Haptic perception of the distance walked when blindfolded.
The ability to detect the distance walked when blindfolded using only haptic information generated by the walking activity was investigated. Participants walked a straight path until told to stop, turned, and attempted to return to their starting point. The path was completely featureless. Counting was prevented. Blindfolded, sighted participants traveled with a long cane or a trained sighted guide. Gait was varied or distorted. In all experiments the return distance was a linear function of the set distance, with some participants giving and some conditions resulting in remarkably sensitive performances. The magnitude of errors was a linear function of step length.
Schwartz
M
M
School of Public Health, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria, Australia. m.schwartz@latrobe.edu.au
D000328:Adult; D004215:Distance Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010470:Perceptual Masking / Q000502:physiology*; D013028:Space Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D014785:Vision, Ocular / Q000502:physiology*; D016138:Walking