Selective interference reveals dissociation between memory for location and colour.

PubMed

Vuontela, V; Rämä, P; Raninen, A; Aronen, H J; Carlson, S

1999-08-02

The aim was to study whether there is indication of a dissociation in processing of visuospatial and colour information in working memory in humans. Experimental subjects performed visuospatial and colour n-back tasks with and without visuospatial and colour distractive stimuli presented in the middle of the delay period to specifically affect mnemonic processing of task-related information. In the high memory-load condition, the visuospatial, but not the colour, task was selectively disrupted by visuospatial but not colour distractors. When subvocal rehearsal of the memoranda in the colour task was prevented by articulatory suppression; colour task performance was also selectively disrupted by distractors qualitatively similar to the memoranda. The results support the suggestion that visual working memory for location is processed separate from that for colour.

Role of working memory, inhibition, and fluid intelligence in the performance of the Tower of London task.

PubMed

D'Antuono, Giovanni; La Torre, Francesca Romana; Marin, Dario; Antonucci, Gabriella; Piccardi, Laura; Guariglia, Cecilia

2017-01-01

We investigated the relationship between verbal and visuo-spatial measures of working memory, inhibition, fluid intelligence and the performance on the Tower of London (ToL) task in a large sample of 830 healthy participants aged between 18 and 71 years. We found that fluid intelligence and visuo-spatial working memory accounted for a significant variance in the ToL task, while performances on verbal working memory and on the Stroop Test were not predictive for performance on the ToL. The present results confirm that fluid intelligence has a fundamental role on planning tests, but also show that visuo-spatial working memory plays a crucial role in ToL performance.

Mathematical Skills in Ninth-graders: Relationship with Visuo-spatial Abilities and Working Memory.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reuhkala, Minna

2001-01-01

Investigates the relationship between working memory (WM) capacity (particularly visuo-spatial working memory (VSWM)), the ability to mentally rotate three-dimensional objects, and mathematical skills. Explains that in experiment 1, VSWM was examined; and in experiment 2, contributions of other WM components to mathematical skills was examined.…

A Specific Deficit in Visuospatial Simultaneous Working Memory in Down Syndrome

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lanfranchi, S.; Carretti, B.; Spano, G.; Cornoldi, C.

2009-01-01

Background: Recent studies have demonstrated that individuals with Down syndrome (DS) present both central and verbal working memory deficits compared with controls matched for mental age, whereas evidence on visuospatial working memory (VSWM) has remained ambiguous. The present paper uses a battery of VSWM tasks to test the hypothesis that…

Evidence for Different Components in Children's Visuospatial Working Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mammarella, Irene C.; Pazzaglia, Francesca; Cornoldi, Cesare

2008-01-01

There are a large number of studies demonstrating that visuospatial working memory (VSWM) involves different subcomponents, but there is no agreement on the identity of these dimensions. The present study attempts to combine different theoretical accounts by measuring VSWM. A battery composed of 13 tests was used to assess working memory and, in…

Comparison of adult age differences in verbal and visuo-spatial memory: the importance of 'pure', parallel and validated measures.

PubMed

Kemps, Eva; Newson, Rachel

2006-04-01

The study compared age-related decrements in verbal and visuo-spatial memory across a broad elderly adult age range. Twenty-four young (18-25 years), 24 young-old (65-74 years), 24 middle-old (75-84 years) and 24 old-old (85-93 years) adults completed parallel recall and recognition measures of verbal and visuo-spatial memory from the Doors and People Test (Baddeley, Emslie & Nimmo-Smith, 1994). These constituted 'pure' and validated indices of either verbal or visuo-spatial memory. Verbal and visuo-spatial memory declined similarly with age, with a steeper decline in recall than recognition. Unlike recognition memory, recall performance also showed a heightened decline after the age of 85. Age-associated memory loss in both modalities was largely due to working memory and executive function. Processing speed and sensory functioning (vision, hearing) made minor contributions to memory performance and age differences in it. Together, these findings demonstrate common, rather than differential, age-related effects on verbal and visuo-spatial memory. They also emphasize the importance of using 'pure', parallel and validated measures of verbal and visuo-spatial memory in memory ageing research.

A Metacognitive Visuospatial Working Memory Training for Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Caviola, Sara; Mammarella, Irene C.; Cornoldi, Cesare; Lucangeli, Daniela

2009-01-01

The paper studies whether visuospatial working memory (VSWM) and, specifically, recall of sequential-spatial information, can be improved by metacognitive training. Twenty-two fourth-grade children were involved in seven sessions of sequential-spatial memory training, while twenty-four children attended lessons given by their teacher. The…

Impaired Performance of Children Exposed in Utero to Cocaine on a Novel Test of Visuospatial Working Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schroder, Marie D.; Snyder, Peter J.; Sielski, Ireneusz; Mayes, Linda

2004-01-01

The present study examines the potentially harmful effects of prenatal cocaine exposure on later visuospatial memory functions. A novel neuropsychological measure of immediate- and short-term memory for visuospatial information was administered to 40 children, who were identified as cocaine-exposed, and 11 age and socioeconomic status matched…

Visuospatial Immediate Memory in Specific Language Impairment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Archibald, Lisa M. D.; Gathercole, Susan E.

2006-01-01

Purpose: Investigations of the cognitive processes underlying specific language impairment (SLI) have implicated deficits in verbal short-term and working memory and in particular the storage and processing of phonological information. This study investigated short-term and working memory for visuospatial material for a group of children with SLI,…

Benefits of Training Visuospatial Working Memory in Young-Old and Old-Old

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Borella, Erika; Carretti, Barbara; Cantarella, Alessandra; Riboldi, Francesco; Zavagnin, Michela; De Beni, Rossana

2014-01-01

The purpose of the present study was to test the efficacy of a visuospatial working memory (WM) training in terms of its transfer effects and maintenance effects, in the young-old and old-old. Forty young-old and 40 old-old adults took part in the study. Twenty participants in each age group received training with a visuospatial WM task, whereas…

Visuospatial declarative learning despite profound verbal declarative amnesia in Korsakoff's syndrome.

PubMed

Oudman, Erik; Postma, Albert; Nijboer, Tanja C W; Wijnia, Jan W; Van der Stigchel, Stefan

2017-03-20

Korsakoff's syndrome (KS) is a neuropsychiatric disorder characterised by severe amnesia. Although the presence of impairments in memory has long been acknowledged, there is a lack of knowledge about the precise characteristics of declarative memory capacities in order to implement memory rehabilitation. In this study, we investigated the extent to which patients diagnosed with KS have preserved declarative memory capacities in working memory, long-term memory encoding or long-term memory recall operations, and whether these capacities are most preserved for verbal or visuospatial content. The results of this study demonstrate that patients with KS have compromised declarative memory functioning on all memory indices. Performance was lowest for the encoding operation compared to the working memory and delayed recall operation. With respect to the content, visuospatial memory was relatively better preserved than verbal memory. All memory operations functioned suboptimally, although the most pronounced disturbance was found in verbal memory encoding. Based on the preserved declarative memory capacities in patients, visuospatial memory can form a more promising target for compensatory memory rehabilitation than verbal memory. It is therefore relevant to increase the number of spatial cues in memory rehabilitation for KS patients.

Co-speech iconic gestures and visuo-spatial working memory.

PubMed

Wu, Ying Choon; Coulson, Seana

2014-11-01

Three experiments tested the role of verbal versus visuo-spatial working memory in the comprehension of co-speech iconic gestures. In Experiment 1, participants viewed congruent discourse primes in which the speaker's gestures matched the information conveyed by his speech, and incongruent ones in which the semantic content of the speaker's gestures diverged from that in his speech. Discourse primes were followed by picture probes that participants judged as being either related or unrelated to the preceding clip. Performance on this picture probe classification task was faster and more accurate after congruent than incongruent discourse primes. The effect of discourse congruency on response times was linearly related to measures of visuo-spatial, but not verbal, working memory capacity, as participants with greater visuo-spatial WM capacity benefited more from congruent gestures. In Experiments 2 and 3, participants performed the same picture probe classification task under conditions of high and low loads on concurrent visuo-spatial (Experiment 2) and verbal (Experiment 3) memory tasks. Effects of discourse congruency and verbal WM load were additive, while effects of discourse congruency and visuo-spatial WM load were interactive. Results suggest that congruent co-speech gestures facilitate multi-modal language comprehension, and indicate an important role for visuo-spatial WM in these speech-gesture integration processes. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Working memory deficits in boys with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): the contribution of central executive and subsystem processes.

PubMed

Rapport, Mark D; Alderson, R Matt; Kofler, Michael J; Sarver, Dustin E; Bolden, Jennifer; Sims, Valerie

2008-08-01

The current study investigated contradictory findings from recent experimental and meta-analytic studies concerning working memory deficits in ADHD. Working memory refers to the cognitive ability to temporarily store and mentally manipulate limited amounts of information for use in guiding behavior. Phonological (verbal) and visuospatial (nonverbal) working memory were assessed across four memory load conditions in 23 boys (12 ADHD, 11 typically developing) using tasks based on Baddeley's (Working memory, thought, and action, Oxford University Press, New York, 2007) working memory model. The model posits separate phonological and visuospatial storage and rehearsal components that are controlled by a single attentional controller (CE: central executive). A latent variable approach was used to partial task performance related to three variables of interest: phonological buffer/rehearsal loop, visuospatial buffer/rehearsal loop, and the CE attentional controller. ADHD-related working memory deficits were apparent across all three cognitive systems--with the largest magnitude of deficits apparent in the CE--even after controlling for reading speed, nonverbal visual encoding, age, IQ, and SES.

Working memory as separable subsystems: a study with Portuguese primary school children.

PubMed

Campos, Isabel S; Almeida, Leandro S; Ferreira, Aristides I; Martinez, Luis F

2013-01-01

Although much research has been done to study the working memory structure in children in their first school years, the relation of cognitive constructs involved in this process remains uncertain. In particular, it is unclear whether working memory is a domain general construct that coordinates separate codes of verbal and visuospatial storage or whether it is a domain-specific construct with distinct resources of verbal and visuospatial information. This paper investigates the structure of working memory, by using the Working Memory Test Battery for Children (WMTB-C) and by doing confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) on a sample of Portuguese children (n = 103) between 8 and 9 years of age. The results of the confirmatory factor analyses that provide the best fit of the data correspond to the model that includes Central Executive and Visuospatial Sketchpad in the same factor, co-varying with a Phonological Loop factor. Moreover, the traditional working memory tripartite structure--based on the Baddeley and Hitch Model--revealed good fit to the data.

Visuospatial working memory in very preterm and term born children--impact of age and performance.

PubMed

Mürner-Lavanchy, I; Ritter, B C; Spencer-Smith, M M; Perrig, W J; Schroth, G; Steinlin, M; Everts, R

2014-07-01

Working memory is crucial for meeting the challenges of daily life and performing academic tasks, such as reading or arithmetic. Very preterm born children are at risk of low working memory capacity. The aim of this study was to examine the visuospatial working memory network of school-aged preterm children and to determine the effect of age and performance on the neural working memory network. Working memory was assessed in 41 very preterm born children and 36 term born controls (aged 7-12 years) using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and neuropsychological assessment. While preterm children and controls showed equal working memory performance, preterm children showed less involvement of the right middle frontal gyrus, but higher fMRI activation in superior frontal regions than controls. The younger and low-performing preterm children presented an atypical working memory network whereas the older high-performing preterm children recruited a working memory network similar to the controls. Results suggest that younger and low-performing preterm children show signs of less neural efficiency in frontal brain areas. With increasing age and performance, compensational mechanisms seem to occur, so that in preterm children, the typical visuospatial working memory network is established by the age of 12 years. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Long-term memory-based control of attention in multi-step tasks requires working memory: evidence from domain-specific interference

PubMed Central

Foerster, Rebecca M.; Carbone, Elena; Schneider, Werner X.

2014-01-01

Evidence for long-term memory (LTM)-based control of attention has been found during the execution of highly practiced multi-step tasks. However, does LTM directly control for attention or are working memory (WM) processes involved? In the present study, this question was investigated with a dual-task paradigm. Participants executed either a highly practiced visuospatial sensorimotor task (speed stacking) or a verbal task (high-speed poem reciting), while maintaining visuospatial or verbal information in WM. Results revealed unidirectional and domain-specific interference. Neither speed stacking nor high-speed poem reciting was influenced by WM retention. Stacking disrupted the retention of visuospatial locations, but did not modify memory performance of verbal material (letters). Reciting reduced the retention of verbal material substantially whereas it affected the memory performance of visuospatial locations to a smaller degree. We suggest that the selection of task-relevant information from LTM for the execution of overlearned multi-step tasks recruits domain-specific WM. PMID:24847304

Effects of marijuana on visuospatial working memory: an fMRI study in young adults.

PubMed

Smith, Andra M; Longo, Carmelinda A; Fried, Peter A; Hogan, Matthew J; Cameron, Ian

2010-06-01

The effects of marijuana use on visuospatial working memory were investigated in 19-21-year-olds using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Participants were members of the Ottawa Prenatal Prospective Study, a longitudinal study that collected a unique body of information on participants from infancy to young adulthood including: prenatal drug history, detailed cognitive/behavioral performance, and current and past drug usage. This information allowed for the measurement of an unprecedented number of potentially confounding drug exposure variables including: prenatal marijuana, nicotine, alcohol, and caffeine exposure and offspring alcohol, marijuana, and nicotine use. Ten marijuana users and 14 nonusing controls performed a visuospatial 2-back task while fMRI blood oxygen level-dependent response was examined. Despite similar task performance, marijuana users had significantly greater activation in the inferior and middle frontal gyri, regions of the brain normally associated with visuospatial working memory. Marijuana users also had greater activation in the right superior temporal gyrus, a region of the brain not typically associated with visuospatial working memory tasks. These results suggest that marijuana use leads to altered neural functioning during visuospatial working memory after controlling for other prenatal and current drug use. This alteration appears to be compensated for by the recruitment of blood flow in additional brain regions. It is possible that this compensation may not be sufficient in more real-life situations where this type of processing is required and thus deficits may be observed. Awareness of these neural physiological effects of marijuana in youth is critical.

Visuo-spatial processing and executive functions in children with specific language impairment

PubMed Central

Marton, Klara

2007-01-01

Background Individual differences in complex working memory tasks reflect simultaneous processing, executive functions, and attention control. Children with specific language impairment (SLI) show a deficit in verbal working memory tasks that involve simultaneous processing of information. Aims The purpose of the study was to examine executive functions and visuo-spatial processing and working memory in children with SLI and in their typically developing peers (TLD). Experiment 1 included 40 children with SLI (age=5;3–6;10) and 40 children with TLD (age=5;3–6;7); Experiment 2 included 25 children with SLI (age=8;2–11;2) and 25 children with TLD (age=8;3–11;0). It was examined whether the difficulties that children with SLI show in verbal working memory tasks are also present in visuo-spatial working memory. Methods & Procedures In Experiment 1, children's performance was measured with three visuo-spatial processing tasks: space visualization, position in space, and design copying. The stimuli in Experiment 2 were two widely used neuropsychological tests: the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test — 64 (WCST-64) and the Tower of London test (TOL). Outcomes & Results In Experiment 1, children with SLI performed more poorly than their age-matched peers in all visuo-spatial working memory tasks. There was a subgroup within the SLI group that included children whose parents and teachers reported a weakness in the child's attention control. These children showed particular difficulties in the tasks of Experiment 1. The results support Engle's attention control theory: individuals need good attention control to perform well in visuo-spatial working memory tasks. In Experiment 2, the children with SLI produced more perseverative errors and more rule violations than their peers. Conclusions Executive functions have a great impact on SLI children's working memory performance, regardless of domain. Tasks that require an increased amount of attention control and executive functions are more difficult for the children with SLI than for their peers. Most children with SLI scored either below average or in the low average range on the neuropsychological tests that measured executive functions. PMID:17852522

Distinctiveness as a function of spatial expansion in verbal working memory: comment on Kreitz, Furley, Memmert, and Simons (2015).

PubMed

Guida, Alessandro; van Dijck, Jean-Philippe; Abrahamse, Elger

2017-05-01

In a recent study, Kreitz et al. (Psychological Research 79:1034-1041, 2015) reported on a relationship between verbal working memory capacity and visuo-spatial attentional breadth. The authors hinted at attentional control to be the major link underlying this relationship. We put forward an alternative explanation by framing it within the context of a recent theory on serial order in memory: verbal item sequences entering in working memory are coded by adding a spatial context that can be derived from reading/writing habits. The observation by Kreitz et al. (Psychological Research 79:1034-1041, 2015) enriches this framework by suggesting that a larger visuo-spatial attentional breadth allows for internal coding of the verbal items in a more (spatially) distinct manner-thereby increasing working memory performance. As such, Kreitz et al. (Psychological Research 79:1034-1041, 2015) is the first study revealing a functional link between visuo-spatial attentional breadth and verbal working memory size, which strengthens spatial accounts of serial order coding in working memory.

Multisensory Integration Affects Visuo-Spatial Working Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Botta, Fabiano; Santangelo, Valerio; Raffone, Antonino; Sanabria, Daniel; Lupianez, Juan; Belardinelli, Marta Olivetti

2011-01-01

In the present study, we investigate how spatial attention, driven by unisensory and multisensory cues, can bias the access of information into visuo-spatial working memory (VSWM). In a series of four experiments, we compared the effectiveness of spatially-nonpredictive visual, auditory, or audiovisual cues in capturing participants' spatial…

Modulation of memory and visuospatial processes by biperiden and rivastigmine in elderly healthy subjects.

PubMed

Wezenberg, E; Verkes, R J; Sabbe, B G C; Ruigt, G S F; Hulstijn, W

2005-09-01

The central cholinergic system is implicated in cognitive functioning. The dysfunction of this system is expressed in many diseases like Alzheimer's disease, dementia of Lewy body, Parkinson's disease and vascular dementia. In recent animal studies, it was found that selective cholinergic modulation affects visuospatial processes even more than memory function. In the current study, we tried to replicate those findings. In order to investigate the acute effects of cholinergic drugs on memory and visuospatial functions, a selective anticholinergic drug, biperiden, was compared to a selective acetylcholinesterase-inhibiting drug, rivastigmine, in healthy elderly subjects. A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised, cross-over study was performed in 16 healthy, elderly volunteers (eight men, eight women; mean age 66.1, SD 4.46 years). All subjects received biperiden (2 mg), rivastigmine (3 mg) and placebo with an interval of 7 days between them. Testing took place 1 h after drug intake (which was around Tmax for both drugs). Subjects were presented with tests for episodic memory (wordlist and picture memory), working memory tasks (N-back, symbol recall) and motor learning (maze task, pursuit rotor). Visuospatial abilities were assessed by tests with high visual scanning components (tangled lines and Symbol Digit Substitution Test). Episodic memory was impaired by biperiden. Rivastigmine impaired recognition parts of the episodic memory performance. Working memory was non-significantly impaired by biperiden and not affected by rivastigmine. Motor learning as well as visuospatial processes were impaired by biperiden and improved by rivastigmine. These results implicate acetylcholine as a modulator not only of memory but also of visuospatial abilities.

Verbal and visuospatial working memory as predictors of children's reading ability.

PubMed

Pham, Andy V; Hasson, Ramzi M

2014-08-01

Children with reading difficulties often demonstrate weaknesses in working memory (WM). This research study explored the relation between two WM systems (verbal and visuospatial WM) and reading ability in a sample of school-aged children with a wide range of reading skills. Children (N = 157), ages 9-12, were administered measures of short-term memory, verbal WM, visuospatial WM, and reading measures (e.g., reading fluency and comprehension). Although results indicated that verbal WM was a stronger predictor in reading fluency and comprehension, visuospatial WM also significantly predicted reading skills, but provided more unique variance in reading comprehension than reading fluency. These findings suggest that visuospatial WM may play a significant role in higher level reading processes, particularly in reading comprehension, than previously thought. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Relating 7-Month-Olds Visuo-Spatial Working Memory to Other Basic Mental Skills Assessed with Two Different Versions of the Habituation-Dishabituation Paradigm

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ropeter, Anna; Pauen, Sabina

2013-01-01

This study examines the relationship between various basic mental processing abilities in infancy. Two groups of 7-month-olds received the same delayed-response task to assess visuo-spatial working memory, but two different habituation-dishabituation tasks to assess processing speed and recognition memory. The single-stimulus group ("N"…

Visuospatial bootstrapping: Binding useful visuospatial information during verbal working memory encoding does not require set-shifting executive resources.

PubMed

Calia, Clara; Darling, Stephen; Havelka, Jelena; Allen, Richard J

2018-05-01

Immediate serial recall of digits is better when the digits are shown by highlighting them in a familiar array, such as a phone keypad, compared with presenting them serially in a single location, a pattern referred to as "visuospatial bootstrapping." This pattern implies the establishment of temporary links between verbal and spatial working memory, alongside access to information in long-term memory. However, the role of working memory control processes like those implied by the "Central Executive" in bootstrapping has not been directly investigated. Here, we report a study addressing this issue, focusing on executive processes of attentional shifting. Tasks in which information has to be sequenced are thought to be heavily dependent on shifting. Memory for digits presented in keypads versus single locations was assessed under two secondary task load conditions, one with and one without a sequencing requirement, and hence differing in the degree to which they invoke shifting. Results provided clear evidence that multimodal binding (visuospatial bootstrapping) can operate independently of this form of executive control process.

Children’s visuospatial memory predicts mathematics achievement through early adolescence

PubMed Central

Li, Yaoran

2017-01-01

A previous study showed that gains in visuospatial memory from first to fifth grade predicted end-of-fifth grade mathematics but not reading achievement, controlling other factors. In this follow up study, these relations were assessed from sixth to ninth grade, inclusive (n = 145). The results showed that growth in visuospatial memory across the elementary school years was related to growth in mathematics achievement after fifth grade, controlling intelligence, the central executive and phonological memory components of working memory, in-class attentive behavior, parental education, and fifth grade mathematics achievement. As found for fifth grade, this relation was not found for reading achievement after fifth grade. In total, the results suggest that visuospatial memory has a unique influence on ease of learning some types of mathematics and that this influence becomes more important across successive grades. PMID:28192484

Children's visuospatial memory predicts mathematics achievement through early adolescence.

PubMed

Li, Yaoran; Geary, David C

2017-01-01

A previous study showed that gains in visuospatial memory from first to fifth grade predicted end-of-fifth grade mathematics but not reading achievement, controlling other factors. In this follow up study, these relations were assessed from sixth to ninth grade, inclusive (n = 145). The results showed that growth in visuospatial memory across the elementary school years was related to growth in mathematics achievement after fifth grade, controlling intelligence, the central executive and phonological memory components of working memory, in-class attentive behavior, parental education, and fifth grade mathematics achievement. As found for fifth grade, this relation was not found for reading achievement after fifth grade. In total, the results suggest that visuospatial memory has a unique influence on ease of learning some types of mathematics and that this influence becomes more important across successive grades.

Short-term memory, executive control, and children's route learning.

PubMed

Purser, Harry R M; Farran, Emily K; Courbois, Yannick; Lemahieu, Axelle; Mellier, Daniel; Sockeel, Pascal; Blades, Mark

2012-10-01

The aim of this study was to investigate route-learning ability in 67 children aged 5 to 11years and to relate route-learning performance to the components of Baddeley's model of working memory. Children carried out tasks that included measures of verbal and visuospatial short-term memory and executive control and also measures of verbal and visuospatial long-term memory; the route-learning task was conducted using a maze in a virtual environment. In contrast to previous research, correlations were found between both visuospatial and verbal memory tasks-the Corsi task, short-term pattern span, digit span, and visuospatial long-term memory-and route-learning performance. However, further analyses indicated that these relationships were mediated by executive control demands that were common to the tasks, with long-term memory explaining additional unique variance in route learning. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The effect of functional hearing loss and age on long- and short-term visuospatial memory: evidence from the UK biobank resource.

PubMed

Rönnberg, Jerker; Hygge, Staffan; Keidser, Gitte; Rudner, Mary

2014-01-01

The UK Biobank offers cross-sectional epidemiological data collected on >500,000 individuals in the UK between 40 and 70 years of age. Using the UK Biobank data, the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of functional hearing loss and hearing aid usage on visuospatial memory function. This selection of variables resulted in a sub-sample of 138,098 participants after discarding extreme values. A digit triplets functional hearing test was used to divide the participants into three groups: poor, insufficient and normal hearers. We found negative relationships between functional hearing loss and both visuospatial working memory (i.e., a card pair matching task) and visuospatial, episodic long-term memory (i.e., a prospective memory task), with the strongest association for episodic long-term memory. The use of hearing aids showed a small positive effect for working memory performance for the poor hearers, but did not have any influence on episodic long-term memory. Age also showed strong main effects for both memory tasks and interacted with gender and education for the long-term memory task. Broader theoretical implications based on a memory systems approach will be discussed and compared to theoretical alternatives.

Visuospatial and Verbal Short-Term Memory Correlates of Vocabulary Ability in Preschool Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stokes, Stephanie F.; Klee, Thomas; Kornisch, Myriam; Furlong, Lisa

2017-01-01

Background: Recent studies indicate that school-age children's patterns of performance on measures of verbal and visuospatial short-term memory (STM) and working memory (WM) differ across types of neurodevelopmental disorders. Because these disorders are often characterized by early language delay, administering STM and WM tests to toddlers could…

Individual Differences in the Development of Early Writing Skills: Testing the Unique Contribution of Visuo-Spatial Working Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bourke, Lorna; Davies, Simon J.; Sumner, Emma; Green, Carolyn

2014-01-01

Visually mediated processes including, exposure to print (e.g. reading) as well as orthographic transcription and coding skills, have been found to contribute to individual differences in literacy development. The current study examined the role of visuospatial working memory (WM) in underpinning this relationship and emergent writing. One hundred…

Visuospatial Working Memory in Intuitive Geometry, and in Academic Achievement in Geometry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giofre, David; Mammarella, Irene C.; Ronconi, Lucia; Cornoldi, Cesare

2013-01-01

A study was conducted on the involvement of visuospatial working memory (VSWM) in intuitive geometry and in school performance in geometry at secondary school. A total of 166 pupils were administered: (1) six VSWM tasks, comprising simple storage and complex span tasks; and (2) the intuitive geometry task devised by Dehaene, Izard, Pica, and…

Reduced prefrontal efficiency for visuospatial working memory in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

PubMed

Bédard, Anne-Claude V; Newcorn, Jeffrey H; Clerkin, Suzanne M; Krone, Beth; Fan, Jin; Halperin, Jeffrey M; Schulz, Kurt P

2014-09-01

Visuospatial working memory impairments have been implicated in the pathophysiology of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, most ADHD research has focused on the neural correlates of nonspatial mnemonic processes. This study examined brain activation and functional connectivity for visuospatial working memory in youth with and without ADHD. Twenty-four youth with ADHD and 21 age- and sex-matched healthy controls were scanned with functional magnetic resonance imaging while performing an N-back test of working memory for spatial position. Block-design analyses contrasted activation and functional connectivity separately for high (2-back) and low (1-back) working memory load conditions versus the control condition (0-back). The effect of working memory load was modeled with linear contrasts. The 2 groups performed comparably on the task and demonstrated similar patterns of frontoparietal activation, with no differences in linear gains in activation as working memory load increased. However, youth with ADHD showed greater activation in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and left posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), greater functional connectivity between the left DLPFC and left intraparietal sulcus, and reduced left DLPFC connectivity with left midcingulate cortex and PCC for the high load contrast compared to controls (p < .01; k > 100 voxels). Reanalysis using a more conservative statistical approach (p < .001; k > 100 voxels) yielded group differences in PCC activation and DLPFC-midcingulate connectivity. Youth with ADHD show decreased efficiency of DLPFC for high-load visuospatial working memory and greater reliance on posterior spatial attention circuits to store and update spatial position than healthy control youth. Findings should be replicated in larger samples. Copyright © 2014 American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The effects of environmental support and secondary tasks on visuospatial working memory.

PubMed

Lilienthal, Lindsey; Hale, Sandra; Myerson, Joel

2014-10-01

In the present experiments, we examined the effects of environmental support on participants' ability to rehearse locations and the role of such support in the effects of secondary tasks on memory span. In Experiment 1, the duration of interitem intervals and the presence of environmental support for visuospatial rehearsal (i.e., the array of possible memory locations) during the interitem intervals were both manipulated across four tasks. When support was provided, memory spans increased as the interitem interval durations increased, consistent with the hypothesis that environmental support facilitates rehearsal. In contrast, when environmental support was not provided, spans decreased as the duration of the interitem intervals increased, consistent with the hypothesis that visuospatial memory representations decay when rehearsal is impeded. In Experiment 2, the ratio of interitem interval duration to intertrial interval duration was kept the same on all four tasks, in order to hold temporal distinctiveness constant, yet forgetting was still observed in the absence of environmental support, consistent with the decay hypothesis. In Experiment 3, the effects of impeding rehearsal were compared to the effects of verbal and visuospatial secondary processing tasks. Forgetting of locations was greater when presentation of to-be-remembered locations alternated with the performance of a secondary task than when rehearsal was impeded by the absence of environmental support. The greatest forgetting occurred when a secondary task required the processing visuospatial information, suggesting that in addition to decay, both domain-specific and domain-general effects contribute to forgetting on visuospatial working memory tasks.

The Effects of Environmental Support and Secondary Tasks on Visuospatial Working Memory

PubMed Central

Lilienthal, Lindsey; Hale, Sandra; Myerson, Joel

2014-01-01

The present experiments examined the effects of environmental support on participants’ ability to rehearse locations and its role in the effects of secondary tasks on memory span. In Experiment 1, the duration of inter-item intervals and the presence of environmental support for visuospatial rehearsal (i.e., the array of possible memory locations) during the inter-item intervals were both manipulated across four tasks. When support was provided, memory spans increased as the inter-item interval durations increased, consistent with the hypothesis that environmental support facilitates rehearsal. In contrast, when environmental support was not provided, spans decreased as the duration of the inter-item intervals increased, consistent with the hypothesis that visuospatial memory representations decay when rehearsal is impeded. In Experiment 2, the ratio of inter-item interval duration to inter-trial interval duration was kept the same on all four tasks in order to hold temporal distinctiveness constant, yet forgetting was still observed in the absence of environmental support, consistent with the decay hypothesis. In Experiment 3, the effects of impeding rehearsal were compared to the effects of verbal and visuospatial secondary processing tasks. Forgetting of locations was greater when presentation of to-be-remembered locations alternated with performance of a secondary task than when rehearsal was impeded by the absence of environmental support. The greatest forgetting occurred when a secondary task required processing visuospatial information, suggesting that in addition to decay, both domain-specific and domain-general effects contribute to forgetting on visuospatial working memory tasks. PMID:24874509

Degrading emotional memories induced by a virtual reality paradigm.

PubMed

Cuperus, Anne A; Laken, Maarten; van den Hout, Marcel A; Engelhard, Iris M

2016-09-01

In Eye Movement and Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy, a dual-task approach is used: patients make horizontal eye movements while they recall aversive memories. Studies showed that this reduces memory vividness and/or emotionality. A strong explanation is provided by working memory theory, which suggests that other taxing dual-tasks are also effective. Experiment 1 tested whether a visuospatial task which was carried out while participants were blindfolded taxes working memory. Experiment 2 tested whether this task degrades negative memories induced by a virtual reality (VR) paradigm. In experiment 1, participants responded to auditory cues with or without simultaneously carrying out the visuospatial task. In experiment 2, participants recalled negative memories induced by a VR paradigm. The experimental group simultaneously carried out the visuospatial task, and a control group merely recalled the memories. Changes in self-rated memory vividness and emotionality were measured. The slowing down of reaction times due to the visuospatial task indicated that its cognitive load was greater than the load of the eye movements task in previous studies. The task also led to reductions in emotionality (but not vividness) of memories induced by the VR paradigm. Weaknesses are that only males were tested in experiment 1, and the effectiveness of the VR fear/trauma induction was not assessed with ratings of mood or intrusions in experiment 2. The results suggest that the visuospatial task may be applicable in clinical settings, and the VR paradigm may provide a useful method of inducing negative memories. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of white matter microstructure in relation to verbal and visuospatial working memory—A longitudinal study

PubMed Central

Fjell, Anders M.; Tamnes, Christian K.; Grydeland, Håkon; Due-Tønnessen, Paulina; Bjørnerud, Atle; Sampaio-Baptista, Cassandra; Andersson, Jesper; Johansen-Berg, Heidi; Walhovd, Kristine B.

2018-01-01

Working memory capacity is pivotal for a broad specter of cognitive tasks and develops throughout childhood. This must in part rely on development of neural connections and white matter microstructure maturation, but there is scarce knowledge of specific relations between this and different aspects of working memory. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) enables us to study development of brain white matter microstructure. In a longitudinal DTI study of 148 healthy children between 4 and 11 years scanned twice with an on average 1.6 years interval, we characterized change in fractional anisotropy (FA), mean (MD), radial (RD) and axial diffusivity (AD) in 10 major white matter tracts hypothesized to be of importance for working memory. The results showed relationships between change in several tracts and change in visuospatial working memory. Specifically, improvement in visuospatial working memory capacity was significantly associated with decreased MD, RD and AD in inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF), inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFOF) and uncinate fasciculus (UF) in the right hemisphere, as well as forceps major (FMaj). No significant relationships were found between change in DTI metrics and change in verbal working memory capacity. These findings yield new knowledge about brain development and corresponding working memory improvements in childhood. PMID:29689058

The Effect of Binaural Beats on Visuospatial Working Memory and Cortical Connectivity.

PubMed

Beauchene, Christine; Abaid, Nicole; Moran, Rosalyn; Diana, Rachel A; Leonessa, Alexander

2016-01-01

Binaural beats utilize a phenomenon that occurs within the cortex when two different frequencies are presented separately to each ear. This procedure produces a third phantom binaural beat, whose frequency is equal to the difference of the two presented tones and which can be manipulated for non-invasive brain stimulation. The effects of binaural beats on working memory, the system in control of temporary retention and online organization of thoughts for successful goal directed behavior, have not been well studied. Furthermore, no studies have evaluated the effects of binaural beats on brain connectivity during working memory tasks. In this study, we determined the effects of different acoustic stimulation conditions on participant response accuracy and cortical network topology, as measured by EEG recordings, during a visuospatial working memory task. Three acoustic stimulation control conditions and three binaural beat stimulation conditions were used: None, Pure Tone, Classical Music, 5Hz binaural beats, 10Hz binaural beats, and 15Hz binaural beats. We found that listening to 15Hz binaural beats during a visuospatial working memory task not only increased the response accuracy, but also modified the strengths of the cortical networks during the task. The three auditory control conditions and the 5Hz and 10Hz binaural beats all decreased accuracy. Based on graphical network analyses, the cortical activity during 15Hz binaural beats produced networks characteristic of high information transfer with consistent connection strengths throughout the visuospatial working memory task.

The Effect of Binaural Beats on Visuospatial Working Memory and Cortical Connectivity

PubMed Central

Abaid, Nicole; Moran, Rosalyn; Diana, Rachel A.; Leonessa, Alexander

2016-01-01

Binaural beats utilize a phenomenon that occurs within the cortex when two different frequencies are presented separately to each ear. This procedure produces a third phantom binaural beat, whose frequency is equal to the difference of the two presented tones and which can be manipulated for non-invasive brain stimulation. The effects of binaural beats on working memory, the system in control of temporary retention and online organization of thoughts for successful goal directed behavior, have not been well studied. Furthermore, no studies have evaluated the effects of binaural beats on brain connectivity during working memory tasks. In this study, we determined the effects of different acoustic stimulation conditions on participant response accuracy and cortical network topology, as measured by EEG recordings, during a visuospatial working memory task. Three acoustic stimulation control conditions and three binaural beat stimulation conditions were used: None, Pure Tone, Classical Music, 5Hz binaural beats, 10Hz binaural beats, and 15Hz binaural beats. We found that listening to 15Hz binaural beats during a visuospatial working memory task not only increased the response accuracy, but also modified the strengths of the cortical networks during the task. The three auditory control conditions and the 5Hz and 10Hz binaural beats all decreased accuracy. Based on graphical network analyses, the cortical activity during 15Hz binaural beats produced networks characteristic of high information transfer with consistent connection strengths throughout the visuospatial working memory task. PMID:27893766

Noncredible cognitive performance at clinical evaluation of adult ADHD: An embedded validity indicator in a visuospatial working memory test.

PubMed

Fuermaier, Anselm B M; Tucha, Oliver; Koerts, Janneke; Lange, Klaus W; Weisbrod, Matthias; Aschenbrenner, Steffen; Tucha, Lara

2017-12-01

The assessment of performance validity is an essential part of the neuropsychological evaluation of adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Most available tools, however, are inaccurate regarding the identification of noncredible performance. This study describes the development of a visuospatial working memory test, including a validity indicator for noncredible cognitive performance of adults with ADHD. Visuospatial working memory of adults with ADHD (n = 48) was first compared to the test performance of healthy individuals (n = 48). Furthermore, a simulation design was performed including 252 individuals who were randomly assigned to either a control group (n = 48) or to 1 of 3 simulation groups who were requested to feign ADHD (n = 204). Additional samples of 27 adults with ADHD and 69 instructed simulators were included to cross-validate findings from the first samples. Adults with ADHD showed impaired visuospatial working memory performance of medium size as compared to healthy individuals. Simulation groups committed significantly more errors and had shorter response times as compared to patients with ADHD. Moreover, binary logistic regression analysis was carried out to derive a validity index that optimally differentiates between true and feigned ADHD. ROC analysis demonstrated high classification rates of the validity index, as shown in excellent specificity (95.8%) and adequate sensitivity (60.3%). The visuospatial working memory test as presented in this study therefore appears sensitive in indicating cognitive impairment of adults with ADHD. Furthermore, the embedded validity index revealed promising results concerning the detection of noncredible cognitive performance of adults with ADHD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Persistence of Gender Related-Effects on Visuo-Spatial and Verbal Working Memory in Right Brain-Damaged Patients.

PubMed

Piccardi, Laura; Matano, Alessandro; D'Antuono, Giovanni; Marin, Dario; Ciurli, Paola; Incoccia, Chiara; Verde, Paola; Guariglia, Paola

2016-01-01

The aim of the present study was to verify if gender differences in verbal and visuo-spatial working memory would persist following right cerebral lesions. To pursue our aim we investigated a large sample (n. 346) of right brain-damaged patients and healthy participants (n. 272) for the presence of gender effects in performing Corsi and Digit Test. We also assessed a subgroup of patients (n. 109) for the nature (active vs. passive) of working memory tasks. We tested working memory (WM) administering the Corsi Test (CBT) and the Digit Span (DS) using two different versions: forward (fCBT and fDS), subjects were required to repeat stimuli in the same order that they were presented; and backward (bCBT and bDS), subjects were required to repeat stimuli in the opposite order of presentation. In this way, passive storage and active processing of working memory were assessed. Our results showed the persistence of gender-related effects in spite of the presence of right brain lesions. We found that men outperformed women both in CBT and DS, regardless of active and passive processing of verbal and visuo-spatial stimuli. The presence of visuo-spatial disorders (i.e., hemineglect) can affect the performance on Corsi Test. In our sample, men and women were equally affected by hemineglect, therefore it did not mask the gender effect. Generally speaking, the persistence of the men's superiority in visuo-spatial tasks may be interpreted as a protective factor, at least for men, within other life factors such as level of education or kind of profession before retirement.

Developmental gains in visuospatial memory predict gains in mathematics achievement.

PubMed

Li, Yaoran; Geary, David C

2013-01-01

Visuospatial competencies are related to performance in mathematical domains in adulthood, but are not consistently related to mathematics achievement in children. We confirmed the latter for first graders and demonstrated that children who show above average first-to-fifth grade gains in visuospatial memory have an advantage over other children in mathematics. The study involved the assessment of the mathematics and reading achievement of 177 children in kindergarten to fifth grade, inclusive, and their working memory capacity and processing speed in first and fifth grade. Intelligence was assessed in first grade and their second to fourth grade teachers reported on their in-class attentive behavior. Developmental gains in visuospatial memory span (d = 2.4) were larger than gains in the capacity of the central executive (d = 1.6) that in turn were larger than gains in phonological memory span (d = 1.1). First to fifth grade gains in visuospatial memory and in speed of numeral processing predicted end of fifth grade mathematics achievement, as did first grade central executive scores, intelligence, and in-class attentive behavior. The results suggest there are important individual differences in the rate of growth of visuospatial memory during childhood and that these differences become increasingly important for mathematics learning.

Developmental Gains in Visuospatial Memory Predict Gains in Mathematics Achievement

PubMed Central

Li, Yaoran; Geary, David C.

2013-01-01

Visuospatial competencies are related to performance in mathematical domains in adulthood, but are not consistently related to mathematics achievement in children. We confirmed the latter for first graders and demonstrated that children who show above average first-to-fifth grade gains in visuospatial memory have an advantage over other children in mathematics. The study involved the assessment of the mathematics and reading achievement of 177 children in kindergarten to fifth grade, inclusive, and their working memory capacity and processing speed in first and fifth grade. Intelligence was assessed in first grade and their second to fourth grade teachers reported on their in-class attentive behavior. Developmental gains in visuospatial memory span (d = 2.4) were larger than gains in the capacity of the central executive (d = 1.6) that in turn were larger than gains in phonological memory span (d = 1.1). First to fifth grade gains in visuospatial memory and in speed of numeral processing predicted end of fifth grade mathematics achievement, as did first grade central executive scores, intelligence, and in-class attentive behavior. The results suggest there are important individual differences in the rate of growth of visuospatial memory during childhood and that these differences become increasingly important for mathematics learning. PMID:23936154

The generality of working memory capacity: a latent-variable approach to verbal and visuospatial memory span and reasoning.

PubMed

Kane, Michael J; Hambrick, David Z; Tuholski, Stephen W; Wilhelm, Oliver; Payne, Tabitha W; Engle, Randall W

2004-06-01

A latent-variable study examined whether verbal and visuospatial working memory (WM) capacity measures reflect a primarily domain-general construct by testing 236 participants in 3 span tests each of verbal WM. visuospatial WM, verbal short-term memory (STM), and visuospatial STM. as well as in tests of verbal and spatial reasoning and general fluid intelligence (Gf). Confirmatory' factor analyses and structural equation models indicated that the WM tasks largely reflected a domain-general factor, whereas STM tasks, based on the same stimuli as the WM tasks, were much more domain specific. The WM construct was a strong predictor of Gf and a weaker predictor of domain-specific reasoning, and the reverse was true for the STM construct. The findings support a domain-general view of WM capacity, in which executive-attention processes drive the broad predictive utility of WM span measures, and domain-specific storage and rehearsal processes relate more strongly to domain-specific aspects of complex cognition. ((c) 2004 APA, all rights reserved)

Some Factors Underlying Mathematical Performance: The Role of Visuospatial Working Memory and Non-Verbal Intelligence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kyttala, Minna; Lehto, Juhani E.

2008-01-01

Passive and active visuospatial working memory (VSWM) were investigated in relation to maths performance. The mental rotation task was employed as a measure of active VSWM whereas passive VSWM was investigated using a modified Corsi Blocks task and a matrix pattern task. The Raven Progressive Matrices Test measured fluid intelligence. A total of…

Contribution of visuospatial attention, short-term memory and executive functions to performance in number interval bisection.

PubMed

Ranzini, Mariagrazia; Carbè, Katia; Gevers, Wim

2017-05-01

Number interval bisection consists of estimating the mid-number within a pair (1-9=>5). Healthy adults and right-brain damage patients can show biased performance in this task, underestimating and overestimating the mid-number, respectively. The role of visuospatial attention during this task, and its interplay with other cognitive abilities (e.g., working memory) is still object of debate. In this study we explored the relation between visuospatial attention and individual differences in working memory and executive functions during number interval bisection. To manipulate the deployment of visuospatial attention, healthy participants tracked a dot moving to the left or moving to the right while bisecting numerical intervals. We also collected information concerning verbal and visuospatial short-term memory span, and concerning verbal and visuospatial fluency scores. Beside replicating what is typically observed in this task (e.g., underestimation bias), a correlation was observed between verbal short-term memory and bisection bias, and an interesting relation between performance in the number interval bisection, verbal short-term memory, and visuospatial attention. Specifically, performance of those participants with low verbal span was affected by the direction of the moving dot, underestimating at a larger extent when the dot moved leftward than rightward. Finally, it was also observed that participants' verbal fluency ability contributed in the generation of biases in the numerical task. The finding of the involvement of abilities belonging to the verbal domain contributes to unveil the multi-componential nature of number interval bisection. Considering the debate on the nature of number interval bisection and its use in the clinical assessment of deficits following brain damage, this finding may be interesting also from a clinical perspective. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Liar, liar, working memory on fire: Investigating the role of working memory in childhood verbal deception.

PubMed

Alloway, Tracy Packiam; McCallum, Fiona; Alloway, Ross G; Hoicka, Elena

2015-09-01

The aim of the current study was to investigate the role of working memory in verbal deception in children. We presented 6- and 7-year-olds with a temptation resistance paradigm; they played a trivia game and were then given an opportunity to peek at the final answers on the back of a card. Measures of both verbal and visuospatial working memory were included. The good liars performed better on the verbal working memory test in both processing and recall compared with the bad liars. However, there was no difference in visuospatial working scores between good liars and bad liars. This pattern suggests that verbal working memory plays a role in processing and manipulating the multiple pieces of information involved in lie-telling. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Developmental dyscalculia is related to visuo-spatial memory and inhibition impairment☆

PubMed Central

Szucs, Denes; Devine, Amy; Soltesz, Fruzsina; Nobes, Alison; Gabriel, Florence

2013-01-01

Developmental dyscalculia is thought to be a specific impairment of mathematics ability. Currently dominant cognitive neuroscience theories of developmental dyscalculia suggest that it originates from the impairment of the magnitude representation of the human brain, residing in the intraparietal sulcus, or from impaired connections between number symbols and the magnitude representation. However, behavioral research offers several alternative theories for developmental dyscalculia and neuro-imaging also suggests that impairments in developmental dyscalculia may be linked to disruptions of other functions of the intraparietal sulcus than the magnitude representation. Strikingly, the magnitude representation theory has never been explicitly contrasted with a range of alternatives in a systematic fashion. Here we have filled this gap by directly contrasting five alternative theories (magnitude representation, working memory, inhibition, attention and spatial processing) of developmental dyscalculia in 9–10-year-old primary school children. Participants were selected from a pool of 1004 children and took part in 16 tests and nine experiments. The dominant features of developmental dyscalculia are visuo-spatial working memory, visuo-spatial short-term memory and inhibitory function (interference suppression) impairment. We hypothesize that inhibition impairment is related to the disruption of central executive memory function. Potential problems of visuo-spatial processing and attentional function in developmental dyscalculia probably depend on short-term memory/working memory and inhibition impairments. The magnitude representation theory of developmental dyscalculia was not supported. PMID:23890692

Long-term effect of early-life stress from earthquake exposure on working memory in adulthood.

PubMed

Li, Na; Wang, Yumei; Zhao, Xiaochuan; Gao, Yuanyuan; Song, Mei; Yu, Lulu; Wang, Lan; Li, Ning; Chen, Qianqian; Li, Yunpeng; Cai, Jiajia; Wang, Xueyi

2015-01-01

The present study aimed to investigate the long-term effect of 1976 Tangshan earthquake exposure in early life on performance of working memory in adulthood. A total of 907 study subjects born and raised in Tangshan were enrolled in this study. They were divided into three groups according to the dates of birth: infant exposure (3-12 months, n=274), prenatal exposure (n=269), and no exposure (born at least 1 year after the earthquake, n=364). The prenatal group was further divided into first, second, and third trimester subgroups based on the timing of exposure during pregnancy. Hopkins Verbal Learning Test-Revised and Brief Visuospatial Memory Test-Revised (BVMT-R) were used to measure the performance of working memory. Unconditional logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the influential factors for impaired working memory. The Hopkins Verbal Learning Test-Revised scores did not show significant difference across the three groups. Compared with no exposure group, the BVMT-R scores were slightly lower in the prenatal exposure group and markedly decreased in the infant exposure group. When the BVMT-R scores were analyzed in three subgroups, the results showed that the subjects whose mothers were exposed to earthquake in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy had significantly lower BVMT-R scores compared with those in the first trimester. Education level and early-life earthquake exposure were identified as independent risk factors for reduced performance of visuospatial memory indicated by lower BVMT-R scores. Infant exposure to earthquake-related stress impairs visuospatial memory in adulthood. Fetuses in the middle and late stages of development are more vulnerable to stress-induced damage that consequently results in impaired visuospatial memory. Education and early-life trauma can also influence the performance of working memory in adulthood.

The Role of Visuo-Spatial Abilities in Recall of Spatial Descriptions: A Mediation Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meneghetti, Chiara; De Beni, Rossana; Pazzaglia, Francesca; Gyselinck, Valerie

2011-01-01

This research investigates how visuo-spatial abilities (such as mental rotation--MR--and visuo-spatial working memory--VSWM--) work together to influence the recall of environmental descriptions. We tested a mediation model in which VSWM was assumed to mediate the relationship between MR and spatial text recall. First, 120 participants were…

Working Memory Impairments in Chromosome 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome: The Roles of Anxiety and Stress Physiology.

PubMed

Sanders, Ashley F P; Hobbs, Diana A; Stephenson, David D; Laird, Robert D; Beaton, Elliott A

2017-04-01

Stress and anxiety have a negative impact on working memory systems by competing for executive resources and attention. Broad memory deficits, anxiety, and elevated stress have been reported in individuals with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11.2DS). We investigated anxiety and physiological stress reactivity in relation to visuospatial working memory impairments in 20 children with 22q11.2DS and 32 typically developing (TD) children ages 7 to 16. Children with 22q11.2DS demonstrated poorer working memory, reduced post-stress respiratory sinus arrhythmia recovery, and overall increased levels of cortisol in comparison to TD children. Anxiety, but not physiological stress responsivity, mediated the relationship between 22q11.2DS diagnosis and visuospatial working memory impairment. Findings indicate that anxiety exacerbates impaired working memory in children with 22q11.2DS.

Exceptional visuospatial imagery in schizophrenia; implications for madness and creativity

PubMed Central

Benson, Taylor L.; Park, Sohee

2013-01-01

Biographical and historical accounts suggest a link between scientific creativity and schizophrenia. Longitudinal studies of gifted children indicate that visuospatial imagery plays a pivotal role in exceptional achievements in science and mathematics. We asked whether visuospatial imagery is enhanced in individuals with schizophrenia (SZ). We compared SZ and matched healthy controls (HC) on five visuospatial tasks tapping parietal and frontoparietal functions. Two aspects of visuospatial transformation, spatial location and mental imagery manipulation were examined with Paper Folding Test (PFT) and jigsaw puzzle task (JPT), respectively. Visuospatial intelligence was assessed with Ravens Progressive Matrices, which is associated with frontoparietal network activity. Hemispatial inattention implicating parietal function was assessed with line bisection (LB) task. Mediated by prefrontal cortex, spatial delayed response task (DRT) was used to index working memory maintenance, which was impaired in SZ compared to HC. In contrast, SZ showed intact visuospatial intelligence and transformation of location. Further, SZ performed significantly better than HC on JPT indicating enhanced mental imagery manipulation. Spatial working memory (SWM) maintenance and mental imagery manipulation were strongly associated in HC but dissociated in SZ. Thus, we observed enhanced mental imagery manipulation in SZ but the dissociation of mental imagery from working memory suggests a disrupted frontoparietal network. Finally, while HC showed the expected leftward pseudoneglect, SZ showed increased rightward LB bias implicating left hemispatial inattention and impaired right parietal control of spatial attention. The current results chart a unique profile of impaired, spared and enhanced parietal-mediated visuospatial functions implicating parietal abnormalities as a biobehavioral marker for SZ. We discuss these results in relation to creative cognition. PMID:24273503

Persistence of Gender Related-Effects on Visuo-Spatial and Verbal Working Memory in Right Brain-Damaged Patients

PubMed Central

Piccardi, Laura; Matano, Alessandro; D’Antuono, Giovanni; Marin, Dario; Ciurli, Paola; Incoccia, Chiara; Verde, Paola; Guariglia, Paola

2016-01-01

The aim of the present study was to verify if gender differences in verbal and visuo-spatial working memory would persist following right cerebral lesions. To pursue our aim we investigated a large sample (n. 346) of right brain-damaged patients and healthy participants (n. 272) for the presence of gender effects in performing Corsi and Digit Test. We also assessed a subgroup of patients (n. 109) for the nature (active vs. passive) of working memory tasks. We tested working memory (WM) administering the Corsi Test (CBT) and the Digit Span (DS) using two different versions: forward (fCBT and fDS), subjects were required to repeat stimuli in the same order that they were presented; and backward (bCBT and bDS), subjects were required to repeat stimuli in the opposite order of presentation. In this way, passive storage and active processing of working memory were assessed. Our results showed the persistence of gender-related effects in spite of the presence of right brain lesions. We found that men outperformed women both in CBT and DS, regardless of active and passive processing of verbal and visuo-spatial stimuli. The presence of visuo-spatial disorders (i.e., hemineglect) can affect the performance on Corsi Test. In our sample, men and women were equally affected by hemineglect, therefore it did not mask the gender effect. Generally speaking, the persistence of the men’s superiority in visuo-spatial tasks may be interpreted as a protective factor, at least for men, within other life factors such as level of education or kind of profession before retirement. PMID:27445734

Working, declarative and procedural memory in specific language impairment

PubMed Central

Lum, Jarrad A.G.; Conti-Ramsden, Gina; Page, Debra; Ullman, Michael T.

2012-01-01

According to the Procedural Deficit Hypothesis (PDH), abnormalities of brain structures underlying procedural memory largely explain the language deficits in children with specific language impairment (SLI). These abnormalities are posited to result in core deficits of procedural memory, which in turn explain the grammar problems in the disorder. The abnormalities are also likely to lead to problems with other, non-procedural functions, such as working memory, that rely at least partly on the affected brain structures. In contrast, declarative memory is expected to remain largely intact, and should play an important compensatory role for grammar. These claims were tested by examining measures of working, declarative and procedural memory in 51 children with SLI and 51 matched typically-developing (TD) children (mean age 10). Working memory was assessed with the Working Memory Test Battery for Children, declarative memory with the Children’s Memory Scale, and procedural memory with a visuo-spatial Serial Reaction Time task. As compared to the TD children, the children with SLI were impaired at procedural memory, even when holding working memory constant. In contrast, they were spared at declarative memory for visual information, and at declarative memory in the verbal domain after controlling for working memory and language. Visuo-spatial short-term memory was intact, whereas verbal working memory was impaired, even when language deficits were held constant. Correlation analyses showed neither visuo-spatial nor verbal working memory was associated with either lexical or grammatical abilities in either the SLI or TD children. Declarative memory correlated with lexical abilities in both groups of children. Finally, grammatical abilities were associated with procedural memory in the TD children, but with declarative memory in the children with SLI. These findings replicate and extend previous studies of working, declarative and procedural memory in SLI. Overall, we suggest that the evidence largely supports the predictions of the PDH. PMID:21774923

Assessing Working Memory in Children: The Comprehensive Assessment Battery for Children - Working Memory (CABC-WM).

PubMed

Cabbage, Kathryn; Brinkley, Shara; Gray, Shelley; Alt, Mary; Cowan, Nelson; Green, Samuel; Kuo, Trudy; Hogan, Tiffany P

2017-06-12

The Comprehensive Assessment Battery for Children - Working Memory (CABC-WM) is a computer-based battery designed to assess different components of working memory in young school-age children. Working memory deficits have been identified in children with language-based learning disabilities, including dyslexia 1 , 2 and language impairment 3 , 4 , but it is not clear whether these children exhibit deficits in subcomponents of working memory, such as visuospatial or phonological working memory. The CABC-WM is administered on a desktop computer with a touchscreen interface and was specifically developed to be engaging and motivating for children. Although the long-term goal of the CABC-WM is to provide individualized working memory profiles in children, the present study focuses on the initial success and utility of the CABC-WM for measuring central executive, visuospatial, phonological loop, and binding constructs in children with typical development. Immediate next steps are to administer the CABC-WM to children with specific language impairment, dyslexia, and comorbid specific language impairment and dyslexia.

Math anxiety and developmental dyscalculia: A study on working memory processes.

PubMed

Mammarella, Irene C; Hill, Francesca; Devine, Amy; Caviola, Sara; Szűcs, Dénes

2015-01-01

Although many children encounter difficulties in arithmetic, the underlying cognitive and emotive factors are still not fully understood. This study examined verbal and visuospatial short-term memory (STM) and working memory (WM) performance in children with developmental dyscalculia (DD) and high mathematics anxiety (MA) compared with typically developing (TD) children. Groups were matched on reading comprehension performance and IQ as well as on general anxiety. We aimed to test whether children with DD and MA were differently impaired in verbal and visuospatial STM and WM. Children were individually tested with four computerized tasks: two STM tasks (forward verbal and visuospatial recall) and two WM tasks (backward verbal and visuospatial recall). Relative to children with TD, those with DD did not show impairments on the forward or backward verbal tasks, but showed specific impairments in the visuospatial WM task. In contrast, children with MA were particularly impaired in the verbal WM task. Knowing the underlying cognitive processes that differentiate why children with DD and MA fail in math could have both educational and clinical implications.

Visuospatial deficits in schizophrenia: central executive and memory subsystems impairments.

PubMed

Leiderman, Eduardo A; Strejilevich, Sergio A

2004-06-01

Object and spatial visual working memory are impaired in schizophrenic patients. It is not clear if the impairments reside in each memory subsystem alone or also in the central executive component that coordinates these processes. In order to elucidate which memory component is impaired, we developed a paradigm with single spatial and object working memory tasks and dual ones with two different delays (5 and 30 s). Fifteen schizophrenic patients and 14 control subjects performed these tests. Schizophrenic patients had a poorer performance compared to normal controls in all tasks and in all time delays. Both schizophrenics and controls performed significantly worse in the object task than in the spatial task. The performance was even worse in the dual task compared to the singles ones in schizophrenic patients but not in controls. These data suggest that visuospatial performance deficits in schizophrenia are due to both visuospatial memory subsystems impairments and central executive ones. The pattern of deficits observed points to a codification or evocation deficit and not to a maintenance one.

Effects of Age and Environmental Support for Rehearsal on Visuospatial Working Memory

PubMed Central

Lilienthal, Lindsey; Hale, Sandra; Myerson, Joel

2016-01-01

The present study investigated whether older adults’ visuospatial working memory shows effects of environmental support for rehearsal similar to those observed in young adults (Lilienthal, Hale, & Myerson, 2014). When the duration of inter-item intervals was 4 s and participants had sufficient time to rehearse, location memory spans were larger in both age groups when environmental support was present than when support was absent. Critically, however, the age-related difference in memory was actually larger when support was provided, suggesting that young and older adults may differ in their rehearsal of to-be-remembered locations. PMID:26950223

Nature and origins of mathematics difficulties in very preterm children: a different etiology than developmental dyscalculia.

PubMed

Simms, Victoria; Gilmore, Camilla; Cragg, Lucy; Clayton, Sarah; Marlow, Neil; Johnson, Samantha

2015-02-01

Children born very preterm (<32 wk) are at high risk for mathematics learning difficulties that are out of proportion to other academic and cognitive deficits. However, the etiology of mathematics difficulties in very preterm children is unknown. We sought to identify the nature and origins of preterm children's mathematics difficulties. One hundred and fifteen very preterm children aged 8-10 y were assessed in school with a control group of 77 term-born classmates. Achievement in mathematics, working memory, visuospatial processing, inhibition, and processing speed were assessed using standardized tests. Numerical representations and specific mathematics skills were assessed using experimental tests. Very preterm children had significantly poorer mathematics achievement, working memory, and visuospatial skills than term-born controls. Although preterm children had poorer performance in specific mathematics skills, there was no evidence of imprecise numerical representations. Difficulties in mathematics were associated with deficits in visuospatial processing and working memory. Mathematics difficulties in very preterm children are associated with deficits in working memory and visuospatial processing not numerical representations. Thus, very preterm children's mathematics difficulties are different in nature from those of children with developmental dyscalculia. Interventions targeting general cognitive problems, rather than numerical representations, may improve very preterm children's mathematics achievement.

What part of working memory is not working in ADHD? Short-term memory, the central executive and effects of reinforcement.

