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THE EFFECT OF VARIOUS CELL PHONE RELATED ACTIVITIES ON GAIT KINEMATICS.
Alexandra C Brennan1, Scott P Breloff1,2
1University of Scranton, 237 Jefferson Avenue Leahy Hall, Scranton, PA 18510-4699, USA.
Journal of Musculoskeletal Research
|September 23, 2021
Summary
Using a cell phone while walking significantly alters gait, with more complex tasks causing greater changes in lower limb movement and potentially affecting balance. This impacts pedestrian safety.
Area of Science:
- Biomechanics
- Human Factors
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Increasing cell phone use necessitates dividing attention between walking and phone tasks.
- This dual-tasking raises pedestrian safety concerns due to detrimental effects on performance.
- Limited research exists on how various cell phone tasks, beyond texting, affect gait.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of different cell phone-related tasks on lower limb kinematics during walking.
- To quantify changes in gait parameters under dual-task conditions.
Main Methods:
- Fourteen healthy college-aged subjects performed gait analysis in five conditions: walking alone and walking while conversing, reading (simple/difficult), or texting.
- Motion capture technology recorded movements, and peak joint angles, gait velocity, and stride length were calculated.
Main Results:
- Significant differences in gait kinematics were observed across dual-task conditions (p < 0.05).
- Gait velocity and stride length decreased with dual-tasking.
- The reduction in gait parameters intensified with increased cell phone task complexity.
Conclusions:
- Cell phone use while walking fundamentally alters gait kinematics.
- The complexity of the secondary cell phone task directly correlates with the magnitude of gait changes.
- Altered gait in complex dual-task scenarios may pose a risk to an individual's balance.
