Relationship between age and head movement during stepping in place by nonhandicapped children and persons with mental retardation.
We investigated developmental changes in head movement during stepping in place by nonhandicapped children and clarified the relationship between chronological or mental age and head movement of persons with mental retardation. 39 nonhandicapped children aged 3 to 6 years, 13 adults aged 19 to 22 years, and 10 persons with mental retardation (range of chronological age: 17 to 22 years, range of mental age: 3 to 8 years) participated. The total extent of head movement in the frontal plane during ordinary stepping in place for 20.48 sec. was measured to assess the magnitude of head movement. Changes in the magnitude of head movement of children are noticeable across ages, and the magnitude clearly was smaller at the age of 6 years. For subjects with mental retardation, no relationship has been found between chronological age and the magnitude of head movement but rather between mental age and the magnitude of head movement.
Okuzumi
H
H
Department of Kinesiology, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, Japan.
Tanaka
A
A
Haishi
K
K
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006257:Head / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D004856:Postural Balance / Q000502:physiology*