how practice shapes both behavior and brain activity, making her a pivotal figure in optimizing training for high-stakes medical procedures.