PubMed

Dovis, Sebastiaan; Van der Oord, Saskia; Wiers, Reinout W; Prins, Pier J M

2013-08-01

Deficits in Working Memory (WM) are related to symptoms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). In children with ADHD visuospatial WM is most impaired. WM is composed of Short-Term Memory (STM) and a Central Executive (CE). Therefore, deficits in either or both STM and the CE may account for WM impairments in children with ADHD. WM-component studies investigating this find deficits in both STM and the CE. However, recent studies show that not only cognitive deficits, but also motivational deficits give rise to the aberrant WM performance of children with ADHD. To date, the influence of these motivational deficits on the components of WM has not been investigated. This study examined the effects of a standard (feedback-only) and a high level of reinforcement (feedback + 10 euros) on the visuospatial WM-, visuospatial STM-, and the CE performance of 86 children with ADHD and 62 typically-developing controls. With standard reinforcement the STM, CE, and WM performance of children with ADHD was worse than that of controls. High reinforcement improved STM and WM performance more in children with ADHD than in controls, but was unable to normalize their performance. High reinforcement did not appear to improve the CE-related performance of children with ADHD and controls. Motivational deficits have a detrimental effect on both the visuospatial WM performance and the STM performance of children with ADHD. Aside from motivational deficits, both the visuospatial STM and the CE of children with ADHD are impaired, and give rise to their deficits in visuospatial WM.

Memory ability of children with complex communication needs.

PubMed

Larsson, Maria; Sandberg, Annika Dahlgren

2008-01-01

Phonological memory is central to language and reading and writing skills. Many children with complex communication needs (CCN) experience problems with reading and writing acquisition. The reason could be because of the absence of articulatory ability, which might have a negative affect on phonological memory. Phonological and visuo-spatial short-term memory and working memory were tested in 15 children with CCN, aged 5 - 12 years, and compared to children with natural speech matched for gender, and mental and linguistic age. Results indicated weaker phonological STM and visuo-spatial STM and WM in children with CCN. The lack of articulatory ability could be assumed to affect subvocal rehearsal and, therefore, phonological memory which, in turn, may affect reading and writing acquisition. Weak visuo-spatial memory could also complicate the use of Bliss symbols and other types of augmentative and alternative communication.

Functional brain microstate predicts the outcome in a visuospatial working memory task.

PubMed

Muthukrishnan, Suriya-Prakash; Ahuja, Navdeep; Mehta, Nalin; Sharma, Ratna

2016-11-01

Humans have limited capacity of processing just up to 4 integrated items of information in the working memory. Thus, it is inevitable to commit more errors when challenged with high memory loads. However, the neural mechanisms that determine the accuracy of response at high memory loads still remain unclear. High temporal resolution of Electroencephalography (EEG) technique makes it the best tool to resolve the temporal dynamics of brain networks. EEG-defined microstate is the quasi-stable scalp electrical potential topography that represents the momentary functional state of brain. Thus, it has been possible to assess the information processing currently performed by the brain using EEG microstate analysis. We hypothesize that the EEG microstate preceding the trial could determine its outcome in a visuospatial working memory (VSWM) task. Twenty-four healthy participants performed a high memory load VSWM task, while their brain activity was recorded using EEG. Four microstate maps were found to represent the functional brain state prior to the trials in the VSWM task. One pre-trial microstate map was found to determine the accuracy of subsequent behavioural response. The intracranial generators of the pre-trial microstate map that determined the response accuracy were localized to the visuospatial processing areas at bilateral occipital, right temporal and limbic cortices. Our results imply that the behavioural outcome in a VSWM task could be determined by the intensity of activation of memory representations in the visuospatial processing brain regions prior to the trial. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Developmental dyscalculia is related to visuo-spatial memory and inhibition impairment.

PubMed

Szucs, Denes; Devine, Amy; Soltesz, Fruzsina; Nobes, Alison; Gabriel, Florence

2013-01-01

Developmental dyscalculia is thought to be a specific impairment of mathematics ability. Currently dominant cognitive neuroscience theories of developmental dyscalculia suggest that it originates from the impairment of the magnitude representation of the human brain, residing in the intraparietal sulcus, or from impaired connections between number symbols and the magnitude representation. However, behavioral research offers several alternative theories for developmental dyscalculia and neuro-imaging also suggests that impairments in developmental dyscalculia may be linked to disruptions of other functions of the intraparietal sulcus than the magnitude representation. Strikingly, the magnitude representation theory has never been explicitly contrasted with a range of alternatives in a systematic fashion. Here we have filled this gap by directly contrasting five alternative theories (magnitude representation, working memory, inhibition, attention and spatial processing) of developmental dyscalculia in 9-10-year-old primary school children. Participants were selected from a pool of 1004 children and took part in 16 tests and nine experiments. The dominant features of developmental dyscalculia are visuo-spatial working memory, visuo-spatial short-term memory and inhibitory function (interference suppression) impairment. We hypothesize that inhibition impairment is related to the disruption of central executive memory function. Potential problems of visuo-spatial processing and attentional function in developmental dyscalculia probably depend on short-term memory/working memory and inhibition impairments. The magnitude representation theory of developmental dyscalculia was not supported. Copyright © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Improving working memory in children with low language abilities

PubMed Central

Holmes, Joni; Butterfield, Sally; Cormack, Francesca; van Loenhoud, Anita; Ruggero, Leanne; Kashikar, Linda; Gathercole, Susan

2015-01-01

This study investigated whether working memory training is effective in enhancing verbal memory in children with low language abilities (LLA). Cogmed Working Memory Training was completed by a community sample of children aged 8–11 years with LLA and a comparison group with matched non-verbal abilities and age-typical language performance. Short-term memory (STM), working memory, language, and IQ were assessed before and after training. Significant and equivalent post-training gains were found in visuo-spatial short-term memory in both groups. Exploratory analyses across the sample established that low verbal IQ scores were strongly and highly specifically associated with greater gains in verbal STM, and that children with higher verbal IQs made greater gains in visuo-spatial short-term memory following training. This provides preliminary evidence that intensive working memory training may be effective for enhancing the weakest aspects of STM in children with low verbal abilities, and may also be of value in developing compensatory strategies. PMID:25983703

Working-memory training improves developmental dyslexia in Chinese children.

PubMed

Luo, Yan; Wang, Jing; Wu, Hanrong; Zhu, Dongmei; Zhang, Yu

2013-02-15

Although plasticity in the neural system underlies working memory, and working memory can be improved by training, there is thus far no evidence that children with developmental dyslexia can benefit from working-memory training. In the present study, thirty dyslexic children aged 8-11 years were recruited from an elementary school in Wuhan, China. They received working-memory training, including training in visuospatial memory, verbal memory, and central executive tasks. The difficulty of the tasks was adjusted based on the performance of each subject, and the training sessions lasted 40 minutes per day, for 5 weeks. The results showed that working-memory training significantly enhanced performance on the nontrained working memory tasks such as the visuospatial, the verbal domains, and central executive tasks in children with developmental dyslexia. More importantly, the visual rhyming task and reading fluency task were also significantly improved by training. Progress on working memory measures was related to changes in reading skills. These experimental findings indicate that working memory is a pivotal factor in reading development among children with developmental dyslexia, and interventions to improve working memory may help dyslexic children to become more proficient in reading.

Structured floral arrangement programme for improving visuospatial working memory in schizophrenia

PubMed Central

Mochizuki-Kawai, Hiroko; Yamakawa, Yuriko; Mochizuki, Satoshi; Anzai, Shoko; Arai, Masanobu

2010-01-01

Several cognitive therapies have been developed for patients with schizophrenia. However, little is known about the outcomes of these therapies in terms of non-verbal/visuospatial working memory, even though this may affect patients’ social outcomes. In the present pilot study, we investigated the effect of a structured floral arrangement (SFA) programme, where participants were required to create symmetrical floral arrangements. In this programme, the arrangement pattern and the order of placing each of the natural materials was predetermined. Participants have to identify where to place each material, and memorise the position temporarily to complete the floral arrangement. The schizophrenic patients who participated in this programme showed significant improvement in their scores for a block-tapping task backward version; whereas, non-treated control patients did not show such an improvement. The present results suggest that the SFA programme may positively stimulate visuospatial working memory in patients. PMID:20467963

The relation between working memory components and ADHD symptoms from a developmental perspective.

PubMed

Tillman, Carin; Eninger, Lilianne; Forssman, Linda; Bohlin, Gunilla

2011-01-01

The objective was to examine the relations between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms and four working memory (WM) components (short-term memory and central executive in verbal and visuospatial domains) in 284 6-16-year-old children from the general population. The results showed that verbal and visuospatial short-term memory and verbal central executive uniquely contributed to inattention symptoms. Age interacted with verbal short-term memory in predicting inattention, with the relation being stronger in older children. These findings support the notion of ADHD as a developmental disorder, with changes in associated neuropsychological deficits across time. The results further indicate ADHD-related deficits in several specific WM components.

Effects of age and environmental support for rehearsal on visuospatial working memory.

PubMed

Lilienthal, Lindsey; Hale, Sandra; Myerson, Joel

2016-05-01

The present study investigated whether older adults' visuospatial working memory shows effects of environmental support for rehearsal similar to those observed in young adults (Lilienthal, Hale, & Myerson, 2014). When the duration of interitem intervals was 4 s and participants had sufficient time to rehearse, location memory spans were larger in both age groups when environmental support was present than when support was absent. Critically, however, the age-related difference in memory was actually larger when support was provided, suggesting that young and older adults may differ in their rehearsal of to-be-remembered locations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Spatial and visuospatial working memory tests predict performance in classic multiple-object tracking in young adults, but nonspatial measures of the executive do not.

PubMed

Trick, Lana M; Mutreja, Rachna; Hunt, Kelly

2012-02-01

An individual-differences approach was used to investigate the roles of visuospatial working memory and the executive in multiple-object tracking. The Corsi Blocks and Visual Patterns Tests were used to assess visuospatial working memory. Two relatively nonspatial measures of the executive were used: operation span (OSPAN) and reading span (RSPAN). For purposes of comparison, the digit span test was also included (a measure not expected to correlate with tracking). The tests predicted substantial amounts of variance (R (2) = .33), and the visuospatial measures accounted for the majority (R (2) = .30), with each making a significant contribution. Although the executive measures correlated with each other, the RSPAN did not correlate with tracking. The correlation between OSPAN and tracking was similar in magnitude to that between digit span and tracking (p < .05 for both), and when regression was used to partial out shared variance between the two tests, the remaining variance predicted by the OSPAN was minimal (sr ( 2 ) = .029). When measures of spatial memory were included in the regression, the unique variance predicted by the OSPAN became negligible (sr ( 2 ) = .000004). This suggests that the executive, as measured by tests such as the OSPAN, plays little role in explaining individual differences in multiple-object tracking.

Attention problems of very preterm children compared with age-matched term controls at school-age.

PubMed

de Kieviet, Jorrit F; van Elburg, Ruurd M; Lafeber, Harrie N; Oosterlaan, Jaap

2012-11-01

To clarify the severity, specificity, and neurocognitive underpinnings of attention problems in very preterm children. A sample of 66 preterm (<32 weeks gestation), mean (SD) age 7.5 (0.4) years, and 66 age-matched term controls participated. Symptoms of inattention were assessed using parent and teacher-rated questionnaires, and neurocognitive measures included speed and consistency in speed of information processing, lapses of attention (tau), alerting, orienting, and executive attention, as well as verbal and visuospatial working memory. Group differences were investigated using ANOVA, and Sobel tests were used to clarify the mediating role of neurocognitive impairments on attention problems. There was a large decrease in visuospatial working memory abilities (P < .001, d = .87), and medium increases in tau (P = .002, d = 0.55) as well as parent and teacher ratings of inattention (range d = 0.40-0.56) in very preterm children compared with term peers. Tau and visuospatial working memory were significant predictors of parent (R(2) = .161, P < .001 and R(2) = .071, P = .001; respectively) and teacher (R(2) = .152, P < .001 and R(2) = .064, P = .002; respectively) ratings of inattention, and completely explained the effects of very preterm birth on attention problems. Increased lapses of attention and poorer visuospatial working memory fully account for the attention problems in very premature children at school-age. Copyright © 2012 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

ViSA: a neurodynamic model for visuo-spatial working memory, attentional blink, and conscious access.

PubMed

Simione, Luca; Raffone, Antonino; Wolters, Gezinus; Salmas, Paola; Nakatani, Chie; Belardinelli, Marta Olivetti; van Leeuwen, Cees

2012-10-01

Two separate lines of study have clarified the role of selectivity in conscious access to visual information. Both involve presenting multiple targets and distracters: one simultaneously in a spatially distributed fashion, the other sequentially at a single location. To understand their findings in a unified framework, we propose a neurodynamic model for Visual Selection and Awareness (ViSA). ViSA supports the view that neural representations for conscious access and visuo-spatial working memory are globally distributed and are based on recurrent interactions between perceptual and access control processors. Its flexible global workspace mechanisms enable a unitary account of a broad range of effects: It accounts for the limited storage capacity of visuo-spatial working memory, attentional cueing, and efficient selection with multi-object displays, as well as for the attentional blink and associated sparing and masking effects. In particular, the speed of consolidation for storage in visuo-spatial working memory in ViSA is not fixed but depends adaptively on the input and recurrent signaling. Slowing down of consolidation due to weak bottom-up and recurrent input as a result of brief presentation and masking leads to the attentional blink. Thus, ViSA goes beyond earlier 2-stage and neuronal global workspace accounts of conscious processing limitations. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved.

Articulatory rehearsal in verbal working memory: a possible neurocognitive endophenotype that differentiates between schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder.

PubMed

Gruber, Oliver; Gruber, Eva; Falkai, Peter

2006-09-11

Recent fMRI studies have identified brain systems underlying different components of working memory in healthy individuals. The aim of this study was to compare the functional integrity of these neural networks in terms of behavioural performance in patients with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder and healthy controls. In order to detect specific working memory deficits based on dysfunctions of underlying brain circuits we used the same verbal and visuospatial Sternberg item-recognition tasks as in previous neuroimaging studies. Clinical and performance data from matched groups consisting of 14 subjects each were statistically analyzed. Schizophrenic patients exhibited pronounced impairments of both verbal and visuospatial working memory, whereas verbal working memory performance was preserved in schizoaffective patients. The findings provide first evidence that dysfunction of a brain system subserving articulatory rehearsal could represent a biological marker which differentiates between schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder.

Movement Interferes with Visuospatial Working Memory during the Encoding: An ERP Study

PubMed Central

Gunduz Can, Rumeysa; Schack, Thomas; Koester, Dirk

2017-01-01

The present study focuses on the functional interactions of cognition and manual action control. Particularly, we investigated the neurophysiological correlates of the dual-task costs of a manual-motor task (requiring grasping an object, holding it, and subsequently placing it on a target) for working memory (WM) domains (verbal and visuospatial) and processes (encoding and retrieval). Thirty participants were tested in a cognitive-motor dual-task paradigm, in which a single block (a verbal or visuospatial WM task) was compared with a dual block (concurrent performance of a WM task and a motor task). Event-related potentials (ERPs) were analyzed separately for the encoding and retrieval processes of verbal and visuospatial WM domains both in single and dual blocks. The behavioral analyses show that the motor task interfered with WM and decreased the memory performance. The performance decrease was larger for the visuospatial task compared with the verbal task, i.e., domain-specific memory costs were obtained. The ERP analyses show the domain-specific interference also at the neurophysiological level, which is further process-specific to encoding. That is, comparing the patterns of WM-related ERPs in the single block and dual block, we showed that visuospatial ERPs changed only for the encoding process when a motor task was performed at the same time. Generally, the present study provides evidence for domain- and process-specific interactions of a prepared manual-motor movement with WM (visuospatial domain during the encoding process). This study, therefore, provides an initial neurophysiological characterization of functional interactions of WM and manual actions in a cognitive-motor dual-task setting, and contributes to a better understanding of the neuro-cognitive mechanisms of motor action control. PMID:28611714

The suppression effect in visuospatial and verbal working memory span tasks in patients with Alzheimer's disease: a 2-year follow-up study.

PubMed

Elosúa, M Rosa; Peinado, Matías; Contreras, María José; Reales, J Manuel; Montoro, Pedro R

2016-10-01

This study adapted a new task to assess visuospatial and verbal working memory impairments in patients with Alzheimer Disease (AD), including an executive strategy of information suppression. The aim was to examine the visuospatial and verbal difficulties, and additionally to explore the average sex differences, during a 2-year follow-up study. The results indicated that patients with AD showed a significantly lower performance, compared with healthy elderly controls, especially with the suppression of information required in this new task. However, suppression did not lead to a significantly greater decline in the performance of patients when compared with the control group.

Both a Nicotinic Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) and a Noradrenergic SNP Modulate Working Memory Performance when Attention Is Manipulated

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Greenwood, Pamela M.; Sundararajan, Ramya; Lin, Ming-Kuan; Kumar, Reshma; Fryxell, Karl J.; Parasuraman, Raja

2009-01-01

We investigated the relation between the two systems of visuospatial attention and working memory by examining the effect of normal variation in cholinergic and noradrenergic genes on working memory performance under attentional manipulation. We previously reported that working memory for location was impaired following large location precues,…

Assessing Working Memory in Spanish-Speaking Children: Automated Working Memory Assessment Battery Adaptation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Injoque-Ricle, Irene; Calero, Alejandra D.; Alloway, Tracy P.; Burin, Debora I.

2011-01-01

The Automated Working Memory Assessment battery was designed to assess verbal and visuospatial passive and active working memory processing in children and adolescents. The aim of this paper is to present the adaptation and validation of the AWMA battery to Argentinean Spanish-speaking children aged 6 to 11 years. Verbal subtests were adapted and…

Working Memory and Strategy Use Contribute to Gender Differences in Spatial Ability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Lu; Carr, Martha

2014-01-01

In this review, a new model that is grounded in information-processing theory is proposed to account for gender differences in spatial ability. The proposed model assumes that the relative strength of working memory, as expressed by the ratio of visuospatial working memory to verbal working memory, influences the type of strategies used on spatial…

Working Memory Differences between Children Living in Rural and Urban Poverty

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tine, Michele

2014-01-01

This study was designed to investigate if the working memory profiles of children living in rural poverty are distinct from the working memory profiles of children living in urban poverty. Verbal and visuospatial working memory tasks were administered to sixth-grade students living in low-income rural, low-income urban, high-income rural, and…

Working Memory, Reading, and Mathematical Skills in Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alloway, Tracy Packiam

2007-01-01

The aim of the present study was investigate the relationship between working memory and reading and mathematical skills in 55 children diagnosed with developmental coordination disorder (DCD). The findings indicate a pervasive memory deficit in all memory measures. In particular, deficits observed in visuospatial short-term and working memory…

Musicians have better memory than nonmusicians: A meta-analysis.

PubMed

Talamini, Francesca; Altoè, Gianmarco; Carretti, Barbara; Grassi, Massimo

2017-01-01

Several studies have found that musicians perform better than nonmusicians in memory tasks, but this is not always the case, and the strength of this apparent advantage is unknown. Here, we conducted a meta-analysis with the aim of clarifying whether musicians perform better than nonmusicians in memory tasks. Education Source; PEP (WEB)-Psychoanalytic Electronic Publishing; Psychology and Behavioral Science (EBSCO); PsycINFO (Ovid); PubMed; ScienceDirect-AllBooks Content (Elsevier API); SCOPUS (Elsevier API); SocINDEX with Full Text (EBSCO) and Google Scholar were searched for eligible studies. The selected studies involved two groups of participants: young adult musicians and nonmusicians. All the studies included memory tasks (loading long-term, short-term or working memory) that contained tonal, verbal or visuospatial stimuli. Three meta-analyses were run separately for long-term memory, short-term memory and working memory. We collected 29 studies, including 53 memory tasks. The results showed that musicians performed better than nonmusicians in terms of long-term memory, g = .29, 95% CI (.08-.51), short-term memory, g = .57, 95% CI (.41-.73), and working memory, g = .56, 95% CI (.33-.80). To further explore the data, we included a moderator (the type of stimulus presented, i.e., tonal, verbal or visuospatial), which was found to influence the effect size for short-term and working memory, but not for long-term memory. In terms of short-term and working memory, the musicians' advantage was large with tonal stimuli, moderate with verbal stimuli, and small or null with visuospatial stimuli. The three meta-analyses revealed a small effect size for long-term memory, and a medium effect size for short-term and working memory, suggesting that musicians perform better than nonmusicians in memory tasks. Moreover, the effect of the moderator suggested that, the type of stimuli influences this advantage.

Musicians have better memory than nonmusicians: A meta-analysis

PubMed Central

Altoè, Gianmarco; Carretti, Barbara; Grassi, Massimo

2017-01-01

Background Several studies have found that musicians perform better than nonmusicians in memory tasks, but this is not always the case, and the strength of this apparent advantage is unknown. Here, we conducted a meta-analysis with the aim of clarifying whether musicians perform better than nonmusicians in memory tasks. Methods Education Source; PEP (WEB)—Psychoanalytic Electronic Publishing; Psychology and Behavioral Science (EBSCO); PsycINFO (Ovid); PubMed; ScienceDirect—AllBooks Content (Elsevier API); SCOPUS (Elsevier API); SocINDEX with Full Text (EBSCO) and Google Scholar were searched for eligible studies. The selected studies involved two groups of participants: young adult musicians and nonmusicians. All the studies included memory tasks (loading long-term, short-term or working memory) that contained tonal, verbal or visuospatial stimuli. Three meta-analyses were run separately for long-term memory, short-term memory and working memory. Results We collected 29 studies, including 53 memory tasks. The results showed that musicians performed better than nonmusicians in terms of long-term memory, g = .29, 95% CI (.08–.51), short-term memory, g = .57, 95% CI (.41–.73), and working memory, g = .56, 95% CI (.33–.80). To further explore the data, we included a moderator (the type of stimulus presented, i.e., tonal, verbal or visuospatial), which was found to influence the effect size for short-term and working memory, but not for long-term memory. In terms of short-term and working memory, the musicians’ advantage was large with tonal stimuli, moderate with verbal stimuli, and small or null with visuospatial stimuli. Conclusions The three meta-analyses revealed a small effect size for long-term memory, and a medium effect size for short-term and working memory, suggesting that musicians perform better than nonmusicians in memory tasks. Moreover, the effect of the moderator suggested that, the type of stimuli influences this advantage. PMID:29049416

Video Game Training Enhances Visuospatial Working Memory and Episodic Memory in Older Adults

PubMed Central

Toril, Pilar; Reales, José M.; Mayas, Julia; Ballesteros, Soledad

2016-01-01

In this longitudinal intervention study with experimental and control groups, we investigated the effects of video game training on the visuospatial working memory (WM) and episodic memory of healthy older adults. Participants were 19 volunteer older adults, who received 15 1-h video game training sessions with a series of video games selected from a commercial package (Lumosity), and a control group of 20 healthy older adults. The results showed that the performance of the trainees improved significantly in all the practiced video games. Most importantly, we found significant enhancements after training in the trained group and no change in the control group in two computerized tasks designed to assess visuospatial WM, namely the Corsi blocks task and the Jigsaw puzzle task. The episodic memory and short-term memory of the trainees also improved. Gains in some WM and episodic memory tasks were maintained during a 3-month follow-up period. These results suggest that the aging brain still retains some degree of plasticity, and that video game training might be an effective intervention tool to improve WM and other cognitive functions in older adults. PMID:27199723

Gender Differences in Verbal and Visuospatial Working Memory Tasks in Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer Disease

PubMed Central

Elosúa, M. Rosa; Ciudad, María José; Contreras, María José

2017-01-01

Background/Aims To date, there are few studies on gender differences in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer disease (AD). In the present study, the existence of differences between sexes in verbal and visuospatial working memory tasks in the evolution of cognitive and pathological aging was examined. Method Ninety participants took part in this study: 30 AD, 30 MCI, and 30 healthy elderly participants (50% men and 50% women). Results There were no significant differences between men and women with AD in visuospatial tasks, whereas these differences were found within the MCI group, with the average of men achieving significantly higher results than women. In verbal tasks, there were no differences between sexes for any of the groups. Conclusion Execution in visuospatial tasks tends to depend on gender, whereas this does not occur for verbal tasks. PMID:28553312

A selective egocentric topographical working memory deficit in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease: a preliminary study.

PubMed

Bianchini, F; Di Vita, A; Palermo, L; Piccardi, L; Blundo, C; Guariglia, C

2014-12-01

The aim of this study was to determine whether an egocentric topographical working memory (WM) deficit is present in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease (AD) with respect to other forms of visuospatial WM. Further, we would investigate whether this deficit could be present in patients having AD without topographical disorientation (TD) signs in everyday life assessed through an informal interview to caregivers. Seven patients with AD and 20 healthy participants performed the Walking Corsi Test and the Corsi Block-Tapping Test. The former test requires memorizing a sequence of places by following a path and the latter is a well-known visuospatial memory task. Patients with AD also performed a verbal WM test to exclude the presence of general WM impairments. Preliminary results suggest that egocentric topographical WM is selectively impaired, with respect to visuospatial and verbal WM, even without TD suggesting an important role of this memory in the early stages of AD. © The Author(s) 2014.

Individual differences in proactive interference in verbal and visuospatial working memory.

PubMed

Lilienthal, Lindsey

2017-09-01

Proactive interference (PI) has been shown to affect working memory (WM) span as well as the predictive utility of WM span measures. However, most of the research on PI has been conducted using verbal memory items, and much less is known about the role of PI in the visuospatial domain. In order to further explore this issue, the present study used a within-subjects manipulation of PI that alternated clusters of trials with verbal and visuospatial to-be-remembered items. Although PI was shown to build and release across trials similarly in the two domains, important differences also were observed. The ability of verbal WM to predict performance on a measure of fluid intelligence was significantly affected by the amount of PI present, consistent with past research, but this proved not to be the case for visuospatial WM. Further, individuals' susceptibility to PI in one domain was relatively independent of their susceptibility in the other domain, suggesting that, contrary to some theories of executive function, individual differences in PI susceptibility may not be domain-general.

Nonverbal working memory of humans and monkeys: rehearsal in the sketchpad?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Washburn, D. A.; Astur, R. S.; Rumbaugh, D. M. (Principal Investigator)

1998-01-01

Investigations of working memory tend to focus on the retention of verbal information. The present experiments were designed to characterize the active maintenance rehearsal process used in the retention of visuospatial information. Rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta; N = 6) were tested as well as humans (total N = 90) because these nonhuman primates have excellent visual working memory but, unlike humans, cannot verbally recode the stimuli to employ verbal rehearsal mechanisms. A series of experiments was conducted using a distractor-task paradigm, a directed forgetting procedure, and a dual-task paradigm. No evidence was found for an active maintenance process for either species. Rather, it appears that information is maintained in the visuospatial sketchpad without active rehearsal.

Intrusion errors in visuospatial working memory performance.

PubMed

Cornoldi, Cesare; Mammarella, Nicola

2006-02-01

This study tested the hypothesis that failure in active visuospatial working memory tasks involves a difficulty in avoiding intrusions due to information that is already activated. Two experiments are described, in which participants were required to process several series of locations on a 4 x 4 matrix and then to produce only the final location of each series. Results revealed a higher number of errors due to already activated locations (intrusions) compared with errors due to new locations (inventions). Moreover, when participants were required to pay extra attention to some irrelevant (non-final) locations by tapping on the table, intrusion errors increased. Results are discussed in terms of current models of working memory functioning.

Cancer 'survivor-care': II. Disruption of prefrontal brain activation top-down control of working memory capacity as possible mechanism for chemo-fog/brain (chemotherapy-associated cognitive impairment).

PubMed

Raffa, R B

2013-08-01

Cancer chemotherapy-associated cognitive impairments (termed 'chemo-fog' or 'chemo-brain'), particularly in memory, have been self-reported or identified in cancer survivors previously treated with chemotherapy. Although a variety of deficits have been detected, a consistent theme is a detriment in visuospatial working memory. The parietal cortex, a major site of storage of such memory, is implicated in chemotherapy-induced damage. However, if the findings of two recent publications are combined, the (pre)frontal cortex might be an equally viable target. Two recent studies, one postulating a mechanism for 'top-down control' of working memory capacity and another visualizing chemotherapy-induced alterations in brain activation during working memory processing, are reviewed and integrated. A computational model and the proposal that the prefrontal cortex plays a role in working memory via top-down control of parietal working memory capacity is consistent with a recent demonstration of decreased frontal hyperactivation following chemotherapy. Chemotherapy-associated impairment of visuospatial working memory might include the (pre)frontal cortex in addition to the parietal cortex. This provides new opportunity for basic science and clinical investigation. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Exploring the relations among physical fitness, executive functioning, and low academic achievement.

PubMed

de Bruijn, A G M; Hartman, E; Kostons, D; Visscher, C; Bosker, R J

2018-03-01

Physical fitness seems to be related to academic performance, at least when taking the role of executive functioning into account. This assumption is highly relevant for the vulnerable population of low academic achievers because their academic performance might benefit from enhanced physical fitness. The current study examined whether physical fitness and executive functioning are independent predictors of low mathematics and spelling achievement or whether the relation between physical fitness and low achievement is mediated by specific executive functions. In total, 477 students from second- and third-grade classes of 12 primary schools were classified as either low or average-to-high achievers in mathematics and spelling based on their scores on standardized achievement tests. Multilevel structural equation models were built with direct paths between physical fitness and academic achievement and added indirect paths via components of executive functioning: inhibition, verbal working memory, visuospatial working memory, and shifting. Physical fitness was only indirectly related to low achievement via specific executive functions, depending on the academic domain involved. Verbal working memory was a mediator between physical fitness and low achievement in both domains, whereas visuospatial working memory had a mediating role only in mathematics. Physical fitness interventions aiming to improve low academic achievement, thus, could potentially be successful. The mediating effect of executive functioning suggests that these improvements in academic achievement will be preceded by enhanced executive functions, either verbal working memory (in spelling) or both verbal and visuospatial working memory (in mathematics). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Measurement of Visuo-Spatial and Verbal-Numerical Working Memory: Development of IRT-Based Scales

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vock, Miriam; Holling, Heinz

2008-01-01

The objective of this study is to explore the potential for developing IRT-based working memory scales for assessing specific working memory components in children (8-13 years). These working memory scales should measure cognitive abilities reliably in the upper range of ability distribution as well as in the normal range, and provide a…

A spatial paradigm, the allothetic place avoidance alternation task, for testing visuospatial working memory and skill learning in rats.

PubMed

Dockery, Colleen A; Wesierska, Malgorzata J

2010-08-30

We present a paradigm for assessing visuospatial working memory and skill learning in a rodent model, based on the place avoidance test. In our allothetic place avoidance alternation task (APAAT) the paradigm is comprised of minimal training sessions, tests various aspects of learning and memory and provides a rich set of parameters. A single working memory session consists of four conditions: habituation (no shock), two place avoidance training intervals (shock activated) and a retrieval test (shock inactivated). The location of the shock sector is alternated for each training day which initially requires extinction of previous representations and further working memory to achieve effective place avoidance across sessions. Visuospatial skill memory was evaluated by the shock/entrance ratio by tracking locomotor activity which is essential to execute a place avoidance strategy. For each day rats learned to avoid a new place with shock, as shown by a decreased number of entrances, and an increased time to the first entrance and maximum avoidance time. Skill learning improved according to the decreased number of shocks per entrance across conditions. These results indicate that complex cognitive functions are captured by this behavioral method. This APAAT paradigm expands and complements existing tools for studying hippocampal-prefrontal dependent functions to support development of treatment interventions. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Tetris and Word games lead to fewer intrusive memories when applied several days after analogue trauma.

PubMed

Hagenaars, Muriel A; Holmes, Emily A; Klaassen, Fayette; Elzinga, Bernet

2017-01-01

Background : Intrusive trauma memories are a key symptom of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), so disrupting their recurrence is highly important. Intrusion development was hindered by visuospatial interventions administered up to 24 hours after analogue trauma. It is unknown whether interventions can be applied later, and whether modality or working-memory load are crucial factors. Objectives : This study tested: (1) whether a visuospatial task would lead to fewer intrusions compared to a reactivation-only group when applied after memory reactivation four days after analogue trauma exposure (extended replication), (2) whether both tasks (i.e. one aimed to be visuospatial, one more verbal) would lead to fewer intrusions than the reactivation-only group (intervention effect), and (3) whether supposed task modality (visuospatial or verbal) is a critical component (modality effect). Method : Fifty-four participants were randomly assigned to reactivation+Tetris (visuospatial), reactivation+Word games (verbal), or reactivation-only (no task). They watched an aversive film (day 0) and recorded intrusive memories of the film in diary A. On day 4, memory was reactivated, after which participants played Tetris, Word games, or had no task for 10 minutes. They then kept a second diary (B). Informative hypotheses were evaluated using Bayes factors. Results : Reactivation+Tetris and reactivation+Word games resulted in relatively fewer intrusions from the last day of diary A to the first day of diary B than reactivation-only (objective 1 and 2). Thus, both tasks were effective even when applied days after analogue trauma. Reactivation-only was not effective. Reactivation+Word games appeared to result in fewer intrusions than reactivation+Tetris (objective 3; modality effect), but this evidence was weak. Explorative analyses showed that Word games were more difficult than Tetris. Conclusions : Applying a task four days after the trauma film (during memory reconsolidation) was effective. The modality versus working-memory load issue is inconclusive.

Effects of prenatal marijuana on visuospatial working memory: an fMRI study in young adults.

PubMed

Smith, Andra M; Fried, Peter A; Hogan, Matthew J; Cameron, Ian

2006-01-01

The long lasting neurophysiological effects of prenatal marijuana exposure on visuospatial working memory were investigated in 18-22 year olds using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The participants are members of the Ottawa Prenatal Prospective Study (OPPS), a longitudinal study that provides a unique body of information collected from each participant over 20 years, including prenatal drug history, detailed cognitive/behavioral performance from infancy to young adulthood, and current and past drug usage. This information allowed for the control of potentially confounding drug exposure variables in the statistical analyses. Thirty-one offspring from the OPPS (16 prenatally exposed and 15 nonexposed) performed a visuospatial 2-back task while neural activity was imaged with fMRI. Cognitive performance data were also collected. No significant performance differences were observed when comparing controls versus exposed participants. Multiple regression analyses (including controls with no exposure) revealed that as the amount of prenatal marijuana exposure increased, there was significantly more neural activity in the left inferior and middle frontal gyri, left parahippocampal gyrus, left middle occipital gyrus and left cerebellum. There was also significantly less activity in right inferior and middle frontal gyri. These results suggest that prenatal marijuana exposure alters neural functioning during visuospatial working memory processing in young adulthood.

No Acute Effects of Choline Bitartrate Food Supplements on Memory in Healthy, Young, Human Adults.

PubMed

Lippelt, D P; van der Kint, S; van Herk, K; Naber, M

2016-01-01

Choline is a dietary component and precursor of acetylcholine, a crucial neurotransmitter for memory-related brain functions. In two double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over experiments, we investigated whether the food supplement choline bitartrate improved declarative memory and working memory in healthy, young students one to two hours after supplementation. In experiment 1, 28 participants performed a visuospatial working memory task. In experiment 2, 26 participants performed a declarative picture memorization task. In experiment 3, 40 participants performed a verbal working memory task in addition to the visuospatial working memory and declarative picture task. All tasks were conducted approximately 60 minutes after the ingestion of 2.0-2.5g of either choline bitartrate or placebo. We found that choline did not significantly enhance memory performance during any of the tasks. The null hypothesis that choline does not improve memory performance as compared to placebo was strongly supported by Bayesian statistics. These results are in contrast with animal studies suggesting that choline supplementation boosts memory performance and learning. We conclude that choline likely has no acute effects on cholinergic memory functions in healthy human participants.

No Acute Effects of Choline Bitartrate Food Supplements on Memory in Healthy, Young, Human Adults

PubMed Central

Lippelt, D. P.; van der Kint, S.; van Herk, K.; Naber, M.

2016-01-01

Choline is a dietary component and precursor of acetylcholine, a crucial neurotransmitter for memory-related brain functions. In two double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over experiments, we investigated whether the food supplement choline bitartrate improved declarative memory and working memory in healthy, young students one to two hours after supplementation. In experiment 1, 28 participants performed a visuospatial working memory task. In experiment 2, 26 participants performed a declarative picture memorization task. In experiment 3, 40 participants performed a verbal working memory task in addition to the visuospatial working memory and declarative picture task. All tasks were conducted approximately 60 minutes after the ingestion of 2.0–2.5g of either choline bitartrate or placebo. We found that choline did not significantly enhance memory performance during any of the tasks. The null hypothesis that choline does not improve memory performance as compared to placebo was strongly supported by Bayesian statistics. These results are in contrast with animal studies suggesting that choline supplementation boosts memory performance and learning. We conclude that choline likely has no acute effects on cholinergic memory functions in healthy human participants. PMID:27341028

Modality specificity and integration in working memory: Insights from visuospatial bootstrapping.

PubMed

Allen, Richard J; Havelka, Jelena; Falcon, Thomas; Evans, Sally; Darling, Stephen

2015-05-01

The question of how meaningful associations between verbal and spatial information might be utilized to facilitate working memory performance is potentially highly instructive for models of memory function. The present study explored how separable processing capacities within specialized domains might each contribute to this, by examining the disruptive impacts of simple verbal and spatial concurrent tasks on young adults' recall of visually presented digit sequences encountered either in a single location or within a meaningful spatial "keypad" configuration. The previously observed advantage for recall in the latter condition (the "visuospatial bootstrapping effect") consistently emerged across 3 experiments, indicating use of familiar spatial information in boosting verbal memory. The magnitude of this effect interacted with concurrent activity; articulatory suppression during encoding disrupted recall to a greater extent when digits were presented in single locations (Experiment 1), while spatial tapping during encoding had a larger impact on the keypad condition and abolished the visuospatial bootstrapping advantage (Experiment 2). When spatial tapping was performed during recall (Experiment 3), no task by display interaction was observed. Outcomes are discussed within the context of the multicomponent model of working memory, with a particular emphasis on cross-domain storage in the episodic buffer (Baddeley, 2000). (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Modality Specificity and Integration in Working Memory: Insights from Visuospatial Bootstrapping

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allen, Richard J.; Havelka, Jelena; Falcon, Thomas; Evans, Sally; Darling, Stephen

2015-01-01

The question of how meaningful associations between verbal and spatial information might be utilized to facilitate working memory performance is potentially highly instructive for models of memory function. The present study explored how separable processing capacities within specialized domains might each contribute to this, by examining the…

Prevalence and diagnostic validity of motivational impairments and deficits in visuospatial short-term memory and working memory in ADHD subtypes.

PubMed

Dovis, Sebastiaan; Van der Oord, Saskia; Huizenga, Hilde M; Wiers, Reinout W; Prins, Pier J M

2015-05-01

Deficits in working memory (WM) and reinforcement sensitivity are thought to give rise to symptoms in the combined (ADHD-C) and inattentive subtype (ADHD-I) of ADHD. Children with ADHD are especially impaired on visuospatial WM, which is composed of short-term memory (STM) and a central executive. Although deficits in visuospatial WM and reinforcement sensitivity appear characteristic of children with ADHD on a group-level, the prevalence and diagnostic validity of these impairments is still largely unknown. Moreover, studies investigating this did not control for the interaction between motivational impairments and cognitive performance in children with ADHD, and did not differentiate between ADHD subtypes. Visuospatial WM and STM tasks were administered in a standard (feedback-only) and a high-reinforcement (feedback + 10 euros) condition, to 86 children with ADHD-C, 27 children with ADHD-I (restrictive subtype), and 62 typically developing controls (aged 8-12). Reinforcement sensitivity was indexed as the difference in performance between the reinforcement conditions. WM and STM impairments were most prevalent in ADHD-C. In ADHD-I, only WM impairments, not STM impairments, were more prevalent than in controls. Motivational impairments were not common (22% impaired) and equally prevalent in both subtypes. Memory and motivation were found to represent independent neuropsychological domains. Impairment on WM, STM, and/or motivation was associated with more inattention symptoms, medication-use, and lower IQ scores. Similar results were found for analyses of diagnostic validity. The majority of children with ADHD-C is impaired on visuospatial WM. In ADHD-I, STM impairments are not more common than in controls. Within both ADHD subtypes only a minority has an abnormal sensitivity to reinforcement.

Dissociation of Cross-Sectional Trajectories for Verbal and Visuo-Spatial Working Memory Development in Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Waite, Jane; Beck, Sarah R.; Heald, Mary; Powis, Laurie; Oliver, Chris

2016-01-01

Working memory (WM) impairments might amplify behavioural difference in genetic syndromes. Murine models of Rubinstein-Taybi syndrome (RTS) evidence memory impairments but there is limited research on memory in RTS. Individuals with RTS and typically developing children completed WM tasks, with participants with RTS completing an IQ assessment and…

Working Memory and Individual Differences in Mathematics Achievement: A Longitudinal Study from First Grade to Second Grade

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

De Smedt, Bert; Janssen, Rianne; Bouwens, Kelly; Verschaffel, Lieven; Boets, Bart; Ghesquiere, Pol

2009-01-01

This longitudinal study examined the relationship between working memory and individual differences in mathematics. Working memory measures, comprising the phonological loop, the visuospatial sketchpad, and the central executive, were administered at the start of first grade. Mathematics achievement was assessed 4 months later (at the middle of…

Competing Core Processes in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): Do Working Memory Deficiencies Underlie Behavioral Inhibition Deficits?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alderson, R. Matt; Rapport, Mark D.; Hudec, Kristen L.; Sarver, Dustin E.; Kofler, Michael J.

2010-01-01

The current study examined competing predictions of the working memory and behavioral inhibition models of ADHD. Behavioral inhibition was measured using a conventional stop-signal task, and central executive, phonological, and visuospatial working memory components (Baddeley 2007) were assessed in 14 children with ADHD and 13 typically developing…

Right-sided representational neglect after left brain damage in a case without visuospatial working memory deficits.

PubMed

van Dijck, Jean-Philippe; Gevers, Wim; Lafosse, Christophe; Fias, Wim

2013-10-01

Brain damaged patients suffering from representational neglect (RN) fail to report, orient to, or verbally describe contra-lesional elements of imagined environments or objects. So far this disorder has only been reported after right brain damage, leading to the idea that only the right hemisphere is involved in this deficit. A widely accepted account attributes RN to a lateralized impairment in the visuospatial component of working memory. So far, however, this hypothesis has not been tested in detail. In the present paper, we describe, for the first time, the case of a left brain damaged patient suffering from right-sided RN while imagining both known and new environments and objects. An in-depth evaluation of her visuospatial working memory abilities, with special focus on the presence of a lateralized deficit, did not reveal any abnormality. In sharp contrast, her ability to memorize visual information was severely compromised. The implications of these results are discussed in the light of recent insights in the neglect syndrome. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cognitive Control Network Contributions to Memory-Guided Visual Attention.

PubMed

Rosen, Maya L; Stern, Chantal E; Michalka, Samantha W; Devaney, Kathryn J; Somers, David C

2016-05-01

Visual attentional capacity is severely limited, but humans excel in familiar visual contexts, in part because long-term memories guide efficient deployment of attention. To investigate the neural substrates that support memory-guided visual attention, we performed a set of functional MRI experiments that contrast long-term, memory-guided visuospatial attention with stimulus-guided visuospatial attention in a change detection task. Whereas the dorsal attention network was activated for both forms of attention, the cognitive control network(CCN) was preferentially activated during memory-guided attention. Three posterior nodes in the CCN, posterior precuneus, posterior callosal sulcus/mid-cingulate, and lateral intraparietal sulcus exhibited the greatest specificity for memory-guided attention. These 3 regions exhibit functional connectivity at rest, and we propose that they form a subnetwork within the broader CCN. Based on the task activation patterns, we conclude that the nodes of this subnetwork are preferentially recruited for long-term memory guidance of visuospatial attention. Published by Oxford University Press 2015. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

Gender differences in episodic memory and visual working memory including the effects of age.

PubMed

Pauls, Franz; Petermann, Franz; Lepach, Anja Christina

2013-01-01

Analysing the relationship between gender and memory, and examining the effects of age on the overall memory-related functioning, are the ongoing goals of psychological research. The present study examined gender and age group differences in episodic memory with respect to the type of task. In addition, these subgroup differences were also analysed in visual working memory. A sample of 366 women and 330 men, aged between 16 and 69 years of age, participated in the current study. Results indicate that women outperformed men on auditory memory tasks, whereas male adolescents and older male adults showed higher level performances on visual episodic and visual working memory measures. However, the size of gender-linked effects varied somewhat across age groups. Furthermore, results partly support a declining performance on episodic memory and visual working memory measures with increasing age. Although age-related losses in episodic memory could not be explained by a decreasing verbal and visuospatial ability with age, women's advantage in auditory episodic memory could be explained by their advantage in verbal ability. Men's higher level visual episodic memory performance was found to result from their advantage in visuospatial ability. Finally, possible methodological, biological, and cognitive explanations for the current findings are discussed.

Memory Skills of Deaf Learners: Implications and Applications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamilton, Harley

2011-01-01

This paper will review research on working memory and short-term memory abilities of deaf individuals delineating strengths and weaknesses. The areas of memory reviewed include weaknesses such as sequential recall, processing speed, attention, and memory load. Strengths include free recall, visuospatial recall, imagery and dual encoding.…

Fractionation of visuo-spatial memory processes in bipolar depression: a cognitive scaffolding account.

PubMed

Gallagher, P; Gray, J M; Kessels, R P C

2015-02-01

Previous studies of neurocognitive performance in bipolar disorder (BD) have demonstrated impairments in visuo-spatial memory. The aim of the present study was to use an object-location memory (OLM) paradigm to assess specific, dissociable processes in visuo-spatial memory and examine their relationship with broader neurocognitive performance. Fifty participants (25 patients with BD in a current depressive episode and 25 matched healthy controls) completed the OLM paradigm which assessed three different aspects of visuo-spatial memory: positional memory, object-location binding, and a combined process. Secondary neurocognitive measures of visuo-spatial memory, verbal memory, attention and executive function were also administered. BD patients were significantly impaired on all three OLM processes, with the largest effect in exact positional memory (d = 1.18, p < 0.0001). General deficits were also found across the secondary neurocognitive measures. Using hierarchical regression, verbal learning was found to explain significant variance on the OLM measures where object-identity was present (the object-location binding and combined processes) and accounted for the group difference. The group difference in precise positional memory remained intact. This study demonstrates that patients with bipolar depression manifest deficits in visuo-spatial memory, with substantial impairment in fine-grain, positional memory. The differential profile of processes underpinning the visuo-spatial memory impairment suggests a form of 'cognitive scaffolding', whereby performance on some measures can be supported by verbal memory. These results have important implications for our understanding of the functional cognitive architecture of mood disorder.

Sex differences in visuospatial and navigational working memory: the role of mood induced by background music.

PubMed

Palmiero, Massimiliano; Nori, Raffaella; Rogolino, Carmelo; D'amico, Simonetta; Piccardi, Laura

2016-08-01

Sex differences in visuospatial abilities are long debated. Men generally outperform women, especially in wayfinding or learning a route or a sequence of places. These differences might depend on women's disadvantage in underlying spatial competences, such as mental rotation, and on the strategies used, as well as on emotions and on self-belief about navigational skills, not related to actual skill-levels. In the present study, sex differences in visuospatial and navigational working memory in emotional contexts were investigated. Participants' mood was manipulated by background music (positive, negative or neutral) while performing on the Corsi Block-tapping Task (CBT) and Walking Corsi (WalCT) test. In order to assess the effectiveness of mood manipulation, participants filled in the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule before and after carrying out the visuospatial tasks. Firstly, results showed that after mood induction, only the positive affect changed, whereas the negative affect remained unconfounded by mood and by sex. This finding is in line with the main effect of 'group' on all tests used: the positive music group scored significantly higher than other groups. Secondly, although men outperformed women in the CBT forward condition and in the WalCT forward and backward conditions, they scored higher than women only in the WalCT with the negative background music. This means that mood cannot fully explain sex differences in visuospatial and navigational working memory. Our results suggest that sex differences in the CBT and WalCT can be better explained by differences in spatial competences rather than by emotional contexts.

A pilot study on the benefit of cognitive rehabilitation in Parkinson’s disease

PubMed Central

Adamski, Natalia; Adler, Matthias; Opwis, Klaus; Penner, Iris-Katharina

2016-01-01

Purpose: Patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) show inefficiencies in cognitive performance including working memory functions. Since these problems impact on quality of life and overall well-being, the current study was aimed at improving patients’ situations by evaluating the computerized cognitive training tool, BrainStim. Method: A total of 19 healthy controls (HCs) and six patients with PD were included in the study. While all PD patients received cognitive training, the HC sample was subdivided into 12 subjects with training (HC-T) and 10 subjects without (HC-NT). Participants underwent a double baseline assessment, a post-training assessment, and a 3-month follow up on neuropsychological tests and self-report measures on fatigue and depression. Training was administered between the second baseline and postassessment. It comprised 16 supervised sessions according to a standardized training protocol over 4 weeks. Results: Significant improvements in verbal and visuospatial short-term and long-term memory were found in both training groups. In addition, the HC-T improved on mental speed, and verbal and visuospatial working memory. Both training groups showed stable results for all short-term visuospatial measures after 3 months. Further, the HC-T showed stable results for working memory, verbal, and visuospatial short-term and long-term memory. Conclusions: The efficacy of the applied computerized cognitive training tool BrainStim could be verified in patients with PD and healthy age-matched controls. The preliminary findings highlighted the suitability of a specific cognitive intervention to improve cognitive inefficiencies in patients with PD as well as in healthy older people. Further research on cognitive training in combination with PD drug therapy is needed to better understand the mutual interaction and to offer optimal therapeutic approaches to patients. PMID:27134671

Role of Working Memory in Explaining the Performance of Individuals with Specific Reading Comprehension Difficulties: A Meta-Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carretti, Barbara; Borella, Erika; Cornoldi, Cesare; De Beni, Rossana

2009-01-01

It is well established that working memory is related to reading comprehension ability. However, its role in explaining specific reading comprehension difficulties is still under debate: the issue mainly concerns whether the contribution of working memory is dependent on task modality (verbal tasks being more predictive than visuo-spatial tasks)…

Visual and Visuospatial Short-Term Memory in Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer Disease: Role of Attention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alescio-Lautier, B.; Michel, B. F.; Herrera, C.; Elahmadi, A.; Chambon, C.; Touzet, C.; Paban, V.

2007-01-01

It has been proposed that visual recognition memory and certain attentional mechanisms are impaired early in Alzheimer disease (AD). Little is known about visuospatial recognition memory in AD. The crucial role of the hippocampus on spatial memory and its damage in AD suggest that visuospatial recognition memory may also be impaired early. The aim…

Children's use of decomposition strategies mediates the visuospatial memory and arithmetic accuracy relation.

PubMed

Foley, Alana E; Vasilyeva, Marina; Laski, Elida V

2017-06-01

This study examined the mediating role of children's use of decomposition strategies in the relation between visuospatial memory (VSM) and arithmetic accuracy. Children (N = 78; Age M = 9.36) completed assessments of VSM, arithmetic strategies, and arithmetic accuracy. Consistent with previous findings, VSM predicted arithmetic accuracy in children. Extending previous findings, the current study showed that the relation between VSM and arithmetic performance was mediated by the frequency of children's use of decomposition strategies. Identifying the role of arithmetic strategies in this relation has implications for increasing the math performance of children with lower VSM. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? The link between children's visuospatial working memory and arithmetic accuracy is well documented. Frequency of decomposition strategy use is positively related to children's arithmetic accuracy. Children's spatial skill positively predicts the frequency with which they use decomposition. What does this study add? Short-term visuospatial memory (VSM) positively relates to the frequency of children's decomposition use. Decomposition use mediates the relation between short-term VSM and arithmetic accuracy. Children with limited short-term VSM may struggle to use decomposition, decreasing accuracy. © 2016 The British Psychological Society.

Number word use in toddlerhood is associated with number recall performance at seven years of age.

PubMed

Libertus, Melissa E; Marschik, Peter B; Einspieler, Christa

2014-01-01

Previous studies have shown that verbal working memory and vocabulary acquisition are linked in early childhood. However, it is unclear whether acquisition of a narrow range of words during toddlerhood may be particularly related to recall of the same words later in life. Here we asked whether vocabulary acquisition of number words, location and quantifier terms over the first three years of life are associated with verbal and visuospatial working memory at seven years. Our results demonstrate that children who produced more number words between 20-26 months and started to produce the number words 1-10 earlier showed greater number recall at 7 years of age. This link was specific to numbers and neither extended to quantifier and location terms nor verbal and visuospatial working memory performance with other stimuli. These findings suggest a category-specific link between the mental lexicon of number words and working memory for numbers at an early age.

How to enhance route learning and visuo-spatial working memory in aging: a training for residential care home residents.

PubMed

Mitolo, Micaela; Borella, Erika; Meneghetti, Chiara; Carbone, Elena; Pazzaglia, Francesca

2017-05-01

This study aimed to assess the efficacy of a route-learning training in a group of older adults living in a residential care home. We verified the presence of training-specific effects in tasks similar to those trained - route-learning tasks - as well as transfer effects on related cognitive processes - visuo-spatial short-term memory (VSSTM; Corsi Blocks Test (CBT), forward version), visuo-spatial working memory (VSWM; CBT, backward version; Pathway Span Tasks; Jigsaw Puzzle Test) - and in self-report measures. The maintenance of training benefits was examined after 3 months. Thirty 70-90-year-old residential care home residents were randomly assigned to the route-learning training group or to an active control group (involved in non-visuo-spatial activities). The trained group performed better than the control group in the route-learning tasks, retaining this benefit 3 months later. Immediate transfer effects were also seen in visuo-spatial span tasks (i.e., CBT forward and backward version and Pathway Span Task); these benefits had been substantially maintained at the 3-month follow-up. These findings suggest that a training on route learning is a promising approach to sustain older adults' environmental learning and some related abilities (e.g., VSSTM and VSWM), even in residential care home residents.

Memory Skills of Deaf Learners: Implications and Applications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamilton, Harley

2011-01-01

The author reviews research on working memory and short-term memory abilities of deaf individuals, delineating strengths and weaknesses. Among the areas of weakness that are reviewed are sequential recall, processing speed, attention, and memory load. Areas of strengths include free recall, visuospatial recall, imagery, and dual encoding.…

Identifying Early Links between Temperament, Short-Term and Working Memory in Preschoolers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Visu-Petra, Laura; Cheie, Lavinia; Câmpan, Maria; Scutelnicu, Ioana; Benga, Oana

2018-01-01

The present study aimed to investigate early interrelationships between temperament, short-term memory (STM) and working memory (WM), while also relating them to incipient anxious traits in a sample of 4-7-year-olds. Preschoolers were evaluated using verbal and visuospatial STM and WM tasks, while parental reports were used to assess children's…

Working Memory Training in Typically Developing Children: A Meta-Analysis of the Available Evidence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sala, Giovanni; Gobet, Fernand

2017-01-01

The putative effectiveness of working memory (WM) training at enhancing cognitive and academic skills is still ardently debated. Several researchers have claimed that WM training fosters not only skills such as visuospatial WM and short-term memory (STM), but also abilities outside the domain of WM, such as fluid intelligence and mathematics.…

Working Memory Deficits in Children with Reading Difficulties: Memory Span and Dual Task Coordination

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Shinmin; Gathercole, Susan E.

2013-01-01

The current study investigated the cause of the reported problems in working memory in children with reading difficulties. Verbal and visuospatial simple and complex span tasks, and digit span and reaction times tasks performed singly and in combination, were administered to 46 children with single word reading difficulties and 45 typically…

Working Memory and Learning in Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder and Specific Language Impairment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alloway, Tracy Packiam; Archibald, Lisa

2008-01-01

The authors compared 6- to 11-year-olds with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) and those with specific language impairment (SLI) on measures of memory (verbal and visuospatial short-term and working memory) and learning (reading and mathematics). Children with DCD with typical language skills were impaired in all four areas of memory…

Sex differences in episodic memory: the impact of verbal and visuospatial ability.

PubMed

Herlitz, A; Airaksinen, E; Nordström, E

1999-10-01

The impact of verbal and visuospatial ability on sex differences in episodic memory was investigated. One hundred men and 100 women, 2040 years old, participated in a series of verbal and visuospatial tasks. Episodic memory was assessed in tasks that, to a greater or lesser extent, were verbal or visuospatial in nature. Results showed that women excelled in verbal production tasks and that men performed at a superior level on a mental rotation task. In addition, women tended to perform at a higher level than men on most episodic memory tasks. Taken together, the results demonstrated that (a) women perform at a higher level than men on most verbal episodic memory tasks and on some episodic memory tasks with a visuospatial component, and (b) women's higher performance on episodic memory tasks cannot fully be explained by their superior performance on verbal production tasks.

Sports training enhances visuo-spatial cognition regardless of open-closed typology

PubMed Central

Hsieh, Shu-Shih; Chen, Kuan-Fu; Chang, Yu-Kai

2017-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of open and closed sport participation on visuo-spatial attention and memory performance among young adults. Forty-eight young adults—16 open-skill athletes, 16 closed-skill athletes, and 16 non-athletes controls—were recruited for the study. Both behavioral performance and event-related potential (ERP) measurement were assessed when participants performed non-delayed and delayed match-to-sample task that tested visuo-spatial attention and memory processing. Results demonstrated that regardless of training typology, the athlete groups exhibited shorter reaction times in both the visuo-spatial attention and memory conditions than the control group with no existence of speed-accuracy trade-off. Similarly, a larger P3 amplitudes were observed in both athlete groups than in the control group for the visuo-spatial memory condition. These findings suggest that sports training, regardless of typology, are associated with superior visuo-spatial attention and memory performance, and more efficient neural resource allocation in memory processing. PMID:28560098

Longitudinal Study of the Transition From Healthy Aging to Alzheimer Disease

PubMed Central

Johnson, David K.; Storandt, Martha; Morris, John C.; Galvin, James E.

2009-01-01

Background Detection of the earliest cognitive changes signifying Alzheimer disease is difficult. Objective To model the cognitive decline in preclinical Alzheimer disease. Design Longitudinal archival study comparing individuals who became demented during follow-up and people who remained nondemented on each of 4 cognitive factors: global, verbal memory, visuospatial, and working memory. Setting Alzheimer Disease Research Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri. Participants One hundred thirty-four individuals who became demented during follow-up and 310 who remained nondemented. Main Outcome Measures Inflection point in longitudinal cognitive performance. Results The best-fitting model for each of the 4 factors in the stable group was linear, with a very slight downward trend on all but the Visuospatial factor. In contrast, a piecewise model with accelerated slope after a sharp inflection point provided the best fit for the group that progressed. The optimal inflection point for all 4 factors was prior to diagnosis of dementia: Global, 2 years; Verbal and Working Memory, 1 year; and Visuospatial, 3 years. These results were also obtained when data were limited to the subset (n=44) with autopsy-confirmed Alzheimer disease. Conclusions There is a sharp inflection point followed by accelerating decline in multiple domains of cognition, not just memory, in the preclinical period in Alzheimer disease when there is insufficient cognitive decline to warrant clinical diagnosis using conventional criteria. Early change was seen in tests of visuospatial ability, most of which were speeded. Research into early detection of cognitive disorders using only episodic memory tasks may not be sensitive to all of the early manifestations of disease. PMID:19822781

Task-relevant output signals are sent from monkey dorsolateral prefrontal cortex to the superior colliculus during a visuospatial working memory task.

PubMed

Johnston, Kevin; Everling, Stefan

2009-05-01

Visuospatial working memory is one of the most extensively investigated functions of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Theories of prefrontal cortical function have suggested that this area exerts cognitive control by modulating the activity of structures to which it is connected. Here, we used the oculomotor system as a model in which to characterize the output signals sent from the DLPFC to a target structure during a classical spatial working memory task. We recorded the activity of identified DLPFC-superior colliculus (SC) projection neurons while monkeys performed a memory-guided saccade task in which they were required to generate saccades toward remembered stimulus locations. DLPFC neurons sent signals related to all aspects of the task to the SC, some of which were spatially tuned. These data provide the first direct evidence that the DLPFC sends task-relevant information to the SC during a spatial working memory task, and further support a role for the DLPFC in the direct modulation of other brain areas.

Working Memory and Down Syndrome

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baddeley, A.; Jarrold, C.

2007-01-01

A brief account is given of the evolution of the concept of working memory from a unitary store into a multicomponent system. Four components are distinguished, the phonological loop which is responsible for maintaining speech-based information, the visuospatial sketchpad performing a similar function for visual information, the central executive…

Age, sex, and performance influence the visuospatial working memory network in childhood.

PubMed

Spencer-Smith, Megan; Ritter, Barbara Catherine; Mürner-Lavanchy, Ines; El-Koussy, Marwan; Steinlin, Maja; Everts, Regula

2013-01-01

This study describes the influence of age, sex, and working memory (WM) performance on the visuospatial WM network. Thirty-nine healthy children (7-12 years) completed a dot location functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) task. Percent signal change measured the intensity and laterality indices measured the asymmetry of activation in frontal and parietal brain regions. Old children showed greater intensity of activation in parietal regions than young children but no differences in lateralization were observed. Intensity of activation was similar across sex and WM performance groups. Girls and high WM performers showed more right-sided lateralization of parietal regions than boys and low WM performers.

