<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<italic>Study aim</italic>: To investigate age-related changes in rhythmic reproduction ability in relation to the complexity of the adopted movement task.
<italic>Material and methods</italic>: A Stereophotogrammetric system was used to quantify individual rhythmic performances through motion analysis. Seventeen younger adult (age: 34.8 ± 4.2 yrs) and sixteen older adult (age: 69.9 ± 3.8 yrs) sedentary individuals volunteered for this study. Participants were administered a rhythmic test, which included three different rhythmic patterns to be reproduced by means of finger-tapping, foot-tapping and walking. Number of correct reproductions, time delays and rhythmic ratios were assessed and submitted to analysis of variance.
<italic>Results</italic>: For all rhythmic parameters, age-related differences emerged about rhythmic patterns and motor tasks. Older adults showed reduced accuracy as compared to their younger counterparts with a marked tendency to speed up beats reproduction (p &lt; 0.05). Increased movement complexity negatively influenced rhythmic ability, with worst performances in the walking task (p &lt; 0.05).
<italic>Conclusions</italic>: Complexity of the motor reproduction worsen rhythmic ability. Future research should focus on how specific rhythmic training with progressive movement task complexity could contrast this age-related decline.
</abstract>

Study aim: To investigate age-related changes in rhythmic reproduction ability in relation to the complexity of the adopted movement task.
Material and methods: A Stereophotogrammetric system was used to quantify individual rhythmic performances through motion analysis. Seventeen younger adult (age: 34.8 ± 4.2 yrs) and sixteen older adult (age: 69.9 ± 3.8 yrs) sedentary individuals volunteered for this study. Participants were administered a rhythmic test, which included three different rhythmic patterns to be reproduced by means of finger-tapping, foot-tapping and walking. Number of correct reproductions, time delays and rhythmic ratios were assessed and submitted to analysis of variance.
Results: For all rhythmic parameters, age-related differences emerged about rhythmic patterns and motor tasks. Older adults showed reduced accuracy as compared to their younger counterparts with a marked tendency to speed up beats reproduction (p < 0.05). Increased movement complexity negatively influenced rhythmic ability, with worst performances in the walking task (p < 0.05).
Conclusions: Complexity of the motor reproduction worsen rhythmic ability. Future research should focus on how specific rhythmic training with progressive movement task complexity could contrast this age-related decline.

Rhythmic ability decline in aging individuals: The role of movement task complexity

Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences

Biomedical Human Kinetics

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Study aim: To investigate age-related changes in rhythmic reproduction ability in relation to the complexity of the adopted movement task.
Material and...

Rhythmic ability decline in aging individuals: The role of movement task complexity

Published Online: Dec 31, 2021

Page range: 41 - 53

Received: May 17, 2021

Accepted: Nov 10, 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/bhk-2022-0006

Keywords
Gait analysis, Tapping, Rhythmic reproduction, Coordination, Elderly

© 2022 Flora Iannarilli et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Rhythmic ability decline in aging individuals: The role of movement task complexity

Published Online: Dec 31, 2021

Page range: 41 - 53

Received: May 17, 2021

Accepted: Nov 10, 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/bhk-2022-0006

KeywordsGait analysis, Tapping, Rhythmic reproduction, Coordination, Elderly

© 2022 Flora Iannarilli et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
Gait analysis, Tapping, Rhythmic reproduction, Coordination, Elderly