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Increased Cognitive Load Leads to Impaired Mobility Decisions in Seniors at Risk for Falls
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Increased Cognitive Load Leads to Impaired Mobility Decisions in Seniors at Risk for Falls

Lindsay S Nagamatsu, Michelle Voss, Mark B Neider, John G Gaspar, Todd C Handy, Arthur F Kramer and Teresa Y. L Liu-Ambrose
Psychology and aging, Vol.26(2), pp.253-259
06/2011
DOI: 10.1037/a0022929
PMCID: PMC3123036
PMID: 21463063

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Abstract

Successful mobility requires appropriate decision-making. Seniors with reduced executive functioning-such as senior fallers-may be prone to poor mobility judgments, especially under dual-task conditions. We classified participants as "At-Risk" and "Not-At-Risk" for falls using a validated physiological falls-risk assessment. Dual-task performance was assessed in a virtual reality environment where participants crossed a simulated street by walking on a manual treadmill while listening to music or conversing on a phone. Those "At-Risk" experienced more collisions with oncoming cars and had longer crossing times in the Phone condition compared to controls. We conclude that poor mobility judgments during a dual-task leads to unsafe mobility for those at-risk for falls.
falls risk cognitive load aging dual-task

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