A Psychometric Measure of Working Memory Capacity for Configured Body Movement

PubMed Central

Wu, Ying Choon; Coulson, Seana

2014-01-01

Working memory (WM) models have traditionally assumed at least two domain-specific storage systems for verbal and visuo-spatial information. We review data that suggest the existence of an additional slave system devoted to the temporary storage of body movements, and present a novel instrument for its assessment: the movement span task. The movement span task assesses individuals' ability to remember and reproduce meaningless configurations of the body. During the encoding phase of a trial, participants watch short videos of meaningless movements presented in sets varying in size from one to five items. Immediately after encoding, they are prompted to reenact as many items as possible. The movement span task was administered to 90 participants along with standard tests of verbal WM, visuo-spatial WM, and a gesture classification test in which participants judged whether a speaker's gestures were congruent or incongruent with his accompanying speech. Performance on the gesture classification task was not related to standard measures of verbal or visuo-spatial working memory capacity, but was predicted by scores on the movement span task. Results suggest the movement span task can serve as an assessment of individual differences in WM capacity for body-centric information. PMID:24465437

Processing speed and visuospatial executive function predict visual working memory ability in older adults.

PubMed

Brown, Louise A; Brockmole, James R; Gow, Alan J; Deary, Ian J

2012-01-01

BACKGROUND/STUDY CONTEXT: Visual working memory (VWM) has been shown to be particularly age sensitive. Determining which measures share variance with this cognitive ability in older adults may help to elucidate the key factors underlying the effects of aging. Predictors of VWM (measured by a modified Visual Patterns Test) were investigated in a subsample (N = 44, mean age = 73) of older adults from the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936 (LBC1936; Deary et al., 2007 , BMC Geriatrics, 7, 28). Childhood intelligence (Moray House Test) and contemporaneous measures of processing speed (four-choice reaction time), executive function (verbal fluency; block design), and spatial working memory (backward spatial span), were assessed as potential predictors. All contemporaneous measures except verbal fluency were significantly associated with VWM, and processing speed had the largest effect size (r = -.53, p < .001). In linear regression analysis, even after adjusting for childhood intelligence, processing speed and the executive measure associated with visuospatial organization accounted for 35% of the variance in VWM. Processing speed may affect VWM performance in older adults via speed of encoding and/or rate of rehearsal, while executive resources specifically associated with visuospatial material are also important.

Improving working memory abilities in individuals with Down syndrome: a treatment case study

PubMed Central

Costa, Hiwet Mariam; Purser, Harry R. M.; Passolunghi, Maria Chiara

2015-01-01

Working memory (WM) skills of individuals with Down’s syndrome (DS) tend to be very poor compared to typically developing children of similar mental age. In particular, research has found that in individuals with DS visuo-spatial WM is better preserved than verbal WM. This study investigated whether it is possible to train short-term memory (STM) and WM abilities in individuals with DS. The cases of two teenage children are reported: EH, 17 years and 3 months, and AS, 15 years and 11 months. A school-based treatment targeting visuo-spatial WM was given to EH and AS for six weeks. Both prior to and after the treatment, they completed a set of assessments to measure WM abilities and their performance was compared with younger typically developing non-verbal mental age controls. The results showed that the trained participants improved their performance in some of the trained and non-trained WM tasks proposed, especially with regard to the tasks assessing visuo-spatial WM abilities. These findings are discussed on the basis of their theoretical, educational, and clinical implications. PMID:26441713

Visuo-Spatial Processing and Executive Functions in Children with Specific Language Impairment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marton, Klara

2008-01-01

Background: Individual differences in complex working memory tasks reflect simultaneous processing, executive functions, and attention control. Children with specific language impairment (SLI) show a deficit in verbal working memory tasks that involve simultaneous processing of information. Aims: The purpose of the study was to examine executive…

Selective deficits in verbal working memory associated with a known genetic etiology: The neuropsychological profile of Duchenne muscular dystrophy

PubMed Central

HINTON, VERONICA J.; DE VIVO, DARRYL C.; NEREO, NANCY E.; GOLDSTEIN, EDWARD; STERN, YAAKOV

2007-01-01

Forty-one boys diagnosed with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) were each compared to an unaffected sibling on a battery of neuropsychological tests. Verbal, visuospatial, attention/memory, abstract thinking, and academic achievement skills were tested. Results indicated the boys with DMD performed similarly to their siblings on the majority of measures, indicating intact verbal, visuospatial, long-term memory, and abstract skills. However, the DMD group did significantly more poorly than their siblings on specific measures of story recall, digit span, and auditory comprehension, as well as in all areas of academic achievement (reading, writing, and math). This profile indicates that verbal working memory skills are selectively impaired in DMD, and that that likely contributes to limited academic achievement. The association between the known impact of the genetic mutation on the development of the central nervous system and boys’ cognitive profile is discussed. PMID:11253841

Working Memory Integration Processes in Benign Childhood Epilepsy with Centrotemporal Spikes.

PubMed

Kárpáti, Judit; Donauer, Nándor; Somogyi, Eszter; Kónya, Anikó

2015-12-01

Benign epilepsy of childhood with centrotemporal spikes (BECTS) is the most frequent focal epilepsy in children; however, the pattern of affected memory processes remains controversial. Previous studies in BECTS imply deficits in complex working memory tasks, but not in simple modality-specific tasks. We studied working memory processes in children with BECTS by comparing performance in memory binding tasks of different complexities. We compared 17 children with BECTS (aged 6 to 13 years) to 17 healthy children matched for age, sex, and intelligence quotient. We measured spatial and verbal memory components separately and jointly on three single-binding tasks (binding of what and where; what and when; and where and when) and a combined-binding task (integration of what, where, and when). We also evaluated basic visuospatial memory functions with subtests of the Children's Memory Scale, and intellectual abilities with verbal tasks of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition and the Raven Progressive Matrices. We found no difference between the BECTS and control groups in single-binding tasks; however, the children with BECTS performed significantly worse on the combined task, which included integration of spatial, verbal, and temporal information. We found no deficits in their intellectual abilities or basic visuospatial memory functions. Children with BECTS may have intact simple maintenance processes of working memory, but difficulty with high-level functions requiring attentional and executive resources. Our findings imply no specific memory dysfunction in BECTS, but suggest difficulties in integrating information within working memory, and possible frontal lobe disturbances.

Etiological Distinction of Working Memory Components in Relation to Mathematics

PubMed Central

Lukowski, Sarah L.; Soden, Brooke; Hart, Sara A.; Thompson, Lee A.; Kovas, Yulia; Petrill, Stephen A.

2014-01-01

Working memory has been consistently associated with mathematics achievement, although the etiology of these relations remains poorly understood. The present study examined the genetic and environmental underpinnings of math story problem solving, timed calculation, and untimed calculation alongside working memory components in 12-year-old monozygotic (n = 105) and same-sex dizygotic (n = 143) twin pairs. Results indicated significant phenotypic correlation between each working memory component and all mathematics outcomes (r = 0.18 – 0.33). Additive genetic influences shared between the visuo-spatial sketchpad and mathematics achievement was significant, accounting for roughly 89% of the observed correlation. In addition, genetic covariance was found between the phonological loop and math story problem solving. In contrast, despite there being a significant observed relationship between phonological loop and timed and untimed calculation, there was no significant genetic or environmental covariance between the phonological loop and timed or untimed calculation skills. Further analyses indicated that genetic overlap between the visuo-spatial sketchpad and math story problem solving and math fluency was distinct from general genetic factors, whereas g, phonological loop, and mathematics shared generalist genes. Thus, although each working memory component was related to mathematics, the etiology of their relationships may be distinct. PMID:25477699

The Box Task: A tool to design experiments for assessing visuospatial working memory.

PubMed

Kessels, Roy P C; Postma, Albert

2017-09-15

The present paper describes the Box Task, a paradigm for the computerized assessment of visuospatial working memory. In this task, hidden objects have to be searched by opening closed boxes that are shown at different locations on the computer screen. The set size (i.e., number of boxes that must be searched) can be varied and different error scores can be computed that measure specific working memory processes (i.e., the number of within-search and between-search errors). The Box Task also has a developer's mode in which new stimulus displays can be designed for use in tailored experiments. The Box Task comes with a standard set of stimulus displays (including practice trials, as well as stimulus displays with 4, 6, and 8 boxes). The raw data can be analyzed easily and the results of individual participants can be aggregated into one spreadsheet for further statistical analyses.

Effects of gender and executive function on visuospatial working memory in adult obsessive-compulsive disorder.

PubMed

Martoni, Riccardo Maria; Salgari, Giulia; Galimberti, Elisa; Cavallini, Maria Cristina; O'Neill, Joseph

2015-12-01

Visuospatial working memory (VSWM) is the ability of the brain to transiently store and manipulate visual information. VSWM deficiencies have been reported in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), but not consistently, perhaps due to variability in task design and clinical patient factors. To explore this variability, this study assessed effects of the design factors task difficulty and executive organizational strategy and of the clinical factors gender, OCD symptom dimension, and duration of illness on VSWM in OCD. The CANTAB spatial working memory, spatial recognition memory, delayed matching to sample, and stop signal tasks were administered to 42 adult OCD patients and 42 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Aims were to detect a possible VSWM deficit in the OCD sample, to evaluate influences of the above task and patient factors, to determine the specificity of the deficit to the visuospatial subdomain, and to examine effects of sustained attention as potential neurocognitive confound. We confirmed previous findings of a VSWM deficit in OCD that was more severe for greater memory load (task difficulty) and that was affected by task strategy (executive function). We failed to demonstrate significant deficits in neighboring or confounding neurocognitive subdomains (visual object recognition or visual object short-term memory, sustained attention). Notably, the VSWM deficit was only significant for female patients, adding to evidence for sexual dimorphism in OCD. Again as in prior work, more severe OCD symptoms in the symmetry dimension (but no other dimension) significantly negatively impacted VSWM. Duration of illness had no significant effect on VSWM. VSWM deficits in OCD appear more severe with higher task load and may be mediated through poor task strategy. Such deficits may present mainly in female patients and in (male and female) patients with symmetry symptoms.

Differential associations between impulsivity and risk-taking and brain activations underlying working memory in adolescents.

PubMed

Panwar, Karni; Rutherford, Helena J V; Mencl, W Einar; Lacadie, Cheryl M; Potenza, Marc N; Mayes, Linda C

2014-11-01

Increased impulsivity and risk-taking are common during adolescence and relate importantly to addictive behaviors. However, the extent to which impulsivity and risk-taking relate to brain activations that mediate cognitive processing is not well understood. Here we examined the relationships between impulsivity and risk-taking and the neural correlates of working memory. Neural activity was measured in 18 adolescents (13-18 years) while they engaged in a working memory task that included verbal and visuospatial components that each involved encoding, rehearsal and recognition stages. Risk-taking and impulsivity were assessed using the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART) and the adolescent version of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11 (BIS-11A), respectively. We found overlapping as well as distinct regions subserving the different stages of verbal and visuospatial working memory. In terms of risk-taking, we found a positive correlation between BART scores and activity in subcortical regions (e.g., thalamus, dorsal striatum) recruited during verbal rehearsal, and an inverse correlation between BART scores and cortical regions (e.g., parietal and temporal regions) recruited during visuospatial rehearsal. The BIS-11A evidenced that motor impulsivity was associated with activity in regions recruited during all stages of working memory, while attention and non-planning impulsivity was only associated with activity in regions recruited during recognition. In considering working memory, impulsivity and risk-taking together, both impulsivity and risk-taking were associated with activity in regions recruited during rehearsal; however, during verbal rehearsal, differential correlations were found. Specifically, positive correlations were found between: (1) risk-taking and activity in subcortical regions, including the thalamus and dorsal striatum; and, (2) motor impulsivity and activity in the left inferior frontal gyrus, insula, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Therefore these findings suggest that while there may be some overlap in the neural correlates of working memory and their relationship to impulsivity and risk-taking, there are also important differences in these constructs and their relationship to the stages of working memory during adolescence. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Differential associations between impulsivity and risk-taking and brain activations underlying working memory in adolescents

PubMed Central

Panwar, Karni; Rutherford, Helena J.V.; Mencl, W. Einar; Lacadie, Cheryl M.; Potenza, Marc N.; Mayes, Linda C.

2014-01-01

Increased impulsivity and risk-taking are common during adolescence and relate importantly to addictive behaviors. However, the extent to which impulsivity and risk-taking relate to brain activations that mediate cognitive processing is not well understood. Here we examined the relationships between impulsivity and risk-taking and the neural correlates of working memory. Neural activity was measured in 18 adolescents (13–18 years) while they engaged in a working memory task that included verbal and visuospatial components that each involved encoding, rehearsal and recognition stages. Risk-taking and impulsivity were assessed using the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART) and the adolescent version of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale -11 (BIS-11A), respectively. We found overlapping as well as distinct regions subserving the different stages of verbal and visuospatial working memory. In terms of risk-taking, we found a positive correlation between BART scores and activity in subcortical regions (e.g., thalamus, dorsal striatum) recruited during verbal rehearsal, and an inverse correlation between BART scores and cortical regions (e.g., parietal and temporal regions) recruited during visuospatial rehearsal. The BIS-11A evidenced that motor impulsivity was associated with activity in regions recruited during all stages of working memory, while attention and non-planning impulsivity was only associated with activity in regions recruited during recognition. In considering working memory, impulsivity and risk-taking together, both impulsivity and risk-taking were associated with activity in regions recruited during rehearsal; however, during verbal rehearsal, differential correlations were found. Specifically, positive correlations were found between: (1) risk-taking and activity in subcortical regions, including the thalamus and dorsal striatum; and, (2) motor impulsivity and activity in the left inferior frontal gyrus, insula, dorsolateral and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. Therefore these findings suggest that while there may be some overlap in the neural correlates of working memory and their relationship to impulsivity and risk-taking, there are also important differences in these constructs and their relationship to the stages of working memory during adolescence. PMID:24582821

Gender Differences in Verbal and Visuospatial Working Memory Performance and Networks.

PubMed

Zilles, David; Lewandowski, Mirjana; Vieker, Henning; Henseler, Ilona; Diekhof, Esther; Melcher, Tobias; Keil, Maria; Gruber, Oliver

2016-01-01

Working memory (WM) has been a matter of intensive basic and clinical research for some decades now. The investigation of WM function and dysfunction may facilitate the understanding of both physiological and pathological processes in the human brain. Though WM paradigms are widely used in neuroscientific and psychiatric research, conclusive knowledge about potential moderating variables such as gender is still missing. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the effects of gender on verbal and visuospatial WM maintenance tasks in a large and homogeneous sample of young healthy subjects. We found significant gender effects on both the behavioral and neurofunctional level. Females exhibited disadvantages with a small effect size in both WM domains accompanied by stronger activations in a set of brain regions (including bilateral substantia nigra/ventral tegmental area and right Broca's area) independent of WM modality. As load and task difficulty effects have been shown for some of these regions, the stronger activations may reflect a slightly lower capacity of both WM domains in females. Males showed stronger bilateral intraparietal activations next to the precuneus which were specific for the visuospatial WM task. Activity in this specific region may be associated with visuospatial short-term memory capacity. These findings provide evidence for a slightly lower capacity in both WM modalities in females. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Working memory training shows immediate and long-term effects on cognitive performance in children

PubMed Central

Pugin, Fiona; Metz, Andreas J.; Stauffer, Madlaina; Wolf, Martin; Jenni, Oskar G.; Huber, Reto

2014-01-01

Working memory is important for mental reasoning and learning processes. Several studies in adults and school-age children have shown performance improvement in cognitive tests after working memory training. Our aim was to examine not only immediate but also long-term effects of intensive working memory training on cognitive performance tests in children. Fourteen healthy male subjects between 10 and 16 years trained a visuospatial n-back task over 3 weeks (30 min daily), while 15 individuals of the same age range served as a passive control group. Significant differences in immediate (after 3 weeks of training) and long-term effects (after 2-6 months) in an auditory n-back task were observed compared to controls (2.5 fold immediate and 4.7 fold long-term increase in the training group compared to the controls). The improvement was more pronounced in subjects who improved their performance during the training. Other cognitive functions (matrices test and Stroop task) did not change when comparing the training group to the control group. We conclude that visuospatial working memory training in children boosts performance in similar memory tasks such as the auditory n-back task. The sustained performance improvement several months after the training supports the effectiveness of the training. PMID:25671082

Working Memory and Executive Function Profiles of Individuals with Borderline Intellectual Functioning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alloway, T. P.

2010-01-01

Background: The aim of the present study was to investigate the following issues: (1) Do students with borderline intellectual functioning have a pervasive pattern of impaired working memory skills across both verbal and visuo-spatial domains? (2) Is there evidence for impairment in executive function skills, and which tasks indicate greater…

Working Memory Components and Intelligence in Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tillman, Carin M.; Nyberg, Lilianne; Bohlin, Gunilla

2008-01-01

This study investigated, in children aged 6-13 years, how different components of the working memory (WM) system (short-term storage and executive processes), within both verbal and visuospatial domains, relate to fluid intelligence. We also examined the degree of domain-specificity of the WM components as well as the differentiation of storage…

Gender Differences in Self-Reported Symptomatology and Working Memory in College Students with ADHD

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kercood, Suneeta; Lineweaver, Tara T.; Kugler, Jennifer

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine gender differences in self-reported symptomatology and working memory (visuospatial and auditory) in college students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Forty-seven college students with ADHD and 44 non-affected control participants completed two self-report questionnaires and six tests…

Spatial-Sequential and Spatial-Simultaneous Working Memory in Individuals with Williams Syndrome

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lanfranchi, Silvia; De Mori, Letizia; Mammarella, Irene C.; Carretti, Barbara; Vianello, Renzo

2015-01-01

The aim of the present study was to compare visuospatial working memory performance in 18 individuals with Williams syndrome (WS) and 18 typically developing (TD) children matched for nonverbal mental age. Two aspects were considered: task presentation format (i.e., spatial-sequential or spatial-simultaneous), and level of attentional control…

The Neural Correlates of Non-Spatial Working Memory in Velocardiofacial Syndrome (22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kates, Wendy R.; Krauss, Beth R.; AbdulSabur, Nuria; Colgan, Deirdre; Antshel, Kevin M.; Higgins, Anne Marie; Shprintzen, Robert J.

2007-01-01

Velocardiofacial syndrome (VCFS), also known as 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, is a neurogenetic disorder that is associated with both learning disabilities and a consistent neuropsychological phenotype, including deficits in executive function, visuospatial perception, and working memory. Anatomic imaging studies have identified significant…

Working Memory Impairment in People with Williams Syndrome: Effects of Delay, Task and Stimuli

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Hearn, Kirsten; Courtney, Susan; Street, Whitney; Landau, Barbara

2009-01-01

Williams syndrome (WS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder associated with impaired visuospatial representations subserved by the dorsal stream and relatively strong object recognition abilities subserved by the ventral stream. There is conflicting evidence on whether this uneven pattern in WS extends to working memory (WM). The present studies…

Academic Outcomes 2 Years After Working Memory Training for Children With Low Working Memory: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

PubMed

Roberts, Gehan; Quach, Jon; Spencer-Smith, Megan; Anderson, Peter J; Gathercole, Susan; Gold, Lisa; Sia, Kah-Ling; Mensah, Fiona; Rickards, Field; Ainley, John; Wake, Melissa

2016-05-02

Working memory training may help children with attention and learning difficulties, but robust evidence from population-level randomized controlled clinical trials is lacking. To test whether a computerized adaptive working memory intervention program improves long-term academic outcomes of children 6 to 7 years of age with low working memory compared with usual classroom teaching. Population-based randomized controlled clinical trial of first graders from 44 schools in Melbourne, Australia, who underwent a verbal and visuospatial working memory screening. Children were classified as having low working memory if their scores were below the 15th percentile on either the Backward Digit Recall or Mister X subtest from the Automated Working Memory Assessment, or if their scores were below the 25th percentile on both. These children were randomly assigned by an independent statistician to either an intervention or a control arm using a concealed computerized random number sequence. Researchers were blinded to group assignment at time of screening. We conducted our trial from March 1, 2012, to February 1, 2015; our final analysis was on October 30, 2015. We used intention-to-treat analyses. Cogmed working memory training, comprising 20 to 25 training sessions of 45 minutes' duration at school. Directly assessed (at 12 and 24 months) academic outcomes (reading, math, and spelling scores as primary outcomes) and working memory (also assessed at 6 months); parent-, teacher-, and child-reported behavioral and social-emotional functioning and quality of life; and intervention costs. Of 1723 children screened (mean [SD] age, 6.9 [0.4] years), 226 were randomized to each arm (452 total), with 90% retention at 1 year and 88% retention at 2 years; 90.3% of children in the intervention arm completed at least 20 sessions. Of the 4 short-term and working memory outcomes, 1 outcome (visuospatial short-term memory) benefited the children at 6 months (effect size, 0.43 [95% CI, 0.25-0.62]) and 12 months (effect size, 0.49 [95% CI, 0.28-0.70]), but not at 24 months. There were no benefits to any other outcomes; in fact, the math scores of the children in the intervention arm were worse at 2 years (mean difference, -3.0 [95% CI, -5.4 to -0.7]; P = .01). Intervention costs were A$1035 per child. Working memory screening of children 6 to 7 years of age is feasible, and an adaptive working memory training program may temporarily improve visuospatial short-term memory. Given the loss of classroom time, cost, and lack of lasting benefit, we cannot recommend population-based delivery of Cogmed within a screening paradigm. anzctr.org.au Identifier: ACTRN12610000486022.

Does cerebral lateralization develop? A study using functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound assessing lateralization for language production and visuospatial memory

PubMed Central

Groen, Margriet A; Whitehouse, Andrew J O; Badcock, Nicholas A; Bishop, Dorothy V M

2012-01-01

In the majority of people, language production is lateralized to the left cerebral hemisphere and visuospatial skills to the right. However, questions remain as to when, how, and why humans arrive at this division of labor. In this study, we assessed cerebral lateralization for language production and for visuospatial memory using functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound in a group of 60 typically developing children between the ages of six and 16 years. The typical pattern of left-lateralized activation for language production and right-lateralized activation for visuospatial memory was found in the majority of the children (58%). No age-related change in direction or strength of lateralization was found for language production. In contrast, the strength of lateralization (independent of direction) for visuospatial memory function continued to increase with age. In addition, boys showed a trend for stronger right-hemisphere lateralization for visuospatial memory than girls, but there was no gender effect on language laterality. We tested whether having language and visuospatial functions in the same hemisphere was associated with poor cognitive performance and found no evidence for this “functional crowding” hypothesis. We did, however, find that children with left-lateralized language production had higher vocabulary and nonword reading age-adjusted standard scores than other children, regardless of the laterality of visuospatial memory. Thus, a link between language function and left-hemisphere lateralization exists, and cannot be explained in terms of maturational change. PMID:22741100

Proactive interference and practice effects in visuospatial working memory span task performance.

PubMed

Blalock, Lisa Durrance; McCabe, David P

2011-01-01

In the current study the influence of proactive interference (PI) and practice on recall from a visuospatial working memory (WM) task was examined. Participants completed a visuospatial WM span task under either high-PI conditions (a traditional span task) or low-PI conditions (a span task with breaks between trials). Trials of each length (i.e., two to five to-be-remembered items) were equally distributed across three blocks in order to examine practice effects. Recall increased across blocks to a greater extent in the low-PI condition than in the high-PI condition, indicating that reducing PI increased recall from WM. Additionally, in the final block the correlation between fluid intelligence and WM recall was stronger for the high-PI condition than the low-PI condition, indicating that practice reduced the strength of the correlation between span task recall and fluid intelligence, but only in the low-PI condition. These results support current theories that propose that one source of variability in recall from WM span task is the build-up of PI, and that PI build-up is an important contributing factor to the relation between visuospatial WM span task recall and higher-level cognition.

Aging and the intrusion superiority effect in visuo-spatial working memory.

PubMed

Cornoldi, Cesare; Bassani, Chiara; Berto, Rita; Mammarella, Nicola

2007-01-01

This study investigated the active component of visuo-spatial working memory (VSWM) in younger and older adults testing the hypotheses that elderly individuals have a poorer performance than younger ones and that errors in active VSWM tasks depend, at least partially, on difficulties in avoiding intrusions (i.e., avoiding already activated information). In two experiments, participants were presented with sequences of matrices on which three positions were pointed out sequentially: their task was to process all the positions but indicate only the final position of each sequence. Results showed a poorer performance in the elderly compared to the younger group and a higher number of intrusion (errors due to activated but irrelevant positions) rather than invention (errors consisting of pointing out a position never indicated by the experiementer) errors. The number of errors increased when a concurrent task was introduced (Experiment 1) and it was affected by different patterns of matrices (Experiment 2). In general, results show that elderly people have an impaired VSWM and produce a large number of errors due to inhibition failures. However, both the younger and the older adults' visuo-spatial working memory was affected by the presence of activated irrelevant information, the reduction of the available resources, and task constraints.

Differential effects of atomoxetine on executive functioning and lexical decision in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and reading disorder.

PubMed

de Jong, Christien G W; Van De Voorde, Séverine; Roeyers, Herbert; Raymaekers, Ruth; Allen, Albert J; Knijff, Simone; Verhelst, Helene; Temmink, Alfons H; Smit, Leo M E; Rodriques-Pereira, Rob; Vandenberghe, Dirk; van Welsen, Inge; ter Schuren, Liesbeth; Al-Hakim, Mazim; Amin, Azad; Vlasveld, Laurens; Oosterlaan, Jaap; Sergeant, Joseph A

2009-12-01

The effects of a promising pharmacological treatment for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), atomoxetine, were studied on executive functions in both ADHD and reading disorder (RD) because earlier research demonstrated an overlap in executive functioning deficits in both disorders. In addition, the effects of atomoxetine were explored on lexical decision. Sixteen children with ADHD, 20 children with ADHD + RD, 21 children with RD, and 26 normal controls were enrolled in a randomized placebo-controlled crossover study. Children were measured on visuospatial working memory, inhibition, and lexical decision on the day of randomization and following two 28-day medication periods. Children with ADHD + RD showed improved visuospatial working memory performance and, to a lesser extent, improved inhibition following atomoxetine treatment compared to placebo. No differential effects of atomoxetine were found for lexical decision in comparison to placebo. In addition, no effects of atomoxetine were demonstrated in the ADHD and RD groups. Atomoxetine improved visuospatial working memory and to a lesser degree inhibition in children with ADHD + RD, which suggests differential developmental pathways for co-morbid ADHD + RD as compared to ADHD and RD alone. B4Z-MC-LYCK, NCT00191906; http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00191906.

The rise and fall of immediate and delayed memory for verbal and visuospatial information from late childhood to late adulthood.

PubMed

Murre, Jaap M J; Janssen, Steve M J; Rouw, Romke; Meeter, Martijn

2013-01-01

Over 100,000 verbal and visuospatial immediate and delayed memory tests were presented via the Internet to over 28,000 participants in the age range of 11 to 80. Structural equation modeling pointed to the verbal versus visuospatial dimension as an important factor in individual differences, but not the immediate versus delayed dimension. We found a linear decrease of 1% to 3% per year in overall memory performance past the age of 25. For visuospatial tests, this decrease started at age 18 and was twice as fast as the decrease of verbal memory. There were strong effects of education, with the highest educated group sometimes scoring one full standard deviation above the lowest educated group. Gender effects were small but as expected: women outperformed men on the verbal memory tasks; men outperformed women on the visuospatial tasks. We also found evidence of increasing proneness to false memory with age. Memory for recent news events did not show a decrease with age. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Is the frontal dysexecutive syndrome due to a working memory deficit? Evidence from patients with stroke.

PubMed

Roussel, Martine; Dujardin, Kathy; Hénon, Hilde; Godefroy, Olivier

2012-07-01

Although frontal dysexecutive disorders are frequently considered to be due to working memory deficit, this has not been systematically examined and very little evidence is available for impairment of working memory in frontal damage. The objective of this study was to examine the components of working memory, their anatomy and the relations with executive functions in patients with stroke involving the frontal or posterior cortex. The study population consisted of 29 patients (frontal: n=17; posterior: n=12) and 29 matched controls. Phonological loop (letter and word spans, phonological store; rehearsal process), visuospatial sketchpad (visuospatial span) and the central executive (working memory span, dual task and updating process) were examined. The group comparison analysis showed impairment in the frontal group of: (i) verbal spans (P<0.03); (ii) with a deficit of the rehearsal process (P=0.006); (iii) visuospatial span (P=0.04); (iv) working memory span (P=0.001) that disappeared after controlling for verbal span and (v) running memory (P=0.05) unrelated to updating conditions. The clinical anatomical correlation study showed that impairment of the central executive depended on frontal and posterior lesion. Cognitive dysexecutive disorders were observed in 11/20 patients with central executive deficit and an inverse dissociation was observed in two patients. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis indicated that cognitive dysexecutive disorders had the highest ability to discriminate frontal lesions (area under curve=0.844, 95% confidence interval: 0.74-0.95; P=0.0001; central executive impairment: area under curve=0.732, 95% confidence interval: 0.57-0.82; P=0.006). This study reveals that frontal lesions induce mild impairment of short-term memory associated with a deficit of the rehearsal process supporting the role of the frontal lobe in this process; the central executive depends on lesions in the frontal lobe and posterior regions accounting for its low frequency and the negative results of group studies. Finally, the frontal dysexecutive syndrome cannot be attributed to central executive impairment, although it may contribute to some dysexecutive disorders.

A meta-analysis of working memory impairments in survivors of moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury.

PubMed

Dunning, Darren L; Westgate, Briony; Adlam, Anna-Lynne R

2016-10-01

To establish the magnitude of deficits in working memory (WM) and short-term memory (STM) in those with moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) relative to age-matched, healthy controls and to explore the moderating effects of time since injury and age at injury on these impairments. Twenty-one studies that compared the WM and/or STM abilities of individuals with at least a moderate TBI relative to healthy controls were included in a random effects meta-analysis. Measures used to examine memory performance were categorized by modality (visuospatial, verbal) and memory system (WM, STM). Individuals with TBI had significant deficits in verbal STM (Cohen's d = .41), visuospatial WM (Cohen's d = .69), and verbal WM (Cohen's d = .37) relative to controls. Greater decrements in verbal STM and verbal WM skills were associated with longer time postinjury. Larger deficits were observed in verbal WM abilities in individuals with older age at injury. Evidence for WM impairments following TBI is consistent with previous research. Larger verbal STM and verbal WM deficits were related to a longer time postinjury, suggesting that these aspects of memory do not "recover" over time and instead, individuals might show increased rates of cognitive decline. Age at injury was associated with the severity of verbal WM impairments, with larger deficits evident for injuries that occurred later in life. Further research needs to chart the long-term effects of TBI on WM and to compare the effects of injury on verbal relative to visuospatial memory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

[Prediction of modality-specific working memory performance in kindergarten age].

PubMed

Kiese-Himmel, Christiane

2018-04-10

Working memory (WM) as a central cognitive construct is a fundamental prerequisite for learning and provides a marker of developmental disorders. It has received considerable attention in recent years. Here, multivariate regression analyses using generalized linear models were conducted to determine predictor variables for phonological and visuospatial WM. The phonological WM was investigated by repetition of non-words (subtest PGN of the German SETK 3-5) and number recall (K-ABC-subtest), the visuospatial WM by the imitation of a sequence hand movements (K-ABC-subtest hand movements). The estimation of intelligence was operationalized by the performance in the K-ABC-scale "Simultaneous Processing". Kindergarten kids (N = 169; 49 % boys; 51 % girls), mostly with migration background and German as second language (mean age: 45.9; SD 6.2; min 36, max 61 months). They visited the kindergarten at the time of testing for 9.9 (SD 6.9) months, on average and had an average intelligence. Independent variables were chronological age, gender, kindergarten attendance until the test examination, intelligence, migration background. Both phonological and visuospatial working WM performance were on average not reduced. Chronological age and simultaneous processing were found to be significant predictors for the performance in all WM tests. In the age from 36 to 61 months both working memory systems can be described as a congenital, maturity-dependent and rather gender non-specific mechanism. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

New protocol for dissociating visuospatial working memory ability in reaching space and in navigational space.

PubMed

Lupo, Michela; Ferlazzo, Fabio; Aloise, Fabio; Di Nocera, Francesco; Tedesco, Anna Maria; Cardillo, Chiara; Leggio, Maria

2018-04-27

Several studies have demonstrated that the processing of visuospatial memory for locations in reaching space and in navigational space is supported by independent systems, and that the coding of visuospatial information depends on the modality of the presentation (i.e., sequential or simultaneous). However, these lines of evidence and the most common neuropsychological tests used by clinicians to investigate visuospatial memory have several limitations (e.g., they are unable to analyze all the subcomponents of this function and are not directly comparable). Therefore, we developed a new battery of tests that is able to investigate these subcomponents. We recruited 71 healthy subjects who underwent sequential and simultaneous navigational tests by using an innovative sensorized platform, as well as comparable paper tests to evaluate the same components in reaching space (Exp. 1). Consistent with the literature, the principal-component method of analysis used in this study demonstrated the presence of distinct memory for sequences in different portions of space, but no distinction was found for simultaneous presentation, suggesting that different modalities of eye gaze exploration are used when subjects have to perform different types of tasks. For this purpose, an infrared Tobii Eye-Tracking X50 system was used in both spatial conditions (Exp. 2), showing that a clear effect of the presentation modality was due to the specific strategy used by subjects to explore the stimuli in space. Given these findings, the neuropsychological battery established in the present study allows us to show basic differences in the normal coding of stimuli, which can explain the specific visuospatial deficits found in various neurological conditions.

The Malleability of Working Memory and Visuospatial Skills: A Randomized Controlled Study in Older Adults

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stepankova, Hana; Lukavsky, Jiri; Buschkuehl, Martin; Kopecek, Miloslav; Ripova, Daniela; Jaeggi, Susanne M.

2014-01-01

There is accumulating evidence that training on working memory (WM) generalizes to other nontrained domains, and there are reports of transfer effects extending as far as to measures of fluid intelligence. Although there have been several demonstrations of such transfer effects in young adults and children, they have been difficult to demonstrate…

Fluid/Spatial and Crystallized Intelligence in Relation to Domain-Specific Working Memory: A Latent-Variable Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haavisto, Marja-Leena; Lehto, Juhani E.

2005-01-01

Fluid/spatial intelligence, crystallized intelligence and their relationships to verbal and visuospatial working memory (WM) were studied. A total of 120 Finnish Air Force recruits participated in this study. Fluid/spatial intelligence was assessed using four different tasks, while crystallized intelligence was defined with the help of test scores…

Spatial Working Memory and Arithmetic Deficits in Children with Nonverbal Learning Difficulties

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mammarella, Irene Cristina; Lucangeli, Daniela; Cornoldi, Cesare

2010-01-01

Visuospatial working memory and its involvement in arithmetic were examined in two groups of 7- to 11-year-olds: one comprising children described by teachers as displaying symptoms of nonverbal learning difficulties (N = 21), the other a control group without learning disabilities (N = 21). The two groups were matched for verbal abilities, age,…

Spatial-Simultaneous and Spatial-Sequential Working Memory in Individuals with Down Syndrome: The Effect of Configuration

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carretti, Barbara; Lanfranchi, Silvia; Mammarella, Irene C.

2013-01-01

Earlier research showed that visuospatial working memory (VSWM) is better preserved in Down syndrome (DS) than verbal WM. Some differences emerged, however, when VSWM performance was broken down into its various components, and more recent studies revealed that the spatial-simultaneous component of VSWM is more impaired than the spatial-sequential…

Translating working memory into action: behavioral and neural evidence for using motor representations in encoding visuo-spatial sequences.

PubMed

Langner, Robert; Sternkopf, Melanie A; Kellermann, Tanja S; Grefkes, Christian; Kurth, Florian; Schneider, Frank; Zilles, Karl; Eickhoff, Simon B

2014-07-01

The neurobiological organization of action-oriented working memory is not well understood. To elucidate the neural correlates of translating visuo-spatial stimulus sequences into delayed (memory-guided) sequential actions, we measured brain activity using functional magnetic resonance imaging while participants encoded sequences of four to seven dots appearing on fingers of a left or right schematic hand. After variable delays, sequences were to be reproduced with the corresponding fingers. Recall became less accurate with longer sequences and was initiated faster after long delays. Across both hands, encoding and recall activated bilateral prefrontal, premotor, superior and inferior parietal regions as well as the basal ganglia, whereas hand-specific activity was found (albeit to a lesser degree during encoding) in contralateral premotor, sensorimotor, and superior parietal cortex. Activation differences after long versus short delays were restricted to motor-related regions, indicating that rehearsal during long delays might have facilitated the conversion of the memorandum into concrete motor programs at recall. Furthermore, basal ganglia activity during encoding selectively predicted correct recall. Taken together, the results suggest that to-be-reproduced visuo-spatial sequences are encoded as prospective action representations (motor intentions), possibly in addition to retrospective sensory codes. Overall, our study supports and extends multi-component models of working memory, highlighting the notion that sensory input can be coded in multiple ways depending on what the memorandum is to be used for. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Structure of Visuospatial Memory in Adulthood

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mammarella, Irene C.; Borella, Erika; Pastore, Massimiliano; Pazzaglia, Francesca

2013-01-01

The present study aimed to investigate the structure of visuospatial memory in adulthood. Adults 40-89 years of age (n = 160) performed simple storage and complex visuospatial span tasks. Simple storage tasks were distinguished into three presentation formats: (i) visual, which involved maintaining shapes and textures; (ii) spatial-sequential,…

Short-Term Memory, Executive Control, and Children's Route Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Purser, Harry R. M.; Farran, Emily K.; Courbois, Yannick; Lemahieu, Axelle; Mellier, Daniel; Sockeel, Pascal; Blades, Mark

2012-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate route-learning ability in 67 children aged 5 to 11 years and to relate route-learning performance to the components of Baddeley's model of working memory. Children carried out tasks that included measures of verbal and visuospatial short-term memory and executive control and also measures of verbal and…

Short-Term and Working Memory Skills in Primary School-Aged Children with Specific Language Impairment and Children with Pragmatic Language Impairment: Phonological, Linguistic and Visuo-Spatial Aspects

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freed, Jenny; Lockton, Elaine; Adams, Catherine

2012-01-01

Background: Children with specific language impairment (CwSLI) are consistently reported to have short-term memory (STM) and working memory (WM) difficulties. Aim: To compare STM and WM abilities in CwSLI with children with pragmatic language impairment (CwPLI). Methods & Procedures: Primary school-aged CwSLI (n = 12) and CwPLI (n = 23) were…

Specific memory impairment following neonatal encephalopathy in term-born children.

PubMed

van Handel, Mariëlle; de Sonneville, Leo; de Vries, Linda S; Jongmans, Marian J; Swaab, Hanna

2012-01-01

This study examines short-term memory, verbal working memory, episodic long-term memory, and intelligence in 32 children with mild neonatal encephalopathy (NE), 39 children with moderate NE, 10 children with NE who developed cerebral palsy (CP), and 53 comparison children, at the age of 9 to 10 years. in addition to a global effect on intelligence, NE had a specific effect on verbal working memory, verbal and visuo-spatial long-term memory, and learning, which was associated with degree of NE. Although these memory problems occurred in children without CP, they were more pronounced when children had also developed CP.

Spreading activation in nonverbal memory networks.

PubMed

Foster, Paul S; Wakefield, Candias; Pryjmak, Scott; Roosa, Katelyn M; Branch, Kaylei K; Drago, Valeria; Harrison, David W; Ruff, Ronald

2017-09-01

Theories of spreading activation primarily involve semantic memory networks. However, the existence of separate verbal and visuospatial memory networks suggests that spreading activation may also occur in visuospatial memory networks. The purpose of the present investigation was to explore this possibility. Specifically, this study sought to create and describe the design frequency corpus and to determine whether this measure of visuospatial spreading activation was related to right hemisphere functioning and spreading activation in verbal memory networks. We used word frequencies taken from the Controlled Oral Word Association Test and design frequencies taken from the Ruff Figural Fluency Test as measures of verbal and visuospatial spreading activation, respectively. Average word and design frequencies were then correlated with measures of left and right cerebral functioning. The results indicated that a significant relationship exists between performance on a test of right posterior functioning (Block Design) and design frequency. A significant negative relationship also exists between spreading activation in semantic memory networks and design frequency. Based on our findings, the hypotheses were supported. Further research will need to be conducted to examine whether spreading activation exists in visuospatial memory networks as well as the parameters that might modulate this spreading activation, such as the influence of neurotransmitters.

Working Memory and Mental Arithmetic: A Case for Dual Central Executive Resources

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ketelsen, Kirk; Welsh, Marilyn

2010-01-01

The current study was designed to examine the possible existence of two limited-capacity pools of central executive resources: one each for verbal and visuospatial processing. Ninety-one college students (M age = 19.0, SD = 2.2) were administered a verbal working memory task that involved updating numbers in 2-, 3-, and 4-load conditions. The task…

Neural circuit basis of visuo-spatial working memory precision: a computational and behavioral study.

PubMed

Almeida, Rita; Barbosa, João; Compte, Albert

2015-09-01

The amount of information that can be retained in working memory (WM) is limited. Limitations of WM capacity have been the subject of intense research, especially in trying to specify algorithmic models for WM. Comparatively, neural circuit perspectives have barely been used to test WM limitations in behavioral experiments. Here we used a neuronal microcircuit model for visuo-spatial WM (vsWM) to investigate memory of several items. The model assumes that there is a topographic organization of the circuit responsible for spatial memory retention. This assumption leads to specific predictions, which we tested in behavioral experiments. According to the model, nearby locations should be recalled with a bias, as if the two memory traces showed attraction or repulsion during the delay period depending on distance. Another prediction is that the previously reported loss of memory precision for an increasing number of memory items (memory load) should vanish when the distances between items are controlled for. Both predictions were confirmed experimentally. Taken together, our findings provide support for a topographic neural circuit organization of vsWM, they suggest that interference between similar memories underlies some WM limitations, and they put forward a circuit-based explanation that reconciles previous conflicting results on the dependence of WM precision with load. Copyright © 2015 the American Physiological Society.

Planning sentences while doing other things at the same time: effects of concurrent verbal and visuospatial working memory load.

PubMed

Klaus, Jana; Mädebach, Andreas; Oppermann, Frank; Jescheniak, Jörg D

2017-04-01

This study investigated to what extent advance planning during sentence production is affected by a concurrent cognitive load. In two picture-word interference experiments in which participants produced subject-verb-object sentences while ignoring auditory distractor words, we assessed advance planning at a phonological (lexeme) and at an abstract-lexical (lemma) level under visuospatial or verbal working memory (WM) load. At the phonological level, subject and object nouns were found to be activated before speech onset with concurrent visuospatial WM load, but only subject nouns were found to be activated with concurrent verbal WM load, indicating a reduced planning scope as a function of type of WM load (Experiment 1). By contrast, at the abstract-lexical level, subject and object nouns were found to be activated regardless of type of concurrent load (Experiment 2). In both experiments, sentence planning had a more detrimental effect on concurrent verbal WM task performance than on concurrent visuospatial WM task performance. Overall, our results suggest that advance planning at the phonological level is more affected by a concurrently performed verbal WM task than advance planning at the abstract-lexical level. Also, they indicate an overlap of resources allocated to phonological planning in speech production and verbal WM.

Endogenous sex hormones and memory performance in middle-aged Greek women with subjective memory complaints.

PubMed

Armeni, Eleni; Apostolakis, Michail; Christidi, Foteini; Rizos, Demetrios; Kaparos, George; Panoulis, Konstantinos; Augoulea, Areti; Alexandrou, Andreas; Karopoulou, Evangelia; Zalonis, Ioannis; Triantafyllou, Nikolaos; Lambrinoudaki, Irene

2018-02-01

The changing hormonal milieu during the menopausal transition may contribute to the development of memory disorders. We aimed to assess the association of sex hormones with memory function in a sample of Greek middle-aged women. This pilot study included 44 women with subjective memory complaints. Memory performance was evaluated using the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test (HVLT), the Brief Visuospatial Memory test (BVMT), and the verbal digits backwards test (VSPAN), to assess verbal, visuospatial, and working memory performance, respectively. Menopausal symptoms were assessed using the Green Climacteric Scale. VSPAN backwards scores were positively associated with log-transformed free androgen index (logFAI), in models adjusted for age, education, log-transformed free estrogen index (logFEI), hypertension, and the intensity of menopausal symptoms. BVMT total scores were predicted by logFAI (b-coefficient = 0.424, p value = 0.002), education, and combined climacteric symptomatology, in a model adjusted for age, logFEI, and hypertension. Women with circulating estradiol above the median value of 10 pg/mL had better total HTLV total scores compared to women with estradiol values below the median (HTLV total scores, estradiol ≤ 10 pg/mL vs. > 10 pg/mL: 24.2 ± 3.6 vs. 30.0 ± 7.9, p value = 0.007 unadjusted). This association was affected by education and remained independent of menopausal symptoms and testosterone levels, education, and hypertension (model R 2 = 22.3%; b-coefficient = 0.318, p value = 0.024). Endogenous total estradiol is associated with verbal episodic memory, while logFAI is associated with working memory performance and visuospatial episodic memory in this sample of postmenopausal women. These associations were not influenced by age, education, or menopausal symptoms. Larger studies are necessary to evaluate the significance of our findings.

Feedback associated with expectation for larger-reward improves visuospatial working memory performances in children with ADHD.

PubMed

Hammer, Rubi; Tennekoon, Michael; Cooke, Gillian E; Gayda, Jessica; Stein, Mark A; Booth, James R

2015-08-01

We tested the interactive effect of feedback and reward on visuospatial working memory in children with ADHD. Seventeen boys with ADHD and 17 Normal Control (NC) boys underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while performing four visuospatial 2-back tasks that required monitoring the spatial location of letters presented on a display. Tasks varied in reward size (large; small) and feedback availability (no-feedback; feedback). While the performance of NC boys was high in all conditions, boys with ADHD exhibited higher performance (similar to those of NC boys) only when they received feedback associated with large-reward. Performance pattern in both groups was mirrored by neural activity in an executive function neural network comprised of few distinct frontal brain regions. Specifically, neural activity in the left and right middle frontal gyri of boys with ADHD became normal-like only when feedback was available, mainly when feedback was associated with large-reward. When feedback was associated with small-reward, or when large-reward was expected but feedback was not available, boys with ADHD exhibited altered neural activity in the medial orbitofrontal cortex and anterior insula. This suggests that contextual support normalizes activity in executive brain regions in children with ADHD, which results in improved working memory. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Mapping of the Underlying Neural Mechanisms of Maintenance and Manipulation in Visuo-Spatial Working Memory Using An n-back Mental Rotation Task: A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study.

PubMed

Lamp, Gemma; Alexander, Bonnie; Laycock, Robin; Crewther, David P; Crewther, Sheila G

2016-01-01

Mapping of the underlying neural mechanisms of visuo-spatial working memory (WM) has been shown to consistently elicit activity in right hemisphere dominant fronto-parietal networks. However to date, the bulk of neuroimaging literature has focused largely on the maintenance aspect of visuo-spatial WM, with a scarcity of research into the aspects of WM involving manipulation of information. Thus, this study aimed to compare maintenance-only with maintenance and manipulation of visuo-spatial stimuli (3D cube shapes) utilizing a 1-back task while functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans were acquired. Sixteen healthy participants (9 women, M = 23.94 years, SD = 2.49) were required to perform the 1-back task with or without mentally rotating the shapes 90° on a vertical axis. When no rotation was required (maintenance-only condition), a right hemispheric lateralization was revealed across fronto-parietal areas. However, when the task involved maintaining and manipulating the same stimuli through 90° rotation, activation was primarily seen in the bilateral parietal lobe and left fusiform gyrus. The findings confirm that the well-established right lateralized fronto-parietal networks are likely to underlie simple maintenance of visuo-spatial stimuli. The results also suggest that the added demand of manipulation of information maintained online appears to require further neural recruitment of functionally related areas. In particular mental rotation of visuospatial stimuli required bilateral parietal areas, and the left fusiform gyrus potentially to maintain a categorical or object representation. It can be concluded that WM is a complex neural process involving the interaction of an increasingly large network.

Mapping of the Underlying Neural Mechanisms of Maintenance and Manipulation in Visuo-Spatial Working Memory Using An n-back Mental Rotation Task: A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

PubMed Central

Lamp, Gemma; Alexander, Bonnie; Laycock, Robin; Crewther, David P.; Crewther, Sheila G.

2016-01-01

Mapping of the underlying neural mechanisms of visuo-spatial working memory (WM) has been shown to consistently elicit activity in right hemisphere dominant fronto-parietal networks. However to date, the bulk of neuroimaging literature has focused largely on the maintenance aspect of visuo-spatial WM, with a scarcity of research into the aspects of WM involving manipulation of information. Thus, this study aimed to compare maintenance-only with maintenance and manipulation of visuo-spatial stimuli (3D cube shapes) utilizing a 1-back task while functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans were acquired. Sixteen healthy participants (9 women, M = 23.94 years, SD = 2.49) were required to perform the 1-back task with or without mentally rotating the shapes 90° on a vertical axis. When no rotation was required (maintenance-only condition), a right hemispheric lateralization was revealed across fronto-parietal areas. However, when the task involved maintaining and manipulating the same stimuli through 90° rotation, activation was primarily seen in the bilateral parietal lobe and left fusiform gyrus. The findings confirm that the well-established right lateralized fronto-parietal networks are likely to underlie simple maintenance of visuo-spatial stimuli. The results also suggest that the added demand of manipulation of information maintained online appears to require further neural recruitment of functionally related areas. In particular mental rotation of visuospatial stimuli required bilateral parietal areas, and the left fusiform gyrus potentially to maintain a categorical or object representation. It can be concluded that WM is a complex neural process involving the interaction of an increasingly large network. PMID:27199694

Effects of complete monocular deprivation in visuo-spatial memory.

PubMed

Cattaneo, Zaira; Merabet, Lotfi B; Bhatt, Ela; Vecchi, Tomaso

2008-09-30

Monocular deprivation has been associated with both specific deficits and enhancements in visual perception and processing. In this study, performance on a visuo-spatial memory task was compared in congenitally monocular individuals and sighted control individuals viewing monocularly (i.e., patched) and binocularly. The task required the individuals to view and memorize a series of target locations on two-dimensional matrices. Overall, congenitally monocular individuals performed worse than sighted individuals (with a specific deficit in simultaneously maintaining distinct spatial representations in memory), indicating that the lack of binocular visual experience affects the way visual information is represented in visuo-spatial memory. No difference was observed between the monocular and binocular viewing control groups, suggesting that early monocular deprivation affects the development of cortical mechanisms mediating visuo-spatial cognition.

Marked brain asymmetry with intact cognitive functioning in idiopathic Parkinson's disease: a longitudinal analysis.

PubMed

Tanner, Jared J; Levy, Shellie-Anne; Schwab, Nadine A; Hizel, Loren P; Nguyen, Peter T; Okun, Michael S; Price, Catherine C

2017-04-01

A 71-year-old (MN) with an 11-year history of left onset tremor diagnosed as Parkinson's disease (PD) completed longitudinal brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and neuropsychological testing. MRI scans showed an asymmetric caudate nucleus (right < left volume). We describe this asymmetry at baseline and the progression over time relative to other subcortical gray, frontal white matter, and cortical gray matter regions of interest. Isolated structural changes are compared to MN's cognitive profiles. MN completed yearly MRIs and neuropsychological assessments. For comparison, left onset PD (n = 15) and non-PD (n = 43) peers completed the same baseline protocol. All MRI scans were processed with FreeSurfer and the FMRIB Software Library to analyze gray matter structures and frontal fractional anisotropy (FA) metrics. Processing speed, working memory, language, verbal memory, abstract reasoning, visuospatial, and motor functions were examined using reliable change methods. At baseline, MN had striatal volume and frontal lobe thickness asymmetry relative to peers with mild prefrontal white matter FA asymmetry. Over time only MN's right caudate nucleus showed accelerated atrophy. Cognitively, MN had slowed psychomotor speed and visuospatial-linked deficits with mild visuospatial working memory declines longitudinally. This is a unique report using normative neuroimaging and neuropsychology to describe an individual diagnosed with PD who had striking striatal asymmetry followed secondarily by cortical thickness asymmetry and possible frontal white matter asymmetry. His decline and variability in visual working memory could be linked to ongoing atrophy of his right caudate nucleus.

Marked brain asymmetry with intact cognitive functioning in idiopathic Parkinson’s disease: A longitudinal analysis

PubMed Central

Tanner, Jared J.; Levy, Shellie-Anne; Schwab, Nadine A.; Hizel, Loren P.; Nguyen, Peter T.; Okun, Michael S.; Price, Catherine C.

2016-01-01

Objective A 71-year old (MN) with an 11-year history of left onset tremor diagnosed as Parkinson’s disease (PD) completed longitudinal brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and neuropsychological testing. MRI scans showed an asymmetric caudate nucleus (right< left volume). We describe this asymmetry at baseline and the progression over time relative to other subcortical gray, frontal white matter, and cortical gray matter regions of interest. Isolated structural changes are compared to MN’s cognitive profiles. Method MN completed yearly MRIs and neuropsychological assessments. For comparison, left onset PD (n=15) and non-PD (n=43) peers completed the same baseline protocol. All MRI scans were processed with FreeSurfer and the FMRIB Software Library (FSL) to analyze gray matter structures and frontal fractional anisotropy (FA) metrics. Processing speed, working memory, language, verbal memory, abstract reasoning, visuospatial, and motor functions were examined using reliable change methods. Results At baseline MN had striatal volume and frontal lobe thickness asymmetry relative to peers with mild prefrontal white matter FA asymmetry. Over time only MN’s right caudate nucleus showed accelerated atrophy. Cognitively, MN had slowed psychomotor speed and visuospatial-linked deficits with mild visuospatial working memory declines longitudinally. Conclusions This is a unique report using normative neuroimaging and neuropsychology to describe an individual diagnosed with PD who had striking striatal asymmetry followed secondarily by cortical thickness asymmetry and possible frontal white matter asymmetry. His decline and variability in visual working memory could be linked to ongoing atrophy of his right caudate nucleus. PMID:27813459

Individual Differences in Spatial Text Processing: High Spatial Ability Can Compensate for Spatial Working Memory Interference

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meneghetti, Chiara; Gyselinck, Valerie; Pazzaglia, Francesca; De Beni, Rossana

2009-01-01

The present study investigates the relation between spatial ability and visuo-spatial and verbal working memory in spatial text processing. In two experiments, participants listened to a spatial text (Experiments 1 and 2) and a non-spatial text (Experiment 1), at the same time performing a spatial or a verbal concurrent task, or no secondary task.…

Working Memory Deficits in ADHD: The Contribution of Age, Learning/Language Difficulties, and Task Parameters

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sowerby, Paula; Seal, Simon; Tripp, Gail

2011-01-01

Objective: To further define the nature of working memory (WM) impairments in children with combined-type ADHD. Method: A total of 40 Children with ADHD and an age and gender-matched control group (n = 40) completed two measures of visuo-spatial WM and two measures of verbal WM. The effects of age and learning/language difficulties on performance…

"Four and Twenty Blackbirds": How Transcoding Ability Mediates the Relationship between Visuospatial Working Memory and Math in a Language with Inversion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van der Ven, Sanne H. G.; Klaiber, Jonathan D.; van der Maas, Han L. J.

2017-01-01

Writing down spoken number words (transcoding) is an ability that is predictive of math performance and related to working memory ability. We analysed these relationships in a large sample of over 25,000 children, from kindergarten to the end of primary school, who solved transcoding items with a computer adaptive system. Furthermore, we…

The impact of threat of shock-induced anxiety on memory encoding and retrieval

PubMed Central

Bolton, Sorcha

2017-01-01

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health disorders, and daily transient feelings of anxiety (or “stress”) are ubiquitous. However, the precise impact of both transient and pathological anxiety on higher-order cognitive functions, including short- and long-term memory, is poorly understood. A clearer understanding of the anxiety–memory relationship is important as one of the core symptoms of anxiety, most prominently in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), is intrusive reexperiencing of traumatic events in the form of vivid memories. This study therefore aimed to examine the impact of induced anxiety (threat of shock) on memory encoding and retrieval. Eighty-six healthy participants completed tasks assessing: visuospatial working memory, verbal recognition, face recognition, and associative memory. Critically, anxiety was manipulated within-subjects: information was both encoded and retrieved under threat of shock and safe (no shock) conditions. Results revealed that visuospatial working memory was enhanced when information was encoded and subsequently retrieved under threat, and that threat impaired the encoding of faces regardless of the condition in which it was retrieved. Episodic memory and verbal short-term recognition were, however, unimpaired. These findings indicate that transient anxiety in healthy individuals has domain-specific, rather than domain-general, impacts on memory. Future studies would benefit from expanding these findings into anxiety disorder patients to delineate the differences between adaptive and maladaptive responding. PMID:28916628

Modality independence of order coding in working memory: Evidence from cross-modal order interference at recall.

PubMed

Vandierendonck, André

2016-01-01

Working memory researchers do not agree on whether order in serial recall is encoded by dedicated modality-specific systems or by a more general modality-independent system. Although previous research supports the existence of autonomous modality-specific systems, it has been shown that serial recognition memory is prone to cross-modal order interference by concurrent tasks. The present study used a serial recall task, which was performed in a single-task condition and in a dual-task condition with an embedded memory task in the retention interval. The modality of the serial task was either verbal or visuospatial, and the embedded tasks were in the other modality and required either serial or item recall. Care was taken to avoid modality overlaps during presentation and recall. In Experiment 1, visuospatial but not verbal serial recall was more impaired when the embedded task was an order than when it was an item task. Using a more difficult verbal serial recall task, verbal serial recall was also more impaired by another order recall task in Experiment 2. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis of modality-independent order coding. The implications for views on short-term recall and the multicomponent view of working memory are discussed.

Neural correlates of visuospatial working memory in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and healthy controls.

PubMed

van Ewijk, Hanneke; Weeda, Wouter D; Heslenfeld, Dirk J; Luman, Marjolein; Hartman, Catharina A; Hoekstra, Pieter J; Faraone, Stephen V; Franke, Barbara; Buitelaar, Jan K; Oosterlaan, Jaap

2015-08-30

Impaired visuospatial working memory (VSWM) is suggested to be a core neurocognitive deficit in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), yet the underlying neural activation patterns are poorly understood. Furthermore, it is unclear to what extent age and gender effects may play a role in VSWM-related brain abnormalities in ADHD. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data were collected from 109 individuals with ADHD (60% male) and 103 controls (53% male), aged 8-25 years, during a spatial span working memory task. VSWM-related brain activation was found in a widespread network, which was more widespread compared with N-back tasks used in the previous literature. Higher brain activation was associated with higher age and male gender. In comparison with controls, individuals with ADHD showed greater activation in the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and the lateral frontal pole during memory load increase, effects explained by reduced activation on the low memory load in the IFG pars triangularis and increased activation during high load in the IFG pars opercularis. Age and gender effects did not differ between controls and individuals with ADHD. Results indicate that individuals with ADHD have difficulty in efficiently and sufficiently recruiting left inferior frontal brain regions with increasing task difficulty. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Effect of Dual N-Back Task Training on Phonological Memory Expansion in Adult EFL Learners at the Beginner Level

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Farvardin, Mohammad Taghi; Afghari, Akbar; Koosha, Mansour

2014-01-01

One of the most influential models of working memory (WM) is the one developed by Baddeley (1986, 2000, 2003) which views WM comprising several components--a central executive, an episodic buffer, the visuo-spatial sketchpad, and the phonological loop. The phonological loop or phonological memory (PM) deals with the temporary storage of verbal and…

Using the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) to assess the cognitive impact of electroconvulsive therapy on visual and visuospatial memory.

PubMed

Falconer, D W; Cleland, J; Fielding, S; Reid, I C

2010-06-01

The cognitive impact of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is rarely measured systematically in everyday clinical practice even though patient and clinician acceptance is limited by its adverse affect on memory. If patients are tested it is often with simple paper and pencil tests of visual or verbal memory. There are no reported studies of computerized neuropsychological testing to assess the cognitive impact of ECT on visuospatial memory. Twenty-four patients with severe depression were treated with a course of bilateral ECT and assessed with a battery of visual memory tests within the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB). These included spatial and pattern recognition memory, pattern-location associative learning and a delayed matching to sample test. Testing was carried out before ECT, during ECT, within the week after ECT and 1 month after ECT. Patients showed significant impairments in visual and visuospatial memory both during and within the week after ECT. Most impairments resolved 1 month following ECT; however, significant impairment in spatial recognition memory remained. This is one of only a few studies that have detected anterograde memory deficits more than 2 weeks after treatment. Patients receiving ECT displayed a range of visual and visuospatial deficits over the course of their treatment. These deficits were most prominent for tasks dependent on the use of the right medial temporal lobe; frontal lobe function may also be implicated. The CANTAB appears to be a useful instrument for measuring the adverse cognitive effects of ECT on aspects of visual and visuospatial memory.

