The influence of early aging on eye movements during motor simulation.

Sheree A Mccormick,Joe Causer,Paul S Holmes

doi:10.1007/s11357-014-9671-y

Sheree A Mccormick, Joe Causer + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-014-9671-y

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Abstract

Movement based interventions such as imagery and action observation are used increasingly to support physical rehabilitation of adults during early aging. The efficacy of these more covert approaches is based on an intuitively appealing assumption that movement execution, imagery and observation share neural substrate; alteration of one influences directly the function of the other two. Using eye movement metrics this paper reports findings that question the congruency of the three conditions. The data reveal that simulating movement through imagery and action observation may offer older adults movement practice conditions that are not constrained by the age-related decline observed in physical conditions. In addition, the findings provide support for action observation as a more effective technique for movement reproduction in comparison to imagery. This concern for imagery was also seen in the less congruent temporal relationship in movement time between imagery and movement execution suggesting imagery inaccuracy in early aging.

Highlights

Covert training processes such as motor imagery (MI), the cognitive rehearsal of an action without actual execution (Denis 1985), and action observation (AO), the process of adapting action through observation learning (Bandura 1986), are increasingly proposed as adjuncts to physical therapy during the motor rehabilitation of older individuals (Ertelt et al 2007; Page et al 2007)
Pairwise comparisons revealed movement time (MT) was slower in MI (2.976± 0.993 s) compared to AE (2.538±0.798 s)
There is evidence of age-related changes to gaze during AE but, due to the incomplete neural overlap, some of these changes are associated with processes that are not represented in the MI and AO

Summary

Introduction

Covert training processes such as motor imagery (MI), the cognitive rehearsal of an action without actual execution (Denis 1985), and action observation (AO), the process of adapting action through observation learning (Bandura 1986), are increasingly proposed as adjuncts to physical therapy during the motor rehabilitation of older individuals (Ertelt et al 2007; Page et al 2007). The performance of overt and covert motor tasks is frequently compared using self-report inventories and brain mapping techniques. These are useful measures, self-reports rely on an individual’s introspective access to conscious awareness, and measures of neural activity do not provide data processing in realtime or instantaneous feedback (Collet et al 2011). An important aspect of this temporal relationship between AE and MI is that if task complexity is increased MT increases in AE and MI (Decety et al 1989) Both the physical and mental performance of action are governed by the speed-accuracy relationship known as Fitts’ Law (Fitts 1954). One method of achieving this is by measuring eye movements (Heremans et al 2008; McCormick et al 2013)

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