Children's locomotion on slopes given visual, acoustic, and tactile information

The effects of visual, acoustic, and tactile information on 5 blind and 5 sighted children's locomotion on slopes (10 degrees, 15 degrees, 20 degrees, 25 degrees, and 30 degrees) were investigated. Children's ages ranged from 5.8 to 7.7 years (M= 6.8, SD= 0.7). The sighted children performed the task of walking up and down different slopes blindfolded and with full vision. Locomotion modes, locomotor skill, gait deviation, and time to complete the task were analyzed. Walking was the preferred locomotion mode up to 20 degrees, but steeper slopes were perceived as "non-walkable." Doubly multivariate MANOVAs revealed an effect of visual information (blindfolded vs full vision) on the sighted children's gait patterns, and a significant interaction between cue condition and group (blind vs blindfolded), underlining a distinct influence of the cues in the gait patterns of the two groups of children. Acoustic and tactile cues were generally more effective for the blind than for the sighted blindfolded children.