Effects of Basic Movement Characteristics and Cognitive Load on Performance Indicators in VR-IADLs

Dementia is a progressive ailment characterized by irreversible symptoms, but the early detection of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), can halt its progression. Thus, the early detection of MCI is crucial for dementia management. A study developed a tablet-based virtual kitchen challenge system that reproduced the instrumental activities of daily living tasks through virtual reality technology. In addition, indicators, such as task completion time and number of screen touches, were automatically measured by the tablet-based VKC and correlated with the frequency of human errors. Cognitive function tests exhibited significant differences between the young adults and healthy older subjects. Therefore, these indicators might be effective for the early detection of MCI. However, previous studies may implicitly assume that the basic movement characteristics without cognitive load are the same. Given that basic movement characteristics vary considerably among subjects, this study investigated the differences owing to basic movement characteristics using a group difference test. In addition, significant differences observed in the basic movement characteristics were compared with the indices of the breakfast and lunch tasks, and the effects of added cognitive load were investigated. The results showed significant differences in indices related to basic movement characteristics among the subjects, and that subjects with MCI were more affected by the application of cognitive load than healthy older subjects. Prospects include creating a classification model between healthy older subjects and those with MCI, including indicators of basic movement tasks.