Rod and Frame Alignment Times Increase When the Frame is Tilted

Abstract

Abstract:The Rod and Frame test measures an individual's subjective assessment of visual vertical and horizontal in the presence of a surrounding tilted frame. Attention has focused upon the effects of the surrounding frame upon spatial accuracy (Spatial Frame Effect). We have investigated if the tilted frame also affects the time that subjects take to make the alignment (Temporal Frame Effect). Results: 125 subjects performed a computerised Rod and Frame test to investigate the effects of a tilted frame on subjective visual vertical and horizontal. In addition the program recorded the time taken to make each alignment. For most subjects the mean Spatial Frame Effect was small (vertical 1.62, SD 0.93; horizontal 1.9, SD 1.43). The mean time taken to make alignments in the presence of a tilted frame was longer than when the frame was not tilted (vertical, +3.4s, SD 4.4; horizontal, +3.2s, SD 4.5). Differences in the times taken when the rod and frame were presented congruently and incongruently could be fully accounted for by the differences in steps needed to move the rod to its final alignment. No relationship was found between the spatial accuracy and the time to make the alignment and there was no relationship between the Spatial and Temporal Frame Effects. Conclusions: This study suggests that the Spatial, and Temporal, Frame Effects provide information about different aspects of the process of resolving conflicting visual information when making judgments on alignment. In everyday functions such as the maintenance of balance or susceptibility to motion sickness, the increased time taken may be as important as spatial accuracy.

Vision affects gait speed but not patterns of muscle activation during inclined walking – a virtual reality study

“…Out of the three tests, they found that locomotive outcome showed the highest correlation to the rod and frame test by demonstrating that high visual field-dependent participants (as revealed in the rod and frame test) were the most sensitive to visual manipulations in a VR environment. In our study, in line with earlier findings, we found that visual field dependency (as measured by the rod and frame lab-based psychophysical test (Lopez et al, 2006;Isableu et al, 2008;Bagust, 2013) was significantly correlated with locomotive measures. Specifically individuals with higher visual field dependency showed higher percentage of change in gait speed to virtually induced inclinations (e.g., Treadmill up vision down).…”

“…Visual field dependence in the context of locomotion is considered as the level of reliance on visual cues in comparison to body-based cues (Isableu et al, 1998;Willey and Jackson, 2014). A common method to assess visual field dependency is through the rod and frame test which is assumed to estimate the extent of subjective misperception of visual verticality (Lopez et al, 2006;Isableu et al, 2008;Bagust, 2013). Individual differences in visual field dependence have been reported (Anon, n.d.; Kaleff et al, 2011) and it has been suggested to relate to balance in patients and populations with balance related disorders (Lord and Webster, 1990;Bonan et al, 2006Bonan et al, , 2007Crevits et al, 2007).…”

Sensorimotor and cognitive factors associated with the age-related increase of visual field dependence: a cross-sectional study

“…To limit the duration of the experimental session and thus avoid fatigue, the participants were instructed to respond as quickly as possible, but without compromising accuracy. Response time has been shown to be unrelated to performance on the RFT (Bagust et al 2013). Procedure and instructions described by Oltman (1968) were followed for the RFT and adapted for the RDT and RBT.…”

Vision Affects Gait Speed but not Patterns of Muscle Activation During Inclined Walking—A Virtual Reality Study

“…Visual field dependence in the context of locomotion is considered as the level of reliance on visual cues in comparison to body-based cues (Isableu et al, 1998;Willey and Jackson, 2014). A common method to assess visual field dependency is through the rod and frame test which is assumed to estimate the extent of subjective misperception of visual verticality (Lopez et al, 2006;Isableu et al, 2008;Bagust, 2013). Individual differences in visual field dependency have been reported (Kaleff et al, 2011), and it has been suggested to relate to balance in patients and populations with balance-related disorders (Lord and Webster, 1990;Bonan et al, 2006Bonan et al, , 2007Crevits et al, 2007).…”