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Mental rotation tasks (MRTs) involving hand and foot stimuli can increase body sway, especially at higher rotation angles. However, MRTs generally improve postural stability compared to rest.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Neuroscience
  • Biomechanics

Background:

  • Postural stability is crucial for daily activities.
  • Mental rotation tasks (MRTs) challenge cognitive processing.
  • The impact of specific body part stimuli in MRTs on postural control is not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how different human body part stimuli during mental rotation tasks affect postural stability.
  • To compare egocentric and object-based MRTs in their influence on body sway.
  • To explore the relationship between cognitive load in MRTs and postural control.

Main Methods:

  • Two dual-task experiments were conducted.
  • Experiment 1 (N=46) used egocentric MRTs with hand, foot, and whole-body stimuli.
  • Experiment 2 (N=109) used object-based MRTs with varying stimuli and rotation angles.

Main Results:

  • Egocentric MRTs with hand and foot stimuli increased body sway more than whole-body stimuli.
  • Higher rotation angles in both egocentric and object-based MRTs led to increased body sway.
  • Both types of MRTs demonstrated a stabilizing effect on posture compared to a control condition.
  • Exploratory analyses indicated that reaction time in MRTs predicted body sway.

Conclusions:

  • The impact of mental rotation on postural stability is stimulus-dependent and varies between egocentric and object-based tasks.
  • Increased cognitive load during MRTs, particularly with higher rotation angles, challenges postural control.
  • Mental rotation tasks can have a dual effect: demanding cognitive processing while potentially enhancing postural stability.