Existing clinical assessments of Parkinson’s disease (PD) primarily focus on stratifying symptom severity or progression rate, which limits their ability to capture changes in functional mobility—an important factor in evaluating rehabilitation outcomes. To address this gap, we developed a novel methodology, the Functional Mobility Assessment for Parkinson’s (FMA-P), which integrates motion capture and pressure-sensitive gait analysis to explore key aspects of functional mobility. Study 1. To develop the FMA-P, we conducted a pilot study involving 12 individuals with PD and 12 age-matched healthy controls, who each completed the FMA-P sequence three times. The sequence included the following tasks: rising from a chair, walking through a doorway, turning, bending to pick up and place an object, and returning to a seated position. Results from Study 1 demonstrated that the FMA-P is a sensitive tool for identifying functional impairments in PD. In particular, significant differences between people with Parkinson’s (PwP) and controls were observed during chair rise (higher peak trunk inclination, p = 0.006; lower mean trunk jerk, p = 0.003) and turning task (longer task duration, p = 0.026 and lower mean heel strike angle, p = 0.007), providing critical insights into postural stability. Study 2. To assess changes in functional mobility over time, we conducted a 12-week repeated-measures intervention study with 12 participants with PD. Results from Study 2 indicated notable improvements in turning stability and balance. Participants demonstrated reduced turning time (p = 0.006) and increased yaw rotation in the head (p = 0.001), trunk (p = 0.002), and pelvis (p = 0.012). In contrast, no significant changes were observed in standard clinical measures (i.e., Timed Up and Go and task duration). The FMA-P offers fine-grained insights into movement quality, making it a valuable tool for early diagnosis, monitoring intervention efficacy, and guiding rehabilitation strategies in individuals with PD.

Introduction: Research in Parkinson’s rehabilitation suggests that combining music and movement can improve both motor and non-motor symptoms for people with Parkinson's (PwP). Using an inclusive, participatory medicine approach, we co-developed a 12-week group intervention (Songlines for Parkinson’s) offering a toolbox of music-based strategies to support symptom management and everyday functioning (Rose et al., 2025). Methods: We used a repeated-measures, concurrent mixed-methods design across trials in the UK and Switzerland (N = 42). Data included kinematic measures, standardized questionnaires, and qualitative interviews. To overcome the limitations of conventional clinical assessments, which often do not capture functional mobility, we developed a new methodology—the Functional Mobility Assessment for Parkinson’s (FMA-P)—integrating motion capture and pressure-sensitive gait analysis (Köchli et al., 2025). Additional tests and questionnaires assessed Parkinson’s disease symptoms, perceived quality of life, imagery ability, musical engagement, and reward. Interviews explored participants’ motivation, use of music, engagement with intervention tasks, and continued use of music-based strategies post-intervention. Results: Functional mobility increased across several parameters (p < .05), motor impairment decreased (p = .006), and participants learned to apply motor and musical imagery in their daily lives (p < .001 for both). While qualitative data indicated perceived improvements in quality of life, these were not confirmed by standardized measures (p > .05). Music served as a vehicle for change, with participants identifying the most effective aspects of the intervention as: (a) the ease of integrating music-based rehabilitation into their daily lives, (b) the ability to choose their own music, which fostered a sense of agency, (c) the group setting, which promoted a sense of community, and (d) learning to use imagery, providing easily accessible internalized cues that improved both motor and non-motor symptoms. Discussion/Conclusion: Findings demonstrate that Songlines for Parkinson’s enhances functional mobility and symptom management while fostering agency, connection, and self-efficacy for personalizing rehabilitation strategies among participants. The FMA-P offers a promising new framework for evaluating functional mobility in PwP that corroborates qualitative findings and may help bridge the gap between clinical metrics and lived experience. References Rose, C.D., Ungerer, M., Köchli, S., Paolantonio, P., Dinacci, D., Foletti, A., Molteni, D., Greenwood, A., Thomas, M., Truran, L., Annett, L. E., Karageorghis, C. I., Whyatt, C., Poliakoff, E., & Short, A. (2025). Songlines for Parkinson’s: The process of co-developing a new music-and-movement group-based intervention to improve mood and movement for Parkinson’s. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 24, Article 16094069251335453. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069251335453 Köchli, S., Casso, I., Delevoye-Turrell, Y. N., Schmid, S., Rose, D. C., & Whyatt, C. (2025). A newmethodological approach integrating motion capture and pressure-sensitive gait data to assess functionalmobility in Parkinson’s disease: A two-phase study. Sensors, 25(19), Article 5999. https://doi.org/10.3390/s25195999

Ressentir et Agir : Exploration des Processus Moteurs et Affectifs dans les Interactions Humaines et Interactions Humain-robot: Les êtres humains éprouvent des émotions en continu, et ces émotions façonnent la perception, la prise de décision ainsi que les manières d'interagir avec l'environnement et avec autrui. Malgré les avancées considérables en neurosciences affectives, on sait relativement peu de choses sur la façon dont l'affect se manifeste dans le comportement moteur observable. L'objectif général de cette thèse était d'examiner comment l'affect module le mouvement spontané, en particulier dans le contexte de l'interaction humaine et de l'interaction Humain-Robot (IHR). L'Étude 1 propose une contribution méthodologique. L'analyse des données de mouvement y est utilisée pour définir des paramètres cinématiques permettant d'identifier des difficultés de mobilité et de stabilité dans le débout de maladie de Parkinson. Cette approche présente des avantages par rapport aux évaluations chronométriques classiques. L'Étude 2 développe une méthode d'analyse spectrale destinée à caractériser les oscillations humaines spontanées (balancement postural). Cette méthode permet d'évaluer l'émergence et l'inhibition du mouvement en fonction des variations affectives et de l'engagement en contexte d'IHR. L'expérimentation compare les oscillations spontanées lors d'interactions avec un petit humanoïde, un grand humanoïde et un petit robot non humanoïde. Les résultats indiquent que le petit robot non humanoïde suscite davantage de mouvement spontané. La morphologie du robot apparaît ainsi comme un facteur influençant le comportement moteur humain. L'Étude 3 examine le rôle du contexte émotionnel dans l'IHR. Les résultats montrent que les contextes positifs augmentent la puissance des oscillations spontanées, tandis que les contextes négatifs réduisent le mouvement. L'Étude 4 analyse la synchronisation motrice interpersonnelle. Les résultats révèlent que des dyades partageant un état affectif congruent (i.e., tous deux dans un état positif ou négatif) maintiennent leur synchronisation plus longtemps que des dyades incongruentes. Ces travaux démontrent empiriquement que les émotions influencent le contrôle moteur. Dans l'interaction humaine comme dans l'IHR, l'affect module à la fois l'intensité du mouvement spontané et la durée de la synchronisation interpersonnelle. Un modèle théorique du comportement moteur affectif est proposé, décrivant l'impact de l'affect sur les processus moteurs. Plus largement, cette thèse avance un cadre où états affectifs et dynamiques motrices se modifient mutuellement au sein de boucles de rétroaction dynamiques, dans divers contextes interactifs.