The Postural Reactions of the Field-Dependent and Field-Independent Subjects to the Sounds of Footsteps Approaching From the Left or Right

The postural indicators recorded in response to emotionally significant sounds depend on the direction from which they come: greater changes in posture were detected when stimulated by the sounds of footsteps approaching from behind than from in front. The aim of the study was to compare the postural responses to the sounds of human footsteps on the left and on the right in the subjects who were field-dependent (FD) and field-independent (FI). For two groups of subjects (16 FD and 16 FI), a stabilograms were recorded in a standard position with eyes closed. In a free field, footsteps approaching from the left and right were used for 20.5 seconds. Postural parameters were recorded before, during, and after stimulation with sounds pre-recorded in a reverberated room. The most informative postural indicators were the confidence ellipse area and the shift of the body’s center of pressure. When exposed to the sounds of approaching footsteps from different directions, there was a slight postural destabilization, which does not lead to a fall, but only increases the body sway. The differences between the indicators received to the signals given from the side of the supporting or leading legs were revealed along the frontal axis. The FI subjects showed the greatest postural reaction to sound stimulation from the right side, i.e. from the side of the leading leg, while the FD subjects – from the left, i.e. from the side of the supporting leg. Differences in the latency of responses were found in the FI and FD subjects. Postural sway changes indicated to a destabilization that occurred in the FI group of subjects at the beginning of stimulation and in the FD subjects in the last period of stimulation.

spatial orientation, postural control, conspecific movement, multisensory interaction, cognitive style, field-dependence