Year: 2009
Type: dissertation
Abstract: The purpose of this thesis was to compare the contributions of attentional resources relevant to postural control between fall-fearful and non-fearful older adults.Levels of postural challenge and instructions of task prioritization were manipulated to obtain this goal.Results indicated that fall-fearful subjects demonstrated a reorganization of attentional resources when challenge to upright standing was imposed.Additionally, only non-fearful subjects demonstrated flexibility in the prioritization of the cognitive task.However both fall-fearful and non-fearful subjects demonstrated flexibility in the prioritization of the postural task.Findings suggested that fall-fearful older adults reorganize the allocation of attentional resources differently than non-fearful counterparts, potentially placing them at greater risk for falling as their awareness of the external environment and threats to balance may be compromised.vAcknowledgments I'd like to thank everyone who has helped me get to this point.To start with, I'd like to thank the participants of the experiments for their contributions to this study.Thank you to my committee members; Dr Bocksnick, Dr Hoar, and Dr Hagen for providing me with valuable feedback during the process.Also thank you to Dr Dornier for making the trip to join us for the exam.Dr Brown, thank you for giving me the opportunity to learn a valuable skill set that I will now carry in my 'tool belt' for life.I appreciate your patience with me and your stubbornness to retrieve the best out of each one of us.Next a huge thank you to the numerous Balance Research Lab Staff for all of your help throughout the process.Cody, Martin, Laura, David, and Katie thank you for all of your help with the data collection process and analysis.I wouldn't have been able to do it without your help.Also thank you to Jon and Claudia for your valuable insight in the development of my protocols.Natalie, thank you so much blazing the trail for me and teaching me the ways of the lab (even if that meant learning from your mistakes or by making them together).In the time spent with you in the lab, I have developed an addiction to coffee, squirrely whirlies, and an obsession with finding new Canadian delicacies for you to try so I can laugh at your response.Needless to say you have transformed many days that would have other wise be dull into great memories that I will happily look back on while lounging on the beach!1998;Howland, et al., 1993;Legters, 2002).Interestingly, research has also revealed that a significant number of non-fallers also express a concern about falling (Legters, 2002;Maki, et al., 1991;Myers, et al., 1996;Tinetti, Mendes de Leon, Doucette, & Baker, 1994).This finding has led to a refinement of the term "fear of falling" to include both fallers and non-fallers (Legters, 2002;Maki, et al., 1991).There is some controversy over the vocabulary used to describe and define fear of falling (Jorstad, Hauer, Becker, & Lamb, 2005).Researchers often refrain from using such terms as "fear", "anxiety" or "afraid" as these words may be interpreted as too 'severe' by participants in relation to their feelings towards falling.Participants may not express an actual "fear" towards falling, but may still describe concerns about the possibility of falling (Jorstad, et al., 2005;Li, et al., 2002;Maki, et al., 1991).Consequently, alternative descriptions like "worry", "concern" or "troubled" have been used as substitutes for "fear" in different studies in an effort to attract more participants with differing intensities of fear (Jorstad, et al., 2005;Lachman, et al., 1998).A fundamental term within the FOF construct is "fall-related self-efficacy" (FSE).FSE was adapted from Bandura's theory of self-efficacy and defined as one's perception of his or her ability to perform particular activities (Bandura, 1982).In relation to falling, FSE is defined as "one's confidence in his or her capabilities to perform daily activities without falling (Tinetti, Richman, & Powell, 1990, p. 36)."Early research (Tinetti & Powell, 1993) used terms of FOF and FSE interchangeably, but FSE has since become aligned with self efficacy research and has mounted an independent literature base (Legters, 2002;Li, et al., 2002;Tinetti & Powell, 1993).FSE is useful in the understanding of the development of FOF (Tinetti & Powell, 1993).For example, Li and
Author: P. White
Language: English
Field: Health Professions
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W432709918