Visuo-spatial abilities are key for young children's verbal number skills.

PubMed

Cornu, Véronique; Schiltz, Christine; Martin, Romain; Hornung, Caroline

2018-02-01

Children's development of verbal number skills (i.e., counting abilities and knowledge of the number names) presents a milestone in mathematical development. Different factors such as visuo-spatial and verbal abilities have been discussed as contributing to the development of these foundational skills. To understand the cognitive nature of verbal number skills in young children, the current study assessed the relation of preschoolers' verbal and visuo-spatial abilities to their verbal number skills. In total, 141 children aged 5 or 6 years participated in the current study. Verbal number skills were regressed on vocabulary, phonological awareness and visuo-spatial abilities, and verbal and visuo-spatial working memory in a structural equation model. Only visuo-spatial abilities emerged as a significant predictor of verbal number skills in the estimated model. Our results suggest that visuo-spatial abilities contribute to a larger extent to children's verbal number skills than verbal abilities. From a theoretical point of view, these results suggest a visuo-spatial, rather than a verbal, grounding of verbal number skills. These results are potentially informative for the conception of early mathematics assessments and interventions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Attention and Visuospatial Working Memory Share the Same Processing Resources

PubMed Central

Feng, Jing; Pratt, Jay; Spence, Ian

2012-01-01

Attention and visuospatial working memory (VWM) share very similar characteristics; both have the same upper bound of about four items in capacity and they recruit overlapping brain regions. We examined whether both attention and VWM share the same processing resources using a novel dual-task costs approach based on a load-varying dual-task technique. With sufficiently large loads on attention and VWM, considerable interference between the two processes was observed. A further load increase on either process produced reciprocal increases in interference on both processes, indicating that attention and VWM share common resources. More critically, comparison among four experiments on the reciprocal interference effects, as measured by the dual-task costs, demonstrates no significant contribution from additional processing other than the shared processes. These results support the notion that attention and VWM share the same processing resources. PMID:22529826

How does experience modulate auditory spatial processing in individuals with blindness?

PubMed

Tao, Qian; Chan, Chetwyn C H; Luo, Yue-jia; Li, Jian-jun; Ting, Kin-hung; Wang, Jun; Lee, Tatia M C

2015-05-01

Comparing early- and late-onset blindness in individuals offers a unique model for studying the influence of visual experience on neural processing. This study investigated how prior visual experience would modulate auditory spatial processing among blind individuals. BOLD responses of early- and late-onset blind participants were captured while performing a sound localization task. The task required participants to listen to novel "Bat-ears" sounds, analyze the spatial information embedded in the sounds, and specify out of 15 locations where the sound would have been emitted. In addition to sound localization, participants were assessed on visuospatial working memory and general intellectual abilities. The results revealed common increases in BOLD responses in the middle occipital gyrus, superior frontal gyrus, precuneus, and precentral gyrus during sound localization for both groups. Between-group dissociations, however, were found in the right middle occipital gyrus and left superior frontal gyrus. The BOLD responses in the left superior frontal gyrus were significantly correlated with accuracy on sound localization and visuospatial working memory abilities among the late-onset blind participants. In contrast, the accuracy on sound localization only correlated with BOLD responses in the right middle occipital gyrus among the early-onset counterpart. The findings support the notion that early-onset blind individuals rely more on the occipital areas as a result of cross-modal plasticity for auditory spatial processing, while late-onset blind individuals rely more on the prefrontal areas which subserve visuospatial working memory.

Structural correlates of impaired working memory in hippocampal sclerosis.

PubMed

Winston, Gavin P; Stretton, Jason; Sidhu, Meneka K; Symms, Mark R; Thompson, Pamela J; Duncan, John S

2013-07-01

Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) has been considered to impair long-term memory, whilst not affecting working memory, but recent evidence suggests that working memory is compromised. Functional MRI (fMRI) studies demonstrate that working memory involves a bilateral frontoparietal network the activation of which is disrupted in hippocampal sclerosis (HS). A specific role of the hippocampus to deactivate during working memory has been proposed with this mechanism faulty in patients with HS. Structural correlates of disrupted working memory in HS have not been explored. We studied 54 individuals with medically refractory TLE and unilateral HS (29 left) and 28 healthy controls. Subjects underwent 3T structural MRI, a visuospatial n-back fMRI paradigm and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). Working memory capacity assessed by three span tasks (digit span backwards, gesture span, motor sequences) was combined with performance in the visuospatial paradigm to give a global working memory measure. Gray and white matter changes were investigated using voxel-based morphometry and voxel-based analysis of DTI, respectively. Individuals with left or right HS performed less well than healthy controls on all measures of working memory. fMRI demonstrated a bilateral frontoparietal network during the working memory task with reduced activation of the right parietal lobe in both patient groups. In left HS, gray matter loss was seen in the ipsilateral hippocampus and parietal lobe, with maintenance of the gray matter volume of the contralateral parietal lobe associated with better performance. White matter integrity within the frontoparietal network, in particular the superior longitudinal fasciculus and cingulum, and the contralateral temporal lobe, was associated with working memory performance. In right HS, gray matter loss was also seen in the ipsilateral hippocampus and parietal lobe. Working memory performance correlated with the gray matter volume of both frontal lobes and white matter integrity within the frontoparietal network and contralateral temporal lobe. Our data provide further evidence that working memory is disrupted in HS and impaired integrity of both gray and white matter is seen in functionally relevant areas. We suggest this forms the structural basis of the impairment of working memory, indicating widespread and functionally significant structural changes in patients with apparently isolated HS. Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2013 International League Against Epilepsy.

Structural correlates of impaired working memory in hippocampal sclerosis

PubMed Central

Winston, Gavin P; Stretton, Jason; Sidhu, Meneka K; Symms, Mark R; Thompson, Pamela J; Duncan, John S

2013-01-01

Purpose: Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) has been considered to impair long-term memory, whilst not affecting working memory, but recent evidence suggests that working memory is compromised. Functional MRI (fMRI) studies demonstrate that working memory involves a bilateral frontoparietal network the activation of which is disrupted in hippocampal sclerosis (HS). A specific role of the hippocampus to deactivate during working memory has been proposed with this mechanism faulty in patients with HS. Structural correlates of disrupted working memory in HS have not been explored. Methods: We studied 54 individuals with medically refractory TLE and unilateral HS (29 left) and 28 healthy controls. Subjects underwent 3T structural MRI, a visuospatial n-back fMRI paradigm and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). Working memory capacity assessed by three span tasks (digit span backwards, gesture span, motor sequences) was combined with performance in the visuospatial paradigm to give a global working memory measure. Gray and white matter changes were investigated using voxel-based morphometry and voxel-based analysis of DTI, respectively. Key Findings: Individuals with left or right HS performed less well than healthy controls on all measures of working memory. fMRI demonstrated a bilateral frontoparietal network during the working memory task with reduced activation of the right parietal lobe in both patient groups. In left HS, gray matter loss was seen in the ipsilateral hippocampus and parietal lobe, with maintenance of the gray matter volume of the contralateral parietal lobe associated with better performance. White matter integrity within the frontoparietal network, in particular the superior longitudinal fasciculus and cingulum, and the contralateral temporal lobe, was associated with working memory performance. In right HS, gray matter loss was also seen in the ipsilateral hippocampus and parietal lobe. Working memory performance correlated with the gray matter volume of both frontal lobes and white matter integrity within the frontoparietal network and contralateral temporal lobe. Significance: Our data provide further evidence that working memory is disrupted in HS and impaired integrity of both gray and white matter is seen in functionally relevant areas. We suggest this forms the structural basis of the impairment of working memory, indicating widespread and functionally significant structural changes in patients with apparently isolated HS. PMID:23614459

Does neuropsychological performance in OCD relate to different symptoms? A meta-analysis comparing the symmetry and obsessing dimensions.

PubMed

Bragdon, Laura B; Gibb, Brandon E; Coles, Meredith E

2018-06-19

Investigations of neuropsychological functioning in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) have produced mixed results for deficits in executive functioning (EF), attention, and memory. One potential explanation for varied findings may relate to the heterogeneity of symptom presentations, and different clinical or neurobiological characteristics may underlie these different symptoms. We investigated differences in neuropsychological functioning between two symptoms groups, obsessing/checking (O/C) and symmetry/ordering (S/O), based on data suggesting an association with different motivations: harm avoidance and incompleteness, respectively. Ten studies (with 628 patients) were included and each investigation assessed at least one of 14 neuropsychological domains. The S/O domain demonstrated small, negative correlations with overall neuropsychological functioning, performance in EF, memory, visuospatial ability, cognitive flexibility, and verbal working memory. O/C symptoms demonstrated small, negative correlations with memory and verbal memory performance. A comparison of functioning between symptom groups identified large effect sizes showing that the S/O dimension was more strongly related to poorer neuropsychological performance overall, and in the domains of attention, visuospatial ability, and the subdomain of verbal working memory. Findings support existing evidence suggesting that different OCD symptoms, and their associated core motivations, relate to unique patterns of neuropsychological functioning, and, potentially dysfunction in different neural circuits. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Action video games improve reading abilities and visual-to-auditory attentional shifting in English-speaking children with dyslexia.

PubMed

Franceschini, Sandro; Trevisan, Piergiorgio; Ronconi, Luca; Bertoni, Sara; Colmar, Susan; Double, Kit; Facoetti, Andrea; Gori, Simone

2017-07-19

Dyslexia is characterized by difficulties in learning to read and there is some evidence that action video games (AVG), without any direct phonological or orthographic stimulation, improve reading efficiency in Italian children with dyslexia. However, the cognitive mechanism underlying this improvement and the extent to which the benefits of AVG training would generalize to deep English orthography, remain two critical questions. During reading acquisition, children have to integrate written letters with speech sounds, rapidly shifting their attention from visual to auditory modality. In our study, we tested reading skills and phonological working memory, visuo-spatial attention, auditory, visual and audio-visual stimuli localization, and cross-sensory attentional shifting in two matched groups of English-speaking children with dyslexia before and after they played AVG or non-action video games. The speed of words recognition and phonological decoding increased after playing AVG, but not non-action video games. Furthermore, focused visuo-spatial attention and visual-to-auditory attentional shifting also improved only after AVG training. This unconventional reading remediation program also increased phonological short-term memory and phoneme blending skills. Our report shows that an enhancement of visuo-spatial attention and phonological working memory, and an acceleration of visual-to-auditory attentional shifting can directly translate into better reading in English-speaking children with dyslexia.

Spatial working memory in aging and mild cognitive impairment: effects of task load and contextual cueing.

PubMed

Kessels, Roy P C; Meulenbroek, Olga; Fernández, Guillén; Olde Rikkert, Marcel G M

2010-09-01

Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) is characterized by episodic memory deficits, while aspects of working memory may also be implicated, but studies into this latter domain are scarce and results are inconclusive. Using a computerized search paradigm, this study compares 25 young adults, 25 typically aging older adults and 15 amnestic MCI patients as to their working-memory capacities for object-location information and potential differential effects of memory load and additional context cues. An age-related deficit in visuospatial working-memory maintenance was found that became more pronounced with increasing task demands. The MCI group additionally showed reduced maintenance of bound information, i.e., object-location associations, again especially at elevated memory load. No effects of contextual cueing were found. The current findings indicate that working memory should be considered when screening patients for suspected MCI and monitoring its progression.

Arithmetic difficulties in children with cerebral palsy are related to executive function and working memory.

PubMed

Jenks, Kathleen M; de Moor, Jan; van Lieshout, Ernest C D M

2009-07-01

Although it is believed that children with cerebral palsy are at high risk for learning difficulties and arithmetic difficulties in particular, few studies have investigated this issue. Arithmetic ability was longitudinally assessed in children with cerebral palsy in special (n = 41) and mainstream education (n = 16) and controls in mainstream education (n = 16). Second grade executive function and working memory scores were used to predict third grade arithmetic accuracy and response time. Children with cerebral palsy in special education were less accurate and slower than their peers on all arithmetic tests, even after controlling for IQ, whereas children with cerebral palsy in mainstream education performed as well as controls. Although the performance gap became smaller over time, it did not disappear. Children with cerebral palsy in special education showed evidence of executive function and working memory deficits in shifting, updating, visuospatial sketchpad and phonological loop (for digits, not words) whereas children with cerebral palsy in mainstream education only had a deficit in visuospatial sketchpad. Hierarchical regression revealed that, after controlling for intelligence, components of executive function and working memory explained large proportions of unique variance in arithmetic accuracy and response time and these variables were sufficient to explain group differences in simple, but not complex, arithmetic. Children with cerebral palsy are at risk for specific executive function and working memory deficits that, when present, increase the risk for arithmetic difficulties in these children.

Computerized Memory Training Leads to Sustained Improvement in Visuospatial Short-Term Memory Skills in Children with Down Syndrome

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bennett, Stephanie J.; Holmes, Joni; Buckley, Sue

2013-01-01

This study evaluated the impact of a computerized visuospatial memory training intervention on the memory and behavioral skills of children with Down syndrome. Teaching assistants were trained to support the delivery of a computerized intervention program to individual children over a 10-16 week period in school. Twenty-one children aged 7-12…

Working Memory Profiles in HIV-Exposed, Uninfected and HIV-Infected Children: A Comparison with Neurotypical Controls

PubMed Central

Milligan, Robyn; Cockcroft, Kate

2017-01-01

This study compared the working memory profiles of three groups of children, namely HIV-infected (HIV-I; n = 95), HIV-exposed, uninfected (HIV-EU; n = 86) and an HIV-unexposed, uninfected, (HIV-UU; n = 92) neurotypical control group. Working memory, an executive function, plays an important role in frontal lobe-controlled behaviors, such as motivation, planning, decision making, and social interaction, and is a strong predictor of academic success in school children. Memory impairments have been identified in HIV-I children, particularly in visuospatial processing. Verbal working memory has not been commonly investigated in this population, while it is unknown how the working memory profiles of HIV-EU children compare to their HIV-I and HIV-UU peers. Of interest was whether the working memory profiles of the HIV-EU children would be more similar to the HIV-I group or to the uninfected control group. The results revealed no significant differences in working memory performance between the HIV-I and HIV-EU groups. However, this does not mean that the etiology of the working memory deficits is the same in the two groups, as these groups showed important differences when compared to the control group. In comparison to the controls, the HIV-I group experienced difficulties with processing tasks irrespective of whether they drew on a verbal or visuospatial modality. This appears to stem from a generalized executive function deficit that also interferes with working memory. In the HIV-EU group, difficulties occurred with verbally based tasks, irrespective of whether they required storage or processing. For this group, the dual demands of complex processing and using a second language seem to result in demand exceeding capacity on verbal tasks. Both groups experienced the greatest difficulties with verbal processing tasks for these different reasons. Thus, disruption of different cognitive abilities could result in similar working memory profiles, as evidenced in this study. This has implications for the underlying developmental neurobiology of HIV-I and HIV-EU children, as well the choice of appropriate measures to assist affected children. PMID:28729828

Working Memory, Language Skills, and Autism Symptomatology

PubMed Central

Schuh, Jillian M.; Eigsti, Inge-Marie

2012-01-01

While many studies have reported working memory (WM) impairments in autism spectrum disorders, others do not. Sample characteristics, WM domain, and task complexity likely contribute to these discrepancies. Although deficits in visuospatial WM have been more consistently documented, there is much controversy regarding verbal WM in autism. The goal of the current study was to explore visuospatial and verbal WM in a well-controlled sample of children with high-functioning autism (HFA) and typical development. Individuals ages 9–17 with HFA (n = 18) and typical development (n = 18), were carefully matched on gender, age, IQ, and language, and were administered a series of standardized visuospatial and verbal WM tasks. The HFA group displayed significant impairment across WM domains. No differences in performance were noted across WM tasks for either the HFA or typically developing groups. Over and above nonverbal cognition, WM abilities accounted for significant variance in language skills and symptom severity. The current study suggests broad WM limitations in HFA. We further suggest that deficits in verbal WM are observed in more complex tasks, as well as in simpler tasks, such as phonological WM. Increased task complexity and linguistic demands may influence WM abilities. PMID:25379222

Working Memory and Aging: Separating the Effects of Content and Context

PubMed Central

Bopp, Kara L.; Verhaeghen, Paul

2009-01-01

In three experiments, we investigated the hypothesis that age-related differences in working memory might be due to the inability to bind content with context. Participants were required to find a repeating stimulus within a single series (no context memory required) or within multiple series (necessitating memory for context). Response time and accuracy were examined in two task domains: verbal and visuospatial. Binding content with context led to longer processing time and poorer accuracy in both age groups, even when working memory load was held constant. Although older adults were overall slower and less accurate than younger adults, the need for context memory did not differentially affect their performance. It is therefore unlikely that age differences in working memory are due to specific age-related problems with content-with-context binding. PMID:20025410

Cognitive Control Network Contributions to Memory-Guided Visual Attention

PubMed Central

Rosen, Maya L.; Stern, Chantal E.; Michalka, Samantha W.; Devaney, Kathryn J.; Somers, David C.

2016-01-01

Visual attentional capacity is severely limited, but humans excel in familiar visual contexts, in part because long-term memories guide efficient deployment of attention. To investigate the neural substrates that support memory-guided visual attention, we performed a set of functional MRI experiments that contrast long-term, memory-guided visuospatial attention with stimulus-guided visuospatial attention in a change detection task. Whereas the dorsal attention network was activated for both forms of attention, the cognitive control network (CCN) was preferentially activated during memory-guided attention. Three posterior nodes in the CCN, posterior precuneus, posterior callosal sulcus/mid-cingulate, and lateral intraparietal sulcus exhibited the greatest specificity for memory-guided attention. These 3 regions exhibit functional connectivity at rest, and we propose that they form a subnetwork within the broader CCN. Based on the task activation patterns, we conclude that the nodes of this subnetwork are preferentially recruited for long-term memory guidance of visuospatial attention. PMID:25750253

Attention Problems, Phonological Short-Term Memory, and Visuospatial Short-Term Memory: Differential Effects on Near- and Long-Term Scholastic Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sarver, Dustin E.; Rapport, Mark D.; Kofler, Michael J.; Scanlan, Sean W.; Raiker, Joseph S.; Altro, Thomas A.; Bolden, Jennifer

2012-01-01

The current study examined individual differences in children's phonological and visuospatial short-term memory as potential mediators of the relationship among attention problems and near- and long-term scholastic achievement. Nested structural equation models revealed that teacher-reported attention problems were associated negatively with…

Visuospatial working memory for locations, colours, and binding in typically developing children and in children with dyslexia and non-verbal learning disability.

PubMed

Garcia, Ricardo Basso; Mammarella, Irene C; Tripodi, Doriana; Cornoldi, Cesare

2014-03-01

This study examined forward and backward recall of locations and colours and the binding of locations and colours, comparing typically developing children - aged between 8 and 10 years - with two different groups of children of the same age with learning disabilities (dyslexia in one group, non-verbal learning disability [NLD] in the other). Results showed that groups with learning disabilities had different visuospatial working memory problems and that children with NLD had particular difficulties in the backward recall of locations. The differences between the groups disappeared, however, when locations and colours were bound together. It was concluded that specific processes may be involved in children in the binding and backward recall of different types of information, as they are not simply the resultant of combining the single processes needed to recall single features. © 2013 The British Psychological Society.

Estimating the executive demands of a one-back choice reaction time task by means of the selective interference paradigm.

PubMed

Szmalec, Arnaud; Vandierendonck, André

2007-08-01

The present study proposes a new executive task, the one-back choice reaction time (RT) task, and implements the selective interference paradigm to estimate the executive demands of the processing components involved in this task. Based on the similarities between a one-back choice RT task and the n-back updating task, it was hypothesized that one-back delaying of a choice reaction involves executive control. In three experiments, framed within Baddeley's (1986) working-memory model, a one-back choice RT task, a choice RT task, articulatory suppression, and matrix tapping were performed concurrently with primary tasks involving verbal, visuospatial, and executive processing. The results demonstrate that one-back delaying of a choice reaction interferes with tasks requiring executive control, while the potential interference at the level of the verbal or visuospatial working memory slave systems remains minimal.

Working memory deficits in children with reading difficulties: memory span and dual task coordination.

PubMed

Wang, Shinmin; Gathercole, Susan E

2013-05-01

The current study investigated the cause of the reported problems in working memory in children with reading difficulties. Verbal and visuospatial simple and complex span tasks, and digit span and reaction times tasks performed singly and in combination, were administered to 46 children with single word reading difficulties and 45 typically developing children matched for age and nonverbal ability. Children with reading difficulties had pervasive deficits in the simple and complex span tasks and had poorer abilities to coordinate two cognitive demanding tasks. These findings indicate that working memory problems in children with reading difficulties may reflect a core deficit in the central executive. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Negative mental imagery in public speaking anxiety: Forming cognitive resistance by taxing visuospatial working memory.

PubMed

Homer, Sophie R; Deeprose, Catherine; Andrade, Jackie

2016-03-01

This study sought to reconcile two lines of research. Previous studies have identified a prevalent and causal role of negative imagery in social phobia and public speaking anxiety; others have demonstrated that lateral eye movements during visualisation of imagery reduce its vividness, most likely by loading the visuospatial sketchpad of working memory. It was hypothesised that using eye movements to reduce the intensity of negative imagery associated with public speaking may reduce anxiety resulting from imagining a public speaking scenario compared to an auditory control task. Forty undergraduate students scoring high in anxiety on the Personal Report of Confidence as a Speaker scale took part. A semi-structured interview established an image that represented the participant's public speaking anxiety, which was then visualised during an eye movement task or a matched auditory task. Reactions to imagining a hypothetical but realistic public speaking scenario were measured. As hypothesised, representative imagery was established and reduced in vividness more effectively by the eye movement task than the auditory task. The public speaking scenario was then visualised less vividly and generated less anxiety when imagined after performing the eye movement task than after the auditory task. Self-report measures and a hypothetical scenario rather than actual public speaking were used. Replication is required in larger as well as clinical samples. Visuospatial working memory tasks may preferentially reduce anxiety associated with personal images of feared events, and thus provide cognitive resistance which reduces emotional reactions to imagined, and potentially real-life future stressful experiences. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Interference, aging, and visuospatial working memory: the role of similarity.

PubMed

Rowe, Gillian; Hasher, Lynn; Turcotte, Josée

2010-11-01

Older adults' performance on working memory (WM) span tasks is known to be negatively affected by the buildup of proactive interference (PI) across trials. PI has been reduced in verbal tasks and performance increased by presenting distinctive items across trials. In addition, reversing the order of trial presentation (i.e., starting with the longest sets first) has been shown to reduce PI in both verbal and visuospatial WM span tasks. We considered whether making each trial visually distinct would improve older adults' visuospatial WM performance, and whether combining the 2 PI-reducing manipulations, distinct trials and reversed order of presentation, would prove additive, thus providing even greater benefit. Forty-eight healthy older adults (age range = 60-77 years) completed 1 of 3 versions of a computerized Corsi block test. For 2 versions of the task, trials were either all visually similar or all visually distinct, and were presented in the standard ascending format (shortest set size first). In the third version, visually distinct trials were presented in a reverse order of presentation (longest set size first). Span scores were reliably higher in the ascending version for visually distinct compared with visually similar trials, F(1, 30) = 4.96, p = .03, η² = .14. However, combining distinct trials and a descending format proved no more beneficial than administering the descending format alone. Our findings suggest that a more accurate measurement of the visuospatial WM span scores of older adults (and possibly neuropsychological patients) might be obtained by reducing within-test interference.

Environment learning using descriptions or navigation: The involvement of working memory in young and older adults.

PubMed

Meneghetti, Chiara; Borella, Erika; Carbone, Elena; Martinelli, Massimiliano; De Beni, Rossana

2016-05-01

This study examined age-related differences between young and older adults in the involvement of verbal and visuo-spatial components of working memory (WM) when paths are learned from verbal and visuo-spatial inputs. A sample of 60 young adults (20-30 years old) and 58 older adults (60-75 years old) learned two paths from the person's point of view, one displayed in the form of a video showing the path, the other presenting the path in a verbal description. During the learning phase, participants concurrently performed a verbal task (articulatory suppression, AS group), or a visuo-spatial task (spatial tapping, ST group), or no secondary task (control, C group). After learning each path, participants completed tasks that involved the following: (1) recalling the sequential order and the location of landmarks; and (2) judging spatial sentences as true or false (verification test). The results showed that young adults outperformed older adults in all recall tasks. In both age groups performance in all types of task was worse in the AS and ST groups than in the C group, irrespective of the type of input. Overall, these findings suggest that verbal and visuo-spatial components of WM underpin the processing of environmental information in both young and older adults. The results are discussed in terms of age-related differences and according to the spatial cognition framework. © 2015 The British Psychological Society.

Randomized Controlled Trial of Exercise for ADHD and Disruptive Behavior Disorders

PubMed Central

Bustamante, Eduardo E.; Davis, Catherine L.; Frazier, Stacy L.; Rusch, Dana; Fogg, Louis F.; Atkins, Marc S.; Marquez, David X.

2016-01-01

Purpose To test feasibility and impact of a 10-week after-school exercise program for children with ADHD and/or disruptive behavior disorders (DBD) living in an urban poor community. Methods Children were randomized to exercise (n=19) or a comparable but sedentary attention control program (n=16). Cognitive and behavioral outcomes were collected pre-post. Intent-to-treat mixed models tested group × time and group × time × attendance interactions. Effect sizes were calculated within and between groups. Results Feasibility was evidenced by 86% retention, 60% attendance, and average 75% maximum heart rate. Group × time results were null on the primary outcome, parent-reported executive function. Among secondary outcomes, between-group effect sizes favored exercise on hyperactive symptoms (d=0.47) and verbal working memory (d=0.26), and controls on visuospatial working memory (d=-0.21) and oppositional defiant symptoms (d=-0.37). In each group, within-group effect sizes were moderate-large on most outcomes (d=0.67 to 1.60). A group × time × attendance interaction emerged on visuospatial working memory (F[1,33]=7.42, p<.05), such that attendance to the control program was related to greater improvements (r=.72, p<.01) while attendance to the exercise program was not (r=.25, p=.34). Conclusions While between-group findings on the primary outcome, parent-reported executive function, were null, between-group effect sizes on hyperactivity and visuospatial working memory may reflect adaptations to the specific challenges presented by distinct formats. Both groups demonstrated substantial within-group improvements on clinically relevant outcomes. Findings underscore the importance of programmatic features such as routines, engaging activities, behavior management strategies, and adult attention; and highlight the potential for after-school programs to benefit children with ADHD and DBD living in urban poverty where health needs are high and services resources few. PMID:26829000

Randomized Controlled Trial of Exercise for ADHD and Disruptive Behavior Disorders.

PubMed

Bustamante, Eduardo Esteban; Davis, Catherine Lucy; Frazier, Stacy Lynn; Rusch, Dana; Fogg, Louis F; Atkins, Marc S; Marquez, David Xavier

2016-07-01

The objective of this study is to test the feasibility and impact of a 10-wk after-school exercise program for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and/or disruptive behavior disorders living in an urban poor community. Children were randomized to an exercise program (n = 19) or a comparable but sedentary attention control program (n = 16). Cognitive and behavioral outcomes were collected pre-/posttest. Intent-to-treat mixed models tested group-time and group-time-attendance interactions. Effect sizes were calculated within and between groups. Feasibility was evidenced by 86% retention, 60% attendance, and average 75% maximum HR. Group-time results were null on the primary outcome, parent-reported executive function. Among secondary outcomes, between-group effect sizes favored exercise on hyperactive symptoms (d = 0.47) and verbal working memory (d = 0.26), and controls on visuospatial working memory (d = -0.21) and oppositional defiant symptoms (d = -0.37). In each group, within-group effect sizes were moderate to large on most outcomes (d = 0.67 to 1.60). A group-time-attendance interaction emerged on visuospatial working memory (F[1,33] = 7.42, P < 0.05), such that attendance to the control program was related to greater improvements (r = 0.72, P < 0.01), whereas attendance to the exercise program was not (r = 0.25, P = 0.34). Although between-group findings on the primary outcome, parent-reported executive function, were null, between-group effect sizes on hyperactivity and visuospatial working memory may reflect adaptations to the specific challenges presented by distinct formats. Both groups demonstrated substantial within-group improvements on clinically relevant outcomes. Findings underscore the importance of programmatic features, such as routines, engaging activities, behavior management strategies, and adult attention, and highlight the potential for after-school programs to benefit children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and disruptive behavior disorder living in urban poverty where health needs are high and services resources few.

Visuoconstructive abilities and visuospatial memory in autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disability: Is the role of local bias specific to the cognitive domain tested?

PubMed

Cardillo, Ramona; Menazza, Cristina; Mammarella, Irene C

2018-06-07

Visuospatial processing in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) without intellectual disability remains only partly understood. The aim of the present study was to investigate global versus local visuospatial processing in individuals with ASD, comparing them with typically developing (TD) controls in visuoconstructive and visuospatial memory tasks. There were 21 participants with ASD without intellectual disability, and 21 TD controls matched for chronological age (M = 161.37 months, SD = 38.19), gender, and perceptual reasoning index who were tested. Participants were administered tasks assessing the visuoconstructive domain and involving fine motor skills, and visuospatial memory tasks in which visuospatial information had to be manipulated mentally. Using a mixed-effects model approach, our results showed different effects of local bias in the ASD group, depending on the domain considered: the use of a local approach only emerged for the visuoconstructive domain-in which fine motor skills were involved. These results seem to suggest that the local bias typical of the cognitive profile of ASD without intellectual disability could be a property of specific cognitive domains rather than a central mechanism. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Visuospatial working memory in children with autism: the effect of a semantic global organization.

PubMed

Mammarella, Irene C; Giofrè, David; Caviola, Sara; Cornoldi, Cesare; Hamilton, Colin

2014-06-01

It has been reported that individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) perceive visual scenes as a sparse set of details rather than as a congruent and meaningful unit, failing in the extraction of the global configuration of the scene. In the present study, children with ASD were compared with typically developing (TD) children, in a visuospatial working memory task, the Visual Patterns Test (VPT). The VPT array was manipulated to vary the semantic affordance of the pattern, high semantic (global) vs. low semantic; temporal parameters were also manipulated within the change detection protocol. Overall, there was no main effect associated with Group, however there was a significant effect associated with Semantics, which was further qualified by an interaction between the Group and Semantic factors; there was only a significant effect of semantics in the TD group. The findings are discussed in light of the weak central coherence theory where the ASD group are unable to make use of long term memory semantics in order to construct global representations of the array. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dynamic frontotemporal systems process space and time in working memory

PubMed Central

Adams, Jenna N.; Solbakk, Anne-Kristin; Endestad, Tor; Larsson, Pål G.; Ivanovic, Jugoslav; Meling, Torstein R.; Lin, Jack J.; Knight, Robert T.

2018-01-01

How do we rapidly process incoming streams of information in working memory, a cognitive mechanism central to human behavior? Dominant views of working memory focus on the prefrontal cortex (PFC), but human hippocampal recordings provide a neurophysiological signature distinct from the PFC. Are these regions independent, or do they interact in the service of working memory? We addressed this core issue in behavior by recording directly from frontotemporal sites in humans performing a visuospatial working memory task that operationalizes the types of identity and spatiotemporal information we encounter every day. Theta band oscillations drove bidirectional interactions between the PFC and medial temporal lobe (MTL; including the hippocampus). MTL theta oscillations directed the PFC preferentially during the processing of spatiotemporal information, while PFC theta oscillations directed the MTL for all types of information being processed in working memory. These findings reveal an MTL theta mechanism for processing space and time and a domain-general PFC theta mechanism, providing evidence that rapid, dynamic MTL–PFC interactions underlie working memory for everyday experiences. PMID:29601574

Cross-modal activation of auditory regions during visuo-spatial working memory in early deafness.

PubMed

Ding, Hao; Qin, Wen; Liang, Meng; Ming, Dong; Wan, Baikun; Li, Qiang; Yu, Chunshui

2015-09-01

Early deafness can reshape deprived auditory regions to enable the processing of signals from the remaining intact sensory modalities. Cross-modal activation has been observed in auditory regions during non-auditory tasks in early deaf subjects. In hearing subjects, visual working memory can evoke activation of the visual cortex, which further contributes to behavioural performance. In early deaf subjects, however, whether and how auditory regions participate in visual working memory remains unclear. We hypothesized that auditory regions may be involved in visual working memory processing and activation of auditory regions may contribute to the superior behavioural performance of early deaf subjects. In this study, 41 early deaf subjects (22 females and 19 males, age range: 20-26 years, age of onset of deafness < 2 years) and 40 age- and gender-matched hearing controls underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging during a visuo-spatial delayed recognition task that consisted of encoding, maintenance and recognition stages. The early deaf subjects exhibited faster reaction times on the spatial working memory task than did the hearing controls. Compared with hearing controls, deaf subjects exhibited increased activation in the superior temporal gyrus bilaterally during the recognition stage. This increased activation amplitude predicted faster and more accurate working memory performance in deaf subjects. Deaf subjects also had increased activation in the superior temporal gyrus bilaterally during the maintenance stage and in the right superior temporal gyrus during the encoding stage. These increased activation amplitude also predicted faster reaction times on the spatial working memory task in deaf subjects. These findings suggest that cross-modal plasticity occurs in auditory association areas in early deaf subjects. These areas are involved in visuo-spatial working memory. Furthermore, amplitudes of cross-modal activation during the maintenance stage were positively correlated with the age of onset of hearing aid use and were negatively correlated with the percentage of lifetime hearing aid use in deaf subjects. These findings suggest that earlier and longer hearing aid use may inhibit cross-modal reorganization in early deaf subjects. Granger causality analysis revealed that, compared to the hearing controls, the deaf subjects had an enhanced net causal flow from the frontal eye field to the superior temporal gyrus. These findings indicate that a top-down mechanism may better account for the cross-modal activation of auditory regions in early deaf subjects.See MacSweeney and Cardin (doi:10/1093/awv197) for a scientific commentary on this article. © The Author (2015). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Guarantors of Brain. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Optimization of Apparatus Design and Behavioral Measures for the Assessment of Visuo-Spatial Learning and Memory of Mice on the Barnes Maze

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Leary, Timothy P.; Brown, Richard E.

2013-01-01

We have previously shown that apparatus design can affect visual-spatial cue use and memory performance of mice on the Barnes maze. The present experiment extends these findings by determining the optimal behavioral measures and test procedure for analyzing visuo-spatial learning and memory in three different Barnes maze designs. Male and female…

Cognitive predictors of copying and drawing from memory of the Rey-Osterrieth complex figure in 7- to 10-year-old children.

PubMed

Senese, Vincenzo Paolo; De Lucia, Natascia; Conson, Massimiliano

2015-01-01

Cognitive models of drawing are mainly based on assessment of copying performance of adults, whereas only a few studies have verified these models in young children. Moreover, developmental investigations have only rarely performed a systematic examination of the contribution of perceptual and representational visuo-spatial processes to copying and drawing from memory. In this study we investigated the role of visual perception and mental representation in both copying and drawing from memory skills in a sample of 227 typically developing children (53% females) aged 7-10 years. Participants underwent a neuropsychological assessment and the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure (ROCF). The fit and invariance of the predictive model considering visuo-spatial abilities, working memory, and executive functions were tested by means of hierarchical regressions and path analysis. Results showed that, in a gender invariant way, visual perception abilities and spatial mental representation had a direct effect on copying performance, whereas copying performance was the only specific predictor for drawing from memory. These effects were independent from age and socioeconomic status, and showed that cognitive models of drawing built up for adults could be considered for predicting copying and drawing from memory in children.

Identifying developmental coordination disorder: MOQ-T validity as a fast screening instrument based on teachers' ratings and its relationship with praxic and visuospatial working memory deficits.

PubMed

Giofrè, David; Cornoldi, Cesare; Schoemaker, Marina M

2014-12-01

The present study was devoted to test the validity of the Italian adaptation of the Motor Observation Questionnaire for Teachers (MOQ-T, Schoemaker, Flapper, Reinders-Messelink, & De Kloet, 2008) as a fast screening instrument, based on teachers' ratings, for detecting developmental coordination disorders symptoms and to study its relationship with praxic and visuospatial working memory deficits. In a first study on a large sample of children, we assessed the reliability and structure of the Italian adaptation of the MOQ-T. Results showed a good reliability of the questionnaire and a hierarchical structure with two first-order factors (reflecting motor and handwriting skills), which are influenced by a second-order factor (general motor function) at the top. In a second study, we looked at the external validity of the MOQ-T and found that children with symptoms of Developmental Coordination Disorder (children with high scores on the MOQ-T) also had difficulty reproducing gestures, either imitating others or in response to verbal prompts. Our results also showed that children with high MOQ-T scores had visuospatial WM impairments. The theoretical and clinical implications of these findings are discussed. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Validity of Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Recordings of Visuospatial Working Memory Processes in Humans.

PubMed

Witmer, Joëlle S; Aeschlimann, Eva A; Metz, Andreas J; Troche, Stefan J; Rammsayer, Thomas H

2018-04-05

Functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is increasingly used for investigating cognitive processes. To provide converging evidence for the validity of fNIRS recordings in cognitive neuroscience, we investigated functional activation in the frontal cortex in 43 participants during the processing of a visuospatial working memory (WM) task and a sensory duration discrimination (DD) task functionally unrelated to WM. To distinguish WM-related processes from a general effect of increased task demand, we applied an adaptive approach, which ensured that subjective task demand was virtually identical for all individuals and across both tasks. Our specified region of interest covered Brodmann Area 8 of the left hemisphere, known for its important role in the execution of WM processes. Functional activation, as indicated by an increase of oxygenated and a decrease of deoxygenated hemoglobin, was shown for the WM task, but not in the DD task. The overall pattern of results indicated that hemodynamic responses recorded by fNIRS are sensitive to specific visuospatial WM capacity-related processes and do not reflect a general effect of increased task demand. In addition, the finding that no such functional activation could be shown for participants with far above-average mental ability suggested different cognitive processes adopted by this latter group.

The Validity of Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Recordings of Visuospatial Working Memory Processes in Humans

PubMed Central

Witmer, Joëlle S.; Aeschlimann, Eva A.; Metz, Andreas J.; Rammsayer, Thomas H.

2018-01-01

Functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is increasingly used for investigating cognitive processes. To provide converging evidence for the validity of fNIRS recordings in cognitive neuroscience, we investigated functional activation in the frontal cortex in 43 participants during the processing of a visuospatial working memory (WM) task and a sensory duration discrimination (DD) task functionally unrelated to WM. To distinguish WM-related processes from a general effect of increased task demand, we applied an adaptive approach, which ensured that subjective task demand was virtually identical for all individuals and across both tasks. Our specified region of interest covered Brodmann Area 8 of the left hemisphere, known for its important role in the execution of WM processes. Functional activation, as indicated by an increase of oxygenated and a decrease of deoxygenated hemoglobin, was shown for the WM task, but not in the DD task. The overall pattern of results indicated that hemodynamic responses recorded by fNIRS are sensitive to specific visuospatial WM capacity-related processes and do not reflect a general effect of increased task demand. In addition, the finding that no such functional activation could be shown for participants with far above-average mental ability suggested different cognitive processes adopted by this latter group. PMID:29621179

Memory skills of deaf learners: implications and applications.

PubMed

Hamilton, Harley

2011-01-01

The author reviews research on working memory and short-term memory abilities of deaf individuals, delineating strengths and weaknesses. Among the areas of weakness that are reviewed are sequential recall, processing speed, attention, and memory load. Areas of strengths include free recall, visuospatial recall, imagery, and dual encoding. Phonological encoding and rehearsal appear to be strengths when these strategies are employed. The implications of the strengths and weaknesses for language learning and educational achievement are discussed. Research questions are posed, and remedial and compensatory classroom applications are suggested.

Long-term memory for verbal and visual information in Down syndrome and Williams syndrome: performance on the Doors and People test.

PubMed

Jarrold, Christopher; Baddeley, Alan D; Phillips, Caroline

2007-02-01

Previous studies have suggested that Williams syndrome and Down syndrome may be associated with specific short-term memory deficits. Individuals with Williams syndrome perform relatively poorly on tests of visuo-spatial short-term memory and individuals with Down syndrome show a relative deficit on verbal short-term memory tasks. However, these patterns of impairments may reflect the impact of generally impaired visuo-spatial processing skills in Williams syndrome, and verbal abilities in Down syndrome. The current study explored this possibility by assessing long-term memory among 15 individuals with Williams syndrome and 20 individuals with Down syndrome using the Doors and People test, a battery which assesses recall and recognition of verbal and visual information. Individuals' performance was standardised for age and level of intellectual ability with reference to that shown by a sample of 110 typically developing children. The results showed that individuals with Down syndrome have no differential deficits in long-term memory for verbal information, implying that verbal short-term memory deficits in this population are relatively selective. Instead both individuals with Down syndrome and with Williams syndrome showed some evidence of relatively poor performance on tests of long-term memory for visual information. It is therefore possible that visuo-spatial short-term memory deficits that have previously been demonstrated in Williams syndrome may be secondary to more general problems in visuo-spatial processing in this population.

A Life Course Model of Cognitive Activities, Socioeconomic Status, Education, Reading Ability, and Cognition

PubMed Central

Jefferson, Angela L.; Gibbons, Laura E.; Rentz, Dorene M.; Carvalho, Janessa O.; Manly, Jennifer; Bennett, David A.; Jones, Richard N.

2011-01-01

OBJECTIVES To cross-sectionally quantify the contribution of proxy measures of cognitive reserve reflective of the lifespan, such as education, socioeconomic status (SES), reading ability, and cognitive activities, in explaining late-life cognition. DESIGN Prospective observational cohort study of aging. SETTING Retirement communities across the Chicago metropolitan area. PARTICIPANTS Nine hundred fifty-one older adults free of clinical dementia in the Rush Memory and Aging Project (aged 79 ± 8, 74% female). MEASUREMENTS Baseline data on multiple life course factors included early-, mid-, and late-life participation in cognitive activities; early-life and adult SES; education; and reading ability (National Adult Reading Test; NART). Path analysis quantified direct and indirect standardized effects of life course factors on global cognition and five cognitive domains (episodic memory, semantic memory, working memory, visuospatial ability, perceptual speed). RESULTS Adjusting for age, sex, and race, education had the strongest association with global cognition, episodic memory, semantic memory, and visuospatial ability, whereas NART (followed by education) had the strongest association with working memory. Late-life cognitive activities had the strongest association with perceptual speed, followed by education. CONCLUSIONS These cross-sectional findings suggest that education and reading ability are the most-robust proxy measures of cognitive reserve in relation to late-life cognition. Additional research leveraging path analysis is warranted to better understand how these life course factors, reflecting the latent construct of cognitive reserve, affect abnormal cognitive aging. PMID:21797830

A life course model of cognitive activities, socioeconomic status, education, reading ability, and cognition.

PubMed

Jefferson, Angela L; Gibbons, Laura E; Rentz, Dorene M; Carvalho, Janessa O; Manly, Jennifer; Bennett, David A; Jones, Richard N

2011-08-01

To cross-sectionally quantify the contribution of proxy measures of cognitive reserve reflective of the lifespan, such as education, socioeconomic status (SES), reading ability, and cognitive activities, in explaining late-life cognition. Prospective observational cohort study of aging. Retirement communities across the Chicago metropolitan area. Nine hundred fifty-one older adults free of clinical dementia in the Rush Memory and Aging Project (aged 79 ± 8, 74% female). Baseline data on multiple life course factors included early-, mid-, and late-life participation in cognitive activities; early-life and adult SES; education; and reading ability (National Adult Reading Test; NART). Path analysis quantified direct and indirect standardized effects of life course factors on global cognition and five cognitive domains (episodic memory, semantic memory, working memory, visuospatial ability, perceptual speed). Adjusting for age, sex, and race, education had the strongest association with global cognition, episodic memory, semantic memory, and visuospatial ability, whereas NART (followed by education) had the strongest association with working memory. Late-life cognitive activities had the strongest association with perceptual speed, followed by education. These cross-sectional findings suggest that education and reading ability are the most-robust proxy measures of cognitive reserve in relation to late-life cognition. Additional research leveraging path analysis is warranted to better understand how these life course factors, reflecting the latent construct of cognitive reserve, affect abnormal cognitive aging. © 2011, Copyright the Authors. Journal compilation © 2011, The American Geriatrics Society.

Central coherence, organizational strategy, and visuospatial memory in children and adolescents with anorexia nervosa.

PubMed

Rose, Mark; Frampton, Ian J; Lask, Bryan

2014-01-01

The vast majority of studies in anorexia nervosa that have investigated the domains of central coherence, organizational strategy, and visuospatial memory have focused on adult samples. In addition, studies investigating visuospatial memory have focused on free recall. No study to date has reported the association between recognition memory and central coherence or organizational strategy in younger people with this disorder, yet the capacity to recognize previously seen visual stimuli may contribute to overall visuospatial ability. Therefore, we investigate these domains in children and adolescents with anorexia nervosa compared to age- and gender-matched healthy controls. There were no significant group differences in immediate, delayed, or recognition memory, central coherence, or organization strategy. When compared with controls, patients with anorexia nervosa scored significantly higher on accuracy and took significantly longer when copying the Rey Complex Figure Task. Caution must be taken when interpreting these findings due to lower-than-expected scores in memory performance in the control group and because of a potential lack of sensitivity in the measures used when assessing this younger population. For neuropsychological functions where no normative data exist, we need a deeper, more thorough knowledge of the developmental trajectory and its assessment in young people in the general population before drawing conclusions in anorexia nervosa.

Sex-Related Differences in the Effects of Sleep Habits on Verbal and Visuospatial Working Memory

PubMed Central

Nakagawa, Seishu; Takeuchi, Hikaru; Taki, Yasuyuki; Nouchi, Rui; Sekiguchi, Atsushi; Kotozaki, Yuka; Miyauchi, Carlos M.; Iizuka, Kunio; Yokoyama, Ryoichi; Shinada, Takamitsu; Yamamoto, Yuki; Hanawa, Sugiko; Araki, Tsuyoshi; Kunitoki, Keiko; Sassa, Yuko; Kawashima, Ryuta

2016-01-01

Poor sleep quality negatively affects memory performance, and working memory in particular. We investigated sleep habits related to sleep quality including sleep duration, daytime nap duration, nap frequency, and dream content recall frequency (DCRF). Declarative working memory can be subdivided into verbal working memory (VWM) and visuospatial working memory (VSWM). We hypothesized that sleep habits would have different effects on VWM and VSWM. To our knowledge, our study is the first to investigate differences between VWM and VSWM related to daytime nap duration, nap frequency, and DCRF. Furthermore, we tested the hypothesis that the effects of duration and frequency of daytime naps and DCRF on VWM and VSWM differed according to sex. We assessed 779 healthy right-handed individuals (434 males and 345 females; mean age: 20.7 ± 1.8 years) using a digit span forward and backward VWM task, a forward and backward VSWM task, and sleep habits scales. A correlation analysis was used to test the relationships between VWM capacity (VWMC) and VSWM capacity (VSWMC) scores and sleep duration, nap duration, nap frequency, and DCRF. Furthermore, multiple regression analyses were conducted to identify factors associated with VWMC and VSWMC scores and to identify sex-related differences. We found significant positive correlations between VSWMC and nap duration and DCRF, and between VWMC and sleep duration in all subjects. Furthermore, we found that working memory capacity (WMC) was positively correlated with nap duration in males and with sleep duration in females, and DCRF was positively correlated with VSWMC in females. Our finding of sex-related differences in the effects of sleep habits on WMC has not been reported previously. The associations between WMC and sleep habits differed according to sex because of differences in the underlying neural correlates of VWM and VSWM, and effectiveness of the sleep habits in males and females. PMID:27516751

Sex-Related Differences in the Effects of Sleep Habits on Verbal and Visuospatial Working Memory.

PubMed

Nakagawa, Seishu; Takeuchi, Hikaru; Taki, Yasuyuki; Nouchi, Rui; Sekiguchi, Atsushi; Kotozaki, Yuka; Miyauchi, Carlos M; Iizuka, Kunio; Yokoyama, Ryoichi; Shinada, Takamitsu; Yamamoto, Yuki; Hanawa, Sugiko; Araki, Tsuyoshi; Kunitoki, Keiko; Sassa, Yuko; Kawashima, Ryuta

2016-01-01

Poor sleep quality negatively affects memory performance, and working memory in particular. We investigated sleep habits related to sleep quality including sleep duration, daytime nap duration, nap frequency, and dream content recall frequency (DCRF). Declarative working memory can be subdivided into verbal working memory (VWM) and visuospatial working memory (VSWM). We hypothesized that sleep habits would have different effects on VWM and VSWM. To our knowledge, our study is the first to investigate differences between VWM and VSWM related to daytime nap duration, nap frequency, and DCRF. Furthermore, we tested the hypothesis that the effects of duration and frequency of daytime naps and DCRF on VWM and VSWM differed according to sex. We assessed 779 healthy right-handed individuals (434 males and 345 females; mean age: 20.7 ± 1.8 years) using a digit span forward and backward VWM task, a forward and backward VSWM task, and sleep habits scales. A correlation analysis was used to test the relationships between VWM capacity (VWMC) and VSWM capacity (VSWMC) scores and sleep duration, nap duration, nap frequency, and DCRF. Furthermore, multiple regression analyses were conducted to identify factors associated with VWMC and VSWMC scores and to identify sex-related differences. We found significant positive correlations between VSWMC and nap duration and DCRF, and between VWMC and sleep duration in all subjects. Furthermore, we found that working memory capacity (WMC) was positively correlated with nap duration in males and with sleep duration in females, and DCRF was positively correlated with VSWMC in females. Our finding of sex-related differences in the effects of sleep habits on WMC has not been reported previously. The associations between WMC and sleep habits differed according to sex because of differences in the underlying neural correlates of VWM and VSWM, and effectiveness of the sleep habits in males and females.

Executive Functioning in Highly Talented Soccer Players

PubMed Central

Verburgh, Lot; Scherder, Erik J. A.; van Lange, Paul A.M.; Oosterlaan, Jaap

2014-01-01

Executive functions might be important for successful performance in sports, particularly in team sports requiring quick anticipation and adaptation to continuously changing situations in the field. The executive functions motor inhibition, attention and visuospatial working memory were examined in highly talented soccer players. Eighty-four highly talented youth soccer players (mean age 11.9), and forty-two age-matched amateur soccer players (mean age 11.8) in the age range 8 to 16 years performed a Stop Signal task (motor inhibition), the Attention Network Test (alerting, orienting, and executive attention) and a visuospatial working memory task. The highly talented soccer players followed the talent development program of the youth academy of a professional soccer club and played at the highest national soccer competition for their age. The amateur soccer players played at a regular soccer club in the same geographical region as the highly talented soccer players and play in a regular regional soccer competition. Group differences were tested using analyses of variance. The highly talented group showed superior motor inhibition as measured by stop signal reaction time (SSRT) on the Stop Signal task and a larger alerting effect on the Attention Network Test, indicating an enhanced ability to attain and maintain an alert state. No group differences were found for orienting and executive attention and visuospatial working memory. A logistic regression model with group (highly talented or amateur) as dependent variable and executive function measures that significantly distinguished between groups as predictors showed that these measures differentiated highly talented soccer players from amateur soccer players with 89% accuracy. Highly talented youth soccer players outperform youth amateur players on suppressing ongoing motor responses and on the ability to attain and maintain an alert state; both may be essential for success in soccer. PMID:24632735

A Familiar Pattern? Semantic Memory Contributes to the Enhancement of Visuo-Spatial Memories

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Riby, Leigh M.; Orme, Elizabeth

2013-01-01

In this study we quantify for the first time electrophysiological components associated with incorporating long-term semantic knowledge with visuo-spatial information using two variants of a traditional matrix patterns task. Results indicated that the matrix task with greater semantic content was associated with enhanced accuracy and RTs in a…

The effects of soy milk and isoflavone supplements on cognitive performance in healthy, postmenopausal women.

PubMed

Fournier, L R; Ryan Borchers, T A; Robison, L M; Wiediger, M; Park, J S; Chew, B P; McGuire, M K; Sclar, D A; Skaer, T L; Beerman, K A

2007-01-01

The decline in estrogen concentrations in women after menopause can contribute to health related changes including impairments in cognition, especially memory. Because of the health concerns related to hormone replacement therapy (HRT), alternative approaches to treat menopausal symptoms, such as nutritional supplements and/or diet containing isoflavones, are of interest. This study investigated whether soy isoflavones (soy milk and supplement) could improve cognitive functioning in healthy, postmenopausal women. PARTICIPANTS, INTERVENTION AND DESIGN: A total of 79 postmenopausal women, 48-65 years of age, completed a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in which they were randomly assigned to one of three experimental groups: cow's milk and a placebo supplement (control); soy milk and placebo supplement (soy milk, 72 mg isoflavones/day); or cow's milk and isoflavone supplement (isoflavone supplement, 70 mg isoflavones/day). Cognitive functioning was assessed using various cognitive tasks before the intervention (baseline) and after the intervention (test). In contrast to predictions, soy isoflavones did not improve selective attention (Stroop task), visual long-term memory (pattern recognition), short-term visuospatial memory (Benton Visual Retention Test), or visuo-spatial working memory (color match task). Also, the soy milk group showed a decline in verbal working memory (Digit Ordering Task) compared to the soy supplement and control groups. Soy isoflavones consumed as a food or supplement over a 16-week period did not improve or appreciably affect cognitive functioning in healthy, postmenopausal women.

Handwriting Fluency and Visuospatial Generativity at Primary School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stievano, Paolo; Michetti, Silvia; McClintock, Shawn M.; Levi, Gabriel; Scalisi, Teresa Gloria

2016-01-01

Handwriting is a complex activity that involves continuous interaction between lowerlevel perceptual-motor and higher-level cognitive processes. All handwriting models describe involvement of executive functions (EF) in handwriting development. Particular EF domains associated with handwriting include maintenance of information in working memory,…

Bilingualism Enriches the Poor: Enhanced Cognitive Control in Low-Income Minority Children

PubMed Central

Engel de Abreu, Pascale M. J.; Cruz-Santos, Anabela; Tourinho, Carlos J.; Martin, Romain; Bialystok, Ellen

2014-01-01

This study explores whether the cognitive advantage associated with bilingualism in executive functioning extends to young immigrant children challenged by poverty and, if it does, which specific processes are most affected. In the study reported here, 40 Portuguese-Luxembourgish bilingual children from low-income immigrant families in Luxembourg and 40 matched monolingual children from Portugal completed visuospatial tests of working memory, abstract reasoning, selective attention, and interference suppression. Two broad cognitive factors of executive functioning—representation (abstract reasoning and working memory) and control (selective attention and interference suppression)—emerged from principal component analysis. Whereas there were no group differences in representation, the bilinguals performed significantly better than did the monolinguals in control. These results demonstrate, first, that the bilingual advantage is neither confounded with nor limited by socioeconomic and cultural factors and, second, that separable aspects of executive functioning are differentially affected by bilingualism. The bilingual advantage lies in control but not in visuospatial representational processes. PMID:23044796

Individual differences and emotional inferences during reading comprehension.

PubMed

Gillioz, Christelle; Gygax, Pascal; Tapiero, Isabelle

2012-12-01

This study investigated readers' representations of the main protagonist's emotional status in short narratives, as well as several mental factors that may affect these representations. General and visuospatial working memory, empathy, and simulation were investigated as potential individual differences in generating emotional inferences. Participants were confronted with narratives conveying information about the protagonist's emotional state. We manipulated each narrative's target sentence according to its content (emotional label vs. description of the behaviour associated to the emotion) and its congruence to the story (matching vs. mismatching). The results showed that globally the difference between reading times of congruent and incongruent target sentences was bigger in the behavioural than in the emotional condition. This pattern was accentuated for high visuospatial working memory participants when they were asked to simulate the stories. These results support the idea that mental models may be of a perceptual nature and may more likely include behavioural elements than emotion labels per se, as suggested earlier by Gygax et al. (2007). 2012 APA, all rights reserved

Writing abilities and the role of working memory in children with symptoms of attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder.

PubMed

Capodieci, Agnese; Serafini, Alice; Dessuki, Alice; Cornoldi, Cesare

2018-02-20

The writing abilities of children with ADHD symptoms were examined in a simple dictation task, and then in two conditions with concurrent verbal or visuospatial working memory (WM) loads. The children with ADHD symptoms generally made more spelling mistakes than controls, and the concurrent loads impaired their performance, but with partly different effects. The concurrent verbal WM task prompted an increase in the phonological errors, while the concurrent visuospatial WM task prompted more non-phonological errors, matching the Italian phonology, but not the Italian orthography. In the ADHD group, the children proving better able to cope with a concurrent verbal WM load had a better spelling performance too. The ADHD and control groups had a similar handwriting speed, but the former group's writing quality was poorer. Our results suggest that WM supports writing skills, and that children with ADHD symptoms have general writing difficulties, but strength in coping with concurrent verbal information may support their spelling performance.

The association of visuospatial working memory with dysthymic disorder in pre-pubertal children.

PubMed

Franklin, T; Lee, A; Hall, N; Hetrick, S; Ong, J; Haslam, N; Karsz, F; Vance, A

2010-02-01

Visuospatial working memory (VSWM) deficits have not been investigated specifically in children with dysthymic disorder (DD), although they are associated with impairments in attention that commonly occur in DD. This study investigates VSWM impairment in children with DD. A cross-sectional study of VSWM in 6- to 12-year-old children with medication-naive DD (n=26) compared to an age-, gender- and 'performance IQ' (PIQ)-matched healthy control group (n=28) was completed. The DD group demonstrated impairment in VSWM, including impairment in the spatial span and strategy components of VSWM. Furthermore, the VSWM impairment remained after controlling for spatial span. Inattentive symptoms were significantly associated with the VSWM impairment. This study of children with DD found deficits in performance on VSWM tasks, suggesting that fronto-striatal-parietal neural networks that underlie processes of attention and the executive component of VSWM are dysfunctional in children with DD. These findings further our understanding of DD and suggest more specific interventions that might improve functioning.

Cognitive dysfunction in lower motor neuron disease: executive and memory deficits in progressive muscular atrophy.

PubMed

Raaphorst, Joost; de Visser, Marianne; van Tol, Marie-José; Linssen, Wim H J P; van der Kooi, Anneke J; de Haan, Rob J; van den Berg, Leonard H; Schmand, Ben

2011-02-01

In contrast with findings in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), cognitive impairments have as yet not been shown in the lower motor neuron variant of motor neuron disease, progressive spinal muscular atrophy (PMA). The objective of this study was to investigate cognitive function in PMA and to compare the cognitive profile with that of ALS. In addition, visuospatial functions were assessed comprehensively; these tests are underrepresented in earlier neuropsychological investigations in ALS. 23 PMA and 30 ALS patients (vital capacity >70% of predicted value) underwent a neuropsychological assessment adapted to motor impairments: global cognitive and executive functioning, psychomotor speed, memory, language, attention and visuospatial skills. The results were compared with age, education and sex matched controls and with normative data. Compared with controls, PMA patients performed worse on attention/working memory (digit span backward), category fluency and the Mini-Mental State Examination. Compared with normative data, PMA patients most frequently showed impairment on three measures: letter-number sequencing, and immediate and delayed story recall. 17% of PMA patients showed cognitive impairment, defined as performance below 2 SDs from the mean of normative data on at least three neuropsychological tests. In ALS, similar but more extensive cognitive deficits were found. Visuospatial dysfunction was not found in PMA and ALS. 17% of PMA patients have executive and memory impairments. PMA with cognitive impairment adds a formerly unknown phenotype to the existing classification of motor neuron diseases.

Neuronal substrates of Corsi Block span: Lesion symptom mapping analyses in relation to attentional competition and spatial bias.

