Age-related changes in force control under different task contexts.
We investigated age-related differences in motor behavior under different task contexts of isometric force control. The tasks involved rapid force production and force maintenance, either separately or in combination. For the combined context, we used Fitts-like tasks, in which we scaled either the force level (D manipulation, i.e., manipulation of the amplitude of the force to be produced) or the tolerance range (W manipulation, i.e., manipulation of the target width in which force is allowed to fluctuate). We studied two age groups and analyzed mainly variables that quantify behavioral variability (SD), information processing (signal-to-noise ratio and efficiency functions), and age-related slowing (slowing ratio). For rapid force control, age-related differences were more pronounced when preplanned processes were primarily involved, that is, in the rapid force production and Fitts-D manipulation tasks. Further, older adults were comparable to the younger adults in terms of end-point variability at the cost of being slower and more variable in timing. For force maintenance control, requiring mainly online control, age-related differences were the most visible in the stabilized phase of Fitts-D manipulation, followed by Fitts-W manipulation for SD, and then the force maintenance task. In sum, our findings reveal an age-related reorganization of how preplanned and online control processes are combined under different force control contexts. Indeed, both behavioral slowing and the overreliance on online control processes seem to be dependent on the task. In this respect, beyond the study of force control, we show the interest of investigating age effects using functionally different tasks.
CNRS, ISM, Institut des Sciences du Mouvement, Aix-Marseille Univ, Marseille, France.
Jean-Jacques
JJ
Temprado
CNRS, ISM, Institut des Sciences du Mouvement, Aix-Marseille Univ, Marseille, France.|Faculty of Sciences, Institute of Sports Medicine, Paderborn University, Paderborn, Germany.
Solveig
S
Vieluf
CNRS, ISM, Institut des Sciences du Mouvement, Aix-Marseille Univ, Marseille, France. rita.sleimen-malkoun@univ-amu.fr.
Rita
0000-0002-3508-3403
R
Sleimen-Malkoun
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology*; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis
Aging; Fitts’ task; Force control; Force maintenance; Preplanned and online control; Rapid force production; Task context
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