SynthesisInternational journal of environmental research and public health2023
Attentional Focus Strategies to Improve Motor Performance in Older Adults: A Systematic Review.
Synthesis in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Perception, assessment, and coaching: a systematic review and taxonomy of computer vision-based physical rehabilitation techniques.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciences · 2026Pooled it
- Effects of visual real-time feedback during decline walking on gait parameters: a crossover randomized trial.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2025Trial
- External focus strategy improves visuomotor control of gait in older adults.Psychological research · 2025Trial
- Effect of external versus internal focus of attention instructions on gait performance in people with multiple sclerosis.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2026Article
- Neural Efficiency and Sensorimotor Adaptations in Swimming Athletes: A Systematic Review of Neuroimaging and Cognitive-Behavioral Evidence for Performance and Wellbeing.Brain sciences · 2026Review
- Barriers to and facilitation of long-term physical exercise participation among Chinese adolescents with autism spectrum disorder: a parental perspective.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- The positive impacts of external focus of attention on performance, fatigue, and affect on a fatiguing task.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Attentional focus strategies and motor performance in young adolescents investigating role of task difficulty.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- The Influence of Attentional Focus on Gait Stability and Conscious Movement Processing During Challenging Walking Conditions in Older Adults.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2025Article
- The cognitive neuroscience and neurocognitive rehabilitation of dance.BMC neuroscience · 2024Review
- Remote fitness assessment in younger and middle-aged to older adults: a comparison between laboratory- and videoconference-based assessment of selected measures of physical and cognitive fitness.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2024Article
- Effects of attentional focus strategies in drop landing biomechanics of individuals with unilateral functional ankle instability.Frontiers in physiology · 2024Article
- Dominance of attentional focus: a comparative study on its impact on standing postural control in healthy younger and older adults.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Previous literature shows the beneficial effects of an external focus of attention on various sports skills in young adults. The objective of this systematic review is to evaluate the effects of external and internal focus of attention on motor performance in healthy older adults. The literature search was conducted in five electronic databases (PsycINFO, PubMed, SPORTDiscus, Scopus, and Web of Science). Eighteen studies that met the inclusion criteria were evaluated. Most of the motor tasks targeting older adults were related to postural control and gait. Over 60% of the included studies reported that the effect of an external focus was superior to that of an internal focus on motor performance in older adults. An external focus generally results in better motor performance than an internal focus among healthy older adults. However, the advantage of an external focus on locomotion may not be as significant as those illustrated in previous attentional focus studies. A challenging cognitive task may allow more automatic motor control than an external focus. Practitioners might provide clear instruction cues guiding performers to divert their attention away from their body and towards the movement effect for better performance, particularly in balancing tasks.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.