PubMed

Chechlacz, Magdalena; Rotshtein, Pia; Humphreys, Glyn W

2014-11-01

Spatial working memory problems are frequently reported following brain damage within both left and right hemispheres but with the severity often being grater in individuals with right hemisphere lesions. Clinically, deficits in spatial working memory have also been noted in patients with visuospatial disorders such as unilateral neglect. Here, we examined neural substrates of short-term memory for spatial locations based on the Corsi Block tapping task and the relationship with the visuospatial deficits of neglect and extinction in a group of chronic neuropsychological patients. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to distinguish shared and dissociate functional components. The neural substrates of spatial short-term memory deficits and the components identified by PCA were examined using whole brain voxel-based morphometry and tract-wise lesion deficits analyses. We found that bilateral lesions within occipital cortex (middle occipital gyrus) and right posterior parietal cortex, along with disconnection of the right parieto-temporal segment of arcuate fasciculus, were associated with low spatial memory span. A single component revealed by PCA accounted for over half of the variance and was linked to damage to right posterior brain regions (temporo-parietal junction, the inferior parietal lobule and middle temporal gyrus extending into middle occipital gyrus). We also found link to disconnections within several association pathways including the superior longitudinal fasciculus, arcuate fasciculus, inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus and inferior longitudinal fasciculus. These results indicate that different visuospatial deficits converge into a single component mapped within posterior parietal areas and fronto-parietal white matter pathways. Furthermore, the data presented here fit with the role of posterior parietal cortex/temporo-parietal junction in maintaining a map of salient locations in space, with Corsi Block performance being impaired when the spatial map is damaged. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Integration of Realistic Episodic Memories Relies on Different Working Memory Processes: Evidence from Virtual Navigation.

PubMed

Plancher, Gaën; Gyselinck, Valérie; Piolino, Pascale

2018-01-01

Memory is one of the most important cognitive functions in a person's life as it is essential for recalling personal memories and performing many everyday tasks. Although a huge number of studies have been conducted in the field, only a few of them investigated memory in realistic situations, due to methodological issues. The various tools that have been developed using virtual environments (VEs) have gained popularity in cognitive psychology and neuropsychology because they enable to create naturalistic and controlled situations, and are thus particularly adapted to the study of episodic memory (EM), for which an ecological evaluation is of prime importance. EM is the conscious recollection of personal events combined with their phenomenological and spatiotemporal encoding contexts. Using an original paradigm in a VE, the objective of the present study was to characterize the construction of episodic memories. While the concept of working memory has become central in the understanding of a wide range of cognitive functions, its role in the integration of episodic memories has seldom been assessed in an ecological context. This experiment aimed at filling this gap by studying how EM is affected by concurrent tasks requiring working memory resources in a realistic situation. Participants navigated in a virtual town and had to memorize as many elements in their spatiotemporal context as they could. During learning, participants had either to perform a concurrent task meant to prevent maintenance through the phonological loop, or a task aimed at preventing maintenance through the visuospatial sketchpad, or no concurrent task. EM was assessed in a recall test performed after learning through various scores measuring the what, where and when of the memories. Results showed that, compared to the control condition with no concurrent task, the prevention of maintenance through the phonological loop had a deleterious impact only on the encoding of central elements. By contrast, the prevention of visuo-spatial maintenance interfered both with the encoding of the temporal context and with the binding. These results suggest that the integration of realistic episodic memories relies on different working memory processes that depend on the nature of the traces.

Attentive Tracking Disrupts Feature Binding in Visual Working Memory

PubMed Central

Fougnie, Daryl; Marois, René

2009-01-01

One of the most influential theories in visual cognition proposes that attention is necessary to bind different visual features into coherent object percepts (Treisman & Gelade, 1980). While considerable evidence supports a role for attention in perceptual feature binding, whether attention plays a similar function in visual working memory (VWM) remains controversial. To test the attentional requirements of VWM feature binding, here we gave participants an attention-demanding multiple object tracking task during the retention interval of a VWM task. Results show that the tracking task disrupted memory for color-shape conjunctions above and beyond any impairment to working memory for object features, and that this impairment was larger when the VWM stimuli were presented at different spatial locations. These results demonstrate that the role of visuospatial attention in feature binding is not unique to perception, but extends to the working memory of these perceptual representations as well. PMID:19609460

Superordinate Level Processing Has Priority Over Basic-Level Processing in Scene Gist Recognition

PubMed Central

Sun, Qi; Zheng, Yang; Sun, Mingxia; Zheng, Yuanjie

2016-01-01

By combining a perceptual discrimination task and a visuospatial working memory task, the present study examined the effects of visuospatial working memory load on the hierarchical processing of scene gist. In the perceptual discrimination task, two scene images from the same (manmade–manmade pairing or natural–natural pairing) or different superordinate level categories (manmade–natural pairing) were presented simultaneously, and participants were asked to judge whether these two images belonged to the same basic-level category (e.g., street–street pairing) or not (e.g., street–highway pairing). In the concurrent working memory task, spatial load (position-based load in Experiment 1) and object load (figure-based load in Experiment 2) were manipulated. The results were as follows: (a) spatial load and object load have stronger effects on discrimination of same basic-level scene pairing than same superordinate level scene pairing; (b) spatial load has a larger impact on the discrimination of scene pairings at early stages than at later stages; on the contrary, object information has a larger influence on at later stages than at early stages. It followed that superordinate level processing has priority over basic-level processing in scene gist recognition and spatial information contributes to the earlier and object information to the later stages in scene gist recognition. PMID:28382195

Tracing a Route and Finding a Shortcut: The Working Memory, Motivational, and Personality Factors Involved.

PubMed

Pazzaglia, Francesca; Meneghetti, Chiara; Ronconi, Lucia

2018-01-01

Wayfinding (WF) is the ability to move around efficiently and find the way from a starting point to a destination. It is a component of spatial navigation, a coordinate and goal-directed movement of one's self through the environment. In the present study, the relationship between WF tasks (route tracing and shortcut finding) and individual factors were explored with the hypothesis that WF tasks would be predicted by different types of cognitive, affective, motivational variables, and personality factors. A group of 116 university students (88 F.) were conducted along a route in a virtual environment and then asked first to trace the same route again, and then to find a shortcut between the start and end points. Several instruments assessing visuospatial working memory, mental rotation ability, self-efficacy, spatial anxiety, positive attitude to exploring, and personality traits were administered. The results showed that a latent spatial ability factor (measured with the visuospatial working memory and mental rotations tests) - controlled for gender - predicted route-tracing performance, while self-report measures of anxiety, efficacy, and pleasure in exploring, and some personality traits were more likely to predict shortcut-finding performance. We concluded that both personality and cognitive abilities affect WF performance, but differently, depending on the requirements of the task.

Specialization of the Right Intraparietal Sulcus for Processing Mathematics During Development.

PubMed

Schel, Margot A; Klingberg, Torkel

2017-09-01

Mathematical ability, especially perception of numbers and performance of arithmetics, is known to rely on the activation of intraparietal sulcus (IPS). However, reasoning ability and working memory, 2 highly associated abilities also activate partly overlapping regions. Most studies aimed at localizing mathematical function have used group averages, where individual variability is averaged out, thus confounding the anatomical specificity when localizing cognitive functions. Here, we analyze the functional anatomy of the intraparietal cortex by using individual analysis of subregions of IPS based on how they are structurally connected to frontal, parietal, and occipital cortex. Analysis of cortical thickness showed that the right anterior IPS, defined by its connections to the frontal lobe, was associated with both visuospatial working memory, and mathematics in 6-year-old children. This region specialized during development to be specifically related to mathematics, but not visuospatial working memory in adolescents and adults. This could be an example of interactive specialization, where interacting with the environment in combination with interactions between cortical regions leads from a more general role of right anterior IPS in spatial processing, to a specialization of this region for mathematics. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Neuropsychological function in patients with anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa.

PubMed

Weider, Siri; Indredavik, Marit Saebø; Lydersen, Stian; Hestad, Knut

2015-05-01

This study explored the neuropsychological performance of patients diagnosed with anorexia nervosa (AN) or bulimia nervosa (BN) compared with healthy controls (HCs). An additional aim was to investigate the effect of several possible mediators on the association between eating disorders (EDs) and cognitive function. Forty patients with AN, 39 patients with BN, and 40 HCs who were comparable in age and education were consecutively recruited to complete a standardized neuropsychological test battery covering the following cognitive domains: verbal learning and memory, visual learning and memory, speed of information processing, visuospatial ability, working memory, executive function, verbal fluency, attention/vigilance, and motor function. The AN group scored significantly below the HCs on eight of the nine measured cognitive domains. The BN group also showed inferior performance on six cognitive domains. After adjusting for possible mediators, the nadir body mass index (lowest lifetime BMI) and depressive symptoms explained all findings in the BN group. Although this adjustment reduced the difference between the AN and HC groups, the AN group still performed worse than the HCs regarding verbal learning and memory, visual learning and memory, visuospatial ability, working memory, and executive functioning. Patients with EDs scored below the HCs on several cognitive function measures, this difference being most pronounced for the AN group. The nadir BMI and depressive symptoms had strong mediating effects. Longitudinal studies are needed to identify the importance of weight restoration and treatment of depressive symptoms in the prevention of a possible cognitive decline. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The selective disruption of spatial working memory by eye movements

PubMed Central

Postle, Bradley R.; Idzikowski, Christopher; Sala, Sergio Della; Logie, Robert H.; Baddeley, Alan D.

2005-01-01

In the late 1970s/early 1980s, Baddeley and colleagues conducted a series of experiments investigating the role of eye movements in visual working memory. Although only described briefly in a book (Baddeley, 1986), these studies have influenced a remarkable number of empirical and theoretical developments in fields ranging from experimental psychology to human neuropsychology to nonhuman primate electrophysiology. This paper presents, in full detail, three critical studies from this series, together with a recently performed study that includes a level of eye movement measurement and control that was not available for the older studies. Together, the results demonstrate several facts about the sensitivity of visuospatial working memory to eye movements. First, it is eye movement control, not movement per se, that produces the disruptive effects. Second, these effects are limited to working memory for locations, and do not generalize to visual working memory for shapes. Third, they can be isolated to the storage/maintenance components of working memory (e.g., to the delay period of the delayed-recognition task). These facts have important implications for models of visual working memory. PMID:16556561

Brain regions that retain the spatial layout of tactile stimuli during working memory - A 'tactospatial sketchpad'?

PubMed

Schmidt, Timo Torsten; Blankenburg, Felix

2018-05-31

Working memory (WM) studies have been essential for ascertaining how the brain flexibly handles mentally represented information in the absence of sensory stimulation. Most studies on the memory of sensory stimulus features have focused, however, on the visual domain. Here, we report a human WM study in the tactile modality where participants had to memorize the spatial layout of patterned Braille-like stimuli presented to the index finger. We used a whole-brain searchlight approach in combination with multi-voxel pattern analysis (MVPA) to investigate tactile WM representations without a priori assumptions about which brain regions code tactospatial information. Our analysis revealed that posterior and parietal cortices, as well as premotor regions, retained information across the twelve-second delay phase. Interestingly, parts of this brain network were previously shown to also contain information of visuospatial WM. Also, by specifically testing somatosensory regions for WM representations, we observed content-specific activation patterns in primary somatosensory cortex (SI). Our findings demonstrate that tactile WM depends on a distributed network of brain regions in analogy to the representation of visuospatial information. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Toward a visuospatial developmental account of sequence-space synesthesia

PubMed Central

Price, Mark C.; Pearson, David G.

2013-01-01

Sequence-space synesthetes experience some sequences (e.g., numbers, calendar units) as arranged in spatial forms, i.e., spatial patterns in their mind's eye or even outside their body. Various explanations have been offered for this phenomenon. Here we argue that these spatial forms are continuous with varieties of non-synesthetic visuospatial imagery and share their central characteristics. This includes their dynamic and elaborative nature, their involuntary feel, and consistency over time. Drawing from literatures on mental imagery and working memory, we suggest how the initial acquisition and subsequent elaboration of spatial forms could be accounted for in terms of the known developmental trajectory of visuospatial representations. This extends from the formation of image-based representations of verbal material in childhood to the later maturation of dynamic control of imagery. Individual differences in the development of visuospatial style also account for variation in the character of spatial forms, e.g., in terms of distinctions such as visual versus spatial imagery, or ego-centric versus object-based transformations. PMID:24187538

Working Memory in Students with Mathematical Difficulties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nur, I. R. D.; Herman, T.; Ningsih, S.

2018-04-01

Learning process is the activities that has important role because this process is one of the all factors that establish students success in learning. oftentimes we find so many students get the difficulties when they study mathematics. This condition is not only because of the outside factor but also it comes from the inside. The purpose of this research is to analyze and give the representation how students working memory happened in physical education students for basic statistics subjects which have mathematical difficulties. The subjects are 4 students which have a mathematical difficulties. The research method is case study and when the describe about students working memory are explanated deeply with naturalistic observation. Based on this research, it was founded that 4 students have a working memory deficit in three components. The components are phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, dan episodic buffer.

Oculomotor preparation as a rehearsal mechanism in spatial working memory.

PubMed

Pearson, David G; Ball, Keira; Smith, Daniel T

2014-09-01

There is little consensus regarding the specific processes responsible for encoding, maintenance, and retrieval of information in visuo-spatial working memory (VSWM). One influential theory is that VSWM may involve activation of the eye-movement (oculomotor) system. In this study we experimentally prevented healthy participants from planning or executing saccadic eye-movements during the encoding, maintenance, and retrieval stages of visual and spatial working memory tasks. Participants experienced a significant reduction in spatial memory span only when oculomotor preparation was prevented during encoding or maintenance. In contrast there was no reduction when oculomotor preparation was prevented only during retrieval. These results show that (a) involvement of the oculomotor system is necessary for optimal maintenance of directly-indicated locations in spatial working memory and (b) oculomotor preparation is not necessary during retrieval from spatial working memory. We propose that this study is the first to unambiguously demonstrate that the oculomotor system contributes to the maintenance of spatial locations in working memory independently from the involvement of covert attention. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sustained attention is favored by progesterone during early luteal phase and visuo-spatial memory by estrogens during ovulatory phase in young women.

PubMed

Solís-Ortiz, S; Corsi-Cabrera, M

2008-08-01

Studies examining the influence of the menstrual cycle on cognitive function have been highly contradictory. The maintenance of attention is key to successful information processing, however how it co-vary with other cognitive functions and mood in function of phases of the menstrual cycle is not well know. Therefore, neuropsychological performance of nine healthy women with regular menstrual cycles was assessed during ovulation (OVU), early luteal (EL), late luteal (LL) and menstrual (MEN) phases. Neuropsychological test scores of sustained attention, executive functions, manual coordination, visuo-spatial memory, verbal fluency, spatial ability, anxiety and depression were obtained and submitted to a principal components analysis (PCA). Five eigenvectors that accounted the 68.31% of the total variance were identified. Performance of the sustained attention was grouped in an independent eigenvector (component 1), and the scores on verbal fluency and visuo-spatial memory were grouped together in an eigenvector (component 5), which explained 17.69% and 12.03% of the total variance, respectively. The component 1 (p<0.034) and the component 5 (p<0.003) showed significant variations during the menstrual cycle. Sustained attention showed an increase in the EL phase, when the progesterone is high. Visuo-spatial memory was increased, while that verbal fluency was decreased during the OVU phase, when the estrogens levels are high. These results indicate that sustained attention is favored by early luteal phase progesterone and do not covaried with any other neuropsychological variables studied. The influence of the estrogens on visuo-spatial memory was corroborated, and covaried inversely with verbal fluency.

Working Memory Training Does Not Improve Performance on Measures of Intelligence or Other Measures of “Far Transfer”

PubMed Central

Melby-Lervåg, Monica; Redick, Thomas S.; Hulme, Charles

2016-01-01

It has been claimed that working memory training programs produce diverse beneficial effects. This article presents a meta-analysis of working memory training studies (with a pretest-posttest design and a control group) that have examined transfer to other measures (nonverbal ability, verbal ability, word decoding, reading comprehension, or arithmetic; 87 publications with 145 experimental comparisons). Immediately following training there were reliable improvements on measures of intermediate transfer (verbal and visuospatial working memory). For measures of far transfer (nonverbal ability, verbal ability, word decoding, reading comprehension, arithmetic) there was no convincing evidence of any reliable improvements when working memory training was compared with a treated control condition. Furthermore, mediation analyses indicated that across studies, the degree of improvement on working memory measures was not related to the magnitude of far-transfer effects found. Finally, analysis of publication bias shows that there is no evidential value from the studies of working memory training using treated controls. The authors conclude that working memory training programs appear to produce short-term, specific training effects that do not generalize to measures of “real-world” cognitive skills. These results seriously question the practical and theoretical importance of current computerized working memory programs as methods of training working memory skills. PMID:27474138

Augmented Reality for the Assessment of Children's Spatial Memory in Real Settings

PubMed Central

Juan, M.-Carmen; Mendez-Lopez, Magdalena; Perez-Hernandez, Elena; Albiol-Perez, Sergio

2014-01-01

Short-term memory can be defined as the capacity for holding a small amount of information in mind in an active state for a short period of time. Although some instruments have been developed to study spatial short-term memory in real environments, there are no instruments that are specifically designed to assess visuospatial short-term memory in an attractive way to children. In this paper, we present the ARSM (Augmented Reality Spatial Memory) task, the first Augmented Reality task that involves a user's movement to assess spatial short-term memory in healthy children. The experimental procedure of the ARSM task was designed to assess the children's skill to retain visuospatial information. They were individually asked to remember the real place where augmented reality objects were located. The children (N = 76) were divided into two groups: preschool (5–6 year olds) and primary school (7–8 year olds). We found a significant improvement in ARSM task performance in the older group. The correlations between scores for the ARSM task and traditional procedures were significant. These traditional procedures were the Dot Matrix subtest for the assessment of visuospatial short-term memory of the computerized AWMA-2 battery and a parent's questionnaire about a child's everyday spatial memory. Hence, we suggest that the ARSM task has high verisimilitude with spatial short-term memory skills in real life. In addition, we evaluated the ARSM task's usability and perceived satisfaction. The study revealed that the younger children were more satisfied with the ARSM task. This novel instrument could be useful in detecting visuospatial short-term difficulties that affect specific developmental navigational disorders and/or school academic achievement. PMID:25438146

Augmented reality for the assessment of children's spatial memory in real settings.

PubMed

Juan, M-Carmen; Mendez-Lopez, Magdalena; Perez-Hernandez, Elena; Albiol-Perez, Sergio

2014-01-01

Short-term memory can be defined as the capacity for holding a small amount of information in mind in an active state for a short period of time. Although some instruments have been developed to study spatial short-term memory in real environments, there are no instruments that are specifically designed to assess visuospatial short-term memory in an attractive way to children. In this paper, we present the ARSM (Augmented Reality Spatial Memory) task, the first Augmented Reality task that involves a user's movement to assess spatial short-term memory in healthy children. The experimental procedure of the ARSM task was designed to assess the children's skill to retain visuospatial information. They were individually asked to remember the real place where augmented reality objects were located. The children (N = 76) were divided into two groups: preschool (5-6 year olds) and primary school (7-8 year olds). We found a significant improvement in ARSM task performance in the older group. The correlations between scores for the ARSM task and traditional procedures were significant. These traditional procedures were the Dot Matrix subtest for the assessment of visuospatial short-term memory of the computerized AWMA-2 battery and a parent's questionnaire about a child's everyday spatial memory. Hence, we suggest that the ARSM task has high verisimilitude with spatial short-term memory skills in real life. In addition, we evaluated the ARSM task's usability and perceived satisfaction. The study revealed that the younger children were more satisfied with the ARSM task. This novel instrument could be useful in detecting visuospatial short-term difficulties that affect specific developmental navigational disorders and/or school academic achievement.

Spatial working memory deficits in children at ages 3-4 who were low birth weight, preterm infants.

PubMed

Vicari, Stefano; Caravale, Barbara; Carlesimo, Giovanni Augusto; Casadei, Anna Maria; Allemand, Federico

2004-10-01

The aim of this study was to investigate attention and perceptual and spatial working memory abilities in preterm, low birth weight preschool children without evident brain disorders as determined by normal cerebral ultrasound findings and normal motor development. The authors evaluated 19 preterm and 19 typically developing children who were matched for IQ and chronological age. Results indicated that children born prematurely without major neurological deficits and with a normal cognitive level may have specific difficulty in sustained attention, visuospatial processing, and spatial working memory when evaluated at ages 3-4. This finding is relevant for understanding the qualitative aspects of cognitive development in preterm children and the neurobiological substrate underlying this development.

Does pointing facilitate the recall of serial positions in visuospatial working memory?

PubMed

Spataro, Pietro; Marques, Valeria R S; Longobardi, Emiddia; Rossi-Arnaud, Clelia

2015-09-01

The present study examined the question of whether pointing enhances the serial recall of visuospatial positions. Thirty-six participants were presented with 40 target arrays varying in length from five to eight items, with each position appearing sequentially in red for 1 s. The task was to reproduce the order of presentation of the positions on a blank matrix. Results showed that, for five-, six-, and seven-item arrays, order memory was significantly better in the passive view than in the pointing condition, and the serial position curves displayed both recency and priority effects. Interestingly, the advantage of the passive-view condition was more pronounced in the early than in the late positions. For eight-item arrays, no significant differences were found between the passive view and the pointing conditions. Overall, the present data provide no evidence in support of the view that pointing facilitates the recall of serial positions.

Where Were Those Rabbits? A New Paradigm to Determine Cerebral Lateralisation of Visuospatial Memory Function in Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Groen, Margriet A.; Whitehouse, Andrew J. O.; Badcock, Nicholas A.; Bishop, Dorothy V. M.

2011-01-01

In the majority of people, functional differences are observed between the two cerebral hemispheres: language production is typically subserved by the left hemisphere and visuospatial skills by the right hemisphere. The development of this division of labour is not well understood and lateralisation of visuospatial function has received little…

Signing below the dotted line: signature position as a marker of vulnerability for visuospatial processing difficulties

PubMed Central

Whitelock, Claire F; Agyepong, Heather NAO; Patterson, Karalyn; Ersche, Karen D

2015-01-01

Almost one-third of the participants in a neuropsychological study signed the consent form below the given line. The relationship between a signature position on or below the line and participants’ cognitive function was investigated. Fifty drug-dependent individuals, 50 of their siblings, and 50 unrelated control participants completed a battery of neuropsychological tests using the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB). Individuals signing below, rather than on, the line performed more poorly on tests of visuospatial memory, but no differently on other cognitive tests. Signature positioning may be a soft sign for impairment of the mechanisms involved in visuospatial memory. PMID:24313358

Cognitive deficits in individuals with methamphetamine use disorder: A meta-analysis.

PubMed

Potvin, Stéphane; Pelletier, Julie; Grot, Stéphanie; Hébert, Catherine; Barr, Alasdair M; Lecomte, Tania

2018-05-01

Methamphetamine has long been considered as a neurotoxic substance causing cognitive deficits. Recently, however, the magnitude and the clinical significance of the cognitive effects associated with methamphetamine use disorder (MUD) have been debated. To help clarify this controversy, we performed a meta-analysis of the cognitive deficits associated with MUD. A literature search yielded 44 studies that assessed cognitive dysfunction in 1592 subjects with MUD and 1820 healthy controls. Effect size estimates were calculated using the Comprehensive Meta-Analysis, for the following 12 cognitive domains: attention, executive functions, impulsivity/reward processing, social cognition, speed of processing, verbal fluency/language, verbal learning and memory, visual learning and memory, visuo-spatial abilities and working memory. Findings revealed moderate impairment across most cognitive domains, including attention, executive functions, language/verbal fluency, verbal learning and memory, visual memory and working memory. Deficits in impulsivity/reward processing and social cognition were more prominent, whereas visual learning and visuo-spatial abilities were relatively spared cognitive domains. A publication bias was observed. These results show that MUD is associated with broad cognitive deficits that are in the same range as those associated with alcohol and cocaine use disorder, as recently shown by way of meta-analysis. The prominent effects of MUD on social cognition and impulsivity/reward processing are based on a small number of studies, and as such, these results will need to be replicated. The functional consequences (social and occupational) of the cognitive deficits of methamphetamine will also need to be determined. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Visual Memory in Methamphetamine Dependent Individuals: Deficient Strategic Control of Encoding and Retrieval

PubMed Central

Morgan, Erin E.; Woods, Steven Paul; Poquette, Amelia J.; Vigil, Ofilio; Heaton, Robert K.; Grant, Igor

2012-01-01

Objective Chronic use of methamphetamine (MA) has moderate effects on neurocognitive functions associated with frontal systems, including the executive aspects of verbal episodic memory. Extending this literature, the current study examined the effects of MA on visual episodic memory with the hypothesis that a profile of deficient strategic encoding and retrieval processes would be revealed for visuospatial information (i.e., simple geometric designs), including possible differential effects on source versus item recall. Method The sample comprised 114 MA-dependent (MA+) and 110 demographically-matched MA-nondependent comparison participants (MA−) who completed the Brief Visuospatial Memory Test – Revised (BVMT-R), which was scored for standard learning and memory indices, as well as novel item (i.e., figure) and source (i.e., location) memory indices. Results Results revealed a profile of impaired immediate and delayed free recall (p < .05) in the context of preserved learning slope, retention, and recognition discriminability in the MA+ group. The MA+ group also performed more poorly than MA− participants on Item visual memory (p < .05) but not Source visual memory (p > .05), and no group by task-type interaction was observed (p > .05). Item visual memory demonstrated significant associations with executive dysfunction, deficits in working memory, and shorter length of abstinence from MA use (p < 0.05). Conclusions These visual memory findings are commensurate with studies reporting deficient strategic verbal encoding and retrieval in MA users that are posited to reflect the vulnerability of frontostriatal circuits to the neurotoxic effects of MA. Potential clinical implications of these visual memory deficits are discussed. PMID:22311530

Interactions between working memory and language in young children with specific language impairment (SLI).

PubMed

Vugs, Brigitte; Knoors, Harry; Cuperus, Juliane; Hendriks, Marc; Verhoeven, Ludo

2016-01-01

The underlying structure of working memory (WM) in young children with and without specific language impairment (SLI) was examined. The associations between the components of WM and the language abilities of young children with SLI were then analyzed. The Automated Working Memory Assessment and four linguistic tasks were administered to 58 children with SLI and 58 children without SLI, aged 4-5 years. The WM of the children was best represented by a model with four separate but interacting components of verbal storage, visuospatial storage, verbal central executive (CE), and visuospatial CE. The associations between the four components of WM did not differ significantly for the two groups of children. However, the individual components of WM showed varying associations with the language abilities of the children with SLI. The verbal CE component of WM was moderately to strongly associated with all the language abilities in children with SLI: receptive vocabulary, expressive vocabulary, verbal comprehension, and syntactic development. These results show verbal CE to be involved in a wide range of linguistic skills; the limited ability of young children with SLI to simultaneously store and process verbal information may constrain their acquisition of linguistic skills. Attention should thus be paid to the language problems of children with SLI, but also to the WM impairments that can contribute to their language problems.

The effects of working memory resource depletion and training on sensorimotor adaptation

PubMed Central

Anguera, Joaquin A.; Bernard, Jessica A.; Jaeggi, Susanne M.; Buschkuehl, Martin; Benson, Bryan L.; Jennett, Sarah; Humfleet, Jennifer; Reuter-Lorenz, Patricia; Jonides, John; Seidler, Rachael D.

2011-01-01

We have recently demonstrated that visuospatial working memory performance predicts the rate of motor skill learning, particularly during the early phase of visuomotor adaptation. Here, we follow up these correlational findings with direct manipulations of working memory resources to determine the impact on visuomotor adaptation, a form of motor learning. We conducted two separate experiments. In the first one, we used a resource depletion strategy to investigate whether the rate of early visuomotor adaptation would be negatively affected by fatigue of spatial working memory resources. In the second study, we employed a dual n-back task training paradigm that has been shown to result in transfer effects [1] over five weeks to determine whether training-related improvements would boost the rate of early visuomotor adaptation. The depletion of spatial working memory resources negatively affected the rate of early visuomotor adaptation. However, enhancing working memory capacity via training did not lead to improved rates of visuomotor adaptation, suggesting that working memory capacity may not be the factor limiting maximal rate of visuomotor adaptation in young adults. These findings are discussed from a resource limitation / capacity framework with respect to current views of motor learning. PMID:22155489

Childhood poverty is associated with altered hippocampal function and visuospatial memory in adulthood.

PubMed

Duval, Elizabeth R; Garfinkel, Sarah N; Swain, James E; Evans, Gary W; Blackburn, Erika K; Angstadt, Mike; Sripada, Chandra S; Liberzon, Israel

2017-02-01

Childhood poverty is a risk factor for poorer cognitive performance during childhood and adulthood. While evidence linking childhood poverty and memory deficits in adulthood has been accumulating, underlying neural mechanisms are unknown. To investigate neurobiological links between childhood poverty and adult memory performance, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during a visuospatial memory task in healthy young adults with varying income levels during childhood. Participants were assessed at age 9 and followed through young adulthood to assess income and related factors. During adulthood, participants completed a visuospatial memory task while undergoing MRI scanning. Patterns of neural activation, as well as memory recognition for items, were assessed to examine links between brain function and memory performance as it relates to childhood income. Our findings revealed associations between item recognition, childhood income level, and hippocampal activation. Specifically, the association between hippocampal activation and recognition accuracy varied as a function of childhood poverty, with positive associations at higher income levels, and negative associations at lower income levels. These prospective findings confirm previous retrospective results detailing deleterious effects of childhood poverty on adult memory performance. In addition, for the first time, we identify novel neurophysiological correlates of these deficits localized to hippocampus activation. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

An Investigation of Cognitive Skills and Behavior in High Ability Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alloway, Tracy Packiam; Elsworth, Miquela

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the cognitive and behavioral profiles of high ability students. Performance on measures of verbal and visuo-spatial working memory and general ability (vocabulary and block design) was compared across the following groups: high, average, and low ability students. The behavioral profile of high ability…

The Architecture, Dynamics, and Development of Mental Processing: Greek, Chinese, or Universal?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Demetriou, A.; Kui, Z.X.; Spanoudis, G.; Christou, C.; Kyriakides, L.; Platsidou, M.

2005-01-01

This study compared Greeks with Chinese, from 8 to 14 years of age, on measures of processing efficiency, working memory, and reasoning. All processes were addressed through three domains of relations: verbal/propositional, quantitative, and visuo/spatial. Structural equations modelling and rating scale analysis showed that the architecture and…

The Effect of Configuration on VSWM Performance of Down Syndrome Individuals

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carretti, B.; Lanfranchi, S.

2010-01-01

Background: Recent studies have demonstrated that individuals with Down syndrome (DS) are poorer than controls in spatial-simultaneous tasks, but not in spatial-sequential tasks. To explain this finding, it has been suggested that the simultaneous visuo-spatial working memory deficit of individuals with DS could be due to the request for…

Planning abilities and chess: a comparison of chess and non-chess players on the Tower of London task.

PubMed

Unterrainer, J M; Kaller, C P; Halsband, U; Rahm, B

2006-08-01

Playing chess requires problem-solving capacities in order to search through the chess problem space in an effective manner. Chess should thus require planning abilities for calculating many moves ahead. Therefore, we asked whether chess players are better problem solvers than non-chess players in a complex planning task. We compared planning performance between chess ( N=25) and non-chess players ( N=25) using a standard psychometric planning task, the Tower of London (ToL) test. We also assessed fluid intelligence (Raven Test), as well as verbal and visuospatial working memory. As expected, chess players showed better planning performance than non-chess players, an effect most strongly expressed in difficult problems. On the other hand, they showed longer planning and movement execution times, especially for incorrectly solved trials. No differences in fluid intelligence and verbal/visuospatial working memory were found between both groups. These findings indicate that better performance in chess players is associated with disproportionally longer solution times, although it remains to be investigated whether motivational or strategic differences account for this result.

Type 1 Diabetes Modifies Brain Activation in Young Patients While Performing Visuospatial Working Memory Tasks

PubMed Central

González-Garrido, Andrés A.; Gudayol-Ferré, Esteban; Guàrdia-Olmos, Joan

2015-01-01

In recent years, increasing attention has been paid to the effects of Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) on cognitive functions. T1D onset usually occurs during childhood, so it is possible that the brain could be affected during neurodevelopment. We selected young patients of normal intelligence with T1D onset during neurodevelopment, no complications from diabetes, and adequate glycemic control. The purpose of this study was to compare the neural BOLD activation pattern in a group of patients with T1D versus healthy control subjects while performing a visuospatial working memory task. Sixteen patients and 16 matched healthy control subjects participated. There was no significant statistical difference in behavioral performance between the groups, but, in accordance with our hypothesis, results showed distinct brain activation patterns. Control subjects presented the expected activations related to the task, whereas the patients had greater activation in the prefrontal inferior cortex, basal ganglia, posterior cerebellum, and substantia nigra. These different patterns could be due to compensation mechanisms that allow them to maintain a behavioral performance similar to that of control subjects. PMID:26266268

Functional neuroanatomical associations of working memory in early-onset Alzheimer's disease.

PubMed

Kobylecki, Christopher; Haense, Cathleen; Harris, Jennifer M; Stopford, Cheryl L; Segobin, Shailendra H; Jones, Matthew; Richardson, Anna M T; Gerhard, Alexander; Anton-Rodriguez, José; Thompson, Jennifer C; Herholz, Karl; Snowden, Julie S

2018-01-01

To characterize metabolic correlates of working memory impairment in clinically defined subtypes of early-onset Alzheimer's disease. Established models of working memory suggest a key role for frontal lobe function, yet the association in Alzheimer's disease between working memory impairment and visuospatial and language symptoms suggests that temporoparietal neocortical dysfunction may be responsible. Twenty-four patients with predominantly early-onset Alzheimer's disease were clinically classified into groups with predominantly amnestic, multidomain or visual deficits. Patients underwent neuropsychological evaluation focused on the domains of episodic and working memory, T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging and brain fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography. Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography data were analysed by using a region-of-interest approach. Patients with multidomain and visual presentations performed more poorly on tests of working memory compared with amnestic Alzheimer's disease. Working memory performance correlated with glucose metabolism in left-sided temporoparietal, but not frontal neocortex. Carriers of the apolipoprotein E4 gene showed poorer episodic memory and better working memory performance compared with noncarriers. Our findings support the hypothesis that working memory changes in early-onset Alzheimer's disease are related to temporoparietal rather than frontal hypometabolism and show dissociation from episodic memory performance. They further support the concept of subtypes of Alzheimer's disease with distinct cognitive profiles due to prominent neocortical dysfunction early in the disease course. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Age-related cognitive task effects on gait characteristics: do different working memory components make a difference?

PubMed

Qu, Xingda

2014-10-27

Though it is well recognized that gait characteristics are affected by concurrent cognitive tasks, how different working memory components contribute to dual task effects on gait is still unknown. The objective of the present study was to investigate dual-task effects on gait characteristics, specifically the application of cognitive tasks involving different working memory components. In addition, we also examined age-related differences in such dual-task effects. Three cognitive tasks (i.e. 'Random Digit Generation', 'Brooks' Spatial Memory', and 'Counting Backward') involving different working memory components were examined. Twelve young (6 males and 6 females, 20 ~ 25 years old) and 12 older participants (6 males and 6 females, 60 ~ 72 years old) took part in two phases of experiments. In the first phase, each cognitive task was defined at three difficulty levels, and perceived difficulty was compared across tasks. The cognitive tasks perceived to be equally difficult were selected for the second phase. In the second phase, four testing conditions were defined, corresponding to a baseline and the three equally difficult cognitive tasks. Participants walked on a treadmill at their self-selected comfortable speed in each testing condition. Body kinematics were collected during treadmill walking, and gait characteristics were assessed using spatial-temporal gait parameters. Application of the concurrent Brooks' Spatial Memory task led to longer step times compared to the baseline condition. Larger step width variability was observed in both the Brooks' Spatial Memory and Counting Backward dual-task conditions than in the baseline condition. In addition, cognitive task effects on step width variability differed between two age groups. In particular, the Brooks' Spatial Memory task led to significantly larger step width variability only among older adults. These findings revealed that cognitive tasks involving the visuo-spatial sketchpad interfered with gait more severely in older versus young adults. Thus, dual-task training, in which a cognitive task involving the visuo-spatial sketchpad (e.g. the Brooks' Spatial Memory task) is concurrently performed with walking, could be beneficial to mitigate impairments in gait among older adults.

The Magnitude, Generality, and Determinants of Flynn Effects on Forms of Declarative Memory and Visuospatial Ability: Time-Sequential Analyses of Data from a Swedish Cohort Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ronnlund, Michael; Nilsson, Lars-Goran

2008-01-01

To estimate Flynn effects (FEs) on forms of declarative memory (episodic, semantic) and visuospatial ability (Block Design) time-sequential analyses of data for Swedish adult samples (35-80 years) assessed on either of four occasions (1989, 1994, 1999, 2004; n = 2995) were conducted. The results demonstrated cognitive gains across occasions,…

Mild prenatal protein malnutrition increases alpha2C-adrenoceptor density in the cerebral cortex during postnatal life and impairs neocortical long-term potentiation and visuo-spatial performance in rats.

PubMed

Soto-Moyano, Rubén; Valladares, Luis; Sierralta, Walter; Pérez, Hernán; Mondaca, Mauricio; Fernández, Victor; Burgos, Héctor; Hernández, Alejandro

2005-06-01

Mild reduction in the protein content of the mother's diet from 25 to 8% casein, calorically compensated by carbohydrates, does not alter body and brain weights of rat pups at birth, but leads to significant enhancements in the concentration and release of cortical noradrenaline during early postnatal life. Since central noradrenaline and some of its receptors are critically involved in long-term potentiation (LTP) and memory formation, this study evaluated the effect of mild prenatal protein malnutrition on the alpha2C-adrenoceptor density in the frontal and occipital cortices, induction of LTP in the same cortical regions and the visuo-spatial memory. Pups born from rats fed a 25% casein diet throughout pregnancy served as controls. At day 8 of postnatal age, prenatally malnourished rats showed a threefold increase in neocortical alpha2C-adrenoceptor density. At 60 days-of-age, alpha2C-adrenoceptor density was still elevated in the neocortex, and the animals were unable to maintain neocortical LTP and presented lower visuo-spatial memory performance. Results suggest that overexpression of neocortical alpha2C-adrenoceptors during postnatal life, subsequent to mild prenatal protein malnutrition, could functionally affect the synaptic networks subserving neocortical LTP and visuo-spatial memory formation.

First-Grade Predictors of Mathematical Learning Disability: A Latent Class Trajectory Analysis

PubMed Central

Geary, David C.; Bailey, Drew H.; Littlefield, Andrew; Wood, Phillip; Hoard, Mary K.; Nugent, Lara

2009-01-01

Kindergarten to 3rd grade mathematics achievement scores from a prospective study of mathematical development were subjected to latent growth trajectory analyses (n = 306). The four corresponding classes included children with mathematical learning disability (MLD, 6% of sample), and low (LA, 50%), typically (TA, 39%) and high (HA, 5%) achieving children. The groups were administered a battery of intelligence (IQ), working memory, and mathematical-cognition measures in 1st grade. The children with MLD had general deficits in working memory and IQ, and potentially more specific deficits on measures of number sense. The LA children did not have working memory or IQ deficits, but showed moderate deficits on these number sense measures and for addition fact retrieval. The distinguishing features of the HA children were a strong visuospatial working memory, a strong number sense, and frequent use of memory-based processes to solve addition problems. Implications for the early identification of children at risk for poor mathematics achievement are discussed. PMID:20046817

Validity and Normative Data for the Biber Figure Learning Test: A Visual Supraspan Memory Measure.

PubMed

Gifford, Katherine A; Liu, Dandan; Neal, Jacquelyn E; Acosta, Lealani Mae Y; Bell, Susan P; Wiggins, Margaret E; Wisniewski, Kristi M; Godfrey, Mary; Logan, Laura A; Hohman, Timothy J; Pechman, Kimberly R; Libon, David J; Blennow, Kaj; Zetterberg, Henrik; Jefferson, Angela L

2018-05-01

The Biber Figure Learning Test (BFLT), a visuospatial serial figure learning test, was evaluated for biological correlates and psychometric properties, and normative data were generated. Nondemented individuals ( n = 332, 73 ± 7, 41% female) from the Vanderbilt Memory & Aging Project completed a comprehensive neuropsychological protocol. Adjusted regression models related BFLT indices to structural brain magnetic resonance imaging and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) markers of brain health. Regression-based normative data were generated. Lower BFLT performances (Total Learning, Delayed Recall, Recognition) related to smaller medial temporal lobe volumes and higher CSF tau concentrations but not CSF amyloid. BFLT indices were most strongly correlated with other measures of verbal and nonverbal memory and visuospatial skills. The BFLT provides a comprehensive assessment of all aspects of visuospatial learning and memory and is sensitive to biomarkers of unhealthy brain aging. Enhanced normative data enriches the clinical utility of this visual serial figure learning test for use with older adults.

Cognitive components of a mathematical processing network in 9-year-old children.

PubMed

Szűcs, Dénes; Devine, Amy; Soltesz, Fruzsina; Nobes, Alison; Gabriel, Florence

2014-07-01

We determined how various cognitive abilities, including several measures of a proposed domain-specific number sense, relate to mathematical competence in nearly 100 9-year-old children with normal reading skill. Results are consistent with an extended number processing network and suggest that important processing nodes of this network are phonological processing, verbal knowledge, visuo-spatial short-term and working memory, spatial ability and general executive functioning. The model was highly specific to predicting arithmetic performance. There were no strong relations between mathematical achievement and verbal short-term and working memory, sustained attention, response inhibition, finger knowledge and symbolic number comparison performance. Non-verbal intelligence measures were also non-significant predictors when added to our model. Number sense variables were non-significant predictors in the model and they were also non-significant predictors when entered into regression analysis with only a single visuo-spatial WM measure. Number sense variables were predicted by sustained attention. Results support a network theory of mathematical competence in primary school children and falsify the importance of a proposed modular 'number sense'. We suggest an 'executive memory function centric' model of mathematical processing. Mapping a complex processing network requires that studies consider the complex predictor space of mathematics rather than just focusing on a single or a few explanatory factors.

Cognitive components of a mathematical processing network in 9-year-old children

PubMed Central

Szűcs, Dénes; Devine, Amy; Soltesz, Fruzsina; Nobes, Alison; Gabriel, Florence

2014-01-01

We determined how various cognitive abilities, including several measures of a proposed domain-specific number sense, relate to mathematical competence in nearly 100 9-year-old children with normal reading skill. Results are consistent with an extended number processing network and suggest that important processing nodes of this network are phonological processing, verbal knowledge, visuo-spatial short-term and working memory, spatial ability and general executive functioning. The model was highly specific to predicting arithmetic performance. There were no strong relations between mathematical achievement and verbal short-term and working memory, sustained attention, response inhibition, finger knowledge and symbolic number comparison performance. Non-verbal intelligence measures were also non-significant predictors when added to our model. Number sense variables were non-significant predictors in the model and they were also non-significant predictors when entered into regression analysis with only a single visuo-spatial WM measure. Number sense variables were predicted by sustained attention. Results support a network theory of mathematical competence in primary school children and falsify the importance of a proposed modular ‘number sense’. We suggest an ‘executive memory function centric’ model of mathematical processing. Mapping a complex processing network requires that studies consider the complex predictor space of mathematics rather than just focusing on a single or a few explanatory factors. PMID:25089322

Age-related differences in the use of spatial and categorical relationships in a visuo-spatial working memory task.

PubMed

Dai, Ruizhi; Thomas, Ayanna K; Taylor, Holly A

2018-01-30

Research examining object identity and location processing in visuo-spatial working memory (VSWM) has yielded inconsistent results on whether age differences exist in VSWM. The present study investigated whether these inconsistencies may stem from age-related differences in VSWM sub-processes, and whether processing of component VSWM information can be facilitated. In two experiments, younger and older adults studied 5 × 5 grids containing five objects in separate locations. In a continuous recognition paradigm, participants were tested on memory for object identity, location, or identity and location information combined. Spatial and categorical relationships were manipulated within grids to provide trial-level facilitation. In Experiment 1, randomizing trial types (location, identity, combination) assured that participants could not predict the information that would be queried. In Experiment 2, blocking trials by type encouraged strategic processing. Thus, we manipulated the nature of the task through object categorical relationship and spatial organization, and trial blocking. Our findings support age-related declines in VSWM. Additionally, grid organizations (categorical and spatial relationships), and trial blocking differentially affected younger and older adults. Younger adults used spatial organizations more effectively whereas older adults demonstrated an association bias. Our finding also suggests that older adults may be less efficient than younger adults in strategically engaging information processing.

Working Memory Training Does Not Improve Performance on Measures of Intelligence or Other Measures of "Far Transfer": Evidence From a Meta-Analytic Review.

PubMed

Melby-Lervåg, Monica; Redick, Thomas S; Hulme, Charles

2016-07-01

It has been claimed that working memory training programs produce diverse beneficial effects. This article presents a meta-analysis of working memory training studies (with a pretest-posttest design and a control group) that have examined transfer to other measures (nonverbal ability, verbal ability, word decoding, reading comprehension, or arithmetic; 87 publications with 145 experimental comparisons). Immediately following training there were reliable improvements on measures of intermediate transfer (verbal and visuospatial working memory). For measures of far transfer (nonverbal ability, verbal ability, word decoding, reading comprehension, arithmetic) there was no convincing evidence of any reliable improvements when working memory training was compared with a treated control condition. Furthermore, mediation analyses indicated that across studies, the degree of improvement on working memory measures was not related to the magnitude of far-transfer effects found. Finally, analysis of publication bias shows that there is no evidential value from the studies of working memory training using treated controls. The authors conclude that working memory training programs appear to produce short-term, specific training effects that do not generalize to measures of "real-world" cognitive skills. These results seriously question the practical and theoretical importance of current computerized working memory programs as methods of training working memory skills. © The Author(s) 2016.

Visuospatial Working Memory in Toddlers with a History of Periventricular Leukomalacia: An EEG Narrow-Band Power Analysis

PubMed Central

García-Gomar, María Luisa; Santiago-Rodríguez, Efraín; Rodríguez-Camacho, Mario; Harmony, Thalía

2013-01-01

Background Periventricular Leukomalacia (PVL) affects white matter, but grey matter injuries have also been reported, particularly in the dorsomedial nucleus and the cortex. Both structures have been related to working memory (WM) processes. The aim of this study was to compare behavioral performances and EEG power spectra during a visuospatial working memory task (VSWMT) of toddlers with a history of PVL and healthy toddlers. Methodology/Principal Findings A prospective, comparative study of WM was conducted in toddlers with a history of PVL and healthy toddlers. The task responses and the EEG narrow-band power spectra during a VSWMT were compared in both groups. The EEG absolute power was analyzed during the following three conditions: baseline, attention and WM retention. The number of correct responses was higher in the healthy group (20.5±5.0) compared to the PVL group (16.1±3.9) (p = 0.04). The healthy group had absolute power EEG increases (p≤0.05) during WM compared to the attention condition in the bilateral frontal and right temporal, parietal and occipital regions in frequencies ranging from 1.17 to 2.34 Hz and in the right temporal, parietal and occipital regions in frequencies ranging from 14.06 to 15.23 Hz. In contrast, the PVL group had absolute power increases (p≤0.05) in the bilateral fronto-parietal, left central and occipital regions in frequencies that ranged from 1.17 to 3.52 Hz and in the bilateral frontal and right temporal regions in frequencies ranging from 9.37 to 19.14 Hz. Conclusions/Significance This study provides evidence that PVL toddlers have visuospatial WM deficits and a very different pattern of absolute power increases compared to a healthy group of toddlers, with greater absolute power in the low frequency range and widespread neuronal networks in the WM retention phase. PMID:23922816

Visuospatial working memory in toddlers with a history of periventricular Leukomalacia: an EEG narrow-band power analysis.

PubMed

García-Gomar, María Luisa; Santiago-Rodríguez, Efraín; Rodríguez-Camacho, Mario; Harmony, Thalía

2013-01-01

Periventricular Leukomalacia (PVL) affects white matter, but grey matter injuries have also been reported, particularly in the dorsomedial nucleus and the cortex. Both structures have been related to working memory (WM) processes. The aim of this study was to compare behavioral performances and EEG power spectra during a visuospatial working memory task (VSWMT) of toddlers with a history of PVL and healthy toddlers. A prospective, comparative study of WM was conducted in toddlers with a history of PVL and healthy toddlers. The task responses and the EEG narrow-band power spectra during a VSWMT were compared in both groups. The EEG absolute power was analyzed during the following three conditions: baseline, attention and WM retention. The number of correct responses was higher in the healthy group (20.5 ± 5.0) compared to the PVL group (16.1 ± 3.9) (p = 0.04). The healthy group had absolute power EEG increases (p ≤ 0.05) during WM compared to the attention condition in the bilateral frontal and right temporal, parietal and occipital regions in frequencies ranging from 1.17 to 2.34 Hz and in the right temporal, parietal and occipital regions in frequencies ranging from 14.06 to 15.23 Hz. In contrast, the PVL group had absolute power increases (p ≤ 0.05) in the bilateral fronto-parietal, left central and occipital regions in frequencies that ranged from 1.17 to 3.52 Hz and in the bilateral frontal and right temporal regions in frequencies ranging from 9.37 to 19.14 Hz. This study provides evidence that PVL toddlers have visuospatial WM deficits and a very different pattern of absolute power increases compared to a healthy group of toddlers, with greater absolute power in the low frequency range and widespread neuronal networks in the WM retention phase.

Support for distinct subcomponents of spatial working memory: a double dissociation between spatial-simultaneous and spatial-sequential performance in unilateral neglect.

PubMed

Wansard, Murielle; Bartolomeo, Paolo; Bastin, Christine; Segovia, Fermín; Gillet, Sophie; Duret, Christophe; Meulemans, Thierry

2015-01-01

Over the last decade, many studies have demonstrated that visuospatial working memory (VSWM) can be divided into separate subsystems dedicated to the retention of visual patterns and their serial order. Impaired VSWM has been suggested to exacerbate left visual neglect in right-brain-damaged individuals. The aim of this study was to investigate the segregation between spatial-sequential and spatial-simultaneous working memory in individuals with neglect. We demonstrated that patterns of results on these VSWM tasks can be dissociated. Spatial-simultaneous and sequential aspects of VSWM can be selectively impaired in unilateral neglect. Our results support the hypothesis of multiple VSWM subsystems, which should be taken into account to better understand neglect-related deficits.

Spatial-sequential and spatial-simultaneous working memory in individuals with Williams syndrome.

PubMed

Lanfranchi, Silvia; De Mori, Letizia; Mammarella, Irene C; Carretti, Barbara; Vianello, Renzo

2015-05-01

The aim of the present study was to compare visuospatial working memory performance in 18 individuals with Williams syndrome (WS) and 18 typically developing (TD) children matched for nonverbal mental age. Two aspects were considered: task presentation format (i.e., spatial-sequential or spatial-simultaneous), and level of attentional control (i.e., passive or active tasks). Our results showed that individuals with WS performed less well than TD children in passive spatial-simultaneous tasks, but not in passive spatial-sequential tasks. The former's performance was also worse in both active tasks. These findings suggest an impairment in the spatial-simultaneous working memory of individuals with WS, together with a more generalized difficulty in tasks requiring information storage and concurrent processing, as seen in other etiologies of intellectual disability.

Processing efficiency theory in children: working memory as a mediator between trait anxiety and academic performance.

PubMed

Owens, Matthew; Stevenson, Jim; Norgate, Roger; Hadwin, Julie A

2008-10-01

Working memory skills are positively associated with academic performance. In contrast, high levels of trait anxiety are linked with educational underachievement. Based on Eysenck and Calvo's (1992) processing efficiency theory (PET), the present study investigated whether associations between anxiety and educational achievement were mediated via poor working memory performance. Fifty children aged 11-12 years completed verbal (backwards digit span; tapping the phonological store/central executive) and spatial (Corsi blocks; tapping the visuospatial sketchpad/central executive) working memory tasks. Trait anxiety was measured using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children. Academic performance was assessed using school administered tests of reasoning (Cognitive Abilities Test) and attainment (Standard Assessment Tests). The results showed that the association between trait anxiety and academic performance was significantly mediated by verbal working memory for three of the six academic performance measures (math, quantitative and non-verbal reasoning). Spatial working memory did not significantly mediate the relationship between trait anxiety and academic performance. On average verbal working memory accounted for 51% of the association between trait anxiety and academic performance, while spatial working memory only accounted for 9%. The findings indicate that PET is a useful framework to assess the impact of children's anxiety on educational achievement.

Cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) benefits more to patients with schizophrenia with low initial memory performances.

PubMed

Pillet, Benoit; Morvan, Yannick; Todd, Aurelia; Franck, Nicolas; Duboc, Chloé; Grosz, Aimé; Launay, Corinne; Demily, Caroline; Gaillard, Raphaël; Krebs, Marie-Odile; Amado, Isabelle

2015-01-01

Cognitive deficits in schizophrenia mainly affect memory, attention and executive functions. Cognitive remediation is a technique derived from neuropsychology, which aims to improve or compensate for these deficits. Working memory, verbal learning, and executive functions are crucial factors for functional outcome. Our purpose was to assess the impact of the cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) program on cognitive difficulties in patients with schizophrenia, especially on working memory, verbal memory, and cognitive flexibility. We collected data from clinical and neuropsychological assessments in 24 patients suffering from schizophrenia (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of mental Disorders-Fourth Edition, DSM-IV) who followed a 3-month (CRT) program. Verbal and visuo-spatial working memory, verbal memory, and cognitive flexibility were assessed before and after CRT. The Wilcoxon test showed significant improvements on the backward digit span, on the visual working memory span, on verbal memory and on flexibility. Cognitive improvement was substantial when baseline performance was low, independently from clinical benefit. CRT is effective on crucial cognitive domains and provides a huge benefit for patients having low baseline performance. Such cognitive amelioration appears highly promising for improving the outcome in cognitively impaired patients.

Do differences in visuospatial ability between senile dementias of the Alzheimer and Lewy body types reflect differences solely in mnemonic function?

PubMed

Sahgal, A; McKeith, I G; Galloway, P H; Tasker, N; Steckler, T

1995-02-01

Visuospatial memory was investigated in two groups of patients suffering from senile dementias of the Alzheimer (SDAT) or Lewy body (SDLT) types; a, third, age-matched, healthy control group was also included. The two patient groups were mildly demented and could not be distinguished from each other by traditional tests of cognitive function. A different pattern of performance emerged in the two groups on a computerised test of spatial working memory, which is a self-ordered pointing task requiring the subject to search for hidden tokens. An analysis of the pattern of errors revealed that the SDLT group made more of both possible types of error ("Within Search" and "Between Search") than the SDAT group. Neither patient groups' performance differed from each other when assessed on a computerised Corsi spatial span task. A measure of planning ability was obtained by examining search strategies. Although an index previously developed to measure the subject's use of a particular strategy in the spatial working memory task failed to detect any differences between the three groups, a novel index was calculated which focuses on performance within a search, and this revealed deficits in both demented groups. Since the two patient groups differed from each other in the spatial working memory, but not the Corsi spatial span, task, it is suggested that the differences between the two demented groups are not due to a specific mnemonic impairment, but reflect dysfunctions in non-mnemonic processes mediated by fronto-subcortical circuits, which are more severely damaged in SDLT.

Impaired verbal short-term memory in Down syndrome reflects a capacity limitation rather than atypically rapid forgetting.

PubMed

M Purser, Harry R; Jarrold, Christopher

2005-05-01

Individuals with Down syndrome suffer from relatively poor verbal short-term memory. Recent work has indicated that this deficit is not caused by problems of audition, speech, or articulatory rehearsal within the phonological loop component of Baddeley and Hitch's working memory model. Given this, two experiments were conducted to investigate whether abnormally rapid decay underlies the deficit. In a first experiment, we attempted to vary the time available for decay using a modified serial recall procedure that had both verbal and visuospatial conditions. No evidence was found to suggest that forgetting is abnormally rapid in phonological memory in Down syndrome, but a selective phonological memory deficit was indicated. A second experiment further investigated possible problems of decay in phonological memory, restricted to item information. The results indicated that individuals with Down syndrome do not show atypically rapid item forgetting from phonological memory but may have a limited-capacity verbal short-term memory system.

Longitudinal and concurrent links between memory span, anxiety symptoms, and subsequent executive functioning in young children

PubMed Central

Visu-Petra, Laura; Stanciu, Oana; Benga, Oana; Miclea, Mircea; Cheie, Lavinia

2014-01-01

It has been conjectured that basic individual differences in attentional control influence higher-level executive functioning and subsequent academic performance in children. The current study sets out to complement the limited body of research on early precursors of executive functions (EFs). It provides both a cross-sectional, as well as a longitudinal exploration of the relationship between EF and more basic attentional control mechanisms, assessed via children's performance on memory storage tasks, and influenced by individual differences in anxiety. Multiple measures of verbal and visuospatial short-term memory (STM) were administered to children between 3 and 6 years old, alongside a non-verbal measure of intelligence, and a parental report of anxiety symptoms. After 9 months, children were re-tested on the same STM measures, at which time we also administered multiple measures of executive functioning: verbal and visuospatial working memory (WM), inhibition, and shifting. A cross-sectional view of STM development indicated that between 3 and 6 years the trajectory of visuospatial STM and EF underwent a gradual linear improvement. However, between 5 and 6 years progress in verbal STM performance stagnated. Hierarchical regression models revealed that trait anxiety was negatively associated with WM and shifting, while non-verbal intelligence was positively related to WM span. When age, gender, non-verbal intelligence, and anxiety were controlled for, STM (measured at the first assessment) was a very good predictor of overall executive performance. The models were most successful in predicting WM, followed by shifting, yet poorly predicted inhibition measures. Further longitudinal research is needed to directly address the contribution of attentional control mechanisms to emerging executive functioning and to the development of problematic behavior during early development. PMID:24904462

Same task, different strategies: How brain networks can be influenced by memory strategy

PubMed Central

Sanfratello, Lori; Caprihan, Arvind; Stephen, Julia M.; Knoefel, Janice E.; Adair, John C.; Qualls, Clifford; Lundy, S. Laura; Aine, Cheryl J.

2015-01-01

Previous functional neuroimaging studies demonstrated that different neural networks underlie different types of cognitive processing by engaging participants in particular tasks, such as verbal or spatial working memory (WM) tasks. However, we report here that even when a working memory task is defined as verbal or spatial, different types of memory strategies may be employed to complete it, with concomitant variations in brain activity. We developed a questionnaire to characterize the type of strategy used by individual members in a group of 28 young healthy participants (18–25 years) during a spatial WM task. A cluster analysis was performed to differentiate groups. We acquired functional magnetoencephalography (MEG) and structural diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) measures to characterize the brain networks associated with the use of different strategies. We found two types of strategies were utilized during the spatial WM task, a visuospatial and a verbal strategy, and brain regions and timecourses of activation differed between participants who used each. Task performance also varied by type of strategy used, with verbal strategies showing an advantage. In addition, performance on neuropsychological tests (indices from WAIS-IV, REY-D Complex Figure) correlated significantly with fractional anisotropy (FA) measures for the visuospatial strategy group in white matter tracts implicated in other WM/attention studies. We conclude that differences in memory strategy can have a pronounced effect on the locations and timing of brain activation, and that these differences need further investigation as a possible confounding factor for studies using group averaging as a means for summarizing results. PMID:24931401

Neurocognitive Functioning and Treatment Outcome Following Detoxification Among Asian Alcohol-Dependent Inpatients.

PubMed

Manning, Victoria; Teo, Hui Chin; Guo, Song; Wong, Kim Eng; Li, Ting-Kai

2016-01-28

The prevalence of alcohol use disorders in Asia is increasing and relapse among treated populations remains the norm, not the exception. The extent to which cognitive impairment influences clinical outcome remains unclear, with research dominated by studies of Caucasian populations. This study examines behavioral and self-reported cognitive functioning in detoxified alcohol-dependent (AD) patients in Singapore and its association with outcome. The cognitive performance of 30 recently-detoxified AD inpatients and 30 demographically-matched controls was compared using visuospatial memory, working memory, set-shifting, planning and reflection impulsivity tests of the CANTAB®, and self-reported dysexecutive symptoms and everyday cognitive difficulties. Patients' alcohol use and self-reported cognitive functioning were reassessed 3-months post-discharge. Compared to matched controls, AD inpatients exhibited significantly poorer fluid intelligence, visuospatial memory, working memory, set-shifting flexibility and planning/organization, but not reflection impulsivity. In support of Western studies, a significant proportion (three-quarters) were "clinically impaired" on subtests. Significant reductions were observed in alcohol units, frequency and dependency scores at follow-up, though improvements in self-reported cognitive functioning were limited to abstainers. Baseline cognitive performance did not differentiate those who had abstained from alcohol and relapsed at follow-up. Memory and executive functioning impairments were evident among Asian AD patients alongside self-reported cognitive difficulties, thus cognitively demanding psychological interventions may have limited impact during early detoxification. Future studies can build on these findings, with larger samples and measurement of moderating and mediating factors to extend our understanding of how cognitive impairment influences outcome.

Insensitivity of visual short-term memory to irrelevant visual information.

