Background: Variability in gait speed is influenced by age and health status. However, no study has investigated the effects of different instructions on gait speed.
Research question: This study investigated how walking prompts contributed to variability in gait speed.
Methods: Participants walked on a pressurized walkway. Gait speed variability was assessed using multilevel modeling.
Results: 61% of the variance in gait speed was due to instruction, while 14% was due to individual differences.
Significance: Reference values for gait speed across a number of prompts will be highly useful for assessing gait performance in young adults. Further, the instruction given produces a large amount of variability in selected walking speed. This finding urges researchers to maintain consistency when delivering walking instructions.
Keywords: Gait speed; Gait speed variability; Walking; Walking instructions.
Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier B.V.