JOSHUA HAWORTH

Dr. Haworth is an expert in biomechanics and the analysis of human movement variability. He earned his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Kinesiology from Miami University in Oxford, OH. He completed his PhD under mentorship from Dr. Nick Stergiou at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, NE, with focus on the perception and production of complex movement variability. Following, he completed postdoctoral training through Johns Hopkins School of Medicine with concentrations in Otolaryngology (under Dr. Mark Shelhamer) and Psychiatry (under Dr. Rebecca Landa at the Center for Autism and Related Disorders). Through these experiences, he refined technical expertise in instrumented behavior analysis and human factors engineering.

Dr. Haworth’s research focuses on the mechanisms responsible for the integration of sensorimotor information in the production of human behavior. He uses eye-tracking combined with motion capture and posturographic measures to identify motor strategies used during daily tasks like upright standing, walking, and interpersonal communication. He has many active collaborations with colleagues in fields including chiropractic science and pediatric rehabilitation technology. He seeks to better understand the development of motor and social-cognitive skills as they apply to autism phenotype, revealing camouflaged pain, and improving patient-provider experience.

Biometrics of Camouflaged Pain and Mobility Limitations in Osteoarthritis

Using balance assessments (via force plate) and visual attention (via eye tracking), along with patient reports of pain and mobility, we seek to create a data-driven method to identify persons who underreport their level of impairment – termed camouflaged pain and mobility limitations. This work includes student led efforts to explore the provider empathy profile and common patient surgical decision criteria.

Balance and Mobility Impairments in Neuropathic Patients

Diabetes and chemotherapy often induce peripheral neuropathy, which can result in a range of insult including discomfort to sensorimotor impairment. We are exploring the use of balance assessments (via portable force plate) that can be used in clinical and home settings to monitor onset and recovery of balance impairments. Applications of this work include patient-centered customization of treatment and rehabilitation.

Virtual Learning Technology for Continued Medical Education

We have developed a virtual replica of the physical BEAR Lab in the Unity game engine, for the purpose of laboratory simulation. The goal of this project is to further develop this environment for use in continuing medical education, providing knowledge of biomechanical tools and terminology for physical medicine providers.

(Re)habilitation Technology for Motor and Social Development

This work includes the development of performance monitoring and behavioral training tools, separately for posture and social cognitive skills.

We are attempting an extension of the BTrackS force plate to operate wirelessly, and at finer resolution for smaller weights, so that postural development of very young children can be monitored more conveniently and accessibly than is otherwise currently possible.

We use eye tracking technology to probe subtle/implicit attentional bias towards images/videos of physically painful experiences, with a goal of better understanding the lived experience of persons with musculoskeletal impairment and the empathy gap that many of these persons feel when interacting with able bodied clinicians.

Performance Optimization

Using biomechanical techniques, we evaluate novel metrics of performance monitoring and assess the efficacy of training and warm-up strategies to improve performance. This includes novel metrics of the timing of cyclic behavior (e.g. gait patterns) using nonlinear analysis and the use of artificial intelligence to recognize successful movements from webcam monitoring, which combine to support remote and autonomous training.

Smith DL, Haworth JL, Brooks EK, Cousins JM. Postural Control, Dual Task Performance and Executive Function Following an Ultramarathon. Percept Mot Skills. 2021 Sep 2;:315125211044351. doi: 10.1177/00315125211044351. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 34474623.

Gleeson M, Boright L, Haworth J. The Effects of Chemotherapy-Induced Polyneuropathy on Postural Balance. Cureus. 2021 Jul;13(7):e16617. doi: 10.7759/cureus.16617. eCollection 2021 Jul. PubMed PMID: 34466313; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8396424.

Malaya CA, Haworth J, Pohlman KA, Smith DL. Immediate impact of extremity manipulation on dual task performance: a randomized, crossover clinical trial. Chiropr Man Therap. 2021 Feb 5;29(1):6. doi: 10.1186/s12998-021-00366-5. PubMed PMID: 33541378; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7863424.

Walsh M, Church C, Hoffmeister A, Smith D, Haworth J. Validation of a Portable Force Plate for Evaluating Postural Sway. Percept Mot Skills. 2021 Feb;128(1):191-199. doi: 10.1177/0031512520945092. Epub 2020 Jul 28. PubMed PMID: 32723004.

Malaya CA, Haworth J, Pohlman KA, Powell C, Smith DL. Impact of Extremity Manipulation on Postural Sway Characteristics: A Preliminary, Randomized Crossover Study. J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 2020 Jun;43(5):457-468. doi: 10.1016/j.jmpt.2019.02.014. Epub 2020 Aug 14. PubMed PMID: 32800642.

Haworth J, Goble D, Pile M, Kendall B. BTrackS limits of stability test is a reliable assessment of volitional dynamic postural control. Gait Posture. 2020 Jul;80:298-301. doi: 10.1016/j.gaitpost.2020.06.024. Epub 2020 Jun 18. PubMed PMID: 32585561.