PubMed

Andrade, Jackie; Kemps, Eva; Werniers, Yves; May, Jon; Szmalec, Arnaud

2002-07-01

Several authors have hypothesized that visuo-spatial working memory is functionally analogous to verbal working memory. Irrelevant background speech impairs verbal short-term memory. We investigated whether irrelevant visual information has an analogous effect on visual short-term memory, using a dynamic visual noise (DVN) technique known to disrupt visual imagery (Quinn & McConnell, 1996b). Experiment I replicated the effect of DVN on pegword imagery. Experiments 2 and 3 showed no effect of DVN on recall of static matrix patterns, despite a significant effect of a concurrent spatial tapping task. Experiment 4 showed no effect of DVN on encoding or maintenance of arrays of matrix patterns, despite testing memory by a recognition procedure to encourage visual rather than spatial processing. Serial position curves showed a one-item recency effect typical of visual short-term memory. Experiment 5 showed no effect of DVN on short-term recognition of Chinese characters, despite effects of visual similarity and a concurrent colour memory task that confirmed visual processing of the characters. We conclude that irrelevant visual noise does not impair visual short-term memory. Visual working memory may not be functionally analogous to verbal working memory, and different cognitive processes may underlie visual short-term memory and visual imagery.

Executive Function Training in Children with SLI: A Pilot Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vugs, Brigitte; Knoors, Harry; Cuperus, Juliane; Hendriks, Marc; Verhoeven, Ludo

2017-01-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a computer-based executive function (EF) training in children with specific language impairment (SLI). Ten children with SLI, ages 8 to 12 years, completed a 25-session training of visuospatial working memory, inhibition and cognitive flexibility over a 6-week period. Treatment outcome was…

ViSA: A Neurodynamic Model for Visuo-Spatial Working Memory, Attentional Blink, and Conscious Access

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Simione, Luca; Raffone, Antonino; Wolters, Gezinus; Salmas, Paola; Nakatani, Chie; Belardinelli, Marta Olivetti; van Leeuwen, Cees

2012-01-01

Two separate lines of study have clarified the role of selectivity in conscious access to visual information. Both involve presenting multiple targets and distracters: one "simultaneously" in a spatially distributed fashion, the other "sequentially" at a single location. To understand their findings in a unified framework, we propose a…

Changes in Neural Connectivity and Memory Following a Yoga Intervention for Older Adults: A Pilot Study.

PubMed

Eyre, Harris A; Acevedo, Bianca; Yang, Hongyu; Siddarth, Prabha; Van Dyk, Kathleen; Ercoli, Linda; Leaver, Amber M; Cyr, Natalie St; Narr, Katherine; Baune, Bernhard T; Khalsa, Dharma S; Lavretsky, Helen

2016-01-01

No study has explored the effect of yoga on cognitive decline and resting-state functional connectivity. This study explored the relationship between performance on memory tests and resting-state functional connectivity before and after a yoga intervention versus active control for subjects with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Participants ( ≥ 55 y) with MCI were randomized to receive a yoga intervention or active "gold-standard" control (i.e., memory enhancement training (MET)) for 12 weeks. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to map correlations between brain networks and memory performance changes over time. Default mode networks (DMN), language and superior parietal networks were chosen as networks of interest to analyze the association with changes in verbal and visuospatial memory performance. Fourteen yoga and 11 MET participants completed the study. The yoga group demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in depression and visuospatial memory. We observed improved verbal memory performance correlated with increased connectivity between the DMN and frontal medial cortex, pregenual anterior cingulate cortex, right middle frontal cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, and left lateral occipital cortex. Improved verbal memory performance positively correlated with increased connectivity between the language processing network and the left inferior frontal gyrus. Improved visuospatial memory performance correlated inversely with connectivity between the superior parietal network and the medial parietal cortex. Yoga may be as effective as MET in improving functional connectivity in relation to verbal memory performance. These findings should be confirmed in larger prospective studies.

Understanding metaphors and idioms: a single-case neuropsychological study in a person with Down syndrome.

PubMed

Papagno, C; Vallar, G

2001-05-01

The ability of subject F.F., diagnosed with Down syndrome, to appreciate nonliteral (interpreting metaphors and idioms) and literal (vocabulary knowledge, including highly specific and unusual items) aspects of language was investigated. F.F. was impaired in understanding both metaphors and idioms, while her phonological, syntactic and lexical-semantic skills were largely preserved. By contrast, some aspects of F.F.'s executive functions and many visuospatial abilities were defective. The suggestion is made that the interpretation of metaphors and idioms is largely independent of that of literal language, preserved in F.F., and that some executive aspects of working memory and visuospatial and imagery processes may play a role.

Subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation affects distractor interference in auditory working memory.

PubMed

Camalier, Corrie R; Wang, Alice Y; McIntosh, Lindsey G; Park, Sohee; Neimat, Joseph S

2017-03-01

Computational and theoretical accounts hypothesize the basal ganglia play a supramodal "gating" role in the maintenance of working memory representations, especially in preservation from distractor interference. There are currently two major limitations to this account. The first is that supporting experiments have focused exclusively on the visuospatial domain, leaving questions as to whether such "gating" is domain-specific. The second is that current evidence relies on correlational measures, as it is extremely difficult to causally and reversibly manipulate subcortical structures in humans. To address these shortcomings, we examined non-spatial, auditory working memory performance during reversible modulation of the basal ganglia, an approach afforded by deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus. We found that subthalamic nucleus stimulation impaired auditory working memory performance, specifically in the group tested in the presence of distractors, even though the distractors were predictable and completely irrelevant to the encoding of the task stimuli. This study provides key causal evidence that the basal ganglia act as a supramodal filter in working memory processes, further adding to our growing understanding of their role in cognition. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The impact of social activities, social networks, social support and social relationships on the cognitive functioning of healthy older adults: a systematic review.

PubMed

Kelly, Michelle E; Duff, Hollie; Kelly, Sara; McHugh Power, Joanna E; Brennan, Sabina; Lawlor, Brian A; Loughrey, David G

2017-12-19

Social relationships, which are contingent on access to social networks, promote engagement in social activities and provide access to social support. These social factors have been shown to positively impact health outcomes. In the current systematic review, we offer a comprehensive overview of the impact of social activities, social networks and social support on the cognitive functioning of healthy older adults (50+) and examine the differential effects of aspects of social relationships on various cognitive domains. We followed PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis) guidelines, and collated data from randomised controlled trials (RCTs), genetic and observational studies. Independent variables of interest included subjective measures of social activities, social networks, and social support, and composite measures of social relationships (CMSR). The primary outcome of interest was cognitive function divided into domains of episodic memory, semantic memory, overall memory ability, working memory, verbal fluency, reasoning, attention, processing speed, visuospatial abilities, overall executive functioning and global cognition. Thirty-nine studies were included in the review; three RCTs, 34 observational studies, and two genetic studies. Evidence suggests a relationship between (1) social activity and global cognition and overall executive functioning, working memory, visuospatial abilities and processing speed but not episodic memory, verbal fluency, reasoning or attention; (2) social networks and global cognition but not episodic memory, attention or processing speed; (3) social support and global cognition and episodic memory but not attention or processing speed; and (4) CMSR and episodic memory and verbal fluency but not global cognition. The results support prior conclusions that there is an association between social relationships and cognitive function but the exact nature of this association remains unclear. Implications of the findings are discussed and suggestions for future research provided. PROSPERO 2012: CRD42012003248 .

Effects of working memory training on children born preterm.

PubMed

Lee, Clara S C; Pei, Jacqueline; Andrew, Gail; A Kerns, Kimberly; Rasmussen, Carmen

2017-01-01

Researchers have reported benefits of working memory training in various populations, however, the training gains in preterm population is still inadequately studied. This study aimed to investigate the transfer and lasting effects of an online working memory training program on a group of preterm children aged between 4 and 6 years (mean gestational age = 28.3 weeks; mean birth weight = 1153 grams). Children were asked to perform the Cogmed JM at home for approximately 15 minutes a day, 5 days a week for 5 weeks. Their nontrained working memory and attention were assessed pre-training, post-training, and at 5-week follow-up. Parent ratings on children's executive functions were obtained at the three time points. Results revealed that significant improvements in verbal working memory was emerging in preterm children at 5-week follow-up, while significant gains in visuospatial working memory was found post-training and at 5-week follow-up in age-matched term-born children. These results indicated that working memory training has benefits on preterm children; however, the gains are different from those observed in term-born children. No significant differences in attention and parent-rated EF were found in either group across time. The possible explanations for the training benefits observed in preterm children were discussed.

Computerized spatial delayed recognition span task: a specific tool to assess visuospatial working memory

PubMed Central

Satler, Corina; Belham, Flávia Schechtman; Garcia, Ana; Tomaz, Carlos; Tavares, Maria Clotilde H.

2015-01-01

A new tablet device version (IOS platform) of the Spatial Delayed Recognition Span Task (SDRST) was developed with the aim of investigating visuospatial Working Memory (WM) abilities based on touchscreen technology. This new WM testing application will be available to download for free in Apple Store app (“SDRST app”). In order to verify the feasibility of this computer-based task, we conducted three experiments with different manipulations and groups of participants. We were interested in investigating if (1) the SDRST is sensitive enough to tap into cognitive differences brought by aging and dementia; (2) different experimental manipulations work successfully; (3) cortical brain activations seen in other WM tasks are also demonstrated here; and (4) non-human primates are able to answer the task. Performance (scores and response time) was better for young than older adults and higher for the latter when compared to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients. All groups performed better with facial stimuli than with images of scenes and with emotional than with neutral stimuli. Electrophysiology data showed activation on prefrontal and frontal areas of scalp, theta band activity on the midline area, and gamma activity in left temporal area. There are all scalp regions known to be related to attention and WM. Besides those data, our sample of adult captive capuchin monkeys (Sapajus libidinosus) answered the task above chance level. Taken together, these results corroborate the reliability of this new computer-based SDRST as a measure of visuospatial WM in clinical and non-clinical populations as well as in non-human primates. Its tablet app allows the task to be administered in a wide range of settings, including hospitals, homes, schools, laboratories, universities, and research institutions. PMID:25964758

Computerized spatial delayed recognition span task: a specific tool to assess visuospatial working memory.

PubMed

Satler, Corina; Belham, Flávia Schechtman; Garcia, Ana; Tomaz, Carlos; Tavares, Maria Clotilde H

2015-01-01

A new tablet device version (IOS platform) of the Spatial Delayed Recognition Span Task (SDRST) was developed with the aim of investigating visuospatial Working Memory (WM) abilities based on touchscreen technology. This new WM testing application will be available to download for free in Apple Store app ("SDRST app"). In order to verify the feasibility of this computer-based task, we conducted three experiments with different manipulations and groups of participants. We were interested in investigating if (1) the SDRST is sensitive enough to tap into cognitive differences brought by aging and dementia; (2) different experimental manipulations work successfully; (3) cortical brain activations seen in other WM tasks are also demonstrated here; and (4) non-human primates are able to answer the task. Performance (scores and response time) was better for young than older adults and higher for the latter when compared to Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. All groups performed better with facial stimuli than with images of scenes and with emotional than with neutral stimuli. Electrophysiology data showed activation on prefrontal and frontal areas of scalp, theta band activity on the midline area, and gamma activity in left temporal area. There are all scalp regions known to be related to attention and WM. Besides those data, our sample of adult captive capuchin monkeys (Sapajus libidinosus) answered the task above chance level. Taken together, these results corroborate the reliability of this new computer-based SDRST as a measure of visuospatial WM in clinical and non-clinical populations as well as in non-human primates. Its tablet app allows the task to be administered in a wide range of settings, including hospitals, homes, schools, laboratories, universities, and research institutions.

Effects of environmental support on overt and covert visuospatial rehearsal.

PubMed

Lilienthal, Lindsey; Myerson, Joel; Abrams, Richard A; Hale, Sandra

2018-09-01

People can rehearse to-be-remembered locations either overtly, using eye movements, or covertly, using only shifts of spatial attention. The present study examined whether the effectiveness of these two strategies depends on environmental support for rehearsal. In Experiment 1, when environmental support (i.e., the array of possible locations) was present and participants could engage in overt rehearsal during retention intervals, longer intervals resulted in larger spans, whereas in Experiment 2, when support was present but participants could only engage in covert rehearsal, longer intervals resulted in smaller spans. When environmental support was absent, however, longer retention intervals resulted in smaller memory spans regardless of which rehearsal strategies were available. In Experiment 3, analyses of participants' eye movements revealed that the presence of support increased participants' fixations of to-be-remembered target locations more than fixations of non-targets, and that this was associated with better memory performance. Further, although the total time fixating targets increased, individual target fixations were actually briefer. Taken together, the present findings suggest that in the presence of environmental support, overt rehearsal is more effective than covert rehearsal at maintaining to-be-remembered locations in working memory, and that having more time for overt rehearsal can actually increase visuospatial memory spans.

Working memory deficits in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): an examination of central executive and storage/rehearsal processes.

PubMed

Alderson, R Matt; Hudec, Kristen L; Patros, Connor H G; Kasper, Lisa J

2013-05-01

The current study was the first to use a regression approach to examine the unique contributions of central executive (CE) and storage/rehearsal processes to working memory (WM) deficits in adults with ADHD. Thirty-seven adults (ADHD = 21, HC = 16) completed phonological (PH) and visuospatial (VS) working memory tasks. While both groups performed significantly better during the PH task relative to the VS task, adults with ADHD exhibited significant deficits across both working memory modalities. Further, the ADHD group recalled disproportionately fewer PH and VS stimuli as set-size demands increased. Overall, the CE and PH storage/rehearsal processes of adults with ADHD were both significantly impaired relative to those of the healthy control adults; however, the magnitude of the CE effect size was much smaller compared to previous studies of children with the disorder. Collectively, results provide support for a lifelong trajectory of WM deficits in ADHD. © 2013 American Psychological Association

The Effect of Neurocognitive Function on Math Computation in Pediatric ADHD: Moderating Influences of Anxious Perfectionism and Gender.

PubMed

Sturm, Alexandra; Rozenman, Michelle; Piacentini, John C; McGough, James J; Loo, Sandra K; McCracken, James T

2018-03-20

Predictors of math achievement in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are not well-known. To address this gap in the literature, we examined individual differences in neurocognitive functioning domains on math computation in a cross-sectional sample of youth with ADHD. Gender and anxiety symptoms were explored as potential moderators. The sample consisted of 281 youth (aged 8-15 years) diagnosed with ADHD. Neurocognitive tasks assessed auditory-verbal working memory, visuospatial working memory, and processing speed. Auditory-verbal working memory speed significantly predicted math computation. A three-way interaction revealed that at low levels of anxious perfectionism, slower processing speed predicted poorer math computation for boys compared to girls. These findings indicate the uniquely predictive values of auditory-verbal working memory and processing speed on math computation, and their differential moderation. These findings provide preliminary support that gender and anxious perfectionism may influence the relationship between neurocognitive functioning and academic achievement.

Impaired Visuospatial Short-Term Memory in Children with ADHD.

PubMed

Narimoto, Tadamasa; Matsuura, Naomi; Hiratani, Michio

2018-01-01

Previous studies provide clear evidence that visuospatial memory performance in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is significantly lower than in typically developing children. In the present study, we investigated a major cause of their low performance using a spatial span test. Possibly, inattention resulting from lack of motivation or interest causes their low performance so that they do not correctly encode targets to be remembered. On the other hand, a deficit in temporary maintenance per se may cause their low performance; that is, their inefficient use of rehearsal during a retention interval may lead to memory traces' fast decay. Results in this study indicated that children with ADHD could sustain attention during the encoding phase. Furthermore, their performance at delayed recall was significantly lower than immediate recall, but delayed recall did not affect typically developing children's performance. These results provide evidence for the likelihood that a factor causing children with ADHD difficulty in temporarily maintaining visuospatial information is fast decay of memory traces as a result of inefficient use of rehearsal, not inattention in the encoding phase.

The modeling and simulation of visuospatial working memory

PubMed Central

Liang, Lina; Zhang, Zhikang

2010-01-01

Camperi and Wang (Comput Neurosci 5:383–405, 1998) presented a network model for working memory that combines intrinsic cellular bistability with the recurrent network architecture of the neocortex. While Fall and Rinzel (Comput Neurosci 20:97–107, 2006) replaced this intrinsic bistability with a biological mechanism-Ca2+ release subsystem. In this study, we aim to further expand the above work. We integrate the traditional firing-rate network with Ca2+ subsystem-induced bistability, amend the synaptic weights and suggest that Ca2+ concentration only increase the efficacy of synaptic input but has nothing to do with the external input for the transient cue. We found that our network model maintained the persistent activity in response to a brief transient stimulus like that of the previous two models and the working memory performance was resistant to noise and distraction stimulus if Ca2+ subsystem was tuned to be bistable. PMID:22132045

Acute and Chronic Altitude-Induced Cognitive Dysfunction in Children and Adolescents.

PubMed

Rimoldi, Stefano F; Rexhaj, Emrush; Duplain, Hervé; Urben, Sébastien; Billieux, Joël; Allemann, Yves; Romero, Catherine; Ayaviri, Alejandro; Salinas, Carlos; Villena, Mercedes; Scherrer, Urs; Sartori, Claudio

2016-02-01

To assess whether exposure to high altitude induces cognitive dysfunction in young healthy European children and adolescents during acute, short-term exposure to an altitude of 3450 m and in an age-matched European population permanently living at this altitude. We tested executive function (inhibition, shifting, and working memory), memory (verbal, short-term visuospatial, and verbal episodic memory), and speed processing ability in: (1) 48 healthy nonacclimatized European children and adolescents, 24 hours after arrival at high altitude and 3 months after return to low altitude; (2) 21 matched European subjects permanently living at high altitude; and (3) a matched control group tested twice at low altitude. Short-term hypoxia significantly impaired all but 2 (visuospatial memory and processing speed) of the neuropsychological abilities that were tested. These impairments were even more severe in the children permanently living at high altitude. Three months after return to low altitude, the neuropsychological performances significantly improved and were comparable with those observed in the control group tested only at low altitude. Acute short-term exposure to an altitude at which major tourist destinations are located induces marked executive and memory deficits in healthy children. These deficits are equally marked or more severe in children permanently living at high altitude and are expected to impair their learning abilities. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cortical underconnectivity coupled with preserved visuospatial cognition in autism: Evidence from an fMRI study of an embedded figures task.

PubMed

Damarla, Saudamini Roy; Keller, Timothy A; Kana, Rajesh K; Cherkassky, Vladimir L; Williams, Diane L; Minshew, Nancy J; Just, Marcel Adam

2010-10-01

Individuals with high-functioning autism sometimes exhibit intact or superior performance on visuospatial tasks, in contrast to impaired functioning in other domains such as language comprehension, executive tasks, and social functions. The goal of the current study was to investigate the neural bases of preserved visuospatial processing in high-functioning autism from the perspective of the cortical underconnectivity theory. We used a combination of behavioral, functional magnetic resonance imaging, functional connectivity, and corpus callosum morphometric methodological tools. Thirteen participants with high-functioning autism and 13 controls (age-, IQ-, and gender-matched) were scanned while performing an Embedded Figures Task. Despite the ability of the autism group to attain behavioral performance comparable to the control group, the brain imaging results revealed several group differences consistent with the cortical underconnectivity account of autism. First, relative to controls, the autism group showed less activation in the left dorsolateral prefrontal and inferior parietal areas and more activation in visuospatial (bilateral superior parietal extending to inferior parietal and right occipital) areas. Second, the autism group demonstrated lower functional connectivity between higher-order working memory/executive areas and visuospatial regions (between frontal and parietal-occipital). Third, the size of the corpus callosum (an index of anatomical connectivity) was positively correlated with frontal-posterior (parietal and occipital) functional connectivity in the autism group. Thus, even in the visuospatial domain, where preserved performance among people with autism is observed, the neuroimaging signatures of cortical underconnectivity persist.

Cortical underconnectivity coupled with preserved visuospatial cognition in autism: Evidence from an fMRI study of an embedded figures task

PubMed Central

Damarla, Saudamini Roy; Keller, Timothy A.; Kana, Rajesh K.; Cherkassky, Vladimir L.; Williams, Diane L.; Minshew, Nancy J.; Just, Marcel Adam

2010-01-01

Individuals with high-functioning autism sometimes exhibit intact or superior performance on visuospatial tasks, in contrast to impaired functioning in other domains such as language comprehension, executive tasks, and social functions. The goal of the current study was to investigate the neural bases of preserved visuospatial processing in high-functioning autism from the perspective of the cortical underconnectivity theory. We used a combination of behavioral, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), functional connectivity, and corpus callosum morphometric methodological tools. Thirteen participants with high-functioning autism and thirteen controls (age-, IQ-, and gender-matched) were scanned while performing an Embedded Figures Task (EFT). Despite the ability of the autism group to attain behavioral performance comparable to the control group, the brain imaging results revealed several group differences consistent with the cortical underconnectivity account of autism. First, relative to controls, the autism group showed less activation in left dorsolateral prefrontal and inferior parietal areas and more activation in visuospatial (bilateral superior parietal extending to inferior parietal and right occipital) areas. Second, the autism group demonstrated lower functional connectivity between higher-order working memory/executive areas and visuospatial regions (between frontal and parietal-occipital). Third, the size of the corpus callosum (an index of anatomical connectivity) was positively correlated with frontal-posterior (parietal and occipital) functional connectivity in the autism group. Thus, even in the visuospatial domain, where preserved performance among people with autism is observed, the neuroimaging signatures of cortical underconnectivity persist. PMID:20740492

Verbal short-term memory and vocabulary learning in polyglots.

PubMed

Papagno, C; Vallar, G

1995-02-01

Polyglot and non-polyglot Italian subjects were given tests assessing verbal (phonological) and visuo-spatial short-term and long-term memory, general intelligence, and vocabulary knowledge in their native language. Polyglots had a superior level of performance in verbal short-term memory tasks (auditory digit span and nonword repetition) and in a paired-associate learning test, which assessed the subjects' ability to acquire new (Russian) words. By contrast, the two groups had comparable performance levels in tasks assessing general intelligence, visuo-spatial short-term memory and learning, and paired-associate learning of Italian words. These findings, which are in line with neuropsychological and developmental evidence, as well as with data from normal subjects, suggest a close relationship between the capacity of phonological memory and the acquisition of foreign languages.

Visual distraction and visuo-spatial memory: a sandwich effect.

PubMed

Tremblay, Sébastien; Nicholls, Alastair P; Parmentier, Fabrice B R; Jones, Dylan M

2005-01-01

The functional characteristics of visuo-spatial serial memory and its sensitivity to irrelevant visual information are examined in the present study, through the investigation of the sandwich effect (e.g., Hitch, 1975). The memory task was one of serial recall for the position of a sequence of seven spatially and temporally separated dots. The presence of irrelevant dots interpolated with to-be-remembered dots affected performance over most serial positions (Experiment 1) but that effect was significantly reduced when the interpolated dots were distinct from the to-be-remembered dots by colour and shape (Experiment 2). Parallels are made between verbal and spatial serial memory, and the reduction of the sandwich effect is discussed in terms of the contribution of perceptual organisation and attentional factors in short-term memory.

Cognitive functioning is more closely related to real-life mobility than to laboratory-based mobility parameters.

PubMed

Giannouli, Eleftheria; Bock, Otmar; Zijlstra, Wiebren

2018-03-01

Increasing evidence indicates that mobility depends on cognitive resources, but the exact relationships between various cognitive functions and different mobility parameters still need to be investigated. This study examines the hypothesis that cognitive functioning is more closely related to real-life mobility performance than to mobility capacity as measured with standardized laboratory tests. The final sample used for analysis consisted of 66 older adults (72.3 ± 5.6 years). Cognition was assessed by measures of planning (HOTAP test), spatial working memory (Grid-Span test) and visuospatial attention (Attention Window test). Mobility capacity was assessed by an instrumented version of the Timed Up-and-Go test (iTUG). Mobility performance was assessed with smartphones which collected accelerometer and GPS data over one week to determine the spatial extent and temporal duration of real-life activities. Data analyses involved an exploratory factor analysis and correlation analyses. Mobility measures were reduced to four orthogonal factors: the factor 'real-life mobility' correlated significantly with most cognitive measures (between r   =  .229 and r   =  .396); factors representing 'sit-to-stand transition' and 'turn' correlated with fewer cognitive measures (between r   =  .271 and r   =  .315 and between r   =  .210 and r   =  .316, respectively), and the factor representing straight gait correlated with only one cognitive measure ( r   =  .237). Among the cognitive functions tested, visuospatial attention was associated with most mobility measures, executive functions with fewer and spatial working memory with only one mobility measure. Capacity and real-life performance represent different aspects of mobility. Real-life mobility is more closely associated with cognition than mobility capacity, and in our data this association is most pronounced for visuospatial attention. The close link between real-life mobility and visuospatial attention should be considered by interventions targeting mobility in old age.

Gaze patterns reveal how situation models and text representations contribute to episodic text memory.

PubMed

Johansson, Roger; Oren, Franziska; Holmqvist, Kenneth

2018-06-01

When recalling something you have previously read, to what degree will such episodic remembering activate a situation model of described events versus a memory representation of the text itself? The present study was designed to address this question by recording eye movements of participants who recalled previously read texts while looking at a blank screen. An accumulating body of research has demonstrated that spontaneous eye movements occur during episodic memory retrieval and that fixation locations from such gaze patterns to a large degree overlap with the visuospatial layout of the recalled information. Here we used this phenomenon to investigate to what degree participants' gaze patterns corresponded with the visuospatial configuration of the text itself versus a visuospatial configuration described in it. The texts to be recalled were scene descriptions, where the spatial configuration of the scene content was manipulated to be either congruent or incongruent with the spatial configuration of the text itself. Results show that participants' gaze patterns were more likely to correspond with a visuospatial representation of the described scene than with a visuospatial representation of the text itself, but also that the contribution of those representations of space is sensitive to the text content. This is the first demonstration that eye movements can be used to discriminate on which representational level texts are remembered and the findings provide novel insight into the underlying dynamics in play. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Melatonin administration impairs visuo-spatial performance and inhibits neocortical long-term potentiation in rats.

PubMed

Soto-Moyano, Rubén; Burgos, Héctor; Flores, Francisco; Valladares, Luis; Sierralta, Walter; Fernández, Victor; Pérez, Hernán; Hernández, Paula; Hernández, Alejandro

2006-10-01

Melatonin has been shown to inhibit long-term potentiation (LTP) in hippocampal slices of rats. Since LTP may be one of the main mechanisms by which memory traces are encoded and stored in the central nervous system, it is possible that melatonin could modulate cognitive performance by interfering with the cellular and/or molecular mechanisms involved in LTP. We investigated in rats the effects of intraperitoneally-administered melatonin (0.1, 1 and 10 mg/kg), its saline-ethanol solvent, or saline alone, on the acquisition of visuo-spatial memory as well as on the ability of the cerebral cortex to develop LTP in vivo. Visuo-spatial performance was assessed daily in rats, for 10 days, in an 8-arm radial maze, 30 min after they received a single daily dose of melatonin. Visual cortex LTP was determined in sodium pentobarbital anesthetized rats (65 mg/kg i.p.), by potentiating transcallosal evoked responses with a tetanizing train (312 Hz, 500 ms duration) 30 min after administration of a single dose of melatonin. Results showed that melatonin impaired visuo-spatial performance in rats, as revealed by the greater number of errors committed and time spent to solve the task in the radial maze. Melatonin also prevented the induction of neocortical LTP. It is concluded that melatonin, at the doses utilized in this study, could alter some forms of neocortical plasticity involved in short- and long-term visuo-spatial memories in rats.

Vascular, inflammatory, and metabolic factors associated with cognition in aging persons with chronic epilepsy.

PubMed

Hermann, Bruce P; Sager, Mark A; Koscik, Rebecca L; Young, Kate; Nakamura, Keith

2017-11-01

We examined cognition in aging persons with chronic epilepsy; characterized targeted vascular, inflammatory, and metabolic risk factors associated with abnormal cognitive aging in the general population; and examined associations between cognition and vascular, inflammatory, and metabolic health. Participants included 40 persons with chronic localization-related epilepsy and 152 controls, aged 54.6 and 55.3, respectively. Participants underwent neuropsychological assessment, clinical examination, and fasting blood evaluation for quantification of vascular status (systolic and diastolic blood pressure, obesity/body mass index [BMI], total and high-density lipoprotein [HDL] cholesterol level, and homocysteine), inflammatory markers (high sensitivity C-reactive protein [hs-CRP], and interleukin-6 [IL-6]), and metabolic status (insulin resistance [Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR)], glucose). Epilepsy participants exhibited impairment across all cognitive factor scores (all p's < 0.0001); abnormalities in BMI (p = 0.049), hs-CRP (p = 0.046), HOMA-IR (p = 0.0040), and fasting glucose (p = 0.03), with significant relationships between higher HOMA-IR with poorer Immediate Memory (p = 0.03) and Visuospatial Ability (0.03); elevated hs-CRP with poorer Visuospatial (p = 0.035) and Verbal Ability (p = 0.06); elevated BMI with poorer Speed/Flexibility (p = 0.04), Visuospatial (p = 0.001) and Verbal Ability (p = 0.02); and lower HDL with poorer Verbal Learning/Delayed Memory (p = 0.01), Speed/Flexibility (p = 0.043), and Working Memory (p = 0.008). Aging persons with chronic epilepsy exhibit multiple abnormalities in metabolic, inflammatory, and vascular health that are associated with poorer cognitive function. Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 International League Against Epilepsy.

Field Dependence-Independence as Visuospatial and Executive Functioning in Working Memory: Implications for Instructional Systems Design and Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rittschof, Kent A.

2010-01-01

Field dependence-independence (FDI) has long been conceptualized and discussed as a cognitive style relevant to numerous educational approaches and outcomes. However, the FDI construct is most often measured as a cognitive ability, as opposed to a style, using instruments such as the Group-Embedded Figures test (GEFT) or the Hidden Figures Test…

The effects of concurrent cannabis use among ecstasy users: neuroprotective or neurotoxic?

PubMed

Fisk, John E; Montgomery, Catharine; Wareing, Michelle; Murphy, Philip N

2006-08-01

The research evidence regarding the potential effects of ecstasy suggests that it may be neurotoxic and that its use is associated with cognitive impairment. In recent years evidence has emerged suggesting that cannabinoids, the active ingredients in cannabis, can be neuroprotective under certain conditions. Given that many ecstasy users also consume cannabis at the same time, the possibility emerges that these individuals might be less susceptible to ecstasy-related impairment. The present paper reanalyses the data from a number of previous studies, contrasting the performance of those individuals who generally consume cannabis and ecstasy at the same time with those who generally consume ecstasy on its own. The two ecstasy-using groups are compared with non-ecstasy users on a range of measures including processing speed, random letter generation, verbal and visuo-spatial working memory span, reasoning and associative learning. The two ecstasy user groups did not differ significantly from each other on any of the measures. Both user groups were significantly worse than non-ecstasy users on measures of associative learning, verbal and visuo-spatial working memory and reasoning. The results suggest that consuming cannabis at the same time as ecstasy does not reduce the likelihood of cognitive impairment.

Increased activity in the right prefrontal cortex measured using near-infrared spectroscopy during a flower arrangement task.

PubMed

Morita, Yuka; Ebara, Fumio; Morita, Yoshimitsu; Horikawa, Etsuo

2018-03-01

Flower arrangement program (FAP) horticultural therapy promotes psychological, social and physiological wellness and recovery. Moreover, FAPs have been used to evaluate the outcomes related to visuospatial working memory; yet, most of these studies used subjective outcome measures such as behavioural observations and questionnaires. Few studies report objective evaluations of FAP effects in humans. In the present study, we measured the effects of an FAP task on frontal lobe activity in healthy participants using near-infrared spectroscopy. We quantified salivary amylase levels as an indicator of stress level during the FAP. The FAP task involved a predetermined arrangement pattern of natural materials (flowers and leaves) that required the participants to identify where a given material should be placed and temporarily memorise the designated position to complete the flower arrangement. The FAP task was compared to the block-tapping task (BTT), which is routinely used to evaluate visuospatial working memory. Both the FAP task and BTT positively stimulated the right prefrontal cortex; however, stress was more effectively limited during the performance of the FAP task. Our data suggest that FAP therapy may be useful for the rehabilitation of patients who are sensitive to stress.

Use of a clay modeling task to reduce chocolate craving.

PubMed

Andrade, Jackie; Pears, Sally; May, Jon; Kavanagh, David J

2012-06-01

Elaborated Intrusion theory (EI theory; Kavanagh, Andrade, & May, 2005) posits two main cognitive components in craving: associative processes that lead to intrusive thoughts about the craved substance or activity, and elaborative processes supporting mental imagery of the substance or activity. We used a novel visuospatial task to test the hypothesis that visual imagery plays a key role in craving. Experiment 1 showed that spending 10 min constructing shapes from modeling clay (plasticine) reduced participants' craving for chocolate compared with spending 10 min 'letting your mind wander'. Increasing the load on verbal working memory using a mental arithmetic task (counting backwards by threes) did not reduce craving further. Experiment 2 compared effects on craving of a simpler verbal task (counting by ones) and clay modeling. Clay modeling reduced overall craving strength and strength of craving imagery, and reduced the frequency of thoughts about chocolate. The results are consistent with EI theory, showing that craving is reduced by loading the visuospatial sketchpad of working memory but not by loading the phonological loop. Clay modeling might be a useful self-help tool to help manage craving for chocolate, snacks and other foods. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Vestibular involvement in cognition: Visuospatial ability, attention, executive function, and memory.

PubMed

Bigelow, Robin T; Agrawal, Yuri

2015-01-01

A growing body of literature suggests the inner ear vestibular system has a substantial impact on cognitive function. The strongest evidence exists in connecting vestibular function to the cognitive domain of visuospatial ability, which includes spatial memory, navigation, mental rotation, and mental representation of three-dimensional space. Substantial evidence also exists suggesting the vestibular system has an impact on attention and cognitive processing ability. The cognitive domains of memory and executive function are also implicated in a number of studies. We will review the current literature, discuss possible causal links between vestibular dysfunction and cognitive performance, and suggest areas of future research.

Evidence for modality-independent order coding in working memory.

PubMed

Depoorter, Ann; Vandierendonck, André

2009-03-01

The aim of the present study was to investigate the representation of serial order in working memory, more specifically whether serial order is coded by means of a modality-dependent or a modality-independent order code. This was investigated by means of a series of four experiments based on a dual-task methodology in which one short-term memory task was embedded between the presentation and recall of another short-term memory task. Two aspects were varied in these memory tasks--namely, the modality of the stimulus materials (verbal or visuo-spatial) and the presence of an order component in the task (an order or an item memory task). The results of this study showed impaired primary-task recognition performance when both the primary and the embedded task included an order component, irrespective of the modality of the stimulus materials. If one or both of the tasks did not contain an order component, less interference was found. The results of this study support the existence of a modality-independent order code.

Changes in Neural Connectivity and Memory Following a Yoga Intervention for Older Adults: A Pilot Study

PubMed Central

Eyre, Harris A.; Acevedo, Bianca; Yang, Hongyu; Siddarth, Prabha; Van Dyk, Kathleen; Ercoli, Linda; Leaver, Amber M.; Cyr, Natalie St.; Narr, Katherine; Baune, Bernhard T.; Khalsa, Dharma S.; Lavretsky, Helen

2016-01-01

Background: No study has explored the effect of yoga on cognitive decline and resting-state functional connectivity. Objectives: This study explored the relationship between performance on memory tests and resting-state functional connectivity before and after a yoga intervention versus active control for subjects with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods: Participants ( ≥ 55 y) with MCI were randomized to receive a yoga intervention or active “gold-standard” control (i.e., memory enhancement training (MET)) for 12 weeks. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to map correlations between brain networks and memory performance changes over time. Default mode networks (DMN), language and superior parietal networks were chosen as networks of interest to analyze the association with changes in verbal and visuospatial memory performance. Results: Fourteen yoga and 11 MET participants completed the study. The yoga group demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in depression and visuospatial memory. We observed improved verbal memory performance correlated with increased connectivity between the DMN and frontal medial cortex, pregenual anterior cingulate cortex, right middle frontal cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, and left lateral occipital cortex. Improved verbal memory performance positively correlated with increased connectivity between the language processing network and the left inferior frontal gyrus. Improved visuospatial memory performance correlated inversely with connectivity between the superior parietal network and the medial parietal cortex. Conclusion:Yoga may be as effective as MET in improving functional connectivity in relation to verbal memory performance. These findings should be confirmed in larger prospective studies. PMID:27060939

Are the deficits in navigational abilities present in the Williams syndrome related to deficits in the backward inhibition?

PubMed Central

Foti, Francesca; Sdoia, Stefano; Menghini, Deny; Mandolesi, Laura; Vicari, Stefano; Ferlazzo, Fabio; Petrosini, Laura

2015-01-01

Williams syndrome (WS) is associated with a distinct profile of relatively proficient skills within the verbal domain compared to the severe impairment of visuo-spatial processing. Abnormalities in executive functions and deficits in planning ability and spatial working memory have been described. However, to date little is known about the influence of executive function deficits on navigational abilities in WS. This study aimed at analyzing in WS individuals a specific executive function, the backward inhibition (BI) that allows individuals to flexibly adapt to continuously changing environments. A group of WS individuals and a mental age- and gender-matched group of typically developing children were subjected to three task-switching experiments requiring visuospatial or verbal material to be processed. Results showed that WS individuals exhibited clear BI deficits during visuospatial task-switching paradigms and normal BI effect during verbal task-switching paradigm. Overall, the present results suggest that the BI involvement in updating environment representations during navigation may influence WS navigational abilities. PMID:25852605

Episodic and working memory deficits in alcoholic Korsakoff patients: the continuity theory revisited.

PubMed

Pitel, Anne Lise; Beaunieux, Hélène; Witkowski, Thomas; Vabret, François; de la Sayette, Vincent; Viader, Fausto; Desgranges, Béatrice; Eustache, Francis

2008-07-01

The exact nature of episodic and working memory impairments in alcoholic Korsakoff patients (KS) remains unclear, as does the specificity of these neuropsychological deficits compared with those of non-Korsakoff alcoholics (AL). The goals of the present study were therefore to (1) specify the nature of episodic and working memory impairments in KS, (2) determine the specificity of the KS neuropsychological profile compared with the AL profile, and (3) observe the distribution of individual performances within the 2 patient groups. We investigated episodic memory (encoding and retrieval abilities, contextual memory and state of consciousness associated with memories), the slave systems of working memory (phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad and episodic buffer) and executive functions (inhibition, flexibility, updating and integration abilities) in 14 strictly selected KS, 40 AL and 55 control subjects (CS). Compared with CS, KS displayed impairments of episodic memory encoding and retrieval, contextual memory, recollection, the slave systems of working memory and executive functions. Although episodic memory was more severely impaired in KS than in AL, the single specificity of the KS profile was a disproportionately large encoding deficit. Apart from organizational and updating abilities, the slave systems of working memory and inhibition, flexibility and integration abilities were impaired to the same extent in both alcoholic groups. However, some KS were unable to complete the most difficult executive tasks. There was only a partial overlap of individual performances by KS and AL for episodic memory and a total mixture of the 2 groups for working memory. Korsakoff's syndrome encompasses impairments of the different episodic and working memory components. AL and KS displayed similar profiles of episodic and working memory deficits, in accordance with neuroimaging investigations showing similar patterns of brain damage in both alcoholic groups.

Associations Between White Matter Microstructure and Infants’ Working Memory

PubMed Central

Short, Sarah J.; Elison, Jed T.; Goldman, Barbara Davis; Styner, Martin; Gu, Hongbin; Connelly, Mark; Maltbie, Eric; Woolson, Sandra; Lin, Weili; Gerig, Guido; Reznick, J. Steven; Gilmore, John H.

2013-01-01

Working memory emerges in infancy and plays a privileged role in subsequent adaptive cognitive development. The neural networks important for the development of working memory during infancy remain unknown. We used diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and deterministic fiber tracking to characterize the microstructure of white matter fiber bundles hypothesized to support working memory in 12-month-old infants (n=73). Here we show robust associations between infants’ visuospatial working memory performance and microstructural characteristics of widespread white matter. Significant associations were found for white matter tracts that connect brain regions known to support working memory in older children and adults (genu, anterior and superior thalamic radiations, anterior cingulum, arcuate fasciculus, and the temporal-parietal segment). Better working memory scores were associated with higher FA and lower RD values in these selected white matter tracts. These tract-specific brain-behavior relationships accounted for a significant amount of individual variation above and beyond infants’ gestational age and developmental level, as measured with the Mullen Scales of Early Learning. Working memory was not associated with global measures of brain volume, as expected, and few associations were found between working memory and control white matter tracts. To our knowledge, this study is among the first demonstrations of brain-behavior associations in infants using quantitative tractography. The ability to characterize subtle individual differences in infant brain development associated with complex cognitive functions holds promise for improving our understanding of normative development, biomarkers of risk, experience-dependent learning and neuro-cognitive periods of developmental plasticity. PMID:22989623

A familiar pattern? Semantic memory contributes to the enhancement of visuo-spatial memories.

PubMed

Riby, Leigh M; Orme, Elizabeth

2013-03-01

In this study we quantify for the first time electrophysiological components associated with incorporating long-term semantic knowledge with visuo-spatial information using two variants of a traditional matrix patterns task. Results indicated that the matrix task with greater semantic content was associated with enhanced accuracy and RTs in a change-detection paradigm; this was also associated with increased P300 and N400 components as well as a sustained negative slow wave (NSW). In contrast, processing of the low semantic stimuli was associated with an increased N200 and a reduction in the P300. These findings suggest that semantic content can aid in reducing early visual processing of information and subsequent memory load by unitizing complex patterns into familiar forms. The N400/NSW may be associated with the requirements for maintaining visuo-spatial information about semantic forms such as orientation and relative location. Evidence for individual differences in semantic elaboration strategies used by participants is also discussed. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Memory-guided reaching in a patient with visual hemiagnosia.

PubMed

Cornelsen, Sonja; Rennig, Johannes; Himmelbach, Marc

2016-06-01

The two-visual-systems hypothesis (TVSH) postulates that memory-guided movements rely on intact functions of the ventral stream. Its particular importance for memory-guided actions was initially inferred from behavioral dissociations in the well-known patient DF. Despite of rather accurate reaching and grasping movements to visible targets, she demonstrated grossly impaired memory-guided grasping as much as impaired memory-guided reaching. These dissociations were later complemented by apparently reversed dissociations in patients with dorsal damage and optic ataxia. However, grasping studies in DF and optic ataxia patients differed with respect to the retinotopic position of target objects, questioning the interpretation of the respective findings as a double dissociation. In contrast, the findings for reaching errors in both types of patients came from similar peripheral target presentations. However, new data on brain structural changes and visuomotor deficits in DF also questioned the validity of a double dissociation in reaching. A severe visuospatial short-term memory deficit in DF further questioned the specificity of her memory-guided reaching deficit. Therefore, we compared movement accuracy in visually-guided and memory-guided reaching in a new patient who suffered a confined unilateral damage to the ventral visual system due to stroke. Our results indeed support previous descriptions of memory-guided movements' inaccuracies in DF. Furthermore, our data suggest that recently discovered optic-ataxia like misreaching in DF is most likely caused by her parieto-occipital and not by her ventral stream damage. Finally, multiple visuospatial memory measurements in HWS suggest that inaccuracies in memory-guided reaching tasks in patients with ventral damage cannot be explained by visuospatial short-term memory or perceptual deficits, but by a specific deficit in visuomotor processing. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Corpus callosal atrophy and associations with cognitive impairment in Parkinson disease

PubMed Central

Bledsoe, Ian O.; Merkitch, Doug; Dinh, Vy; Bernard, Bryan; Stebbins, Glenn T.

2017-01-01

Objective: To investigate atrophy of the corpus callosum on MRI in Parkinson disease (PD) and its relationship to cognitive impairment. Methods: One hundred patients with PD and 24 healthy control participants underwent clinical and neuropsychological evaluations and structural MRI brain scans. Participants with PD were classified as cognitively normal (PD-NC; n = 28), having mild cognitive impairment (PD-MCI; n = 47), or having dementia (PDD; n = 25) by Movement Disorder Society criteria. Cognitive domain (attention/working memory, executive function, memory, language, visuospatial function) z scores were calculated. With the use of FreeSurfer image processing, volumes for total corpus callosum and its subsections (anterior, midanterior, central, midposterior, posterior) were computed and normalized by total intracranial volume. Callosal volumes were compared between participants with PD and controls and among PD cognitive groups, covarying for age, sex, and PD duration and with multiple comparison corrections. Regression analyses were performed to evaluate relationships between callosal volumes and performance in cognitive domains. Results: Participants with PD had reduced corpus callosum volumes in midanterior and central regions compared to healthy controls. Participants with PDD demonstrated decreased callosal volumes involving multiple subsections spanning anterior to posterior compared to participants with PD-MCI and PD-NC. Regional callosal atrophy predicted cognitive domain performance such that central volumes were associated with the attention/working memory domain; midposterior volumes with executive function, language, and memory domains; and posterior volumes with memory and visuospatial domains. Conclusions: Notable volume loss occurs in the corpus callosum in PD, with specific neuroanatomic distributions in PDD and relationships of regional atrophy to different cognitive domains. Callosal volume loss may contribute to clinical manifestations of PD cognitive impairment. PMID:28235816

An association of cognitive impairment with diabetes and retinopathy in end stage renal disease patients under peritoneal dialysis.

PubMed

Liao, Jin-Lan; Xiong, Zu-Ying; Yang, Zhi-Kai; Hao, Li; Liu, Gui-Ling; Ren, Ye-Ping; Wang, Qin; Duan, Li-Ping; Zheng, Zhao-Xia; Dong, Jie

2017-01-01

Diabetes and retinopathy have been considered as risk factors of cognitive impairment (CI) in previous studies. We investigated both of these two factors and their relationship with global and specific cognitive functions in end stage renal disease patients under peritoneal dialysis (PD). In this multicenter cross-sectional study, 424 clinically stable patients were enrolled from 5 PD units, who performed PD for at least three months and completed fundoscopy examination if they had diabetes. Global cognitive function was measured using the Modified Mini-Mental State Examination (3MS), Trail-Making Test forms A and B for executive function, and subtests of the Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status for immediate and delayed memory, visuospatial skills, and language ability. PD Patients with DM and Retinopathy had significantly higher prevalence of CI, executive dysfunction, impaired immediate memory and visuospatial skill, compared with patients in non-DM group. By multivariate logistic regression analyses, DM and retinopathy rather than DM only were significantly associated with increased risk for CI, executive dysfunction, impaired immediate memory and visuospatial skill, odds ratios(ORs) and 95% confidence intervals were 2.09[1.11,3.92], 2.89[1.55,5.37], 2.16 [1.15,4.06] and 2.37[1.32,4.22], respectively (all P < 0.05). Diabetic PD patients with retinopathy were at two times risk for overall cognitive impairment, executive dysfunction, impaired immediate memory and visuospatial skill as compared to non-diabetic PD patients.

A new neural framework for visuospatial processing.

PubMed

Kravitz, Dwight J; Saleem, Kadharbatcha S; Baker, Chris I; Mishkin, Mortimer

2011-04-01

The division of cortical visual processing into distinct dorsal and ventral streams is a key framework that has guided visual neuroscience. The characterization of the ventral stream as a 'What' pathway is relatively uncontroversial, but the nature of dorsal stream processing is less clear. Originally proposed as mediating spatial perception ('Where'), more recent accounts suggest it primarily serves non-conscious visually guided action ('How'). Here, we identify three pathways emerging from the dorsal stream that consist of projections to the prefrontal and premotor cortices, and a major projection to the medial temporal lobe that courses both directly and indirectly through the posterior cingulate and retrosplenial cortices. These three pathways support both conscious and non-conscious visuospatial processing, including spatial working memory, visually guided action and navigation, respectively.

Memory integration in amnesia: prior knowledge supports verbal short-term memory.

PubMed

Race, Elizabeth; Palombo, Daniela J; Cadden, Margaret; Burke, Keely; Verfaellie, Mieke

2015-04-01

Short-term memory (STM) and long-term memory (LTM) have traditionally been considered cognitively distinct. However, it is known that STM can improve when to-be-remembered information appears in contexts that make contact with prior knowledge, suggesting a more interactive relationship between STM and LTM. The current study investigated whether the ability to leverage LTM in support of STM critically depends on the integrity of the hippocampus. Specifically, we investigated whether the hippocampus differentially supports between-domain versus within-domain STM-LTM integration given prior evidence that the representational domain of the elements being integrated in memory is a critical determinant of whether memory performance depends on the hippocampus. In Experiment 1, we investigated hippocampal contributions to within-domain STM-LTM integration by testing whether immediate verbal recall of words improves in MTL amnesic patients when words are presented in familiar verbal contexts (meaningful sentences) compared to unfamiliar verbal contexts (random word lists). Patients demonstrated a robust sentence superiority effect, whereby verbal STM performance improved in familiar compared to unfamiliar verbal contexts, and the magnitude of this effect did not differ from that in controls. In Experiment 2, we investigated hippocampal contributions to between-domain STM-LTM integration by testing whether immediate verbal recall of digits improves in MTL amnesic patients when digits are presented in a familiar visuospatial context (a typical keypad layout) compared to an unfamiliar visuospatial context (a random keypad layout). Immediate verbal recall improved in both patients and controls when digits were presented in the familiar compared to the unfamiliar keypad array, indicating a preserved ability to integrate activated verbal information with stored visuospatial knowledge. Together, these results demonstrate that immediate verbal recall in amnesia can benefit from two distinct types of semantic support, verbal and visuospatial, and that the hippocampus is not critical for leveraging stored semantic knowledge to improve memory performance. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Memory integration in amnesia: Prior knowledge supports verbal short-term memory

PubMed Central

Race, Elizabeth; Palombo, Daniela J.; Cadden, Margaret; Burke, Keely; Verfaellie, Mieke

2015-01-01

Short-term memory (STM) and long-term memory (LTM) have traditionally been considered cognitively distinct. However, it is known that STM can improve when to-be-remembered information appears in contexts that make contact with prior knowledge, suggesting a more interactive relationship between STM and LTM. The current study investigated whether the ability to leverage LTM in support of STM critically depends on the integrity of the hippocampus. Specifically, we investigated whether the hippocampus differentially supports between-domain versus within-domain STM–LTM integration given prior evidence that the representational domain of the elements being integrated in memory is a critical determinant of whether memory performance depends on the hippocampus. In Experiment 1, we investigated hippocampal contributions to within-domain STM–LTM integration by testing whether immediate verbal recall of words improves in MTL amnesic patients when words are presented in familiar verbal contexts (meaningful sentences) compared to unfamiliar verbal contexts (random word lists). Patients demonstrated a robust sentence superiority effect, whereby verbal STM performance improved in familiar compared to unfamiliar verbal contexts, and the magnitude of this effect did not differ from that in controls. In Experiment 2, we investigated hippocampal contributions to between-domain STM–LTM integration by testing whether immediate verbal recall of digits improves in MTL amnesic patients when digits are presented in a familiar visuospatial context (a typical keypad layout) compared to an unfamiliar visuospatial context (a random keypad layout). Immediate verbal recall improved in both patients and controls when digits were presented in the familiar compared to the unfamiliar keypad array, indicating a preserved ability to integrate activated verbal information with stored visuospatial knowledge. Together, these results demonstrate that immediate verbal recall in amnesia can benefit from two distinct types of semantic support, verbal and visuospatial, and that the hippocampus is not critical for leveraging stored semantic knowledge to improve memory performance. PMID:25752585

The impact of storage on processing: how is information maintained in working memory?

PubMed

Vergauwe, Evie; Camos, Valérie; Barrouillet, Pierre

2014-07-01

Working memory is typically defined as a system devoted to the simultaneous maintenance and processing of information. However, the interplay between these 2 functions is still a matter of debate in the literature, with views ranging from complete independence to complete dependence. The time-based resource-sharing model assumes that a central bottleneck constrains the 2 functions to alternate in such a way that maintenance activities postpone concurrent processing, with each additional piece of information to be maintained resulting in an additional postponement. Using different kinds of memoranda, we examined in a series of 7 experiments the effect of increasing memory load on different processing tasks. The results reveal that, insofar as attention is needed for maintenance, processing times linearly increase at a rate of about 50 ms per verbal or visuospatial memory item, suggesting a very fast refresh rate in working memory. Our results also show an asymmetry between verbal and spatial information, in that spatial information can solely rely on attention for its maintenance while verbal information can also rely on a domain-specific maintenance mechanism independent from attention. The implications for the functioning of working memory are discussed, with a specific focus on how information is maintained in working memory. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

The effects of 'ecstasy' (MDMA) on visuospatial memory performance: findings from a systematic review with meta-analyses.

PubMed

Murphy, Philip N; Bruno, Raimondo; Ryland, Ida; Wareing, Michele; Fisk, John E; Montgomery, Catharine; Hilton, Joanne

2012-03-01

To review, with meta-analyses where appropriate, performance differences between ecstasy (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine) users and non-users on a wider range of visuospatial tasks than previously reviewed. Such tasks have been shown to draw upon working memory executive resources. Abstract databases were searched using the United Kingdom National Health Service Evidence Health Information Resource. Inclusion criteria were publication in English language peer-reviewed journals and the reporting of new findings regarding human ecstasy-users' performance on visuospatial tasks. Data extracted included specific task requirements to provide a basis for meta-analyses for categories of tasks with similar requirements. Fifty-two studies were identified for review, although not all were suitable for meta-analysis. Significant weighted mean effect sizes indicating poorer performance by ecstasy users compared with matched controls were found for tasks requiring recall of spatial stimulus elements, recognition of figures and production/reproduction of figures. There was no evidence of a linear relationship between estimated ecstasy consumption and effect sizes. Given the networked nature of processing for spatial and non-spatial visual information, future scanning and imaging studies should focus on brain activation differences between ecstasy users and non-users in the context of specific tasks to facilitate identification of loci of potentially compromised activity in users. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Configural Representations in Spatial Working Memory: Modulation by Perceptual Segregation and Voluntary Attention

PubMed Central

Gmeindl, Leon; Nelson, James K.; Wiggin, Timothy; Reuter-Lorenz, Patricia A.

2011-01-01

In what form are multiple spatial locations represented in working memory? The current study revealed that people often maintain the configural properties (inter-item relationships) of visuospatial stimuli even when this information is explicitly task-irrelevant. However, results also indicate that the voluntary allocation of selective attention prior to stimulus presentation, as well as feature-based perceptual segregation of relevant from irrelevant stimuli, can eliminate the influences of stimulus configuration on location change detection performance. In contrast, voluntary attention cued to the relevant target location following presentation of the stimulus array failed to attenuate these influences. Thus, whereas voluntary selective attention can isolate or prevent the encoding of irrelevant stimulus locations and configural properties, people, perhaps due to limitations in attentional resources, reliably fail to isolate or suppress configural representations that have been encoded into working memory. PMID:21761373

Spatial versus verbal memory impairments in patients with fibromyalgia.

PubMed

Kim, Seong-Ho; Kim, Sang-Hyon; Kim, Seong-Kyu; Nam, Eun Jung; Han, Seung Woo; Lee, Seung Jae

2012-05-01

Mounting evidence suggests that individuals with fibromyalgia (FM) have impairments in general cognitive functions. However, few studies have explored the possibility of dissociation between verbal and visuospatial memory impairments in FM. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the asymmetrical impairment of cognitive functions between verbal and visuospatial memory and between short-term and long-term memory. Neuropsychological assessments were carried out on 23 female patients with FM and 24 healthy female controls. Verbal memory abilities were assessed using the Korean version of the Rey auditory verbal learning test (KAVLT) and digit span task, and visuospatial memory abilities were assessed using the Korean version of the Rey complex figure test (KCFT) and spatial span task. The analysis of covariance was used to assess group differences in performance on cognitive tests after controlling for depression. The two groups did not significantly differ in terms of age, years of education, or in their estimated verbal and performance IQ, but FM patients reported more severe depressive symptoms than did controls on the Beck depression inventory. Significant group differences were found in immediate and delayed recall on the KCFT (F (1,44) = 6.49, p = 0.014 and F (1,44) = 6.96, p = 0.011, respectively), whereas no difference was found in immediate and delayed recall on the KAVLT. In terms of short-term memory, neither the digit span task nor spatial span task showed any difference between groups, regardless of whether repetition was forward or backward. These findings suggest that spatial memory abilities may be more impaired than verbal memory abilities in patients with FM.

[Cognitive and functional decline in the stage previous to the diagnosis of Alzheimers disease].

PubMed

García-Sánchez, C; Estévez-González, A; Boltes, A; Otermín, P; López-Góngora, M; Gironell, A; Kulisevsky, J

2003-12-01

The decline in the phase prior to diagnosis of Alzheimers disease (AD) is not well known, although this knowledge is necessary to evaluate the efficiency of new drugs that can influence in disease course prior to diagnosis. To contribute to better knowledge of the decline prior to diagnosis, we have investigated the cognitive and functional deterioration for 2-3 years before the probable AD diagnosis was established. We compared results obtained by 17 control subjects and 27 patients at the time of diagnosis of a probable AD with results obtained 2-3 years before (interval of 27.7 4 months). We compared memory functions (logical, recognition, learning and autobiographical memory), naming, visual and visuospatial gnosis, visuoconstructive praxis, verbal fluency and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Informant Questionnaire and Blessed's Scale scores. Performance of control subjects did not change. AD patients showed a significant decline in scores, except for verbal fluency. In order of importance, cognitive decline was more marked in scores of learning memory, visuospatial gnosis, autobiographical memory and visuoconstructive praxis. Decline prior to diagnosis of AD is characterized by an important learning memory impairment. Deterioration of visuospatial gnosis and visuoconstructive praxis is greater than deterioration of MMSE and Informant Questionnaire scores.

Strategies and Biases in Location Memory in Williams Syndrome

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Farran, Emily K.

2008-01-01

Individuals with Williams syndrome (WS) demonstrate impaired visuo-spatial abilities in comparison to their level of verbal ability. In particular, visuo-spatial construction is an area of relative weakness. It has been hypothesised that poor or atypical location coding abilities contribute strongly to the impaired abilities observed on…

What Does It Take to Search Organized? The Cognitive Correlates of Search Organization During Cancellation After Stroke.

PubMed

Ten Brink, Antonia F; Visser-Meily, Johanna M A; Nijboer, Tanja C W

2018-05-01

Stroke could lead to deficits in organization of visual search. Cancellation tests are frequently used in standard neuropsychological assessment and appear suitable to measure search organization. The current aim was to evaluate which cognitive functions are associated with cancellation organization measures after stroke. Stroke patients admitted to inpatient rehabilitation were included in this retrospective study. We performed exploratory factor analyses to explore cognitive domains. A digital shape cancellation test (SC) was administered, and measures of search organization (intersections rate and best r) were computed. The following cognitive functions were measured by neuropsychological testing: neglect (SC, line bisection; LB, Catherine Bergego Scale; CBS, and Balloons Test), visuospatial perception and construction (Rey Complex Figure Test, RCFT), psychomotor speed (Trail Making Test; TMT-A), executive functioning/working memory (TMT-B), spatial planning (Tower Test), rule learning (Brixton Test), short-term auditory memory (Digit Span Forward; DSF), and verbal working memory (Digit Span Backward; DSB). In total, 439 stroke patients were included in our analyses. Four clusters were separated: "Executive functioning" (TMT-A, TMT-B, Brixton Test, and Tower Test), "Verbal memory" (DSF and DSB), "Search organization" (intersections rate and best r), and "Neglect" (CBS, RCFT copy, Balloons Test, SC, and LB). Search organization during cancellation, as measured with intersections rate and best r, seems a distinct cognitive construct compared to existing cognitive domains that are tested during neuropsychological assessment. Administering cancellation tests and analyzing measures of search organization could provide useful additional insights into the visuospatial processes of stroke patients. (JINS, 2018, 24, 424-436).

Working memory deficits in boys with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): An examination of orthographic coding and episodic buffer processes.

PubMed

Alderson, R Matt; Kasper, Lisa J; Patros, Connor H G; Hudec, Kristen L; Tarle, Stephanie J; Lea, Sarah E

2015-01-01

The episodic buffer component of working memory was examined in children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and typically developing peers (TD). Thirty-two children (ADHD = 16, TD = 16) completed three versions of a phonological working memory task that varied with regard to stimulus presentation modality (auditory, visual, or dual auditory and visual), as well as a visuospatial task. Children with ADHD experienced the largest magnitude working memory deficits when phonological stimuli were presented via a unimodal, auditory format. Their performance improved during visual and dual modality conditions but remained significantly below the performance of children in the TD group. In contrast, the TD group did not exhibit performance differences between the auditory- and visual-phonological conditions but recalled significantly more stimuli during the dual-phonological condition. Furthermore, relative to TD children, children with ADHD recalled disproportionately fewer phonological stimuli as set sizes increased, regardless of presentation modality. Finally, an examination of working memory components indicated that the largest magnitude between-group difference was associated with the central executive. Collectively, these findings suggest that ADHD-related working memory deficits reflect a combination of impaired central executive and phonological storage/rehearsal processes, as well as an impaired ability to benefit from bound multimodal information processed by the episodic buffer.

