INCREASING THE DIFFICULTY OF AN ATTENTION-DEMANDING TASK DURING WALKING
DOES NOT PROPORTIONALLY AFFECT THE 1/f CHARACTERISTIC OF STEP WIDTH
Simisola O. Oludare and Mark D. Grabiner
University of Illinois at Chicago
Email: soluda2@uic.edu
INTRODUCTION
The variation that is inherent in human movement
reflects, in part, neuromotor noise [1] that is sourced
at all levels of the neuromotor system [2]. The
performance of an attention-demanding task while
walking has been shown to decrease the 1/f
characteristic of the step-to-step variation in step
width [3]. These results raised the question of
whether increasing the difficulty of an attention-
demanding task would be associated with further
decreases in the 1/f characteristic of the step-to-step
variation of step width.
The purpose of this study was to design an
attention-demanding task, the difficulty of which
could be systematically increased, to determine if a
dose-response could be elicited in the 1/f
characteristic of step-to-step variation of step width
and the divergence of the trunk trajectory in the
mediolateral plane during treadmill walking. We
hypothesized that the 1/f characteristic of step width
while walking would decrease as the difficulty of a
simultaneously performed attention-demanding task
was increased. Given that the variation in step width
is related to the variation of trunk motion in the
mediolateral plane [4], we hypothesized that the
divergence of the trunk trajectory in the
mediolateral plane would increase as a function of
the difficulty of the attention-demanding task.
METHODS
Twelve healthy young adults (26.1±6.5 years old,
170.0±12.3 cm, and 69.7±15.5 kg) walked on a
microprocessor controlled treadmill for 10 minutes
at 2.5 mph during a control condition and three
randomized experimental conditions. Each bout of
walking was followed by a five minute rest period.
The experimental conditions consisted of walking
while performing an attention-demanding task for
which the attention requirement could be increased.
42nd Annual Meeting of the American Society of Biomechanics, Rochester, MN, USA, August 8th – 11th, 2018
This was based on the assumption that attention has
a capacity that can be reduced [5]. During the
experiment, each participant was instructed to make
the attention-demanding task their primary focus.
The task consisted of transforming a string of digits
by adding one to each digit [5]. The digits were
displayed, one at a time, onto a screen in front of the
participants at a rate of one digit per second. After
all the digits were displayed, the participants had a
two-second window to vocalize their response. The
task was made more difficult by increasing the
number of digits in the string. The least challenging
level involved two digits (2-digit), and the difficulty
was increased by then having three (3-digit) and
four (4-digit) digits.
An eight camera motion capture system operating at
120 Hz tracked the motions of reflective markers
placed over the shoe at the heel and 2nd metatarsal
phalangeal joints (MTPJ), the left and right
acromion processes, the scapula, the left and right
anterior superior iliac spines (ASISs) and the level
of S2. The markers on the heel and 2nd MTPJ were
used to construct a single rigid segment from which
step width was calculated as the lateral distance
between the centroids of subsequent foot
placements at the instant of midstance. Midstance
was defined as the instant at which the lateral trunk
center of mass (COM) velocity was zero. The trunk
COM was calculated from the segment connecting
the midpoint of the line formed by the centroids of
the markers over each acromion process to the
midpoint of the line formed by the centroids of the
markers over each ASIS.
The 1/f characteristic of the step-to-step variation of
step width was estimated via the slope of the log
transformed power spectrum (β) of the step width
time series [3]. A β = -1 is characteristic of the 1/f
[3]. Divergence of the trunk was quantified as the
largest Lyapunov exponent (LyE) of the scapula
marker in the mediolateral direction for 150
consecutive steps via state space reconstruction and
Wolf et al’s algorithm. Briefly, the state space was
reconstructed by determining the appropriate time

Mediolateral LyE
delay and embedding dimension via the average

Step width β
mutual information and far nearest neighbors
method, respectively [6]. Following the state space
reconstruction, Wolf et al’s algorithm was
implemented to compute the largest Lyapunov
exponent of the mediolateral plane trajectories in
state space [6].
Figure 1. Step width β (blue) was affected only by
To test our hypotheses, we used a four way
the initial level of difficulty of the attention-
ANOVA with repeated measures (p≤ 0.05) to test
demanding task. The divergence of the trunk
for significant differences in step width β and
trajectory in the mediolateral plane (red) was
mediolateral LyE. Then paired t-tests (p≤ 0.05)
insensitive to the attention-demanding task.*p<0.05
were used to determine specific differences between
the baseline and 2-digit conditions, 2-digit and 3-
digit conditions, then 3-digit and 4-digit conditions. CONCLUSIONS
A single attention-demanding task that can be
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
performed during gait and for which the difficulty
The step width β of three participants were removed may be manipulated, is attractive from both clinical
before the final analysis because the data did not and research perspectives. Further aspects related
show a linear pattern. Step width β shifted away to the parameters of the attention-demanding task
from 1/f as a function of the attention-demanding used in the present study, including the number of
task. The four way ANOVA with repeated measures digits in the string, the frequency with which the
was significant (p=0.03). However, step width β, digits are displayed and the time available to
was significantly higher for the 2-digit task provide the correct response, are the focus of further
compared to the baseline (p = 0.01; Figure 1) but study.
not for the other comparisons.
REFERENCES
These results are consistent with a previous study 1. Hasson CJ. PLoS Comput Biol. 12(8):e1005044 ,
that showed a shift in step width β away from 1/f 2016
[3]. However, contrary to our expectations, the shift 2. Faisal AA et al. Nat Rev Neurosci. 9: doi:
away from 1/f did not increase as the difficulty of 10.1038/nm2258, 2008
the attention-demanding increased. Furthermore, the 3. Grabiner MD et al. Gait Posture. In press
mediolateral LyE appeared to be insensitive to the 4. Hurt CP et al. Gait Posture. 31: 461 – 464, 2010
performance of the attention-demanding task 5. Kahneman D. Attention and Effort. Prentice-Hall
(p>0.05). Inc, 1973
6. Kurz MJ et al. Nonlinear Dynamics Psychol Life
The results merit consideration in the context of the Sci. 14, 151 – 164, 2010
relatively small sample of healthy young older
adults that participated and whose results
demonstrated relatively large variability. More
importantly, perhaps, is that the method used to
increase the attention-demanding did not appear to
achieve its purpose, which was to impose a dose-
response of the dependent variables.

42nd Annual Meeting of the American Society of Biomechanics, Rochester, MN, USA, August 8th – 11th, 2018