Arnold AJ, Haworth JL, Moran VO, Abulhasan A, Steinbuch N, Kokkoni E. Exploring the Unmet Need for Technology to Promote Motor Ability in Children Younger Than 5 Years of Age: A Systematic Review. Arch Rehabil Res Clin Transl. 2020 Jun;2(2):100051. doi: 10.1016/j.arrct.2020.100051. eCollection 2020 Jun. Review. PubMed PMID: 33543078; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7853335.

Haworth J, Stergiou N. Orderliness of Visual Stimulus Motion Mediates Sensorimotor Coordination. Front Physiol. 2018;9:1441. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2018.01441. eCollection 2018. PubMed PMID: 30364253; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6193058.

Walsh M, Slattery E, McMath A, Cox R, Haworth J. Training history constrains postural sway dynamics: A study of balance in collegiate ice hockey players. Gait Posture. 2018 Oct;66:278-282. doi: 10.1016/j.gaitpost.2018.09.009. Epub 2018 Sep 11. PubMed PMID: 30241068.

Kyvelidou A, Harbourne RT, Haworth J, Schmid KK, Stergiou N. Children with moderate to severe cerebral palsy may not benefit from stochastic vibration when developing independent sitting. Dev Neurorehabil. 2018 Aug;21(6):362-370. doi: 10.1080/17518423.2017.1290705. Epub 2017 Mar 9. PubMed PMID: 28277811.

Haworth JL, Strang AJ, Hieronymus M, Walsh MS. Temporal more than spatial regulation of sway is important for posture in response to an ultra-compliant surface. Somatosens Mot Res. 2018 Mar;35(1):45-51. doi: 10.1080/08990220.2018.1445988. Epub 2018 Mar 15. PubMed PMID: 29542387.

Kokkoni E, Haworth JL, Harbourne RT, Stergiou N, Kyvelidou A. Infant sitting postural control appears robust across changes in surface context. Somatosens Mot Res. 2017 Dec;34(4):265-272. doi: 10.1080/08990220.2018.1425676. PubMed PMID: 29409404.

Libertus K, Landa RJ, Haworth JL. Development of Attention to Faces during the First 3 Years: Influences of Stimulus Type. Front Psychol. 2017;8:1976. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01976. eCollection 2017. PubMed PMID: 29204130; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5698271.

Creekmur CC, Haworth JL, Cox RH, Walsh MS. Effects of plyometrics performed during warm-up on 20 and 40 m sprint performance. J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 2017 May;57(5):550-555. doi: 10.23736/S0022-4707.16.06227-7. Epub 2016 Mar 31. PubMed PMID: 27029957.

Haworth J, Kyvelidou A, Fisher W, Stergiou N. Indifference to Chaotic Motion May Be Related to Social Disinterest in Children With Autism. J Mot Learn Dev. 2016 Dec;4(2):219-235. doi: 10.1123/jmld.2015-0031. PubMed PMID: 28203582; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5305199.

Landa RJ, Haworth JL, Nebel MB. Ready, Set, Go! Low Anticipatory Response during a Dyadic Task in Infants at High Familial Risk for Autism. Front Psychol. 2016;7:721. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00721. eCollection 2016. PubMed PMID: 27252667; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4879330.

Russell DM, Haworth JL, Martinez-Garza C. Coordination dynamics of (a)symmetrically loaded gait. Exp Brain Res. 2016 Mar;234(3):867-81. doi: 10.1007/s00221-015-4512-5. Epub 2015 Dec 12. PubMed PMID: 26661338.

Haworth JL, Kyvelidou A, Fisher W, Stergiou N. Children's looking preference for biological motion may be related to an affinity for mathematical chaos. Front Psychol. 2015;6:281. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00281. eCollection 2015. PubMed PMID: 25852600; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4362051.

Haworth JL, Vallabhajosula S, Stergiou N. Gaze and posture coordinate differently with the complexity of visual stimulus motion. Exp Brain Res. 2014 Sep;232(9):2797-806. doi: 10.1007/s00221-014-3962-5. Epub 2014 May 4. PubMed PMID: 24792502.

Russell DM, Haworth JL. Walking at the preferred stride frequency maximizes local dynamic stability of knee motion. J Biomech. 2014 Jan 3;47(1):102-8. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2013.10.012. Epub 2013 Oct 24. PubMed PMID: 24210850.

Haworth JL, Harbourne RT, Vallabhajosula S, Stergiou N. Center of pressure and the projection of the time-course of sitting skill acquisition. Gait Posture. 2013 Sep;38(4):806-11. doi: 10.1016/j.gaitpost.2013.03.027. Epub 2013 Apr 17. PubMed PMID: 23602446.

Strang AJ, Haworth J, Hieronymus M, Walsh M, Smart LJ Jr. Structural changes in postural sway lend insight into effects of balance training, vision, and support surface on postural control in a healthy population. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2011 Jul;111(7):1485-95. doi: 10.1007/s00421-010-1770-6. Epub 2010 Dec 17. PubMed PMID: 21165641.