title: Vision of the active limb impairs bimanual motor tracking in young and older adults.
abstract: Despite the intensive investigation of bimanual coordination, it remains unclear how directing vision toward either limb influences performance, and whether this influence is affected by age. To examine these questions, we assessed the performance of young and older adults on a bimanual tracking task in which they matched motor-driven movements of their right hand (passive limb) with their left hand (active limb) according to in-phase and anti-phase patterns. Performance in six visual conditions involving central vision, and/or peripheral vision of the active and/or passive limb was compared to performance in a no vision condition. Results indicated that directing central vision to the active limb consistently impaired performance, with higher impairment in older than young adults. Conversely, directing central vision to the passive limb improved performance in young adults, but less consistently in older adults. In conditions involving central vision of one limb and peripheral vision of the other limb, similar effects were found to those for conditions involving central vision of one limb only. Peripheral vision alone resulted in similar or impaired performance compared to the no vision (NV) condition. These results indicate that the locus of visual attention is critical for bimanual motor control in young and older adults, with older adults being either more impaired or less able to benefit from a given visual condition.
authors.affiliation: Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Biomedical Sciences Group, Department of Kinesiology KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Matthieu P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Boisgontier
authors.affiliation: Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Biomedical Sciences Group, Department of Kinesiology KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Van Halewyck
authors.affiliation: Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Biomedical Sciences Group, Department of Kinesiology KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Sharissa H A
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Corporaal
authors.affiliation: Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Biomedical Sciences Group, Department of Kinesiology KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Lina
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Willacker
authors.affiliation: Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Biomedical Sciences Group, Department of Kinesiology KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Veerle
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Van Den Bergh
authors.affiliation: Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Biomedical Sciences Group, Department of Kinesiology KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Iseult A M
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Beets
authors.affiliation: Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Biomedical Sciences Group, Department of Kinesiology KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Oron
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Levin
authors.affiliation: Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Biomedical Sciences Group, Department of Kinesiology KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium ; Leuven Research Institute for Neuroscience and Disease KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Stephan P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Swinnen
keywords: aging; attention; bimanual coordination; motor control; proprioception; vision