| Smoothness of Obstacle Crossing Under Different Attentional Focus Strategies in Older Women |
| Paper ID : 1420-SPORTCONGRESS (R1) |
| Authors |
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سعیده لطیفی, مصطفی حاج لطفعلیان * دانشگاه یزد |
| Abstract |
| Abstract Introduction: This study aimed to examine the effects of two attentional focus strategies—internal (on body movements) and external (on environmental cues)—on movement smoothness during obstacle crossing in older women. Movement smoothness reflects the quality of motor control, coordination, and rhythmic stability. In older adults, reduced sensory integration and motor efficiency lead to less continuous movements and a higher risk of falls. Methods: Nineteen healthy older women (mean age 72.6 ± 6.4 years) completed walking trials under three conditions after giving informed consent. 1. Normal walking, 2. Internal focus (attention directed to limb movements), 3. External focus (attention directed to a visual marker beyond the obstacle). A 30 cm-high obstacle was placed 2 m from the starting point of the walkway. Kinematic data were collected using the OpenCap motion capture system with two iPhone 13 smartphones at a 60 Hz sampling rate, and analyzed in OpenSim version 4.3 to calculate movement smoothness based on center-of-mass jerk. Data normality was verified using the Shapiro–Wilk test (p > 0.05), and differences among conditions were analyzed using a repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Bonferroni-corrected post hoc comparisons. Results: The results indicated a significant difference among the three conditions (p = 0.043). Both internal and external focus strategies improved movement smoothness compared to the baseline condition; however, no significant difference was observed between the two focus strategies (p = 0.129). Notably, the mean smoothness was higher in the external focus condition, indicating greater coordination and fluidity of movement. Conclusion: Implementing attentional focus strategies, particularly an external focus, can enhance movement smoothness and dynamic gait coordination in older women. Integrating these strategies into exercise and rehabilitation programs for the elderly may optimize motor control, reduce sudden center-of-mass fluctuations, and improve both stability and fluidity of movement. |
| Keywords |
| Keywords: Smoothness of movement, Obstacle crossing, Attention-focus strategy. |
| Status: Abstract Accepted (Poster Presentation) |
