Wayfinding in Aging and Alzheimer's Disease Within a Virtual Senior Residence

描述（由申请人提供）：在虚拟高级住宅内的衰老和阿尔茨海默病中的寻路这个学术研究增强奖项目将使本科生和研究生参与一个研究项目，研究如何支持老年人的寻路。早期阿尔茨海默病（AD）的特征是发作性记忆丧失和执行复杂心理操作的能力逐渐下降。早期AD的一个标志性标志是迷路的结果。大多数早期AD患者在熟悉和不熟悉的环境中迷路。在AD中，寻路问题与焦虑、社交互动减少、游荡行为、福尔斯、私奔和机构化有关。搬迁到一个新的住所，如独立或辅助生活是一个时间，其中AD的人最容易遇到寻路问题，因为他们离开一个高度熟悉的环境和搬迁到一个复杂的环境时，他们的寻路能力下降。通常这些住宅的设计并不是为了方便寻路，因为它们复杂，混乱，缺乏独特性。寻路问题会影响对新生活环境的适应，并导致个人的世界缩小，因为他们避免了他们害怕迷路的情况。初步研究表明，使用突出的或独特的环境线索可以帮助老年人记住学习和记住环境。使用模拟的三维计算机环境，称为虚拟现实（VR），是老年人和早期AD患者位置学习表现的有效措施。此外，眼动追踪，记录眼睛扫描模式和固定，有可能阐明环境信息，如线索或地标是如何用于寻路。该项目将测试在一个名为虚拟老年生活（VSL）的新型VR项目中描绘的老年居住环境中的关键区域添加突出的环境线索（如生动的图片，喷泉和其他视觉元素）的影响。通过在VSL中跟踪寻路任务期间的眼睛注视，研究人员可以确定受试者如何选择和注意视觉线索以及这如何影响位置学习。将在40名认知正常的老年人和40名患有早期AD的老年人中测试标准（少量线索）和突出（放置在关键位置的独特线索）路线的寻路能力。受试者将被要求在连续2天的多次学习试验中重复找到通往每条路线中特定目的地的路。寻路性能，包括受试者学习路线的速度，他们所犯的方向错误，以及他们随时间旅行的距离，将在组和路线之间进行比较。将分析眼动追踪数据，包括注视线索的频率和时间，以确定组间的差异。这项研究的长期目标是确定科学有效的方法，以提高老年人的住宅，使老年人和阿尔茨海默病患者，可以更容易地学习和记住他们的环境，使他们能够保持独立，社会参与和安全;并有舒适的知道他们在哪里。 公共卫生相关性：本区域提案中概述的工作将更全面地了解患有和未患有阿尔茨海默病的老年人如何使用环境信息在高级住宅中找到自己的路;以及如何使用独特的线索可以提高那些有迷路风险的人的寻路能力。更好地理解如何利用物理环境来支持寻路的独立性对于独立性和幸福感至关重要。此外，该区域提案将为本科生和研究生提供有意义的研究经验，这将有助于为研究生院和护理实践提供优秀学生。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Wayfinding in Aging and Alzheimer's Disease within a Virtual Senior Residence This Academic Research Enhancement Award project will engage undergraduate and graduate students in a research project examining ways to support wayfinding in older adults. Early stage Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by episodic memory loss and a gradual decline in ability to perform complex mental operations. A hallmark sign of early stage AD is problems wayfinding with the result of getting lost. Most people with early stage AD have problems getting lost in familiar and unfamiliar environments. In AD, wayfinding problems have been linked to anxiety, decreased social interaction, wandering behavior, falls, elopement, and institutionalization. Relocating to a new residence such as independent or assisted living is a time in which people with AD are most vulnerable to experiencing wayfinding problems as they are leaving a highly familiar environment and relocating to a complex environment when their wayfinding abilities are declining. Often these residences are not designed to facilitate wayfinding as they are complex, confusing, and lack distinctiveness. Problems in wayfinding can affect adaptation to the new living situation, and cause individuals' worlds to shrink as they avoid situations in which they fear getting lost. Beginning research suggests that using salient, or distinctive, environmental cues can help older adults remember learn and remember environments. The use of simulated, three-dimensional computer environments, called virtual reality (VR), are valid measures of place learning performance for older adults and those with early stage AD. In addition, eye tracking, which records eye scanning patterns and fixations, has the potential to elucidate how environmental information such as cues or landmarks are used in wayfinding. The proposed project will test the influence of adding salient environmental cues such as vivid pictures, fountains and other visual elements to key areas within a senior residential environment depicted in a novel VR program called the virtual senior living (VSL). By tracking eye gaze during wayfinding tasks in the VSL, the researchers can determine how subjects select and attend to visual cues and how this affects place learning. The wayfinding ability in both standard (few cues) and salient (distinctive cues placed in key locations) routes will be tested in 40 older adults with normal cognition and 40 older adults with early stage AD. Subjects will be asked to find their way repeatedly to a specific destination in each route in multiple learning trials for 2 consecutive days. Wayfinding performance, including how fast the subjects learn the route, the directional errors they make, and the distance they travel over time will be compared between groups and routes. Eye tracking data will be analyzed, including the frequency and time fixating on cues to determine differences between groups. The long term goals of this research are to determine scientifically valid methods to enhance senior residences so that older adults and those with Alzheimer's Disease, can more easily learn and remember their environments so that they can maintain independence, social engagement, and safety; and have the comfort of knowing where they are. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The work outlined in this AREA proposal will provide a more comprehensive understanding of how seniors with and without Alzheimer's disease use environmental information to find their way in senior living residences; and how using distinctive cues may enhance wayfinding ability for those who are at risk for getting lost. A better understanding of how the physical environment can be used to support independence in wayfinding is essential for independence and well-being. In addition, this AREA proposal will provide a meaningful research experience to undergraduate and graduate students which will help to supply outstanding students to graduate schools and to in nursing practice.