A Methodology for Quantifying the Effects of Aging on Perceptual-Motor Capability

A methodology is described for providing a quantitative description of the effects of aging on human perceptual-motor capability. Specifically, application of the experimental and analytical techniques of manual control is suggested so that these effects can be quantified in terms of the parameters of a model for human perception and control. Important and immediate contributions to the study of aging can be expected from application of the methodology outlined in this paper. First, measures of perceptual-motor performance that are expected to be more sensitive to the effects of age than those usually available will be obtained. Second, these measures will be interpretable in terms of a model for human information processing that has been validated extensively for subjects in the 20-to 40-year age bracket. Using this model, one would be able to predict the effects of aging on a variety of tasks. Finally, a basis would be developed for a functional (rather than chronological) description of aging.