USEFUL FIELD OF VIEW COGNITIVE TRAINING IMPROVES OLDER ADULTS’ EVERYDAY FUNCTION

ObjectiveTo explore cognitive factors contributing to concussive impacts in athletes.BackgroundCognitive training programs are becoming an increasingly popular strategy for improving athletic performance. Such programs may have potential to decrease athletes’ concussion risk by improving athletes’ ability to avoid and appropriately react to imminent impacts in the athletic environment. Understanding what cognitive factors contribute to concussive impacts may provide insight into the most appropriate cognitive training regimens for concussion risk reduction.Design/MethodsYouTube videos depicting 100 concussive impacts in athletes were identified via Google video search. Two reviewers independently classified the primary cognitive factor contributing to each impact as one of the following: useful field of view (UFOV, unanticipated/unrecognized impacts coming from outside the athlete’s field of view), field dependence (FD, unanticipated/unrecognized impacts resulting from the athlete’s attention being so focused on an athletic task that the pending impact was not recognized), processing speed (PS, anticipated/recognized impacts occurring too quickly for the athlete to complete an evasive or protective maneuver), or motion perception (MP, anticipated/recognized impacts occurring with sufficient time to respond but associated with a poorly planned or implemented motor response). Descriptive statistics were calculated.Results98 videos were reviewed to yield 100 concussive impacts. 98% of the concussed athletes were males. Concussions occurred during American football (53%), ice hockey (29%), soccer (3%), basketball (3%), as well as 9 other sports (12%). The most commonly contributing cognitive factor was MP (32%), followed by FD (30%), UFOV (23%), and PS (15%).ConclusionsMultiple cognitive factors contribute to concussive impacts in athletes, with MP and FD being the most common in our sample. Cognitive training programs intending to reduce concussion risk in athletes should not focus only on one cognitive factor. Future work should also explore differences between sports and positions.

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Speed-of-Processing and Driving Simulator Training Result in Improved Driving Performance

Human Factors The Journal of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society ◽

10.1518/hfes.45.2.218.27241 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 45 (2) ◽

pp. 218-233 ◽

Cited By ~ 270

Author(s):

Daniel L. Roenker ◽

Gayla M. Cissell ◽

Karlene K. Ball ◽

Virginia G. Wadley ◽

Jerri D. Edwards

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Training Program ◽

Driving Simulator ◽

Driving Performance ◽

Low Risk ◽

Field Of View ◽

Simulator Training ◽

Speed Of Processing ◽

Useful Field Of View ◽

Speed Of Processing Training

Useful field of view, a measure of processing speed and spatial attention, can be improved with training. We evaluated the effects of this improvement on older adults' driving performance. Elderly adults participated in a speed-of-processing training program ( N = 48), a traditional driver training program performed in a driving simulator ( N = 22), or a low-risk reference group ( N = 25). Before training, immediately after training or an equivalent time delay, and after an 18-month delay each participant was evaluated in a driving simulator and completed a 14-mile (22.5-km) open-road driving evaluation. Speed-of-processing training, but not simulator training, improved a specific measure of useful field of view (UFOV®), transferred to some simulator measures, and resulted in fewer dangerous maneuvers during the driving evaluation. The simulator-trained group improved on two driving performance measures: turning into the correct lane and proper signal use. Similar effects were not observed in the speed-of-processing training or low-risk reference groups. The persistence of these effects over an 18-month test interval was also evaluated. Actual or potential applications of this research include driver assessment and/or training programs and cognitive intervention programs for older adults.

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USEFUL FIELD OF VIEW AND DRIVING SIMULATION ACROSS TWO AGE GROUPS

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igz038.3511 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. S968-S969

Author(s):

Rebecca A Dunterman ◽

Robert C Intrieri ◽

Marisa Guernsey

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Digit Span ◽

Age Groups ◽

Reaction Times ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Older Drivers ◽

Field Of View ◽

Driving Simulation ◽

Risk Scores ◽

Useful Field Of View

Abstract The Insurance Information Institute (2017) reports that drivers aged 65 and older have the second highest rate of fatal car crashes. Research with the useful field of view (UFOV) assessment has predicted crashes in older drivers (Ball, 2006). “UFOV is defined as the area from which an individual can extract information quickly without head or eye movement” (Posit Science, 2019). Research demonstrates that older drivers are limited by poorer vision, divided attention and the inability to ignore distractions, and slower reaction time to critical stimuli (Owsley et al. 1998). As a result UFOV is an effective variable in assessing driver safety. We hypothesized that older compared to younger drivers would be less likely to inhibit attention to task irrelevant visual stimuli while engaged in a simulated driving task. Participants were community dwelling older adults and students recruited from a research pool and through word of mouth. Participants completed a series of demographic and health questions, Snellen visual acuity test a series of cognitive measures (e. g., Trails 1 and 2, digit symbol, digit span) and the UFOV assessment. Participants completed a driving simulation task while information on driving performance: number of collisions, speed limit deviations, turn signal use, time spent tailgating another vehicle, and braking reaction times. ANOVA demonstrated that as hypothesized, younger participants had significantly lower UFOV risk scores (p = .000). Older adults’ (M = 2.15, SD = .945) and younger adults’ (M = 1, SD = 0).

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