The present proposal investigates age-related deficits in eye-hand coordination during aiming movements. In our everyday life, we frequently and efficiently interact with objects by making goal-directed movements (reaching, grasping, pointing, and tracking with a computer mouse). Such movements often involve concurrent processing of both the eyes and the hands to complete the task. Thus, declines in the ability of eye-hand coordination will cause difficulties in daily life of older adults. Slowness and large variability are well-known declines in motor behaviors of older adults. Older adults are known to rely heavily on visual feedback while performing motor tasks, which often results in movement slowing as shown by longer deceleration phases in the velocity profile. However, it is not known whether older adults have difficulties controlling and coordinating eye movements concurrently with arm movements. Due to age-related deficits in motor performance with high visuo-motor demands, it is predicted that older adults have a decreased capability to control and coordinate eye and hand movements. The present project is designed as a series of pilot studies that will demonstrate and identify the specific nature of the deficits of eye-hand coordination in older adults. The purpose is to investigate (1) whether basic characteristics of eye movements and coordination patterns between eye and hand movements are altered in older adults compared with young during pre- planned aiming movements (Experiment 1), and (2) whether the characteristics and the coordination patterns in response to unexpected perturbations differ in older adults compared with young adults (Experiment 2). The obtained data will create a basis for more detailed long-term future research involving age-related deficits in eye-hand coordination and learning capabilities of older adults to compensate for these deficits. This study is important as it contributes in determining the underlying mechanisms for deterioration of goal-directed movements in aging.
| Rand, Miya K; Stelmach, George E (2012) Effect of aging on coordinated eye and hand movements with two-segment sequence. Motor Control 16:447-65 |
| Rand, Miya K; Stelmach, George E (2011) Adaptation of gaze anchoring through practice in young and older adults. Neurosci Lett 492:47-51 |
| Rand, Miya K; Stelmach, George E (2011) Effects of hand termination and accuracy requirements on eye-hand coordination in older adults. Behav Brain Res 219:39-46 |
| Rand, Miya K; Stelmach, George E (2010) Effects of hand termination and accuracy constraint on eye-hand coordination during sequential two-segment movements. Exp Brain Res 207:197-211 |
