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Self-estimation of physical ability in stepping over an obstacle is not mediated by visual height perception: a comparison between young and older adults

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Abstract

Older adults tend to overestimate their step-over ability. However, it is unclear as to whether this is caused by inaccurate self-estimation of physical ability or inaccurate perception of height. We, therefore, measured both visual height perception ability and self-estimation of step-over ability among young and older adults. Forty-seven older and 16 young adults performed a height perception test (HPT) and a step-over test (SOT). Participants visually judged the height of vertical bars from distances of 7 and 1 m away in the HPT, then self-estimated and, subsequently, actually performed a step-over action in the SOT. The results showed no significant difference between young and older adults in visual height perception. In the SOT, young adults tended to underestimate their step-over ability, whereas older adults either overestimated their abilities or underestimated them to a lesser extent than did the young adults. Moreover, visual height perception was not correlated with the self-estimation of step-over ability in both young and older adults. These results suggest that the self-overestimation of step-over ability which appeared in some healthy older adults may not be caused by the nature of visual height perception, but by other factor(s), such as the likely age-related nature of self-estimation of physical ability, per se.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by a Grant-in-Aid for JSPS fellows (23-5365). The authors acknowledge Dr. Mami Kokuho of Sophia University for her support. We also gratefully acknowledge Naoko Sakuma of the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology for her valuable suggestion.

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Author notes

  1. Ryota Sakurai

    Present address: Waseda University, 2-579-15 Mikajima, Tokorozawa, Saitama, 359-1192, Japan

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Health Promotion Science, Tokyo Metropolitan University, 1-1 Minami-Osawa, Hachioji-shi, Tokyo, 192-0397, Japan

    Ryota Sakurai & Kuniyasu Imanaka

  2. Research Fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, 5-3-1 Kojimachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, 102-0083, Japan

    Ryota Sakurai

  3. Research Team for Social Participation and Community Health, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, 35-2 Sakae-cho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo, 173-0015, Japan

    Ryota Sakurai, Yoshinori Fujiwara, Masashi Yasunaga, Susumu Ogawa & Hiroyuki Suzuki

  4. Department of Human Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, 1-1 Minami-Osawa, Hachioji-shi, Tokyo, 192-0397, Japan

    Masami Ishihara

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  1. Ryota Sakurai
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Correspondence to Ryota Sakurai or Kuniyasu Imanaka.

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The research protocol was approved by the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology.

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Sakurai, R., Fujiwara, Y., Ishihara, M. et al. Self-estimation of physical ability in stepping over an obstacle is not mediated by visual height perception: a comparison between young and older adults. Psychological Research 81, 740–749 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-016-0779-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-016-0779-9

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