Abstract
Cerebral palsy is a condition that results in motor abnormalities as a direct consequence of injury to the developing brain. Fitts' law, which describes a speed-accuracy tradeoff in visually guided movements, has been shown to characterize the motor behavior of normal subjects during aiming tasks. To assess whether Fitts' law can also describe the aimed movements of persons with cerebral palsy, eight cerebral palsied adults participated in an aimed movement study. 12 targets were used with Indices of Difficulty ranging from 2.19 to 6.00 bits. The impact of Gan and Hoffmann's 1988 ballistic movement factor, √A , and Fitts' 1954 Index of Difficulty on subject's movement and reaction times was examined using multivariate linear models. The analysis of the full data set yielded a significant effect of √A on movement times and no significant adherence to Fitts' law. However, high error rates that could be the result of oculomotor problems among the subject group were noted, and the method of handling errors had a large effect on the results. Tracking eye position during a Fitts' law task would provide information regarding the effect of oculomotor difficulties on aiming tasks in the cerebral palsied subject group.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 883-895 |
| Number of pages | 13 |
| Journal | Perceptual and Motor Skills |
| Volume | 94 |
| Issue number | 3 PART 1 |
| State | Published - Jun 1 2002 |
| Externally published | Yes |
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ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Medicine(all)
- Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
- Sensory Systems
Cite this
Application of Fitts' law to individuals with cerebral palsy. / Abraham, Alison Gump; LeGare, Miriam; Hunt, Deborah L.
In: Perceptual and Motor Skills, Vol. 94, No. 3 PART 1, 01.06.2002, p. 883-895.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Application of Fitts' law to individuals with cerebral palsy
AU - Abraham, Alison Gump
AU - LeGare, Miriam
AU - Hunt, Deborah L.
PY - 2002/6/1
Y1 - 2002/6/1
N2 - Cerebral palsy is a condition that results in motor abnormalities as a direct consequence of injury to the developing brain. Fitts' law, which describes a speed-accuracy tradeoff in visually guided movements, has been shown to characterize the motor behavior of normal subjects during aiming tasks. To assess whether Fitts' law can also describe the aimed movements of persons with cerebral palsy, eight cerebral palsied adults participated in an aimed movement study. 12 targets were used with Indices of Difficulty ranging from 2.19 to 6.00 bits. The impact of Gan and Hoffmann's 1988 ballistic movement factor, √A , and Fitts' 1954 Index of Difficulty on subject's movement and reaction times was examined using multivariate linear models. The analysis of the full data set yielded a significant effect of √A on movement times and no significant adherence to Fitts' law. However, high error rates that could be the result of oculomotor problems among the subject group were noted, and the method of handling errors had a large effect on the results. Tracking eye position during a Fitts' law task would provide information regarding the effect of oculomotor difficulties on aiming tasks in the cerebral palsied subject group.
AB - Cerebral palsy is a condition that results in motor abnormalities as a direct consequence of injury to the developing brain. Fitts' law, which describes a speed-accuracy tradeoff in visually guided movements, has been shown to characterize the motor behavior of normal subjects during aiming tasks. To assess whether Fitts' law can also describe the aimed movements of persons with cerebral palsy, eight cerebral palsied adults participated in an aimed movement study. 12 targets were used with Indices of Difficulty ranging from 2.19 to 6.00 bits. The impact of Gan and Hoffmann's 1988 ballistic movement factor, √A , and Fitts' 1954 Index of Difficulty on subject's movement and reaction times was examined using multivariate linear models. The analysis of the full data set yielded a significant effect of √A on movement times and no significant adherence to Fitts' law. However, high error rates that could be the result of oculomotor problems among the subject group were noted, and the method of handling errors had a large effect on the results. Tracking eye position during a Fitts' law task would provide information regarding the effect of oculomotor difficulties on aiming tasks in the cerebral palsied subject group.
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UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0036594826&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Article
C2 - 12081294
AN - SCOPUS:0036594826
VL - 94
SP - 883
EP - 895
JO - Perceptual and Motor Skills
JF - Perceptual and Motor Skills
SN - 0031-5125
IS - 3 PART 1
ER -