Effect of BDNF Val66Met polymorphism on digital working memory and spatial localization in a healthy Chinese Han population.

PubMed

Gong, Pingyuan; Zheng, Anyun; Chen, Dongmei; Ge, Wanhua; Lv, Changchao; Zhang, Kejin; Gao, Xiaocai; Zhang, Fuchang

2009-07-01

Cognitive abilities are complex human traits influenced by genetic factors. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a unique polypeptide growth factor, has an influence on the differentiation and survival of neurons in the nervous system. A single-nucleotide polymorphism (rs6265) in the human gene, resulting in a valine to methionine substitution in the pro-BDNF protein, was thought to associate with psychiatric disorders and might play roles in the individual difference of cognitive abilities. However, the specific roles of the gene in cognition remain unclear. To investigate the relationships between the substitution and cognitive abilities, a healthy population-based study and the PCR-SSCP method were performed. The results showed the substitution was associated with digital working memory (p = 0.02) and spatial localization (p = 0.03), but not with inhibition, shifting, updating, visuo-spatial working memory, long-term memory, and others (p > 0.05) among the compared genotype groups analyzed by general linear model. On the other hand, the participants with BDNF (GG) had higher average performance in digital working memory and spatial localization than the ones with BDNF (AA). The findings of the present work implied that the variation in BDNF might play positive roles in human digital working memory and spatial localization.

Working Memory in Children With Learning Disabilities in Reading Versus Spelling: Searching for Overlapping and Specific Cognitive Factors.

PubMed

Brandenburg, Janin; Klesczewski, Julia; Fischbach, Anne; Schuchardt, Kirsten; Büttner, Gerhard; Hasselhorn, Marcus

2015-01-01

In transparent orthographies like German, isolated learning disabilities in either reading or spelling are common and occur as often as a combined reading and spelling disability. However, most issues surrounding the cognitive causes of these isolated or combined literacy difficulties are yet unresolved. Recently, working memory dysfunctions have been demonstrated to be promising in explaining the emergence of literacy difficulties. Thus, we applied a 2 (reading disability: yes vs. no) × 2 (spelling disability: yes vs. no) factorial design to examine distinct and overlapping working memory profiles associated with learning disabilities in reading versus spelling. Working memory was assessed in 204 third graders, and multivariate analyses of variance were conducted for each working memory component. Children with spelling disability suffered from more pronounced phonological loop impairments than those with reading disability. In contrast, domain-general central-executive dysfunctions were solely associated with reading disability, but not with spelling disability. Concerning the visuospatial sketchpad, no impairments were found. In sum, children with reading disability and those with spelling disability seem to be characterized by different working memory profiles. Thus, it is important to take both reading and spelling into account when investigating cognitive factors of literacy difficulties in transparent orthographies. © Hammill Institute on Disabilities 2014.

The Joint Role of Spatial Ability and Imagery Strategy in Sustaining the Learning of Spatial Descriptions under Spatial Interference

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meneghetti, Chiara; De Beni, Rossana; Gyselinck, Valerie; Pazzaglia, Francesca

2013-01-01

The present study investigates the joint role of spatial ability, imagery strategy and visuospatial working memory (VSWM) in spatial text processing. A set of 180 participants, half of them trained on the use of imagery strategy (training vs no-training groups), was further divided according to participants' high or low mental rotation ability…

Association between early attention-deficit/hyperactivity symptoms and current verbal and visuo-spatial short-term memory.

PubMed

Gau, Susan Shur-Fen; Chiang, Huey-Ling

2013-01-01

Deficits in short-term memory are common in adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but their current ADHD symptoms cannot well predict their short-term performance. Taking a developmental perspective, we wanted to clarify the association between ADHD symptoms at early childhood and short-term memory in late childhood and adolescence. The participants included 401 patients with a clinical diagnosis of DSM-IV ADHD, 213 siblings, and 176 unaffected controls aged 8-17 years (mean age, 12.02 ± 2.24). All participants and their mothers were interviewed using the Chinese Kiddie Epidemiologic version of the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia to obtain information about ADHD symptoms and other psychiatric disorders retrospectively, at an earlier age first, then currently. The participants were assessed with the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children--3rd edition, including Digit Span, and the Spatial working memory task of the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery. Multi-level regression models were used for data analysis. Although crude analyses revealed that inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity symptoms significantly predicted deficits in short-term memory, only inattention symptoms had significant effects (all p<0.001) in a model that included all three ADHD symptoms. After further controlling for comorbidity, age of assessment, treatment with methylphenidate, and Full-scale IQ, the severity of childhood inattention symptoms was still significantly associated with worse verbal (p = 0.008) and spatial (p ranging from 0.017 to 0.002) short-term memory at the current assessment. Therefore, our findings suggest that earlier inattention symptoms are associated with impaired verbal and visuo-spatial short-term memory at a later development stage. Impaired short-term memory in adolescence can be detected earlier by screening for the severity of inattention in childhood. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Feasibility of Home-Based Computerized Working Memory Training With Children and Adolescents With Sickle Cell Disease.

PubMed

Hardy, Steven J; Hardy, Kristina K; Schatz, Jeffrey C; Thompson, Amanda L; Meier, Emily R

2016-09-01

Children with sickle cell disease (SCD) are at increased risk for neurocognitive deficits, yet the literature describing interventions to ameliorate these problems and promote academic achievement is limited. We evaluated the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a home-based computerized working memory (WM) training intervention (Cogmed) in children with SCD. Youth with SCD between the age of 7 and 16 years completed an initial neuropsychological assessment; those with WM deficits were loaned an iPad on which they accessed Cogmed at home. Participants were instructed to work on Cogmed 5 days each week for 5 weeks (25 training sessions). We examined Cogmed usage characteristics and change on WM assessment scores following the intervention. Of the 21 participants (M age = 11.38, SD = 2.78; Mdn age = 10.00, interquartile range [IQR] = 5.00; 52% female) screened, 60% exhibited WM deficits (n = 12) and received the intervention and 50% (n = 6) completed Cogmed. The mean number of sessions completed was 15.83 (SD = 7.73; Mdn = 17.00, IQR = 16.00); females were more likely to complete Cogmed, χ(2) (1) = 6.00, P = 0.01. Participants who reported lower SCD-related pain impact completed more sessions (r = 0.71, P = 0.01). Children who completed Cogmed exhibited improvements in verbal WM, visuospatial short-term memory, and visuospatial WM. Initial findings suggest Cogmed is associated with WM improvement in youth with SCD; however, adherence was lower than expected. Home-based WM interventions may ameliorate SCD-related WM deficits but strategies are needed to address barriers to program completion. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Subtypes and comorbidity in mathematical learning disabilities: Multidimensional study of verbal and visual memory processes is key to understanding.

PubMed

Szűcs, D

2016-01-01

A large body of research suggests that mathematical learning disability (MLD) is related to working memory impairment. Here, I organize part of this literature through a meta-analysis of 36 studies with 665 MLD and 1049 control participants. I demonstrate that one subtype of MLD is associated with reading problems and weak verbal short-term and working memory. Another subtype of MLD does not have associated reading problems and is linked to weak visuospatial short-term and working memory. In order to better understand MLD we need to precisely define potentially modality-specific memory subprocesses and supporting executive functions, relevant for mathematical learning. This can be achieved by taking a multidimensional parametric approach systematically probing an extended network of cognitive functions. Rather than creating arbitrary subgroups and/or focus on a single factor, highly powered studies need to position individuals in a multidimensional parametric space. This will allow us to understand the multidimensional structure of cognitive functions and their relationship to mathematical performance. © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The effect of visual arrangement on visuospatial short-term memory: Insights from children with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome.

PubMed

Attout, Lucie; Noël, Marie-Pascale; Rousselle, Laurence

2018-04-11

Recent models of visuospatial (VSSP) short-term memory postulate the existence of two dissociable mechanisms depending on whether VSSP information is presented simultaneously or sequentially. However, they do not specify to what extent VSSP short-term memory is under the influence of general VSSP processing. This issue was examined in people with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, a genetic condition involving a VSSP deficit. The configuration of VSSP information was manipulated (structured vs. unstructured) to explore the impact of arrangement on VSSP short-term memory. Two presentation modes were used to see whether the VSSP arrangement has the same impact on simultaneous and sequential short-term memory. Compared to children matched on chronological age, children with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome showed impaired performance only for structured arrangement, regardless of the presentation mode, suggesting an influence of VSSP processing on VSSP short-term memory abilities. A revised cognitive architecture for a model of VSSP short-term memory is proposed.

Computer Game Play Reduces Intrusive Memories of Experimental Trauma via Reconsolidation-Update Mechanisms.

PubMed

James, Ella L; Bonsall, Michael B; Hoppitt, Laura; Tunbridge, Elizabeth M; Geddes, John R; Milton, Amy L; Holmes, Emily A

2015-08-01

Memory of a traumatic event becomes consolidated within hours. Intrusive memories can then flash back repeatedly into the mind's eye and cause distress. We investigated whether reconsolidation-the process during which memories become malleable when recalled-can be blocked using a cognitive task and whether such an approach can reduce these unbidden intrusions. We predicted that reconsolidation of a reactivated visual memory of experimental trauma could be disrupted by engaging in a visuospatial task that would compete for visual working memory resources. We showed that intrusive memories were virtually abolished by playing the computer game Tetris following a memory-reactivation task 24 hr after initial exposure to experimental trauma. Furthermore, both memory reactivation and playing Tetris were required to reduce subsequent intrusions (Experiment 2), consistent with reconsolidation-update mechanisms. A simple, noninvasive cognitive-task procedure administered after emotional memory has already consolidated (i.e., > 24 hours after exposure to experimental trauma) may prevent the recurrence of intrusive memories of those emotional events. © The Author(s) 2015.

Computer Game Play Reduces Intrusive Memories of Experimental Trauma via Reconsolidation-Update Mechanisms

PubMed Central

James, Ella L.; Bonsall, Michael B.; Hoppitt, Laura; Tunbridge, Elizabeth M.; Geddes, John R.; Milton, Amy L.

2015-01-01

Memory of a traumatic event becomes consolidated within hours. Intrusive memories can then flash back repeatedly into the mind’s eye and cause distress. We investigated whether reconsolidation—the process during which memories become malleable when recalled—can be blocked using a cognitive task and whether such an approach can reduce these unbidden intrusions. We predicted that reconsolidation of a reactivated visual memory of experimental trauma could be disrupted by engaging in a visuospatial task that would compete for visual working memory resources. We showed that intrusive memories were virtually abolished by playing the computer game Tetris following a memory-reactivation task 24 hr after initial exposure to experimental trauma. Furthermore, both memory reactivation and playing Tetris were required to reduce subsequent intrusions (Experiment 2), consistent with reconsolidation-update mechanisms. A simple, noninvasive cognitive-task procedure administered after emotional memory has already consolidated (i.e., > 24 hours after exposure to experimental trauma) may prevent the recurrence of intrusive memories of those emotional events. PMID:26133572

Long term neurocognitive improvement after "late" right hemispherectomy: case report and review of the literature.

PubMed

Moletto, Alessandra; Bagnasco, Irene; Dassi, Patrizia; Vigliano, Piernanda

2018-03-21

To study the long-term neurocognitive changes of a right-handed girl with intractable epilepsy after late right hemispherectomy and compare them with data in the literature. The girl was affected by an epileptic encephalopathy associated with right fronto-temporo-parietal polymicrogyria; she was submitted to right hemispherectomy at the age of 5 and examined with cognitive and neuropsychological tests at the age of 17 years. The girl took advantage of neurocognitive rehabilitation for several years; she is currently seizure-free and off therapy. At the end of the follow-up, the full-scale IQ is stable and within the normal range (p = 88). As the discrepancy between verbal IQ (pp = 120) and performance IQ (pp = 71) is significantly high, the girl was subjected to neurocognitive evaluation with the following results: verbal problem solving, verbal short- and long-term memory, and executive functions are within normal range. The most fragile functional areas are visual and spatial reasoning, verbal working memory, short-term visuospatial memory, visual attention, and processing speed, all > 2 SD. The spatial tests, such as coding, matrix reasoning, picture concepts, and arithmetic reasoning (which are favored by other functions such as associative memory and learning ability), are less severely impaired. These findings show that good conceptual skills and verbal reasoning can compensate for some deficits in visual-perceptual and visuospatial functions.

The effect of long-term working memory through personalization applied to free recall: uncurbing the primacy-effect enthusiasm.

PubMed

Guida, Alessandro; Gras, Doriane; Noel, Yvonnick; Le Bohec, Olivier; Quaireau, Christophe; Nicolas, Serge

2013-05-01

In this study, a personalization method (Guida, Tardieu, & Nicolas, European Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 21: 862-896 2009) was applied to a free-recall task. Fifteen pairs of words, composed of an object and a location, were presented to 93 participants, who had to mentally associate each pair and subsequently recall the objects. A 30-s delay was introduced on half of the trials, the presentation rate was manipulated (5 or 10 s per item), and verbal and visuospatial working memory tests were administered to test for their effects on the serial curve. Two groups were constituted: a personalized group, for whom the locations were well-known places on their university campus, and a nonpersonalized group, for whom the locations did not refer to known places. Since personalization putatively operationalizes long-term working memory (Ericsson & Kintsch, Psychological Review, 102: 211-245 1995)-namely, the capacity to store information reliably and rapidly in long-term memory-and if we take a dual-store approach to memory, the personalization advantage would be expected to be greater for pre-recency than for recency items. Overall, the results were compatible with long-term working memory theory. They contribute to validating the personalization method as a methodology to characterize the contribution of long-term memory storage to performance in working memory tasks.

Characteristic of cognitive decline in Parkinson's disease: a 1-year follow-up.

PubMed

McKinlay, Audrey; Grace, Randolph C

2011-10-01

The aim of this study was to track the evolution of cognitive decline in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients 1 year after baseline testing. Thirty-three PD patients, divided according to three previously determined subgroups based on their initial cognitive performance, and a healthy comparison group were reassessed after a 1-year interval. Participants were assessed in the following five domains: Executive Function, Problem Solving, Working Memory/Attention, Memory, and Visuospatial Ability. The PD groups differed on the domains of Executive Function, Problem Solving, and Working Memory, with the most severe deficits being evident for the group that had previously shown the greatest level of impairment. Increased cognitive problems were also associated with decreased functioning in activities of daily living. The most severely impaired group had evidence of global cognitive decline, possibly reflecting a stage of preclinical dementia.

Set shifting and visuospatial organization deficits in body dysmorphic disorder.

PubMed

Greenberg, Jennifer L; Weingarden, Hilary; Reuman, Lillian; Abrams, Dylan; Mothi, Suraj S; Wilhelm, Sabine

2017-11-24

Individuals with body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) over-attend to perceived defect(s) in their physical appearance, often becoming "stuck" obsessing about perceived flaws and engaging in rituals to hide flaws. These symptoms suggest that individuals with BDD may experience deficits in underlying neurocognitive functions, such as set-shifting and visuospatial organization. These deficits have been implicated as risk and maintenance factors in disorders with similarities to BDD but have been minimally investigated in BDD. The present study examined differences in neurocognitive functions among BDD participants (n = 20) compared to healthy controls (HCs; n = 20). Participants completed neuropsychological assessments measuring set-shifting (Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery Intra-Extra Dimensional Set Shift [IED] task) and visuospatial organization and memory (Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test [ROCF]). Results revealed a set-shifting deficit among BDD participants compared to HCs on the IED. On the ROCF, BDD participants exhibited deficits in visuospatial organization compared to HCs, but they did not differ in visuospatial memory compared to HCs. Results did not change when accounting for depression severity. Findings highlight neurocognitive deficits as potential endophenotype markers of clinical features (i.e., delusionality). Understanding neuropsychological deficits may clarify similarities and differences between BDD and related disorders and may guide targets for BDD treatment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Temporal production and visuospatial processing.

PubMed

Benuzzi, Francesca; Basso, Gianpaolo; Nichelli, Paolo

2005-12-01

Current models of prospective timing hypothesize that estimated duration is influenced either by the attentional load or by the short-term memory requirements of a concurrent nontemporal task. In the present study, we addressed this issue with four dual-task experiments. In Exp. 1, the effect of memory load on both reaction time and temporal production was proportional to the number of items of a visuospatial pattern to hold in memory. In Exps. 2, 3, and 4, a temporal production task was combined with two visual search tasks involving either pre-attentive or attentional processing. Visual tasks interfered with temporal production: produced intervals were lengthened proportionally to the display size. In contrast, reaction times increased with display size only when a serial, effortful search was required. It appears that memory and perceptual set size, rather than nonspecific attentional or short-term memory load, can influence prospective timing.

Comparing the Effects of Congenital and Late Visual Impairments on Visuospatial Mental Abilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Monegato, Maura; Cattaneo, Zaira; Pece, Alfredo; Vecchi, Tomaso

2007-01-01

This study compared participants who were congenitally visually impaired and those who became visually impaired later in life in a spatial memory task. The latter showed less efficient visuospatial processes than did the former. However, these differences were of a quantitative nature only, indicating common cognitive mechanisms that can be…

Testing Beyond Words: Using Tests to Enhance Visuospatial Map Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carpenter, Shana K.; Pashler, Harold

2007-01-01

Psychological research shows that learning can be powerfully enhanced through testing, but this finding has so far been confined to memory tasks requiring verbal responses. We explored whether testing can enhance learning of visuospatial information in maps. Fifty subjects each studied 2 maps, one through conventional study, and the other through…

Visuo-spatial memory deficits following medial temporal lobe damage: A comparison of three patient groups.

PubMed

Esfahani-Bayerl, Nazli; Finke, Carsten; Braun, Mischa; Düzel, Emrah; Heekeren, Hauke R; Holtkamp, Martin; Hasper, Dietrich; Storm, Christian; Ploner, Christoph J

2016-01-29

The contributions of the hippocampal formation and adjacent regions of the medial temporal lobe (MTL) to memory are still a matter of debate. It is currently unclear, to what extent discrepancies between previous human lesion studies may have been caused by the choice of distinct patient models of MTL dysfunction, as disorders affecting this region differ in selectivity, laterality and mechanisms of post-lesional compensation. Here, we investigated the performance of three distinct patient groups with lesions to the MTL with a battery of visuo-spatial short-term memory tasks. Thirty-one subjects with either unilateral damage to the MTL (postsurgical lesions following resection of a benign brain tumor, 6 right-sided lesions, 5 left) or bilateral damage (10 post-encephalitic lesions, 10 post-anoxic lesions) performed a series of tasks requiring short-term memory of colors, locations or color-location associations. We have shown previously that performance in the association task critically depends on hippocampal integrity. Patients with postsurgical damage of the MTL showed deficient performance in the association task, but performed normally in color and location tasks. Patients with left-sided lesions were almost as impaired as patients with right-sided lesions. Patients with bilateral post-encephalitic lesions showed comparable damage to MTL sub-regions and performed similarly to patients with postsurgical lesions in the association task. However, post-encephalitic patients showed additional impairments in the non-associative color and location tasks. A strikingly similar pattern of deficits was observed in post-anoxic patients. These results suggest a distinct cerebral organization of associative and non-associative short-term memory that was differentially affected in the three patient groups. Thus, while all patient groups may provide appropriate models of medial temporal lobe dysfunction in associative visuo-spatial short-term memory, additional deficits in non-associative memory tasks likely reflect damage of regions outside the MTL. Importantly, the choice of a patient model in human lesion studies of the MTL significantly influences overall performance patterns in visuo-spatial memory tasks. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Executive functions predict conceptual learning of science.

PubMed

Rhodes, Sinéad M; Booth, Josephine N; Palmer, Lorna Elise; Blythe, Richard A; Delibegovic, Mirela; Wheate, Nial J

2016-06-01

We examined the relationship between executive functions and both factual and conceptual learning of science, specifically chemistry, in early adolescence. Sixty-three pupils in their second year of secondary school (aged 12-13 years) participated. Pupils completed tasks of working memory (Spatial Working Memory), inhibition (Stop-Signal), attention set-shifting (ID/ED), and planning (Stockings of Cambridge), from the CANTAB. They also participated in a chemistry teaching session, practical, and assessment on the topic of acids and alkalis designed specifically for this study. Executive function data were related to (1) the chemistry assessment which included aspects of factual and conceptual learning and (2) a recent school science exam. Correlational analyses between executive functions and both the chemistry assessment and science grades revealed that science achievements were significantly correlated with working memory. Linear regression analysis revealed that visuospatial working memory ability was predictive of chemistry performance. Interestingly, this relationship was observed solely in relation to the conceptual learning condition of the assessment highlighting the role of executive functions in understanding and applying knowledge about what is learned within science teaching. © 2016 The British Psychological Society.

Differential engagement of attention and visual working memory in the representation and evaluation of the number of relevant targets and their spatial relations: Evidence from the N2pc and SPCN.

PubMed

Maheux, Manon; Jolicœur, Pierre

2017-04-01

We examined the role of attention and visual working memory in the evaluation of the number of target stimuli as well as their relative spatial position using the N2pc and the SPCN. Participants performed two tasks: a simple counting task in which they had to determine if a visual display contained one or two coloured items among grey fillers and one in which they had to identify a specific relation between two coloured items. The same stimuli were used for both tasks. Each task was designed to permit an easier evaluation of either the same-coloured or differently-coloured stimuli. We predicted a greater involvement of attention and visual working memory for more difficult stimulus-task pairings. The results confirmed these predictions and suggest that visuospatial configurations that require more time to evaluate induce a greater (and presumably longer) involvement of attention and visual working memory. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A simultaneous examination of two forms of working memory training: Evidence for near transfer only.

PubMed

Minear, Meredith; Brasher, Faith; Guerrero, Claudia Brandt; Brasher, Mandy; Moore, Andrew; Sukeena, Joshua

2016-10-01

The efficacy of working-memory training is a topic of considerable debate, with some studies showing transfer to measures such as fluid intelligence while others have not. We report the results of a study designed to examine two forms of working-memory training, one using a spatial n-back and the other a verbal complex span. Thirty-one undergraduates completed 4 weeks of n-back training and 32 completed 4 weeks of verbal complex span training. We also included two active control groups. One group trained on a non-adaptive version of n-back and the other trained on a real-time strategy video game. All participants completed pre- and post-training measures of a large battery of transfer tasks used to create composite measures of short-term and working memory in both verbal and visuo-spatial domains as well as verbal reasoning and fluid intelligence. We only found clear evidence for near transfer from the spatial n-back training to new forms of n-back, and this was the case for both adaptive and non-adaptive n-back.

Influences of Long-Term Memory-Guided Attention and Stimulus-Guided Attention on Visuospatial Representations within Human Intraparietal Sulcus.

PubMed

Rosen, Maya L; Stern, Chantal E; Michalka, Samantha W; Devaney, Kathryn J; Somers, David C

2015-08-12

Human parietal cortex plays a central role in encoding visuospatial information and multiple visual maps exist within the intraparietal sulcus (IPS), with each hemisphere symmetrically representing contralateral visual space. Two forms of hemispheric asymmetries have been identified in parietal cortex ventrolateral to visuotopic IPS. Key attentional processes are localized to right lateral parietal cortex in the temporoparietal junction and long-term memory (LTM) retrieval processes are localized to the left lateral parietal cortex in the angular gyrus. Here, using fMRI, we investigate how spatial representations of visuotopic IPS are influenced by stimulus-guided visuospatial attention and by LTM-guided visuospatial attention. We replicate prior findings that a hemispheric asymmetry emerges under stimulus-guided attention: in the right hemisphere (RH), visual maps IPS0, IPS1, and IPS2 code attentional targets across the visual field; in the left hemisphere (LH), IPS0-2 codes primarily contralateral targets. We report the novel finding that, under LTM-guided attention, both RH and LH IPS0-2 exhibit bilateral responses and hemispheric symmetry re-emerges. Therefore, we demonstrate that both hemispheres of IPS0-2 are independently capable of dynamically changing spatial coding properties as attentional task demands change. These findings have important implications for understanding visuospatial and memory-retrieval deficits in patients with parietal lobe damage. The human parietal lobe contains multiple maps of the external world that spatially guide perception, action, and cognition. Maps in each cerebral hemisphere code information from the opposite side of space, not from the same side, and the two hemispheres are symmetric. Paradoxically, damage to specific parietal regions that lack spatial maps can cause patients to ignore half of space (hemispatial neglect syndrome), but only for right (not left) hemisphere damage. Conversely, the left parietal cortex has been linked to retrieval of vivid memories regardless of space. Here, we investigate possible underlying mechanisms in healthy individuals. We demonstrate two forms of dynamic changes in parietal spatial representations: an asymmetric one for stimulus-guided attention and a symmetric one for long-term memory-guided attention. Copyright © 2015 the authors 0270-6474/15/3511358-06$15.00/0.

Preexisting semantic representation improves working memory performance in the visuospatial domain.

PubMed

Rudner, Mary; Orfanidou, Eleni; Cardin, Velia; Capek, Cheryl M; Woll, Bencie; Rönnberg, Jerker

2016-05-01

Working memory (WM) for spoken language improves when the to-be-remembered items correspond to preexisting representations in long-term memory. We investigated whether this effect generalizes to the visuospatial domain by administering a visual n-back WM task to deaf signers and hearing signers, as well as to hearing nonsigners. Four different kinds of stimuli were presented: British Sign Language (BSL; familiar to the signers), Swedish Sign Language (SSL; unfamiliar), nonsigns, and nonlinguistic manual actions. The hearing signers performed better with BSL than with SSL, demonstrating a facilitatory effect of preexisting semantic representation. The deaf signers also performed better with BSL than with SSL, but only when WM load was high. No effect of preexisting phonological representation was detected. The deaf signers performed better than the hearing nonsigners with all sign-based materials, but this effect did not generalize to nonlinguistic manual actions. We argue that deaf signers, who are highly reliant on visual information for communication, develop expertise in processing sign-based items, even when those items do not have preexisting semantic or phonological representations. Preexisting semantic representation, however, enhances the quality of the gesture-based representations temporarily maintained in WM by this group, thereby releasing WM resources to deal with increased load. Hearing signers, on the other hand, may make strategic use of their speech-based representations for mnemonic purposes. The overall pattern of results is in line with flexible-resource models of WM.

Cognitive Impairment Assessment through Visuospatial Memory Can Be Performed with a Modified Walking Corsi Test Using the ‘Magic Carpet’

PubMed Central

Perrochon, Anaïck; Kemoun, Gilles; Dugué, Benoit; Berthoz, Alain

2014-01-01

Background Subjects with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) have disturbances in their spatial navigation abilities and exhibit early deficits in visuospatial short-term memory. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether a quantitative (span score) and qualitative (evaluating navigation strategies used) analysis of the Corsi test (usual condition and complex navigation task) would be useful to reveal cognitive decline. Methods We evaluated the performance of 15 young adults, 21 healthy elderly subjects and 15 subjects with MCI using the electronic version of the Corsi test (the Modified Corsi Block-Tapping Test, MCBT) and the complex navigation task (the Modified Walking Corsi Test, MWCT). The MWCT, which is an adaptation of the Corsi test, assesses spatial memory when the subject walks in a complex environment. We used Richard et al.'s model [Cogn Sci 1993;17:497-529] to investigate problem-solving strategies during the Corsi tests. Results The span scores obtained on the MCBT and the MWCT were significantly lower in the healthy elderly subjects (MCBT = 5.0 ± 0.7; MWCT = 4.0 ± 0.7) and the subjects with MCI (MCBT = 4.7 ± 0.8; MWCT = 4.1 ± 0.9) than in the younger adults (MCBT = 6.2 ± 0.6; MWCT = 5.3 ± 1.0). The visuospatial working memory was more impaired in the complex navigation task (MWCT = 4.3 ± 0.9) than in the modified Corsi test (MCBT = 5.3 ± 0.8). Finally, the subjects with greater cognitive impairment were more likely to have inadequate or absence of problem-solving strategies. Conclusions Investigating the problem-solving strategies used during the MWCT appears to be a promising way to differentiate between the subjects with MCI and the healthy elderly subjects. PMID:24575112

Involuntary memories after a positive film are dampened by a visuospatial task: unhelpful in depression but helpful in mania?

PubMed

Davies, Charlotte; Malik, Aiysha; Pictet, Arnaud; Blackwell, Simon E; Holmes, Emily A

2012-01-01

Spontaneous negative mental images have been extensively researched due to the crucial role they play in conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder. However, people can also experience spontaneous positive mental images, and these are little understood. Positive images may play a role in promoting healthy positive mood and may be lacking in conditions such as depression. However, they may also occur in problematic states of elevated mood, such as in bipolar disorder. Can we apply an understanding of spontaneous imagery gained by the study of spontaneous negative images to spontaneous positive images? In an analogue of the trauma film studies, 69 volunteers viewed an explicitly positive (rather than traumatic) film. Participants were randomly allocated post-film either to perform a visuospatial task (the computer game 'Tetris') or to a no-task control condition. Viewing the film enhanced positive mood and immediately post-film increased goal setting on a questionnaire measure. The film was successful in generating involuntary memories of specific scenes over the following week. As predicted, compared with the control condition, participants in the visuospatial task condition reported significantly fewer involuntary memories from the film in a diary over the subsequent week. Furthermore, scores on a recognition memory test at 1 week indicated an impairment in voluntary recall of the film in the visuospatial task condition. Clinical implications regarding the modulation of positive imagery after a positive emotional experience are discussed. Generally, boosting positive imagery may be a useful strategy for the recovery of depressed mood. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Involuntary Memories after a Positive Film Are Dampened by a Visuospatial Task: Unhelpful in Depression but Helpful in Mania?

PubMed Central

Charlotte, Davies; Malik, Aiysha; Pictet, Arnaud; Blackwell, Simon E; Holmes, Emily A

2012-01-01

Spontaneous negative mental images have been extensively researched due to the crucial role they play in conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder. However, people can also experience spontaneous positive mental images, and these are little understood. Positive images may play a role in promoting healthy positive mood and may be lacking in conditions such as depression. However, they may also occur in problematic states of elevated mood, such as in bipolar disorder. Can we apply an understanding of spontaneous imagery gained by the study of spontaneous negative images to spontaneous positive images? In an analogue of the trauma film studies, 69 volunteers viewed an explicitly positive (rather than traumatic) film. Participants were randomly allocated post-film either to perform a visuospatial task (the computer game ‘Tetris’) or to a no-task control condition. Viewing the film enhanced positive mood and immediately post-film increased goal setting on a questionnaire measure. The film was successful in generating involuntary memories of specific scenes over the following week. As predicted, compared with the control condition, participants in the visuospatial task condition reported significantly fewer involuntary memories from the film in a diary over the subsequent week. Furthermore, scores on a recognition memory test at 1 week indicated an impairment in voluntary recall of the film in the visuospatial task condition. Clinical implications regarding the modulation of positive imagery after a positive emotional experience are discussed. Generally, boosting positive imagery may be a useful strategy for the recovery of depressed mood. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. PMID:22570062

Spatial working memory in neurofibromatosis 1: Altered neural activity and functional connectivity.

PubMed

Ibrahim, Amira F A; Montojo, Caroline A; Haut, Kristen M; Karlsgodt, Katherine H; Hansen, Laura; Congdon, Eliza; Rosser, Tena; Bilder, Robert M; Silva, Alcino J; Bearden, Carrie E

2017-01-01

Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF1) is a genetic disorder that disrupts central nervous system development and neuronal function. Cognitively, NF1 is characterized by difficulties with executive control and visuospatial abilities. Little is known about the neural substrates underlying these deficits. The current study utilized Blood-Oxygen-Level-Dependent (BOLD) functional MRI (fMRI) to explore the neural correlates of spatial working memory (WM) deficits in patients with NF1. BOLD images were acquired from 23 adults with NF1 (age M  = 32.69; 61% male) and 25 matched healthy controls (age M  = 33.08; 64% male) during an in-scanner visuo-spatial WM task. Whole brain functional and psycho-physiological interaction analyses were utilized to investigate neural activity and functional connectivity, respectively, during visuo-spatial WM performance. Participants also completed behavioral measures of spatial reasoning and verbal WM. Relative to healthy controls, participants with NF1 showed reduced recruitment of key components of WM circuitry, the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and right parietal cortex. In addition, healthy controls exhibited greater simultaneous deactivation between the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and temporal regions than NF1 patients. In contrast, NF1 patients showed greater PCC and bilateral parietal connectivity with visual cortices as well as between the PCC and the cerebellum. In NF1 participants, increased functional coupling of the PCC with frontal and parietal regions was associated with better spatial reasoning and WM performance, respectively; these relationships were not observed in controls. Dysfunctional engagement of WM circuitry, and aberrant functional connectivity of 'task-negative' regions in NF1 patients may underlie spatial WM difficulties characteristic of the disorder.

Slow-oscillatory Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Modulates Memory in Temporal Lobe Epilepsy by Altering Sleep Spindle Generators: A Possible Rehabilitation Tool.

PubMed

Del Felice, Alessandra; Magalini, Alessandra; Masiero, Stefano

2015-01-01

Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is often associated with memory deficits. Given the putative role for sleep spindles memory consolidation, spindle generators skewed toward the affected lobe in TLE subjects may be a neurophysiological marker of defective memory. Slow-oscillatory transcranial direct current stimulation (sotDCS) during slow waves sleep (SWS) has previously been shown to enhance sleep-dependent memory consolidation by increasing slow-wave sleep and modulating sleep spindles. To test if anodal sotDCS over the affected TL prior to a nap affects sleep spindles and whether this improves memory consolidation. Randomized controlled cross-over study. 12 people with TLE underwent sotDCS (0.75 Hz; 0-250 μV, 30 min) or sham before daytime nap. Declarative verbal and visuospatial learning were tested. Fast and slow spindle signals were recorded by 256-channel EEG during sleep. In both study arms, electrical source imaging (ESI) localized cortical generators. Neuropsychological data were analyzed with general linear model statistics or the Kruskal-Wallis test (P or Z < 0.05), and neurophysiological data tested with the Mann-Whitney t test and binomial distribution test (P or Z < 0.05). An improvement in declarative (P = 0.05) and visuospatial memory performance (P = 0.048) emerged after sotDCS. SotDCS increased slow spindle generators current density (Z = 0.001), with a shift to the anterior cortical areas. Anodal sotDCS over the affected temporal lobe improves declarative and visuospatial memory performance by modulating slow sleep spindles cortical source generators. SotDCS appears a promising tool for memory rehabilitation in people with TLE. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Differences in spatial working memory as a function of team sports expertise: the Corsi Block-tapping task in sport psychological assessment.

PubMed

Furley, Philip; Memmert, Daniel

2010-06-01

Individual differences in visuospatial abilities were investigated in experienced basketball players compared with nonathletes. Most research shows that experts and novices do not differ on basic cognitive ability tests. Nevertheless, there are some equivocal findings indicating there are differences in basic cognitive abilities such as attention. The goal of the present research was to investigate team-ball athletes in regard to their visuospatial abilities. 112 male college students (54 basketball players, 58 nonathlete college students) were tested in their spatial capacity with the Corsi Block-tapping Task. No differences in spatial capacity were evident between basketball players and nonathlete college students. The results are discussed in the context of the expert performance approach and individual difference research.

A new neural framework for visuospatial processing

PubMed Central

Kravitz, Dwight J.; Saleem, Kadharbatcha S.; Baker, Chris I.; Mishkin, Mortimer

2012-01-01

The division of cortical visual processing into distinct dorsal and ventral streams is a key framework that has guided visual neuroscience. The characterization of the ventral stream as a ‘What’ pathway is relatively uncontroversial, but the nature of dorsal stream processing is less clear. Originally proposed as mediating spatial perception (‘Where’), more recent accounts suggest it primarily serves non-conscious visually guided action (‘How’). Here, we identify three pathways emerging from the dorsal stream that consist of projections to the prefrontal and premotor cortices, and a major projection to the medial temporal lobe that courses both directly and indirectly through the posterior cingulate and retrosplenial cortices. These three pathways support both conscious and non-conscious visuospatial processing, including spatial working memory, visually guided action and navigation, respectively. PMID:21415848

Effects of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) on Human Memory.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Matzen, Laura E.; Trumbo, Michael Christopher Stefan

Training a person in a new knowledge base or skill set is extremely time consuming and costly, particularly in highly specialized domains such as the military and the intelligence community. Recent research in cognitive neuroscience has suggested that a technique called transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has the potential to revolutionize training by enabling learners to acquire new skills faster, more efficiently, and more robustly (Bullard et al., 2011). In this project, we tested the effects of tDCS on two types of memory performance that are critical for learning new skills: associative memory and working memory. Associative memory is memorymore » for the relationship between two items or events. It forms the foundation of all episodic memories, so enhancing associative memory could provide substantial benefits to the speed and robustness of learning new information. We tested the effects of tDCS on associative memory, using a real-world associative memory task: remembering the links between faces and names. Working memory refers to the amount of information that can be held in mind and processed at one time, and it forms the basis for all higher-level cognitive processing. We investigated the degree of transfer between various working memory tasks (the N-back task as a measure of verbal working memory, the rotation-span task as a measure of visuospatial working memory, and Raven's progressive matrices as a measure of fluid intelligence) in order to determine if tDCS-induced facilitation of performance is task-specific or general.« less

The default mode network and the working memory network are not anti-correlated during all phases of a working memory task.

PubMed

Piccoli, Tommaso; Valente, Giancarlo; Linden, David E J; Re, Marta; Esposito, Fabrizio; Sack, Alexander T; Di Salle, Francesco

2015-01-01

The default mode network and the working memory network are known to be anti-correlated during sustained cognitive processing, in a load-dependent manner. We hypothesized that functional connectivity among nodes of the two networks could be dynamically modulated by task phases across time. To address the dynamic links between default mode network and the working memory network, we used a delayed visuo-spatial working memory paradigm, which allowed us to separate three different phases of working memory (encoding, maintenance, and retrieval), and analyzed the functional connectivity during each phase within and between the default mode network and the working memory network networks. We found that the two networks are anti-correlated only during the maintenance phase of working memory, i.e. when attention is focused on a memorized stimulus in the absence of external input. Conversely, during the encoding and retrieval phases, when the external stimulation is present, the default mode network is positively coupled with the working memory network, suggesting the existence of a dynamically switching of functional connectivity between "task-positive" and "task-negative" brain networks. Our results demonstrate that the well-established dichotomy of the human brain (anti-correlated networks during rest and balanced activation-deactivation during cognition) has a more nuanced organization than previously thought and engages in different patterns of correlation and anti-correlation during specific sub-phases of a cognitive task. This nuanced organization reinforces the hypothesis of a direct involvement of the default mode network in cognitive functions, as represented by a dynamic rather than static interaction with specific task-positive networks, such as the working memory network.

The Default Mode Network and the Working Memory Network Are Not Anti-Correlated during All Phases of a Working Memory Task

PubMed Central

Piccoli, Tommaso; Valente, Giancarlo; Linden, David E. J.; Re, Marta; Esposito, Fabrizio; Sack, Alexander T.; Salle, Francesco Di

2015-01-01

Introduction The default mode network and the working memory network are known to be anti-correlated during sustained cognitive processing, in a load-dependent manner. We hypothesized that functional connectivity among nodes of the two networks could be dynamically modulated by task phases across time. Methods To address the dynamic links between default mode network and the working memory network, we used a delayed visuo-spatial working memory paradigm, which allowed us to separate three different phases of working memory (encoding, maintenance, and retrieval), and analyzed the functional connectivity during each phase within and between the default mode network and the working memory network networks. Results We found that the two networks are anti-correlated only during the maintenance phase of working memory, i.e. when attention is focused on a memorized stimulus in the absence of external input. Conversely, during the encoding and retrieval phases, when the external stimulation is present, the default mode network is positively coupled with the working memory network, suggesting the existence of a dynamically switching of functional connectivity between “task-positive” and “task-negative” brain networks. Conclusions Our results demonstrate that the well-established dichotomy of the human brain (anti-correlated networks during rest and balanced activation-deactivation during cognition) has a more nuanced organization than previously thought and engages in different patterns of correlation and anti-correlation during specific sub-phases of a cognitive task. This nuanced organization reinforces the hypothesis of a direct involvement of the default mode network in cognitive functions, as represented by a dynamic rather than static interaction with specific task-positive networks, such as the working memory network. PMID:25848951

Specific effects of ecstasy and other illicit drugs on cognition in poly-substance users.

PubMed

Schilt, T; de Win, M M L; Jager, G; Koeter, M W; Ramsey, N F; Schmand, B; van den Brink, W

2008-09-01

A large number of studies, reviews and meta-analyses have reported cognitive deficits in ecstasy users. However most ecstasy users are polydrug users, and therefore it cannot be excluded that these deficits are (partly) the result of drugs other than ecstasy. The current study, part of the Netherlands XTC Toxicity (NeXT) study, investigates the specific sustained effects of ecstasy relative to amphetamine, cocaine and cannabis on the brain using neuropsychological examination. A stratified sample of 67 subjects with such a variation in type and amount of drug use was included that correlations between the consumption of the various drugs were relatively low allowing stepwise linear multiple regression analyses to differentiate between the effects of ecstasy and those of other substances. Subjects were assessed with neuropsychological tests measuring attention, working memory, verbal and visuospatial memory, and visuospatial ability. Ecstasy use [mean 327 (S.D.=364) tablets in lifetime] had a specific significant dose-related negative effect on verbal delayed recall after adjusting for the use of other drugs. These findings strongly suggest a specific sustained negative effect of ecstasy use on verbal memory. The clinical relevance is not immediately clear, because test performance generally remained within the normal range. However the magnitude of the effect is substantial (d>0.5) and long-term consequences cannot be excluded.

Reduced contribution of executive functions in impaired working memory performance in mild traumatic brain injury patients.

PubMed

Kumar, Sanjay; Rao, Shobini L; Chandramouli, Bangalore A; Pillai, Shibu

2013-08-01

Mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) is associated with often selective impairment of both working memory (WM) and the executive functions (EFs). Research indicates that one of the commonest deficits present in MTBI patients falls in the domain of WM. We aimed to investigate the role of EFs in WM impairment following MTBI. Performance on the tests of EFs and the verbal and visuo-spatial WM of 30 consecutive MTBI patients were compared with age/education/IQ matched 30 normal healthy control participants. Correlation between EFs and WM was studied separately for the MTBI and the control group. The MTBI and control group were tested on a range of EF tests and WM. The MTBI group was demonstrated impairment on verbal and visuo-spatial WM and category fluency tests only. Furthermore, the MTBI group had fewer significant correlations between the WM and EFs (5 out of 54 possible correlations) than in the control group (13 out of 54 possible correlations). We suggest that MTBI may lead to WM deficits as the contribution of executive processes to support the WM is diminished following MTBI. Such an understanding of the poor WM performance in MTBI patients will be helpful when planning appropriate strategies for cognitive rehabilitation. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Fractionating the neural correlates of individual working memory components underlying arithmetic problem solving skills in children

PubMed Central

Metcalfe, Arron W. S.; Ashkenazi, Sarit; Rosenberg-Lee, Miriam; Menon, Vinod

2013-01-01

Baddeley and Hitch’s multi-component working memory (WM) model has played an enduring and influential role in our understanding of cognitive abilities. Very little is known, however, about the neural basis of this multi-component WM model and the differential role each component plays in mediating arithmetic problem solving abilities in children. Here, we investigate the neural basis of the central executive (CE), phonological (PL) and visuo-spatial (VS) components of WM during a demanding mental arithmetic task in 7–9 year old children (N=74). The VS component was the strongest predictor of math ability in children and was associated with increased arithmetic complexity-related responses in left dorsolateral and right ventrolateral prefrontal cortices as well as bilateral intra-parietal sulcus and supramarginal gyrus in posterior parietal cortex. Critically, VS, CE and PL abilities were associated with largely distinct patterns of brain response. Overlap between VS and CE components was observed in left supramarginal gyrus and no overlap was observed between VS and PL components. Our findings point to a central role of visuo-spatial WM during arithmetic problem-solving in young grade-school children and highlight the usefulness of the multi-component Baddeley and Hitch WM model in fractionating the neural correlates of arithmetic problem solving during development. PMID:24212504

Cognitive Advantages of Bilingual Children in Different Sociolinguistic Contexts.

PubMed

Blom, Elma; Boerma, Tessel; Bosma, Evelyn; Cornips, Leonie; Everaert, Emma

2017-01-01

Many studies have shown that bilingual children outperform monolinguals on tasks testing executive functioning, but other studies have not revealed any effect of bilingualism. In this study we compared three groups of bilingual children in the Netherlands, aged 6-7 years, with a monolingual control group. We were specifically interested in testing whether the bilingual cognitive advantage is modulated by the sociolinguistic context of language use. All three bilingual groups were exposed to a minority language besides the nation's dominant language (Dutch). Two bilingual groups were exposed to a regional language (Frisian, Limburgish), and a third bilingual group was exposed to a migrant language (Polish). All children participated in two working memory tasks (verbal, visuospatial) and two attention tasks (selective attention, interference suppression). Bilingual children outperformed monolinguals on selective attention. The cognitive effect of bilingualism was most clearly present in the Frisian-Dutch group and in a subgroup of migrant children who were relatively proficient in Polish. The effect was less robust in the Limburgish-Dutch sample. Investigation of the response patterns of the flanker test, testing interference suppression, suggested that bilingual children more often show an effect of response competition than the monolingual children, demonstrating that bilingual children attend to different aspects of the task than monolingual children. No bilingualism effects emerged for verbal and visuospatial working memory.

More than Memory Impairment in Voltage-Gated Potassium Channel Complex Encephalopathy

PubMed Central

Bettcher, Brianne M.; Gelfand, Jeffrey M.; Irani, Sarosh R.; Neuhaus, John; Forner, Sven; Hess, Christopher P.; Geschwind, Michael D.

2014-01-01

Objective Autoimmune encephalopathies (AE) are a heterogeneous group of neurological disorders that affect cognition. Although memory difficulties are commonly endorsed, few reports of AE inclusively assess all cognitive domains in detail. Our aim was to perform an unbiased cognitive evaluation of AE patients with voltage-gated potassium channel complex antibodies (VGKCC-Abs) in order to delineate cognitive strengths and weaknesses. Methods We assessed serial VGKCC-Abs AE subjects (n=12) with a comprehensive evaluation of memory, executive functions, visuospatial skills, and language. Clinical MRI (n=10/12) was evaluated. Five subjects had serial cognitive testing available, permitting descriptive analysis of change. Results Subjects demonstrated mild to moderate impairment in memory (mean Z=−1.9) and executive functions (mean Z=−1.5), with variable impairments in language and sparing of visuospatial skills. MRI findings showed T2 hyperintensities in medial temporal lobe (10/10) and basal ganglia (2/10). Serial cognitive examination revealed heterogeneity in cognitive function; whereas most patients improved in one or more domains, residual impairments were observed in some patients. Conclusions This study augments prior neuropsychological analyses in VGKCC-Ab AE by identifying not only memory and executive function deficits, but also language impairments, with preservation of visuospatial functioning. This study further highlights the importance of domain-specific testing to parse out the complex cognitive phenotypes of VGKCC-Ab AE. PMID:24981998

Memory and executive functions in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

PubMed

Vandborg, Sanne Kjær; Hartmann, Tue Borst; Bennedsen, Birgit Egedal; Pedersen, Anders Degn; Thomsen, Per Hove

2014-03-01

We investigated whether patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder have poorer memory and executive functions than healthy controls. The relatively inconsistent previous findings on this question reflect a lack of well-matched control groups, the inclusion of patients with comorbidity, and the use of noncomparable neuropsychological tests to assess memory and executive functions. We used well-accepted neuropsychological tests of memory and executive functions to assess 42 patients who had obsessive-compulsive disorder without comorbidity, and 42 healthy controls. We matched the patients and controls pairwise by sex, age, and years of education. The patients performed significantly worse than the controls on the Rey Complex Figure Test, which assesses visuospatial memory and organizational skills. This group difference remained after we controlled for age, education, intelligence, and severity of depressive symptoms. The findings indicate that patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder may have impaired visuospatial memory and organizational skills, and these impairments should be considered in treatment. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00792038.

Verbal Memory Declines More Rapidly with Age in HIV Infected versus Uninfected Adults

PubMed Central

Seider, Talia R.; Luo, Xi; Gongvatana, Assawin; Devlin, Kathryn N.; de la Monte, Suzanne M.; Chasman, Jesse D.; Yan, Peisi; Tashima, Karen T.; Navia, Bradford; Cohen, Ronald A.

2015-01-01

Objectives In the current era of effective antiretroviral treatment, the number of older adults living with HIV is rapidly increasing. This study investigated the combined influence of age and HIV infection on longitudinal changes in verbal and visuospatial learning and memory. Methods In this longitudinal, case-control design, 54 HIV seropositive and 30 seronegative individuals aged 40–74 received neurocognitive assessments at baseline visits and again one year later. Assessment included tests of verbal and visuospatial learning and memory. Linear regression was used to predict baseline performance and longitudinal change on each test using HIV serostatus, age, and their interaction as predictors. MANOVA was used to assess the effects of these predictors on overall baseline performance and overall longitudinal change. Results The interaction of HIV and age significantly predicted longitudinal change in verbal memory performance, as did HIV status, indicating that although the seropositive group declined more than the seronegative group overall, the rate of decline depended on age such that greater age was associated with a greater decline in this group. The regression models for visuospatial learning and memory were significant at baseline, but did not predict change over time. HIV status significantly predicted overall baseline performance and overall longitudinal change. Conclusions This is the first longitudinal study focused on the effects of age and HIV on memory. Findings suggest that age and HIV interact to produce larger declines in verbal memory over time. Further research is needed to gain a greater understanding of the effects of HIV on the aging brain. PMID:24645772

Differential working memory correlates for implicit sequence performance in young and older adults.

PubMed

Bo, Jin; Jennett, S; Seidler, R D

2012-09-01

Our recent work has revealed that visuospatial working memory (VSWM) relates to the rate of explicit motor sequence learning (Bo and Seidler in J Neurophysiol 101:3116-3125, 2009) and implicit sequence performance (Bo et al. in Exp Brain Res 214:73-81, 2011a) in young adults (YA). Although aging has a detrimental impact on many cognitive functions, including working memory, older adults (OA) still rely on their declining working memory resources in an effort to optimize explicit motor sequence learning. Here, we evaluated whether age-related differences in VSWM and/or verbal working memory (VWM) performance relates to implicit performance change in the serial reaction time (SRT) sequence task in OA. Participants performed two computerized working memory tasks adapted from change detection working memory assessments (Luck and Vogel in Nature 390:279-281, 1997), an implicit SRT task and several neuropsychological tests. We found that, although OA exhibited an overall reduction in both VSWM and VWM, both OA and YA showed similar performance in the implicit SRT task. Interestingly, while VSWM and VWM were significantly correlated with each other in YA, there was no correlation between these two working memory scores in OA. In YA, the rate of SRT performance change (exponential fit to the performance curve) was significantly correlated with both VSWM and VWM, while in contrast, OA's performance was only correlated with VWM, and not VSWM. These results demonstrate differential reliance on VSWM and VWM for SRT performance between YA and OA. OA may utilize VWM to maintain optimized performance of second-order conditional sequences.

Jigsaw Puzzles As Cognitive Enrichment (PACE) - the effect of solving jigsaw puzzles on global visuospatial cognition in adults 50 years of age and older: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Fissler, Patrick; Küster, Olivia C; Loy, Laura S; Laptinskaya, Daria; Rosenfelder, Martin J; von Arnim, Christine A F; Kolassa, Iris-Tatjana

2017-09-06

Neurocognitive disorders are an important societal challenge and the need for early prevention is increasingly recognized. Meta-analyses show beneficial effects of cognitive activities on cognition. However, high financial costs, low intrinsic motivation, logistic challenges of group-based activities, or the need to operate digital devices prevent their widespread application in clinical practice. Solving jigsaw puzzles is a cognitive activity without these hindering characteristics, but cognitive effects have not been investigated yet. With this study, we aim to evaluate the effect of solving jigsaw puzzles on visuospatial cognition, daily functioning, and psychological outcomes. The pre-posttest, assessor-blinded study will include 100 cognitively healthy adults 50 years of age or older, who will be randomly assigned to a jigsaw puzzle group or a cognitive health counseling group. Within the 5-week intervention period, participants in the jigsaw puzzle group will engage in 30 days of solving jigsaw puzzles for at least 1 h per day and additionally receive cognitive health counseling. The cognitive health counseling group will receive the same counseling intervention but no jigsaw puzzles. The primary outcome, global visuospatial cognition, will depict the average of the z-standardized performance scores in visuospatial tests of perception, constructional praxis, mental rotation, processing speed, flexibility, working memory, reasoning, and episodic memory. As secondary outcomes, we will assess the eight cognitive abilities, objective and subjective visuospatial daily functioning, psychological well-being, general self-efficacy, and perceived stress. The primary data analysis will be based on mixed-effects models in an intention-to-treat approach. Solving jigsaw puzzles is a low-cost, intrinsically motivating, cognitive leisure activity, which can be executed alone or with others and without the need to operate a digital device. In the case of positive results, these characteristics allow an easy implementation of solving jigsaw puzzles in clinical practice as a way to improve visuospatial functioning. Whether cognitive impairment and loss of independence in everyday functioning might be prevented or delayed in the long run has to be examined in future studies. ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02667314 . Registered on 27 January 2016.

Landmark and route knowledge in children's spatial representation of a virtual environment.

PubMed

Nys, Marion; Gyselinck, Valérie; Orriols, Eric; Hickmann, Maya

2014-01-01

This study investigates the development of landmark and route knowledge in complex wayfinding situations. It focuses on how children (aged 6, 8, and 10 years) and young adults (n = 79) indicate, recognize, and bind landmarks and directions in both verbal and visuo-spatial tasks after learning a virtual route. Performance in these tasks is also related to general verbal and visuo-spatial abilities as assessed by independent standardized tests (attention, working memory, perception of direction, production and comprehension of spatial terms, sentences and stories). The results first show that the quantity and quality of landmarks and directions produced and recognized by participants in both verbal and visuo-spatial tasks increased with age. In addition, an increase with age was observed in participants' selection of decisional landmarks (i.e., landmarks associated with a change of direction), as well as in their capacity to bind landmarks and directions. Our results support the view that children first acquire landmark knowledge, then route knowledge, as shown by their late developing ability to bind knowledge of directions and landmarks. Overall, the quality of verbal and visuo-spatial information in participants' spatial representations was found to vary mostly with their visuo-spatial abilities (attention and perception of directions) and not with their verbal abilities. Interestingly, however, when asked to recognize landmarks encountered during the route, participants show an increasing bias with age toward choosing a related landmark of the same category, regardless of its visual characteristics, i.e., they incorrectly choose the picture of another fountain. The discussion highlights the need for further studies to determine more precisely the role of verbal and visuo-spatial knowledge and the nature of how children learn to represent and memorize routes.

Differences in brain morphology and working memory capacity across childhood.

PubMed

Bathelt, Joe; Gathercole, Susan E; Johnson, Amy; Astle, Duncan E

2018-05-01

Working memory (WM) skills are closely associated with learning progress in key areas such as reading and mathematics across childhood. As yet, however, little is known about how the brain systems underpinning WM develop over this critical developmental period. The current study investigated whether and how structural brain correlates of components of the working memory system change over development. Verbal and visuospatial short-term and working memory were assessed in 153 children between 5.58 and 15.92 years, and latent components of the working memory system were derived. Fractional anisotropy and cortical thickness maps were derived from T1-weighted and diffusion-weighted MRI and processed using eigenanatomy decomposition. There was a greater involvement of the corpus callosum and posterior temporal white matter in younger children for performance associated with the executive part of the working memory system. For older children, this was more closely linked with the thickness of the occipitotemporal cortex. These findings suggest that increasing specialization leads to shifts in the contribution of neural substrates over childhood, moving from an early dependence on a distributed system supported by long-range connections to later reliance on specialized local circuitry. Our findings demonstrate that despite the component factor structure being stable across childhood, the underlying brain systems supporting working memory change. Taking the age of the child into account, and not just their overall score, is likely to be critical for understanding the nature of the limitations on their working memory capacity. © 2017 The Authors. Developmental Science Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Selective interference with image retention and generation: evidence for the workspace model.

PubMed

van der Meulen, Marian; Logie, Robert H; Della Sala, Sergio

2009-08-01

We address three types of model of the relationship between working memory (WM) and long-term memory (LTM): (a) the gateway model, in which WM acts as a gateway between perceptual input and LTM; (b) the unitary model, in which WM is seen as the currently activated areas of LTM; and (c) the workspace model, in which perceptual input activates LTM, and WM acts as a separate workspace for processing and temporary retention of these activated traces. Predictions of these models were tested, focusing on visuospatial working memory and using dual-task methodology to combine two main tasks (visual short-term retention and image generation) with two interference tasks (irrelevant pictures and spatial tapping). The pictures selectively disrupted performance on the generation task, whereas the tapping selectively interfered with the retention task. Results are consistent with the predictions of the workspace model.

Working memory training in older adults: evidence of transfer and maintenance effects.

PubMed

Borella, Erika; Carretti, Barbara; Riboldi, Francesco; De Beni, Rossana

2010-12-01

Few studies have examined working memory (WM) training-related gains and their transfer and maintenance effects in older adults. This present research investigates the efficacy of a verbal WM training program in adults aged 65-75 years, considering specific training gains on a verbal WM (criterion) task as well as transfer effects on measures of visuospatial WM, short-term memory, inhibition, processing speed, and fluid intelligence. Maintenance of training benefits was evaluated at 8-month follow-up. Trained older adults showed higher performance than did controls on the criterion task and maintained this benefit after 8 months. Substantial general transfer effects were found for the trained group, but not for the control one. Transfer maintenance gains were found at follow-up, but only for fluid intelligence and processing speed tasks. The results are discussed in terms of cognitive plasticity in older adults. (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved).

Visuo-spatial Ability in Individuals with Down Syndrome: Is it Really a Strength?

PubMed Central

Yang, Yingying; Conners, Frances A.; Merrill, Edward C.

2014-01-01

Down syndrome (DS) is associated with extreme difficulty in verbal skills and relatively better visuo-spatial skills. Indeed, visuo-spatial ability is often considered a strength in DS. However, it is not clear whether this strength is only relative to the poor verbal skills, or, more impressively, relative to cognitive ability in general. To answer this question, we conducted an extensive literature review of studies on visuo-spatial abilities in people with Down syndrome from January 1987 to May 2013. Based on a general taxonomy of spatial abilities patterned after Lohman, Pellegrino, Alderton, and Regian (1987) and Carroll (1993) and existing studies of DS, we included five different domains of spatial abilities – visuo-spatial memory, visuo-spatial construction, mental rotation, closure, and wayfinding. We evaluated a total of 49 studies including 127 different comparisons. Most comparisons involved a group with DS vs. a group with typical development matched on mental age and compared on a task measuring one of the five visuo-spatial abilities. Although further research is needed for firm conclusions on some visuo-spatial abilities, there was no evidence that visuo-spatial ability is a strength in DS relative to general cognitive ability. Rather, the review suggests an uneven profile of visuo-spatial abilities in DS in which some abilities are commensurate with general cognitive ability level, and others are below. PMID:24755229

The effectiveness of working memory training with individuals with intellectual disabilities - a meta-analytic review.

PubMed

Danielsson, Henrik; Zottarel, Valentina; Palmqvist, Lisa; Lanfranchi, Silvia

2015-01-01

Working memory (WM) training has been increasingly popular in the last years. Previous studies have shown that individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID) have low WM capacity and therefore would benefit by this type of intervention. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of WM and cognitive training for individuals with ID. The effects reported in previous studies have varied and therefore a meta-analysis of articles in the major databases was conducted. Inclusion criteria included to have a pretest-posttest design with a training group and a control group and to have measures of WM or short-term memory. Ten studies with 28 comparisons were included. The results reveal a significant, but small, overall pretest-posttest effect size (ES) for WM training for individuals with ID compared to controls. A mixed WM approach, including both verbal and visuo-spatial components working mainly on strategies, was the only significant training type with a medium ES. The most commonly reported training type, visuo-spatial WM training, was performed in 60 percent of the included comparisons and had a non-significant ES close to zero. We conclude that even if there is an overall effect of WM training, a mixed WM approach appears to cause this effect. Given the few studies included and the different characteristics of the included studies, interpretations should be done with caution. However, different types of interventions appear to have different effects. Even if the results were promising, more studies are needed to better understand how to design an effective WM intervention for this group and to understand if, and how, these short-term effects remain over time and transfer to everyday activities.

