The effect of different visual stimuli on reaction times: a performance comparison of young and middle-aged people.
Makoto Otaki, Katsuyuki Shibata
PMID 30936640WHAT IT FOUND
Middle-aged people were slower than young people only when tasks required choosing or stopping responses, not in simple reaction time.
Arrow symbols speeded responses. The study measured button pressing, not patient outcomes.
Key findings
01Middle-aged participants were not significantly different from young participants in simple reaction time, but were significantly slower in all choice reaction time conditions.
02In go/no-go reaction time, middle-aged participants were significantly slower than young participants in all conditions.
03Reaction times were quicker with an arrow symbol than with a figure symbol.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
The study measured healthy young and middle-aged adults pressing buttons on a computer, so it does not show what happens in patient rehabilitation or daily activities. No treatment was tested, so it cannot show whether any therapy improves reaction time or function. Only correct responses were analyzed, and the study did not control the trade-off between speed and accuracy. The sample was young and middle-aged only, so it does not describe older adults. The authors note possible gender bias because males may generally respond faster, and the study did not examine that in a more gender-balanced way.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these reaction time differences as evidence that a treatment improves patient function. The study measured healthy adults pressing buttons in lab tasks and did not test a therapy.