ABSTRACT
Handwriting can be described as a complex neuro-muscular process that becomes an acquired skill. After years of repetition, an extensive combination of writing habits and patterns are executed without conscious thought and become relatively stable. Complexity of movement in general includes the number and duration of movement segments. Although complexity was not explored in detail in early texts on questioned documents, leading authors stressed the need for a sufficient quantity of writing to decrease the possibility of accidental coincidence or undetectable simulation. To date, research on complexity has focused on signatures due to their being highly habituated and relatively compact in length. As signatures often have numerous connecting strokes, there is typically more information content in a relatively small amount of writing. Simulators tend not to notice subtle details present in the writing; they focus on the prominent features instead.
