Effects of Gait and Cognitive Task Difficulty on Cognitive-Motor Interference in Aging

Although gait-related dual-task interference in aging is well established, the effect of gait and cognitive task difficulty on dual-task interference is poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of gait and cognitive task difficulty on cognitive-motor interference in agi...

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Main Authors: Prudence Plummer-D'Amato, Briana Brancato, Mallory Dantowitz, Stephanie Birken, Christina Bonke, Erin Furey
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2012-01-01
Series:Journal of Aging Research
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/583894
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author Prudence Plummer-D'Amato
Briana Brancato
Mallory Dantowitz
Stephanie Birken
Christina Bonke
Erin Furey
author_facet Prudence Plummer-D'Amato
Briana Brancato
Mallory Dantowitz
Stephanie Birken
Christina Bonke
Erin Furey
author_sort Prudence Plummer-D'Amato
collection DOAJ
description Although gait-related dual-task interference in aging is well established, the effect of gait and cognitive task difficulty on dual-task interference is poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of gait and cognitive task difficulty on cognitive-motor interference in aging. Fifteen older adults (72.1 years, SD 5.2) and 20 young adults (21.7 years, SD 1.6) performed three walking tasks of varying difficulty (self-selected speed, fast speed, and fast speed with obstacle crossing) under single- and dual-task conditions. The cognitive tasks were the auditory Stroop task and the clock task. There was a significant Group × Gait Task × Cognitive Task interaction for the dual-task effect on gait speed. After adjusting for education, there were no significant effects of gait or cognitive task difficulty on the dual-task effects on cognitive task performance. The results of this study provide evidence that gait task difficulty influences dual-task effects on gait speed, especially in older adults. Moreover, the effects of gait task difficulty on dual-task interference appear to be influenced by the difficulty of the cognitive task. Education is an important factor influencing cognitive-motor interference effects on cognition, but not gait.
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language English
publishDate 2012-01-01
publisher Wiley
record_format Article
series Journal of Aging Research
spelling doaj-art-1aa8a1be882a480aac5ebe5b28b1907c2025-02-03T01:02:28ZengWileyJournal of Aging Research2090-22042090-22122012-01-01201210.1155/2012/583894583894Effects of Gait and Cognitive Task Difficulty on Cognitive-Motor Interference in AgingPrudence Plummer-D'Amato0Briana Brancato1Mallory Dantowitz2Stephanie Birken3Christina Bonke4Erin Furey5Department of Physical Therapy, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 6 Robinson Hall, Boston, MA 02115-5000, USADepartment of Physical Therapy, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 6 Robinson Hall, Boston, MA 02115-5000, USADepartment of Physical Therapy, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 6 Robinson Hall, Boston, MA 02115-5000, USADepartment of Physical Therapy, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 6 Robinson Hall, Boston, MA 02115-5000, USADepartment of Physical Therapy, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 6 Robinson Hall, Boston, MA 02115-5000, USADepartment of Physical Therapy, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 6 Robinson Hall, Boston, MA 02115-5000, USAAlthough gait-related dual-task interference in aging is well established, the effect of gait and cognitive task difficulty on dual-task interference is poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of gait and cognitive task difficulty on cognitive-motor interference in aging. Fifteen older adults (72.1 years, SD 5.2) and 20 young adults (21.7 years, SD 1.6) performed three walking tasks of varying difficulty (self-selected speed, fast speed, and fast speed with obstacle crossing) under single- and dual-task conditions. The cognitive tasks were the auditory Stroop task and the clock task. There was a significant Group × Gait Task × Cognitive Task interaction for the dual-task effect on gait speed. After adjusting for education, there were no significant effects of gait or cognitive task difficulty on the dual-task effects on cognitive task performance. The results of this study provide evidence that gait task difficulty influences dual-task effects on gait speed, especially in older adults. Moreover, the effects of gait task difficulty on dual-task interference appear to be influenced by the difficulty of the cognitive task. Education is an important factor influencing cognitive-motor interference effects on cognition, but not gait.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/583894
spellingShingle Prudence Plummer-D'Amato
Briana Brancato
Mallory Dantowitz
Stephanie Birken
Christina Bonke
Erin Furey
Effects of Gait and Cognitive Task Difficulty on Cognitive-Motor Interference in Aging
Journal of Aging Research
title Effects of Gait and Cognitive Task Difficulty on Cognitive-Motor Interference in Aging
title_full Effects of Gait and Cognitive Task Difficulty on Cognitive-Motor Interference in Aging
title_fullStr Effects of Gait and Cognitive Task Difficulty on Cognitive-Motor Interference in Aging
title_full_unstemmed Effects of Gait and Cognitive Task Difficulty on Cognitive-Motor Interference in Aging
title_short Effects of Gait and Cognitive Task Difficulty on Cognitive-Motor Interference in Aging
title_sort effects of gait and cognitive task difficulty on cognitive motor interference in aging
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/583894
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