Office of Undergraduate Research

Age-related changes in grip control

The significance of this research is that pinch grip is used in many daily activities, such as picking up small objects, tying shoelaces, and writing. The age related changes in pinch grip make daily activities challenging limiting the full potential of an individual The objective of this study is to gain further understanding of how pinch force generation changes with age. The methodology will include investigation of how pinch force generation differs for stroke survivors and for age-matched neurologically healthy individuals. Instrumented pinch devices are used to measure 3-dimensional pinch force profiles. Data collection and analysis involve age groups of young and old utilizing three different surfaces including rubber, wood, and paper. The impact of this research is that the results from this study can be used to better understand pinch grip generation, which will ultimately be used to create and evaluate training protocols for effective pinch force generation.

Tasks and responsibilities:

Students will be getting exposed to multiple projects while being responsible for one primary project. The project is about how people grip differently as they age. Students are currently analyzing the data collected from the pilot and control subjects and gaining further knowledge with Minitab and statistical analysis.