Article

It is widely reported that fear of falling (FOF) has a profound and largely
detrimental effect on balance performance in older adults. However, the
mechanisms by which FOF influence postural stability are poorly understood. In
the current article, we use psychological theory to explain
FOF-related changes
to postural control. First, we review literature describing associations between
FOF and the 'stiffening' strategies observed during control of posture, including
observations of eye and head movements. Second, we present a framework
illustrating the interactions between increased age, FOF, and altered attentional
processes, which in turn influence balance performance and fall-risk.
Psychological theory predicts that anxiety can cause attentional bias for
threatening and task-irrelevant stimuli and compromise the efficiency of working
memory resources. We argue that while the adoption of stiffening strategies is
likely to be beneficial in avoiding a loss of balance during simple postural
tasks, it will ultimately compromise performance in dynamic and highly demanding
functional tasks. The adoption of stiffening strategies leads to inadequate
acquisition of the sensory information necessary to plan and execute dynamic and
interactive movements. We conclude with some suggestions for future research.
CI - Copyright (c) 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS