Lim Yong-Wei, Huang Shiuan-Ling, Liu Yan-Ci
School and Graduate Institute of Physical Therapy, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taiwan.
School and Graduate Institute of Physical Therapy, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taiwan; Physical Therapy Center, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
Gait Posture. 2025 Sep;121:325-331. doi: 10.1016/j.gaitpost.2025.06.009. Epub 2025 Jun 16.
Dual-task walking (DTW) is commonly used to assess EF, yet most research has focused either on motor task difficulty or the influence of a single EF domain. This study addresses the gap by examining multiple EF domains during DTW.
This study investigated the impact of different executive function (EF) domains on dual-task walking (DTW) in healthy young adults.
In this cross-sectional study, 29 healthy young adults completed tasks representing inhibition, working memory, and cognitive flexibility, both individually and while walking. Correct response speed (CRS) for EF tasks and dual-task cost (DTC) for CRS, gait speed, and overall interference were measured across different EF domains.
The backward digit span task (working memory) exhibited the highest CRS in both single-task and dual-task conditions, while the naming task (cognitive flexibility) had the slowest CRS. Gait performance was best during single walking, followed by walking while performing the Stroop task (WS), backward digit span task (WB), and naming task (WN). Significantly higher DTCs for CRS were observed during WB, and for gait speed during WN. WN demonstrated the highest overall interference, while working memory showed similar levels of cognitive and motor interference.
Different EF domains exert varying levels of interference on dual-task walking. Cognitive flexibility demonstrated the highest overall interference, while working memory showed similar levels of cognitive and motor interference.
These findings are valuable for selecting assessments and planning interventions to improve dual-tasking abilities, particularly in populations at risk for cognitive-motor interference.
双任务行走（DTW）常用于评估执行功能（EF），但大多数研究要么集中在运动任务难度上，要么集中在单个EF领域的影响上。本研究通过在DTW期间检查多个EF领域来填补这一空白。
本研究调查了不同执行功能（EF）领域对健康年轻成年人双任务行走（DTW）的影响。
在这项横断面研究中，29名健康年轻成年人分别完成了代表抑制、工作记忆和认知灵活性的任务，以及在行走时完成这些任务。在不同的EF领域测量了EF任务的正确反应速度（CRS）以及CRS、步态速度和总体干扰的双任务成本（DTC）。
倒背数字广度任务（工作记忆）在单任务和双任务条件下均表现出最高的CRS，而命名任务（认知灵活性）的CRS最慢。单步行走时步态表现最佳，其次是在执行Stroop任务（WS）、倒背数字广度任务（WB）和命名任务（WN）时行走。在WB期间观察到CRS的DTC显著更高，在WN期间观察到步态速度的DTC显著更高。WN表现出最高的总体干扰，而工作记忆表现出相似水平的认知和运动干扰。
不同的EF领域对双任务行走产生不同程度的干扰。认知灵活性表现出最高的总体干扰，而工作记忆表现出相似水平的认知和运动干扰。
这些发现对于选择评估方法和规划干预措施以提高双任务能力具有重要价值，特别是对于有认知-运动干扰风险的人群。
