Abstract
aim of the present study was to determine the effects of motor practice on visual judgments of apertures for wheelchair locomotion and the visual control of wheelchair locomotion in wheelchair users who had no prior experience. Sixteen young adults, divided into motor practice and control groups, visually judged varying apertures as passable or impassable under walking, pre-practice, and post-practice conditions. The motor practice group underwent additional motor practice in 10 blocks of five trials each, moving the wheelchair through different apertures. The relative perceptual boundary was determined based on judgment data and kinematic variables that were calculated from videos of the motor practice trials. The participants overestimated the space needed under the walking condition and underestimated it under the wheelchair conditions, independent of group. The accuracy of judgments improved from the pre-practice to post-practice condition in both groups. During motor practice, the participants adaptively modulated wheelchair locomotion, adjusting it to the apertures available. The present findings from a priori visual judgments of space and the continuous judgments that are necessary for wheelchair approach and passage through apertures appear to support the dissociation between processes of perception and action.
Highlights
Humans and other animals are continuously judging space based on visual information that is available in the environment
The post hoc tests revealed that the perceptual boundary (PB) was greater in the wheelchair pre- and post-practice conditions than in the walking condition, and the PB was greater in the post-practice condition than in the pre-practice condition (p = .006)
The RPB was significantly affected by condition (F2,28 = 25.03, p < .001), with greater values in the wheelchair conditions than in the walking condition, and greater values were observed in the post-practice condition than in the pre-practice condition (p = .006; Table 1)
Summary
Humans and other animals are continuously judging space based on visual information that is available in the environment. Warren and Whang (1987) found that young adults, when instructed to walk through apertures of various widths without touching the Relatively skilled wheelchair users have made judgments of spatial requirements that are comparable to walkers. Higuchi et al (2004) noted that distinct notions of “maximum aperture width as impassable” and “minimum aperture width as passable” could result in a difference of approximately 5 cm among studies These authors suggested applying a typical psychophysical method based on the proportion of passable judgments as a function of aperture widths and defining the perceptual boundary as the value of the aperture width at which the function passes through the 50% level. This confirms that walkers and skilled wheelchair users judge and reduce risks, skilled wheelchair users adopt a smaller safety margin (Higuchi et al, 2004)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