The effectiveness of working memory training with individuals with intellectual disabilities – a meta-analytic review

PubMed Central

Danielsson, Henrik; Zottarel, Valentina; Palmqvist, Lisa; Lanfranchi, Silvia

2015-01-01

Working memory (WM) training has been increasingly popular in the last years. Previous studies have shown that individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID) have low WM capacity and therefore would benefit by this type of intervention. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of WM and cognitive training for individuals with ID. The effects reported in previous studies have varied and therefore a meta-analysis of articles in the major databases was conducted. Inclusion criteria included to have a pretest–posttest design with a training group and a control group and to have measures of WM or short-term memory. Ten studies with 28 comparisons were included. The results reveal a significant, but small, overall pretest–posttest effect size (ES) for WM training for individuals with ID compared to controls. A mixed WM approach, including both verbal and visuo-spatial components working mainly on strategies, was the only significant training type with a medium ES. The most commonly reported training type, visuo-spatial WM training, was performed in 60 percent of the included comparisons and had a non-significant ES close to zero. We conclude that even if there is an overall effect of WM training, a mixed WM approach appears to cause this effect. Given the few studies included and the different characteristics of the included studies, interpretations should be done with caution. However, different types of interventions appear to have different effects. Even if the results were promising, more studies are needed to better understand how to design an effective WM intervention for this group and to understand if, and how, these short-term effects remain over time and transfer to everyday activities. PMID:26347692

Performance test for prototype game for children with adhd

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bahana, R.; Gaol, F. L.; Wiguna, T.; Hendric, S. W. H. L.; Soewito, B.; Nugroho, E.; Dirgantoro, B. P.; Abdurachman, E.

2018-03-01

The gaming industry has become one of the fastest growing industries in the world. In recent years there have been several studies that have used games, especially computer-based ones to improve the executive function of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) especially in working memory improvements. There are still several obstacles in using computer-based games that have been circulating today in Indonesia. The aim of this research is to develop and create a prototype game that can be used to improve working memory of children with ADHD using Bahasa Indonesia. The prototype game application is a race game with matching colors and memory work tasks; developed using Construct2. Players will play as a driver, delivering certain fruits to specific homes with different colors. The game also included visuospatial tasks such as remembering the objects. For performance test, CPU utilization, average FPS and image memory usage has been tested in several browsers. In conclusion, the performance tests results show that the first type of the prototype game is good enough to be played in desktop or laptop.

Memory and Learning in Pediatric Bipolar Disorder.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McClure, Erin B.; Treland, Julia E.; Snow, Joseph; Dickstein, Daniel P.; Towbin, Kenneth E.; Charney, Dennis S.; Pine, Daniel S.; Leibenluft, Ellen

2005-01-01

Objective: To test the hypothesis that patients with pediatric bipolar disorder (PBPD) would demonstrate impairment relative to diagnosis-free controls of comparable age, gender, and IQ on measures of memory functioning. Method: The authors administered a battery of verbal and visuospatial memory tests to 35 outpatients with PBPD and 20 healthy…

[Short term memory and severe language disorders in the child].

PubMed

Gras-Vincendon, A; Belion, M; Abecassis, J; Bursztejn, C

1994-10-01

Memory, and particularly short-term memory or "working memory" (Baddeley), is involved in language acquisition in children. We have studied short-term memory, with verbal-and non verbal tests, of 8 children suffering from developmental dysphasia compared with other ones, matched in terms of age and performance I.Q. (W.I.S.C.-R.). The digit span did not significantly differ in the two groups, while the visuo-spatial span was lower in the dysphasic group. The memorization of a list of monosyllabic words by dysphasic children was poor in the absence of visual presentation and improved by it. Differences between dysphasic and control-children are unlikely to be due to speech rate which does not significantly differ from one group to the other one. The results suggest the existence, in language disordered children, of cognitive functions disorders much more important than those directly involved in the speech production.

Pathways to Third-Grade Calculation versus Word-Reading Competence: Are They More Alike or Different?

PubMed Central

Fuchs, Lynn S.; Geary, David C.; Fuchs, Douglas; Compton, Donald L.; Hamlett, Carol L.

2015-01-01

Children (n=747; 6.5 years) were assessed on domain-general processes and mathematics and reading-related competencies (start of 1st grade); addition retrieval (end of 2nd grade); and calculations and word reading (end of 3rd grade). Attentive behavior, reasoning, visuospatial memory, and rapid automatized naming (RAN) indirectly contributed to both outcomes, via retrieval. However, there was no overlap in domain-general direct effects on calculations (attentive behavior, reasoning, working memory) versus word reading (language, phonological memory, RAN). Results suggest ease of forming associative relations and abilities engaged during the formation of these long-term memories are common to both outcomes and can be indexed by addition fact retrieval, but further growth in calculations and word reading is driven by different constellations of domain-general abilities. PMID:26700885

Parietal Activation During Retrieval of Abstract and Concrete Auditory Information

PubMed Central

Klostermann, Ellen C.; Kane, Ari J.M.; Shimamura, Arthur P.

2008-01-01

Successful memory retrieval has been associated with a neural circuit that involves prefrontal, precuneus, and posterior parietal regions. Specifically, these regions are active during recognition memory tests when items correctly identified as “old” are compared with items correctly identified as “new.” Yet, as nearly all previous fMRI studies have used visual stimuli, it is unclear whether activations in posterior regions are specifically associated with memory retrieval or if they reflect visuospatial processing. We focus on the status of parietal activations during recognition performance by testing memory for abstract and concrete nouns presented in the auditory modality with eyes closed. Successful retrieval of both concrete and abstract words was associated with increased activation in left inferior parietal regions (BA 40), similar to those observed with visual stimuli. These results demonstrate that activations in the posterior parietal cortex during retrieval cannot be attributed to bottom-up visuospatial processes but instead have a more direct relationship to memory retrieval processes. PMID:18243736

In search of memory tests equivalent for experiments on animals and humans.

PubMed

Brodziak, Andrzej; Kołat, Estera; Różyk-Myrta, Alicja

2014-12-19

Older people often exhibit memory impairments. Contemporary demographic trends cause aging of the society. In this situation, it is important to conduct clinical trials of drugs and use training methods to improve memory capacity. Development of new memory tests requires experiments on animals and then clinical trials in humans. Therefore, we decided to review the assessment methods and search for tests that evaluate analogous cognitive processes in animals and humans. This review has enabled us to propose 2 pairs of tests of the efficiency of working memory capacity in animals and humans. We propose a basic set of methods for complex clinical trials of drugs and training methods to improve memory, consisting of 2 pairs of tests: 1) the Novel Object Recognition Test - Sternberg Item Recognition Test and 2) the Object-Location Test - Visuospatial Memory Test. We postulate that further investigations of methods that are equivalent in animals experiments and observations performed on humans are necessary.

Benefits of training working memory in amnestic mild cognitive impairment: specific and transfer effects.

PubMed

Carretti, Barbara; Borella, Erika; Fostinelli, Silvia; Zavagnin, Michela

2013-04-01

A growing number of studies are attempting to understand how effective cognitive interventions may be for patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), particularly in relation to their memory problems. The present study aimed to explore the benefits of a working memory (WM) training program in aMCI patients. Patients (N = 20) were randomly assigned to two training programs: the experimental group practiced with a verbal WM task, while the active control group conducted educational activities on memory. Results showed that the aMCI patients completing the WM training obtained specific gains in the task trained with some transfer effects on other WM measures (visuospatial WM) and on processes involved in or related to WM, e.g. fluid intelligence (the Cattell test) and long-term memory. This was not the case for the aMCI control group, who experienced only a very limited improvement. This pilot study suggests that WM training could be a valuable method for improving cognitive performance in aMCI patients, possibly delaying the onset of Alzheimer's disease.

Cortical Thickness Changes Correlate with Cognition Changes after Cognitive Training: Evidence from a Chinese Community Study

PubMed Central

Jiang, Lijuan; Cao, Xinyi; Li, Ting; Tang, Yingying; Li, Wei; Wang, Jijun; Chan, Raymond C.; Li, Chunbo

2016-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate whether changes in cortical thickness correlated with cognitive function changes in healthy older adults after receiving cognitive training interventions. Moreover, it also aimed to examine the differential impacts of a multi-domain and a single-domain cognitive training interventions. Longitudinal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning was performed on participants 65–75 years of age using the Siemens 3.0 T Trio Tim with the Magnetization Prepared Rapid Gradient Echo (MPRAGE) sequence. The cortical thickness was determined using FreeSurfer Software. Cognitive functioning was evaluated using the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS). There were significant group × time interaction effects on the left supramarginal, the left frontal pole cortical regions; and a marginal significant group × time interaction effects on visuospatial/constructional and delayed memory scores. In a multi-domain cognitive training group, a number of cortical region changes were significantly positively correlated with changes in attention, delayed memory, and the total score, but significantly negatively correlated with changes in immediate memory and language scores. In the single-domain cognitive training group, some cortical region changes were significantly positively associated with changes in immediate memory, delayed memory, and the total score, while they were significantly negatively associated with changes in visuospatial/constructional, language, and attention scores. Overall, multi-domain cognitive training offered more advantages in visuospatial/constructional, attention, and delayed memory abilities, while single-domain cognitive training benefited immediate memory ability more effectively. These findings suggest that healthy older adults benefit more from the multi-domain cognitive training than single-domain cognitive training. Cognitive training has impacted on cortical thickness changes in healthy elderly. PMID:27252649

[Effect of alcohol on electrical organisation in the brain during a visuospatial working memory task and its relationship with the menstrual cycle].

PubMed

Sanz-Martin, Araceli; Hernández-González, Marisela; Guevara, Miguel Ángel; Santana, Gloria; Gumá-Díaz, Emilio

2014-02-01

The metabolism of alcohol and cognitive functions can vary during the menstrual cycle. Also, both alcohol ingestion and hormonal variations during menstruation have been associated with characteristic changes in electroencephalographic (EEG) activity. AIM. To determine whether EEG activity during a working memory task is affected by acute alcohol consumption, and if these EEG patterns vary in relation to different phases of the menstrual cycle. 24 women who drank a moderate dose of alcohol or placebo during the follicular and early luteal phases of the menstrual cycle. The EEG activity was recorded during performance of viso-spatial working memory task. Although the alcohol did not deteriorate the performance of working memory task, it caused in the EEG a decrease of relative theta power and lower right fronto-parietal correlation in theta and alpha2 bands. Only women who drank alcohol in the follicular phase had a higher relative potency of alpha1, which could indicate a lower level of arousal and attention. These results contribute to a better understanding of the brain mechanisms underlying cognitive changes with alcohol and its relationship to the menstrual cycle.

Measuring working memory capacity in children using adaptive tasks: Example validation of an adaptive complex span.

PubMed

Gonthier, Corentin; Aubry, Alexandre; Bourdin, Béatrice

2018-06-01

Working memory tasks designed for children usually present trials in order of ascending difficulty, with testing discontinued when the child fails a particular level. Unfortunately, this procedure comes with a number of issues, such as decreased engagement from high-ability children, vulnerability of the scores to temporary mind-wandering, and large between-subjects variations in number of trials, testing time, and proactive interference. To circumvent these problems, the goal of the present study was to demonstrate the feasibility of assessing working memory using an adaptive testing procedure. The principle of adaptive testing is to dynamically adjust the level of difficulty as the task progresses to match the participant's ability. We used this method to develop an adaptive complex span task (the ACCES) comprising verbal and visuo-spatial subtests. The task presents a fixed number of trials to all participants, allows for partial credit scoring, and can be used with children regardless of ability level. The ACCES demonstrated satisfying psychometric properties in a sample of 268 children aged 8-13 years, confirming the feasibility of using adaptive tasks to measure working memory capacity in children. A free-to-use implementation of the ACCES is provided.

Working memory subsystems and task complexity in young boys with Fragile X syndrome.

PubMed

Baker, S; Hooper, S; Skinner, M; Hatton, D; Schaaf, J; Ornstein, P; Bailey, D

2011-01-01

Working memory problems have been targeted as core deficits in individuals with Fragile X syndrome (FXS); however, there have been few studies that have examined working memory in young boys with FXS, and even fewer studies that have studied the working memory performance of young boys with FXS across different degrees of complexity. The purpose of this study was to investigate the phonological loop and visual-spatial working memory in young boys with FXS, in comparison to mental age-matched typical boys, and to examine the impact of complexity of the working memory tasks on performance. The performance of young boys (7 to 13-years-old) with FXS (n = 40) was compared with that of mental age and race matched typically developing boys (n = 40) on measures designed to test the phonological loop and the visuospatial sketchpad across low, moderate and high degrees of complexity. Multivariate analyses were used to examine group differences across the specific working memory systems and degrees of complexity. Results suggested that boys with FXS showed deficits in phonological loop and visual-spatial working memory tasks when compared with typically developing mental age-matched boys. For the boys with FXS, the phonological loop was significantly lower than the visual-spatial sketchpad; however, there was no significant difference in performance across the low, moderate and high degrees of complexity in the working memory tasks. Reverse tasks from both the phonological loop and visual-spatial sketchpad appeared to be the most challenging for both groups, but particularly for the boys with FXS. These findings implicate a generalised deficit in working memory in young boys with FXS, with a specific disproportionate impairment in the phonological loop. Given the lack of differentiation on the low versus high complexity tasks, simple span tasks may provide an adequate estimate of working memory until greater involvement of the central executive is achieved. © 2010 The Authors. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Working memory subsystems and task complexity in young boys with Fragile X syndrome

PubMed Central

Baker, S.; Hooper, S.; Skinner, M.; Hatton, D.; Schaaf, J.; Ornstein, P.; Bailey, D.

2011-01-01

Background Working memory problems have been targeted as core deficits in individuals with Fragile X syndrome (FXS); however, there have been few studies that have examined working memory in young boys with FXS, and even fewer studies that have studied the working memory performance of young boys with FXS across different degrees of complexity. The purpose of this study was to investigate the phonological loop and visual–spatial working memory in young boys with FXS, in comparison to mental age-matched typical boys, and to examine the impact of complexity of the working memory tasks on performance. Methods The performance of young boys (7 to 13-years-old) with FXS (n = 40) was compared with that of mental age and race matched typically developing boys (n = 40) on measures designed to test the phonological loop and the visuospatial sketchpad across low, moderate and high degrees of complexity. Multivariate analyses were used to examine group differences across the specific working memory systems and degrees of complexity. Results Results suggested that boys with FXS showed deficits in phonological loop and visual–spatial working memory tasks when compared with typically developing mental age-matched boys. For the boys with FXS, the phonological loop was significantly lower than the visual–spatial sketchpad; however, there was no significant difference in performance across the low, moderate and high degrees of complexity in the working memory tasks. Reverse tasks from both the phonological loop and visual–spatial sketchpad appeared to be the most challenging for both groups, but particularly for the boys with FXS. Conclusions These findings implicate a generalised deficit in working memory in young boys with FXS, with a specific disproportionate impairment in the phonological loop. Given the lack of differentiation on the low versus high complexity tasks, simple span tasks may provide an adequate estimate of working memory until greater involvement of the central executive is achieved. PMID:21121991

Playing the computer game Tetris prior to viewing traumatic film material and subsequent intrusive memories: Examining proactive interference.

PubMed

James, Ella L; Lau-Zhu, Alex; Tickle, Hannah; Horsch, Antje; Holmes, Emily A

2016-12-01

Visuospatial working memory (WM) tasks performed concurrently or after an experimental trauma (traumatic film viewing) have been shown to reduce subsequent intrusive memories (concurrent or retroactive interference, respectively). This effect is thought to arise because, during the time window of memory consolidation, the film memory is labile and vulnerable to interference by the WM task. However, it is not known whether tasks before an experimental trauma (i.e. proactive interference) would also be effective. Therefore, we tested if a visuospatial WM task given before a traumatic film reduced intrusions. Findings are relevant to the development of preventative strategies to reduce intrusive memories of trauma for groups who are routinely exposed to trauma (e.g. emergency services personnel) and for whom tasks prior to trauma exposure might be beneficial. Participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 conditions. In the Tetris condition (n = 28), participants engaged in the computer game for 11 min immediately before viewing a 12-min traumatic film, whereas those in the Control condition (n = 28) had no task during this period. Intrusive memory frequency was assessed using an intrusion diary over 1-week and an Intrusion Provocation Task at 1-week follow-up. Recognition memory for the film was also assessed at 1-week. Compared to the Control condition, participants in the Tetris condition did not report statistically significant difference in intrusive memories of the trauma film on either measure. There was also no statistically significant difference in recognition memory scores between conditions. The study used an experimental trauma paradigm and findings may not be generalizable to a clinical population. Compared to control, playing Tetris before viewing a trauma film did not lead to a statistically significant reduction in the frequency of later intrusive memories of the film. It is unlikely that proactive interference, at least with this task, effectively influences intrusive memory development. WM tasks administered during or after trauma stimuli, rather than proactively, may be a better focus for intrusive memory amelioration. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

An Evolutionary Perspective on Learning Disability in Mathematics

PubMed Central

Geary, David C.

2015-01-01

A distinction between potentially evolved, or biologically-primary forms of cognition, and the culturally-specific, or biologically-secondary forms of cognition that are built from primary systems is used to explore mathematical learning disability (MLD). Using this model, MLD could result from deficits in the brain and cognitive systems that support biologically-primary mathematical competencies, or from the brain and cognitive systems that support the modification of primary systems for the creation of secondary knowledge and secondary cognitive competencies. The former include visuospatial long-term and working memory and the intraparietal sulcus, whereas the latter include the central executive component of working memory and the anterior cingulate cortex and lateral prefrontal cortex. Different forms of MLD are discussed as related to each of the cognitive and brain systems. PMID:17650991

In vivo administration of extracellular cGMP normalizes TNF-α and membrane expression of AMPA receptors in hippocampus and spatial reference memory but not IL-1β, NMDA receptors in membrane and working memory in hyperammonemic rats.

PubMed

Cabrera-Pastor, Andrea; Hernandez-Rabaza, Vicente; Taoro-Gonzalez, Lucas; Balzano, Tiziano; Llansola, Marta; Felipo, Vicente

2016-10-01

Patients with hepatic encephalopathy (HE) show working memory and visuo-spatial orientation deficits. Hyperammonemia is a main contributor to cognitive impairment in HE. Hyperammonemic rats show impaired spatial learning and learning ability in the Y maze. Intracerebral administration of extracellular cGMP restores learning in the Y-maze. The underlying mechanisms remain unknown. It also remains unknown whether extracellular cGMP improves neuroinflammation or restores spatial learning in hyperammonemic rats and if it affects differently reference and working memory. The aims of this work were: Spatial working and reference memory were assessed using the radial and Morris water mazes and neuroinflammation by immunohistochemistry and Western blot. Membrane expression of NMDA and AMPA receptor subunits was analyzed using the BS3 crosslinker. Extracellular cGMP was administered intracerebrally using osmotic minipumps. Chronic hyperammonemia induces neuroinflammation in hippocampus, with astrocytes activation and increased IL-1β, which are associated with increased NMDA receptors membrane expression and impaired working memory. This process is not affected by extracellular cGMP. Hyperammonemia also activates microglia and increases TNF-α, alters membrane expression of AMPA receptor subunits (increased GluA1 and reduced GluA2) and impairs reference memory. All these changes are reversed by extracellular cGMP. These results show that extracellular cGMP modulates spatial reference memory but not working memory. This would be mediated by modulation of TNF-α levels and of membrane expression of GluA1 and GluA2 subunits of AMPA receptors. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Shared and Unique Risk Factors Underlying Mathematical Disability and Reading and Spelling Disability.

PubMed

Slot, Esther M; van Viersen, Sietske; de Bree, Elise H; Kroesbergen, Evelyn H

2016-01-01

High comorbidity rates have been reported between mathematical learning disabilities (MD) and reading and spelling disabilities (RSD). Research has identified skills related to math, such as number sense (NS) and visuospatial working memory (visuospatial WM), as well as to literacy, such as phonological awareness (PA), rapid automatized naming (RAN) and verbal short-term memory (Verbal STM). In order to explain the high comorbidity rates between MD and RSD, 7-11-year-old children were assessed on a range of cognitive abilities related to literacy (PA, RAN, Verbal STM) and mathematical ability (visuospatial WM, NS). The group of children consisted of typically developing (TD) children (n = 32), children with MD (n = 26), children with RSD (n = 29), and combined MD and RSD (n = 43). It was hypothesized that, in line with the multiple deficit view on learning disorders, at least one unique predictor for both MD and RSD and a possible shared cognitive risk factor would be found to account for the comorbidity between the symptom dimensions literacy and math. Secondly, our hypotheses were that (a) a probabilistic multi-factorial risk factor model would provide a better fit to the data than a deterministic single risk factor model and (b) that a shared risk factor model would provide a better fit than the specific multi-factorial model. All our hypotheses were confirmed. NS and visuospatial WM were identified as unique cognitive predictors for MD, whereas PA and RAN were both associated with RSD. Also, a shared risk factor model with PA as a cognitive predictor for both RSD and MD fitted the data best, indicating that MD and RSD might co-occur due to a shared underlying deficit in phonological processing. Possible explanations are discussed in the context of sample selection and composition. This study shows that different cognitive factors play a role in mathematics and literacy, and that a phonological processing deficit might play a role in the occurrence of MD and RSD.

Cognitive Advantages of Bilingual Children in Different Sociolinguistic Contexts

PubMed Central

Blom, Elma; Boerma, Tessel; Bosma, Evelyn; Cornips, Leonie; Everaert, Emma

2017-01-01

Many studies have shown that bilingual children outperform monolinguals on tasks testing executive functioning, but other studies have not revealed any effect of bilingualism. In this study we compared three groups of bilingual children in the Netherlands, aged 6–7 years, with a monolingual control group. We were specifically interested in testing whether the bilingual cognitive advantage is modulated by the sociolinguistic context of language use. All three bilingual groups were exposed to a minority language besides the nation’s dominant language (Dutch). Two bilingual groups were exposed to a regional language (Frisian, Limburgish), and a third bilingual group was exposed to a migrant language (Polish). All children participated in two working memory tasks (verbal, visuospatial) and two attention tasks (selective attention, interference suppression). Bilingual children outperformed monolinguals on selective attention. The cognitive effect of bilingualism was most clearly present in the Frisian-Dutch group and in a subgroup of migrant children who were relatively proficient in Polish. The effect was less robust in the Limburgish-Dutch sample. Investigation of the response patterns of the flanker test, testing interference suppression, suggested that bilingual children more often show an effect of response competition than the monolingual children, demonstrating that bilingual children attend to different aspects of the task than monolingual children. No bilingualism effects emerged for verbal and visuospatial working memory. PMID:28484403

Fractionating the neural correlates of individual working memory components underlying arithmetic problem solving skills in children.

PubMed

Metcalfe, Arron W S; Ashkenazi, Sarit; Rosenberg-Lee, Miriam; Menon, Vinod

2013-10-01

Baddeley and Hitch's multi-component working memory (WM) model has played an enduring and influential role in our understanding of cognitive abilities. Very little is known, however, about the neural basis of this multi-component WM model and the differential role each component plays in mediating arithmetic problem solving abilities in children. Here, we investigate the neural basis of the central executive (CE), phonological (PL) and visuo-spatial (VS) components of WM during a demanding mental arithmetic task in 7-9 year old children (N=74). The VS component was the strongest predictor of math ability in children and was associated with increased arithmetic complexity-related responses in left dorsolateral and right ventrolateral prefrontal cortices as well as bilateral intra-parietal sulcus and supramarginal gyrus in posterior parietal cortex. Critically, VS, CE and PL abilities were associated with largely distinct patterns of brain response. Overlap between VS and CE components was observed in left supramarginal gyrus and no overlap was observed between VS and PL components. Our findings point to a central role of visuo-spatial WM during arithmetic problem-solving in young grade-school children and highlight the usefulness of the multi-component Baddeley and Hitch WM model in fractionating the neural correlates of arithmetic problem solving during development. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hebb learning, verbal short-term memory, and the acquisition of phonological forms in children.

PubMed

Mosse, Emma K; Jarrold, Christopher

2008-04-01

Recent work using the Hebb effect as a marker for implicit long-term acquisition of serial order has demonstrated a functional equivalence across verbal and visuospatial short-term memory. The current study extends this observation to a sample of five- to six-year-olds using verbal and spatial immediate serial recall and also correlates the magnitude of Hebb learning with explicit measures of word and nonword paired-associate learning. Comparable Hebb effects were observed in both domains, but only nonword learning was significantly related to the magnitude of Hebb learning. Nonword learning was also independently related to individuals' general level of verbal serial recall. This suggests that vocabulary acquisition depends on both a domain-specific short-term memory system and a domain-general process of learning through repetition.

Napping on the Night Shift: A Study of Sleep, Performance, and Learning in Physicians-in-Training.

PubMed

McDonald, Jennifer; Potyk, Darryl; Fischer, David; Parmenter, Brett; Lillis, Teresa; Tompkins, Lindsey; Bowen, Angela; Grant, Devon; Lamp, Amanda; Belenky, Gregory

2013-12-01

Physicians in training experience fatigue from sleep loss, high workload, and working at an adverse phase of the circadian rhythm, which collectively degrades task performance and the ability to learn and remember. To minimize fatigue and sustain performance, learning, and memory, humans generally need 7 to 8 hours of sleep in every 24-hour period. In a naturalistic, within-subjects design, we studied 17 first- and second-year internal medicine residents working in a tertiary care medical center, rotating between day shift and night float every 4 weeks. We studied each resident for 2 weeks while he/she worked the day shift and for 2 weeks while he/she worked the night float, objectively measuring sleep by wrist actigraphy, vigilance by the Psychomotor Vigilance Task test, and visual-spatial and verbal learning and memory by the Brief Visuospatial Memory Test-Revised and the Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test. Residents, whether working day shift or night float, slept approximately 7 hours in every 24-hour period. Residents, when working day shift, consolidated their sleep into 1 main sleep period at night. Residents working night float split their sleep, supplementing their truncated daytime sleep with nighttime on-duty naps. There was no difference in vigilance or learning and memory, whether residents worked day shift or night float. Off-duty sleep supplemented with naps while on duty appears to be an effective strategy for sustaining vigilance, learning, and memory when working night float.

Resting state signatures of domain and demand-specific working memory performance.

PubMed

van Dam, Wessel O; Decker, Scott L; Durbin, Jeffery S; Vendemia, Jennifer M C; Desai, Rutvik H

2015-09-01

Working memory (WM) is one of the key constructs in understanding higher-level cognition. We examined whether patterns of activity in the resting state of individual subjects are correlated with their off-line working and short-term memory capabilities. Participants completed a resting-state fMRI scan and off-line working and short-term memory (STM) tests with both verbal and visual materials. We calculated fractional amplitude of low frequency fluctuations (fALFF) from the resting state data, and also computed connectivity between seeds placed in frontal and parietal lobes. Correlating fALFF values with behavioral measures showed that the fALFF values in a widespread fronto-parietal network during rest were positively correlated with a combined memory measure. In addition, STM showed a significant correlation with fALFF within the right angular gyrus and left middle occipital gyrus, whereas WM was correlated with fALFF values within the right IPS and left dorsomedial cerebellar cortex. Furthermore, verbal and visuospatial memory capacities were associated with dissociable patterns of low-frequency fluctuations. Seed-based connectivity showed correlations with the verbal WM measure in the left hemisphere, and with the visual WM measure in the right hemisphere. These findings contribute to our understanding of how differences in spontaneous low-frequency fluctuations at rest are correlated with differences in cognitive performance. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Are there reliable changes in memory and executive functions after cognitive behavioural therapy in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder?

PubMed

Vandborg, Sanne Kjær; Hartmann, Tue Borst; Bennedsen, Birgit Egedal; Pedersen, Anders Degn; Thomsen, Per Hove

2015-01-01

Patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) have impaired memory and executive functions, but it is unclear whether these functions improve after cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) of OCD symptoms. The primary aim of this study was to investigate whether memory and executive functions change after CBT in patients with OCD. We assessed 39 patients with OCD before and after CBT with neuropsychological tests of memory and executive functions. To correct for practice effects, 39 healthy controls (HCs) were assessed at two parallel time intervals with the neuropsychological tests. There were no changes in memory and executive functions after CBT in patients with OCD when results were corrected for practice effects. Patients performed worse on a test of visuospatial memory and organisational skills (Rey complex figure test [RCFT]) compared to HCs both before and after CBT (ps = .002-.036). The finding of persistent poor RCFT performances indicates that patients with OCD have impaired visuospatial memory and organisational skills that may be trait-related rather than state-dependent. These impairments may need to be considered in treatment. Our findings underline the importance of correcting for practice effects when investigating changes in cognitive functions.

Pathways to Third-Grade Calculation Versus Word-Reading Competence: Are They More Alike or Different?

PubMed

Fuchs, Lynn S; Geary, David C; Fuchs, Douglas; Compton, Donald L; Hamlett, Carol L

2016-01-01

Children (n = 747; 6.5 years) were assessed on domain-general processes and mathematics and reading-related competencies (start of first grade), addition retrieval (end of second grade), and calculations and word reading (end of third grade). Attentive behavior, reasoning, visuospatial memory, and rapid automatized naming (RAN) indirectly contributed to both outcomes, via retrieval. However, there was no overlap in domain-general direct effects on calculations (attentive behavior, reasoning, working memory) versus word reading (language, phonological memory, RAN). Results suggest ease of forming associative relations and abilities engaged during the formation of these long-term memories are common to both outcomes and can be indexed by addition-fact retrieval, but further growth in calculations and word reading is driven by different constellations of domain-general abilities. © 2015 The Authors. Child Development © 2015 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

How Emotional Pictures Influence Visuospatial Binding in Short-Term Memory in Ageing and Alzheimer's Disease?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Borg, Celine; Leroy, Nicolas; Favre, Emilie; Laurent, Bernard; Thomas-Anterion, Catherine

2011-01-01

The present study examines the prediction that emotion can facilitate short-term memory. Nevertheless, emotion also recruits attention to process information, thereby disrupting short-term memory when tasks involve high attentional resources. In this way, we aimed to determine whether there is a differential influence of emotional information on…

Association between Early Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Symptoms and Current Verbal and Visuo-Spatial Short-Term Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gau, Susan Shur-Fen; Chiang, Huey-Ling

2013-01-01

Deficits in short-term memory are common in adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but their current ADHD symptoms cannot well predict their short-term performance. Taking a developmental perspective, we wanted to clarify the association between ADHD symptoms at early childhood and short-term memory in late childhood and…

Word Memory Test Performance Across Cognitive Domains, Psychiatric Presentations, and Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.

PubMed

Rowland, Jared A; Miskey, Holly M; Brearly, Timothy W; Martindale, Sarah L; Shura, Robert D

2017-05-01

The current study addressed two aims: (i) determine how Word Memory Test (WMT) performance relates to test performance across numerous cognitive domains and (ii) evaluate how current psychiatric disorders or mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) history affects performance on the WMT after excluding participants with poor symptom validity. Participants were 235 Iraq and Afghanistan-era veterans (Mage = 35.5) who completed a comprehensive neuropsychological battery. Participants were divided into two groups based on WMT performance (Pass = 193, Fail = 42). Tests were grouped into cognitive domains and an average z-score was calculated for each domain. Significant differences were found between those who passed and those who failed the WMT on the memory, attention, executive function, and motor output domain z-scores. WMT failure was associated with a larger performance decrement in the memory domain than the sensation or visuospatial-construction domains. Participants with a current psychiatric diagnosis or mTBI history were significantly more likely to fail the WMT, even after removing participants with poor symptom validity. Results suggest that the WMT is most appropriate for assessing validity in the domains of attention, executive function, motor output and memory, with little relationship to performance in domains of sensation or visuospatial-construction. Comprehensive cognitive batteries would benefit from inclusion of additional performance validity tests in these domains. Additionally, symptom validity did not explain higher rates of WMT failure in individuals with a current psychiatric diagnosis or mTBI history. Further research is needed to better understand how these conditions may affect WMT performance. Published by Oxford University Press 2016. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

Symptom profile of delirium in children and adolescent--does it differ from adults and elderly?

PubMed

Grover, Sandeep; Kate, Natasha; Malhotra, Savita; Chakrabarti, Subho; Mattoo, Surendra Kumar; Avasthi, Ajit

2012-01-01

The objective was to evaluate the phenomenology, etiology and outcome of delirium in children and adolescents (8-18 years of age) seen in a consultation-liaison psychiatric service in India. Additionally, an attempt was made to compare the phenomenology with adult and elderly patients with delirium. Thirty children and adolescents (age 8-18 years) diagnosed with delirium by the consultation-liaison psychiatry team were rated on the Delirium Rating Scale-Revised-98 (DRS-R-98) and compared with DRS-R-98 data on 120 adults and 109 elderly patients. The commonly observed symptoms in children and adolescents with delirium were disturbance in attention, orientation, sleep-wake cycle disturbances, fluctuation of symptoms, disturbance of short-term memory and motor agitation. The least commonly seen symptoms included delusions and motor retardation. Compared to adults, children and adolescents had lower frequency of long-term memory and visuospatial disturbances. Compared to the elderly, children and adolescents had higher frequency of lability of affect. For severity of symptoms, compared to adults, the children and adolescents had lower severity of sleep-wake disturbances, abnormality of thought, motor agitation, orientation, attention, short-term memory, long-term memory and visuospatial abilities. When compared to elderly patients, children and adolescents had higher severity of lability of affect and lower severity of language disturbances, short-term memory and visuospatial abilities. In general, phenomenology, of delirium in children and adolescents (age 8-18 years) is similar to that seen in adults and elderly patients. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Same task, different strategies: how brain networks can be influenced by memory strategy.

PubMed

Sanfratello, Lori; Caprihan, Arvind; Stephen, Julia M; Knoefel, Janice E; Adair, John C; Qualls, Clifford; Lundy, S Laura; Aine, Cheryl J

2014-10-01

Previous functional neuroimaging studies demonstrated that different neural networks underlie different types of cognitive processing by engaging participants in particular tasks, such as verbal or spatial working memory (WM) tasks. However, we report here that even when a WM task is defined as verbal or spatial, different types of memory strategies may be used to complete it, with concomitant variations in brain activity. We developed a questionnaire to characterize the type of strategy used by individual members in a group of 28 young healthy participants (18-25 years) during a spatial WM task. A cluster analysis was performed to differentiate groups. We acquired functional magnetoencephalography and structural diffusion tensor imaging measures to characterize the brain networks associated with the use of different strategies. We found two types of strategies were used during the spatial WM task, a visuospatial and a verbal strategy, and brain regions and time courses of activation differed between participants who used each. Task performance also varied by type of strategy used with verbal strategies showing an advantage. In addition, performance on neuropsychological tests (indices from Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-IV, Rey Complex Figure Test) correlated significantly with fractional anisotropy measures for the visuospatial strategy group in white matter tracts implicated in other WM and attention studies. We conclude that differences in memory strategy can have a pronounced effect on the locations and timing of brain activation and that these differences need further investigation as a possible confounding factor for studies using group averaging as a means for summarizing results. Copyright © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Strengthened effective connectivity underlies transfer of working memory training to tests of short-term memory and attention.

PubMed

Kundu, Bornali; Sutterer, David W; Emrich, Stephen M; Postle, Bradley R

2013-05-15

Although long considered a natively endowed and fixed trait, working memory (WM) ability has recently been shown to improve with intensive training. What remains controversial and poorly understood, however, are the neural bases of these training effects and the extent to which WM training gains transfer to other cognitive tasks. Here we present evidence from human electrophysiology (EEG) and simultaneous transcranial magnetic stimulation and EEG that the transfer of WM training to other cognitive tasks is supported by changes in task-related effective connectivity in frontoparietal and parieto-occipital networks that are engaged by both the trained and transfer tasks. One consequence of this effect is greater efficiency of stimulus processing, as evidenced by changes in EEG indices of individual differences in short-term memory capacity and in visual search performance. Transfer to search-related activity provides evidence that something more fundamental than task-specific strategy or stimulus-specific representations has been learned. Furthermore, these patterns of training and transfer highlight the role of common neural systems in determining individual differences in aspects of visuospatial cognition.

Strengthened effective connectivity underlies transfer of working memory training to tests of short-term memory and attention

PubMed Central

Kundu, Bornali; Sutterer, David W.; Emrich, Stephen M.; Postle, Bradley R.

2013-01-01

Although long considered a natively endowed and fixed trait, working memory (WM) ability has recently been shown to improve with intensive training. What remains controversial and poorly understood, however, are the neural bases of these training effects, and the extent to which WM training gains transfer to other cognitive tasks. Here we present evidence from human electrophysiology (EEG) and simultaneous transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and EEG that the transfer of WM training to other cognitive tasks is supported by changes in task-related effective connectivity in frontoparietal and parietooccipital networks that are engaged by both the trained and transfer tasks. One consequence of this effect is greater efficiency of stimulus processing, as evidenced by changes in EEG indices of individual differences in short-term memory capacity and in visual search performance. Transfer to search-related activity provides evidence that something more fundamental than task-specific strategy or stimulus-specific representations have been learned. Furthermore, these patterns of training and transfer highlight the role of common neural systems in determining individual differences in aspects of visuospatial cognition. PMID:23678114

CANTAB object recognition and language tests to detect aging cognitive decline: an exploratory comparative study

PubMed Central

Cabral Soares, Fernanda; de Oliveira, Thaís Cristina Galdino; de Macedo, Liliane Dias e Dias; Tomás, Alessandra Mendonça; Picanço-Diniz, Domingos Luiz Wanderley; Bento-Torres, João; Bento-Torres, Natáli Valim Oliver; Picanço-Diniz, Cristovam Wanderley

2015-01-01

Objective The recognition of the limits between normal and pathological aging is essential to start preventive actions. The aim of this paper is to compare the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) and language tests to distinguish subtle differences in cognitive performances in two different age groups, namely young adults and elderly cognitively normal subjects. Method We selected 29 young adults (29.9±1.06 years) and 31 older adults (74.1±1.15 years) matched by educational level (years of schooling). All subjects underwent a general assessment and a battery of neuropsychological tests, including the Mini Mental State Examination, visuospatial learning, and memory tasks from CANTAB and language tests. Cluster and discriminant analysis were applied to all neuropsychological test results to distinguish possible subgroups inside each age group. Results Significant differences in the performance of aged and young adults were detected in both language and visuospatial memory tests. Intragroup cluster and discriminant analysis revealed that CANTAB, as compared to language tests, was able to detect subtle but significant differences between the subjects. Conclusion Based on these findings, we concluded that, as compared to language tests, large-scale application of automated visuospatial tests to assess learning and memory might increase our ability to discern the limits between normal and pathological aging. PMID:25565785

Cognitive Predictors of Achievement Growth in Mathematics: A Five Year Longitudinal Study

PubMed Central

Geary, David C.

2011-01-01

The study's goal was to identify the beginning of first grade quantitative competencies that predict mathematics achievement start point and growth through fifth grade. Measures of number, counting, and arithmetic competencies were administered in early first grade and used to predict mathematics achievement through fifth (n = 177), while controlling for intelligence, working memory, and processing speed. Multilevel models revealed intelligence, processing speed, and the central executive component of working memory predicted achievement or achievement growth in mathematics and, as a contrast domain, word reading. The phonological loop was uniquely predictive of word reading and the visuospatial sketch pad of mathematics. Early fluency in processing and manipulating numerical set size and Arabic numerals, accurate use of sophisticated counting procedures for solving addition problems, and accuracy in making placements on a mathematical number line were uniquely predictive of mathematics achievement. Use of memory-based processes to solve addition problems predicted mathematics and reading achievement but in different ways. The results identify the early quantitative competencies that uniquely contribute to mathematics learning. PMID:21942667

Working memory training in old age: an examination of transfer and maintenance effects.

PubMed

Borella, Erika; Carretti, Barbara; Zanoni, Giulia; Zavagnin, Michela; De Beni, Rossana

2013-06-01

The present study examined the efficacy of a verbal working memory (WM) training program in old-old individuals (over 75 years of age). Thirty-six adults aged 75-87 took part in the study: 18 were randomly assigned to receive training and the remainder served as active controls. Specific training gains in a verbal WM task (criterion task), and transfer effects on measures of visuospatial WM, short-term memory, inhibition, processing speed, and fluid intelligence were examined. The trained old-old adults performed better than the controls in the criterion task, and this benefit persisted after 8 months; they also showed an increase in the efficiency of inhibitory mechanisms at follow-up compared with pretest. The results of this study suggest that the present WM training program produces benefits maintained over time even in old-old adults. These findings confirm that there is still room for plasticity in the basic mechanisms of cognition in advance old age.

The Role of Fludrocortisone in Cognition and Mood in Patients with Primary Adrenal Insufficiency (Addison's Disease).

PubMed

Schultebraucks, Katharina; Wingenfeld, Katja; Otte, Christian; Quinkler, Marcus

2016-01-01

Primary adrenal insufficiency (AI) requires hormone replacement therapy with fludrocortisone and hydrocortisone stimulating glucocorticoid (GR) and mineralocorticoid receptors (MR). Evidence from animal and human studies shows that MR function is crucial for cognitive function and mood. Regarding patients with AI, very little is known about the role of MR in cognitive function and mood. A repeated-measures within-subject design was used to determine whether cognitive function and mood are related to MR occupation in patients with AI. Intraindividually, patients were examined twice, with 1 week between testing days: once with fludrocortisone (high MR occupation) and once without fludrocortisone (low MR occupation). All patients kept their stable regimen of hydrocortisone. The assessment of cognitive function included executive function, attention, and verbal, visuospatial and working memory. Additionally, mood and blood pressure were measured. Verbal memory improved significantly during high MR occupation (after fludrocortisone intake) compared to low MR occupation [without fludrocortisone, t(29) = -2.1, p = 0.046]. There were trend level differences in the Number-Combination test [t(29) = -1.9, p = 0.074] and in the Stroop interference task [t(29) = -1.9, p = 0.068]. No significant differences in visuospatial and working memory were found. Furthermore, the current mood state was better during high MR occupation compared to low MR occupation [t(29) = -2.4, p = 0.023] as was diastolic blood pressure [F(2, 29) = 3.6, p = 0.07]. Cognitive function and mood in patients with AI depend in part on MR occupation. Because the medium effect size indicates a potential clinical significance, further studies should systematically examine which dosages of fludrocortisone are associated with optimal cognitive function and mood in AI patients. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Memory Abilities in Williams Syndrome: Dissociation or Developmental Delay Hypothesis?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sampaio, Adriana; Sousa, Nuno; Fernandez, Montse; Henriques, Margarida; Goncalves, Oscar F.

2008-01-01

Williams syndrome (WS) is a neurodevelopmental genetic disorder often described as being characterized by a dissociative cognitive architecture, in which profound impairments of visuo-spatial cognition contrast with relative preservation of linguistic, face recognition and auditory short-memory abilities. This asymmetric and dissociative cognition…

Development of visuospatial short-term memory in the second half of the 1st year.

PubMed

Pelphrey, Kevin A; Reznick, J Steven; Davis Goldman, Barbara; Sasson, Noah; Morrow, Judy; Donahoe, Andrea; Hodgson, Katharine

2004-09-01

Eighty 5.5- to 12.5-month-old infants participated in 4 delayed-response procedures challenging shortterm visuospatial memory (STVM), 2 that varied the time between presentation and search and 2 that varied the number of locations. Within each type of challenge, 1 task required a gaze response and 1 required a reach response. There was little improvement in STVM performance from 5.5 to 8 months and linear improvement in the percentage correct from 8 to 12 months, with overall STVM performance accounting for 66% of the variance in age. Improvement in searching multiple locations lagged behind improvement in spanning longer delays. Memory scores did not vary for the visual and manual tasks. Perseveration was greatest for reach responses, increased with challenge, and decreased with age. ((c) 2004 APA, all rights reserved) Copyright 2004 American Psychological Association

Learning ability is a key outcome determinant of GSK-3 inhibition on visuospatial memory in rats.

PubMed

Storozheva, Zinaida I; Gruden, Marina A; Proshin, Andrey T; Sewell, Robert D E

2015-07-01

Learning aptitude has never been a focus of visuospatial performance studies, particularly on memory consolidation and reconsolidation. The aim of this study was to determine the consequences of learning ability on memory consolidation/reconsolidation following inhibition of glucose synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) by 4-benzyl-2-methyl-1,2,4-thiadiazolidine-3,5-dione (TDZD-8). The anxiety-like nature of rats was characterized in the elevated plus maze. The rats were then trained for four days in the Morris water maze (MWM) and classified as 'superior', 'intermediate' or 'inferior' learners. There were no major differences between superior, intermediate or inferior learners with respect to anxiety which might have influenced learning. After training (day-5), TDZD-8 (2.0 mg/kg) was administered and half of the cohort were exposed to a MWM retrieval trial. Ten days later, animals were subjected to repeated MWM learning. TDZD-8 without a retrieval trial impaired subsequent reconsolidation in inferior learners, but enhanced it in superior learners. There was no modification of performance in intermediate learners. In TDZD-8-treated subjects exposed to retrieval, the pattern of outcomes was identical whereby impairment of reconsolidation occurred in inferior learners, enhancement occurred in superior learners but there was no modification of performance in intermediate learners. Thus, learning ability was a key determinant of the qualitative outcome from GSK-3 inhibition on visuospatial memory. © The Author(s) 2015.

Memory-guided force control in healthy younger and older adults.

PubMed

Neely, Kristina A; Samimy, Shaadee; Blouch, Samantha L; Wang, Peiyuan; Chennavasin, Amanda; Diaz, Michele T; Dennis, Nancy A

2017-08-01

Successful performance of a memory-guided motor task requires participants to store and then recall an accurate representation of the motor goal. Further, participants must monitor motor output to make adjustments in the absence of visual feedback. The goal of this study was to examine memory-guided grip force in healthy younger and older adults and compare it to performance on behavioral tasks of working memory. Previous work demonstrates that healthy adults decrease force output as a function of time when visual feedback is not available. We hypothesized that older adults would decrease force output at a faster rate than younger adults, due to age-related deficits in working memory. Two groups of participants, younger adults (YA: N = 32, mean age 21.5 years) and older adults (OA: N = 33, mean age 69.3 years), completed four 20-s trials of isometric force with their index finger and thumb, equal to 25% of their maximum voluntary contraction. In the full-vision condition, visual feedback was available for the duration of the trial. In the no vision condition, visual feedback was removed for the last 12 s of each trial. Participants were asked to maintain constant force output in the absence of visual feedback. Participants also completed tasks of word recall and recognition and visuospatial working memory. Counter to our predictions, when visual feedback was removed, younger adults decreased force at a faster rate compared to older adults and the rate of decay was not associated with behavioral performance on tests of working memory.

Memory and Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Meta-Analysis

PubMed Central

Wallace, Anna; Bucks, Romola S.

2013-01-01

Study Objectives: To examine episodic memory performance in individuals with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Design Meta-analysis was used to synthesize results from individual studies examining the impact of OSA on episodic memory performance. The performance of individuals with OSA was compared to healthy controls or normative data. Participants Forty-two studies were included, comprising 2,294 adults with untreated OSA and 1,364 healthy controls. Studies that recorded information about participants at baseline prior to treatment interventions were included in the analysis. Measurements Participants were assessed with tasks that included a measure of episodic memory: immediate recall, delayed recall, learning, and/or recognition memory. Results: The results of the meta-analyses provide evidence that individuals with OSA are significantly impaired when compared to healthy controls on verbal episodic memory (immediate recall, delayed recall, learning, and recognition) and visuo-spatial episodic memory (immediate and delayed recall), but not visual immediate recall or visuo-spatial learning. When patients were compared to norms, negative effects of OSA were found only in verbal immediate and delayed recall. Conclusions: This meta-analysis contributes to understanding of the nature of episodic memory deficits in individuals with OSA. Impairments to episodic memory are likely to affect the daily functioning of individuals with OSA. Citation Wallace A; Bucks RS. Memory and obstructive sleep apnea: a meta-analysis. SLEEP 2013;36(2):203-220. PMID:23372268

ADHD and working memory: the impact of central executive deficits and exceeding storage/rehearsal capacity on observed inattentive behavior.

PubMed

Kofler, Michael J; Rapport, Mark D; Bolden, Jennifer; Sarver, Dustin E; Raiker, Joseph S

2010-02-01

Inattentive behavior is considered a core and pervasive feature of ADHD; however, an alternative model challenges this premise and hypothesizes a functional relationship between working memory deficits and inattentive behavior. The current study investigated whether inattentive behavior in children with ADHD is functionally related to the domain-general central executive and/or subsidiary storage/rehearsal components of working memory. Objective observations of children's attentive behavior by independent observers were conducted while children with ADHD (n = 15) and typically developing children (n = 14) completed counterbalanced tasks that differentially manipulated central executive, phonological storage/rehearsal, and visuospatial storage/rehearsal demands. Results of latent variable and effect size confidence interval analyses revealed two conditions that completely accounted for the attentive behavior deficits in children with ADHD: (a) placing demands on central executive processing, the effect of which is evident under even low cognitive loads, and (b) exceeding storage/rehearsal capacity, which has similar effects on children with ADHD and typically developing children but occurs at lower cognitive loads for children with ADHD.

Working memory and executive functions in transient global amnesia.

PubMed

Quinette, Peggy; Guillery, Bérengère; Desgranges, Béatrice; de la Sayette, Vincent; Viader, Fausto; Eustache, Francis

2003-09-01

Transient global amnesia (TGA) is usually considered to produce a profound impairment of long-term episodic memory, while at the same time sparing working memory. However, this neuropsychological dissociation has rarely been examined in detail. While a few studies have assessed some components of working memory in TGA, the results that have been obtained are far from conclusive. To clarify this issue, we carried out a comprehensive investigation of working memory in 10 patients during a TGA attack. In the first study, we report the results from three patients examined with a battery of neuropsychological tests designed to assess each of the three subcomponents of Baddeley's model of working memory. In a second study, seven different patients underwent neuropsychological investigations that focused specifically on the central executive system, using a protocol derived from a study by Miyake and colleagues. Our findings showed that subcomponents of working memory, such as the phonological loop and visuo-spatial sketch pad, were spared in TGA patients. Specific executive functions that entailed inhibitory control, dual task performance, updating and shifting mechanisms were also found to be normal. However, we found significantly impaired performance for the Brown-Peterson test, and that TGA patients were significantly impaired in the recollection of their episodic memories. They also made reduced numbers of 'remember' compared with 'know' judgments in the episodic memory test several days after TGA. On the basis of our findings, it would appear that the episodic memory deficit during TGA is not related to elementary aspects of executive functioning. Our data also highlight the nature of the cognitive mechanisms involved in the Brown-Peterson task, which may well depend on long-term memory (such as the process of semantic encoding). Lastly, the selective deficit in recollective episodic memories observed in TGA may be principally related to medial temporal lobe abnormalities that have been reported in this syndrome.

Cognitive status in patients with multiple sclerosis in Lanzarote.

PubMed

Pérez-Martín, María Yaiza; Eguia-Del Río, Pablo; González-Platas, Montserrat; Jiménez-Sosa, Alejandro

2016-01-01

Cognitive impairment is a common feature in multiple sclerosis affecting ~43%-72% of patients, which involves cognitive functions such as memory, processing speed, attention, and executive function. The aim of this study was to describe the extent and pattern of the involvement of cognitive impairment and psychological status in all patients with multiple sclerosis on a small Spanish island. In all, 70 patients and 56 healthy controls were included in the study between February 2013 and May 2013. All participants were assessed using the Brief Repeatable Battery of Neuropsychological Test. The patients also completed instruments to evaluate the presence of fatigue, perceived cognitive dysfunction, and symptoms of anxiety and depression. All procedures were performed in a single session. Cognitive impairment, defined as a score <1.5 standard deviation on two subtests of the battery, was present in 35% of the participants. The most frequently affected domain was working memory, followed by verbal memory and processing speed. Disease duration showed a moderate correlation with visuospatial memory and processing speed. The Expanded Disability Status Scale score correlated with verbal and processing speed. Verbal memory was correlated with depression symptoms and fatigue. Cognitive impairment was present in 35% of the study population. The most affected domains were working memory and verbal memory. Working memory and verbal fluency deficit are independent factors of disease evolution. Cognitive decline is related to clinical variables and psychological measures such as fatigue or depression but not to anxiety.

Cognitive status in patients with multiple sclerosis in Lanzarote

PubMed Central

Pérez-Martín, María Yaiza; Eguia-del Río, Pablo; González-Platas, Montserrat; Jiménez-Sosa, Alejandro

2016-01-01

Objectives Cognitive impairment is a common feature in multiple sclerosis affecting ~43%–72% of patients, which involves cognitive functions such as memory, processing speed, attention, and executive function. The aim of this study was to describe the extent and pattern of the involvement of cognitive impairment and psychological status in all patients with multiple sclerosis on a small Spanish island. Patients and methods In all, 70 patients and 56 healthy controls were included in the study between February 2013 and May 2013. All participants were assessed using the Brief Repeatable Battery of Neuropsychological Test. The patients also completed instruments to evaluate the presence of fatigue, perceived cognitive dysfunction, and symptoms of anxiety and depression. All procedures were performed in a single session. Results Cognitive impairment, defined as a score <1.5 standard deviation on two subtests of the battery, was present in 35% of the participants. The most frequently affected domain was working memory, followed by verbal memory and processing speed. Disease duration showed a moderate correlation with visuospatial memory and processing speed. The Expanded Disability Status Scale score correlated with verbal and processing speed. Verbal memory was correlated with depression symptoms and fatigue. Conclusion Cognitive impairment was present in 35% of the study population. The most affected domains were working memory and verbal memory. Working memory and verbal fluency deficit are independent factors of disease evolution. Cognitive decline is related to clinical variables and psychological measures such as fatigue or depression but not to anxiety. PMID:27418825

Granger causality analysis reveals distinct spatio-temporal connectivity patterns in motor and perceptual visuo-spatial working memory.

PubMed

Protopapa, Foteini; Siettos, Constantinos I; Evdokimidis, Ioannis; Smyrnis, Nikolaos

2014-01-01

We employed spectral Granger causality analysis on a full set of 56 electroencephalographic recordings acquired during the execution of either a 2D movement pointing or a perceptual (yes/no) change detection task with memory and non-memory conditions. On the basis of network characteristics across frequency bands, we provide evidence for the full dissociation of the corresponding cognitive processes. Movement-memory trial types exhibited higher degree nodes during the first 2 s of the delay period, mainly at central, left frontal and right-parietal areas. Change detection-memory trial types resulted in a three-peak temporal pattern of the total degree with higher degree nodes emerging mainly at central, right frontal, and occipital areas. Functional connectivity networks resulting from non-memory trial types were characterized by more sparse structures for both tasks. The movement-memory trial types encompassed an apparent coarse flow from frontal to parietal areas while the opposite flow from occipital, parietal to central and frontal areas was evident for the change detection-memory trial types. The differences among tasks and conditions were more profound in α (8-12 Hz) and β (12-30 Hz) and less in γ (30-45 Hz) band. Our results favor the hypothesis which considers spatial working memory as a by-product of specific mental processes that engages common brain areas under different network organizations.

The neural correlates of visuo-spatial working memory in children with autism spectrum disorder: effects of cognitive load

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Research on the neural bases of cognitive deficits in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has shown that working memory (WM) difficulties are associated with abnormalities in the prefrontal cortex. However, cognitive load impacts these findings, and no studies have examined the relation between WM load and neural underpinnings in children with ASD. Thus, the current study determined the effects of cognitive load on WM, using a visuo-spatial WM capacity task in children with and without ASD with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Methods We used fMRI and a 1-back colour matching task (CMT) task with four levels of difficulty to compare the cortical activation patterns associated with WM in children (7–13 years old) with high functioning autism (N = 19) and matched controls (N = 17) across cognitive load. Results Performance on CMT was comparable between groups, with the exception of one difficulty level. Using linear trend analyses, the control group showed increasing activation as a function of difficulty level in frontal and parietal lobes, particularly between the highest difficulty levels, and decreasing activation as a function of difficulty level in the posterior cingulate and medial frontal gyri. In contrast, children with ASD showed increasing activation only in posterior brain regions and decreasing activation in the posterior cingulate and medial frontal gyri, as a function of difficulty level. Significant differences were found in the precuneus, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and medial premotor cortex, where control children showed greater positive linear relations between cortical activity and task difficulty level, particularly at the highest difficulty levels, but children with ASD did not show these trends. Conclusions Children with ASD showed differences in activation in the frontal and parietal lobes—both critical substrates for visuo-spatial WM. Our data suggest that children with ASD rely mainly on posterior brain regions associated with visual and lower level processing, whereas controls showed activity in frontal lobes related to the classic WM network. Findings will help guide future work by localizing areas of vulnerability to developmental disturbances. PMID:25057329

The neural correlates of visuo-spatial working memory in children with autism spectrum disorder: effects of cognitive load.

PubMed

Vogan, Vanessa M; Morgan, Benjamin R; Lee, Wayne; Powell, Tamara L; Smith, Mary Lou; Taylor, Margot J

2014-01-01

Research on the neural bases of cognitive deficits in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has shown that working memory (WM) difficulties are associated with abnormalities in the prefrontal cortex. However, cognitive load impacts these findings, and no studies have examined the relation between WM load and neural underpinnings in children with ASD. Thus, the current study determined the effects of cognitive load on WM, using a visuo-spatial WM capacity task in children with and without ASD with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We used fMRI and a 1-back colour matching task (CMT) task with four levels of difficulty to compare the cortical activation patterns associated with WM in children (7-13 years old) with high functioning autism (N = 19) and matched controls (N = 17) across cognitive load. Performance on CMT was comparable between groups, with the exception of one difficulty level. Using linear trend analyses, the control group showed increasing activation as a function of difficulty level in frontal and parietal lobes, particularly between the highest difficulty levels, and decreasing activation as a function of difficulty level in the posterior cingulate and medial frontal gyri. In contrast, children with ASD showed increasing activation only in posterior brain regions and decreasing activation in the posterior cingulate and medial frontal gyri, as a function of difficulty level. Significant differences were found in the precuneus, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and medial premotor cortex, where control children showed greater positive linear relations between cortical activity and task difficulty level, particularly at the highest difficulty levels, but children with ASD did not show these trends. Children with ASD showed differences in activation in the frontal and parietal lobes-both critical substrates for visuo-spatial WM. Our data suggest that children with ASD rely mainly on posterior brain regions associated with visual and lower level processing, whereas controls showed activity in frontal lobes related to the classic WM network. Findings will help guide future work by localizing areas of vulnerability to developmental disturbances.

Egocentric and allocentric visuospatial working memory in premotor Huntington's disease: A double dissociation with caudate and hippocampal volumes.

PubMed

Possin, Katherine L; Kim, Hosung; Geschwind, Michael D; Moskowitz, Tacie; Johnson, Erica T; Sha, Sharon J; Apple, Alexandra; Xu, Duan; Miller, Bruce L; Finkbeiner, Steven; Hess, Christopher P; Kramer, Joel H

2017-07-01

Our brains represent spatial information in egocentric (self-based) or allocentric (landmark-based) coordinates. Rodent studies have demonstrated a critical role for the caudate in egocentric navigation and the hippocampus in allocentric navigation. We administered tests of egocentric and allocentric working memory to individuals with premotor Huntington's disease (pmHD), which is associated with early caudate nucleus atrophy, and controls. Each test had 80 trials during which subjects were asked to remember 2 locations over 1-sec delays. The only difference between these otherwise identical tests was that locations could only be coded in self-based or landmark-based coordinates. We applied a multiatlas-based segmentation algorithm and computed point-wise Jacobian determinants to measure regional variations in caudate and hippocampal volumes from 3T MRI. As predicted, the pmHD patients were significantly more impaired on egocentric working memory. Only egocentric accuracy correlated with caudate volumes, specifically the dorsolateral caudate head, right more than left, a region that receives dense efferents from dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. In contrast, only allocentric accuracy correlated with hippocampal volumes, specifically intermediate and posterior regions that connect strongly with parahippocampal and posterior parietal cortices. These results indicate that the distinction between egocentric and allocentric navigation applies to working memory. The dorsolateral caudate is important for egocentric working memory, which can explain the disproportionate impairment in pmHD. Allocentric working memory, in contrast, relies on the hippocampus and is relatively spared in pmHD. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Napping on the Night Shift: A Study of Sleep, Performance, and Learning in Physicians-in-Training

PubMed Central

McDonald, Jennifer; Potyk, Darryl; Fischer, David; Parmenter, Brett; Lillis, Teresa; Tompkins, Lindsey; Bowen, Angela; Grant, Devon; Lamp, Amanda; Belenky, Gregory

2013-01-01

Background Physicians in training experience fatigue from sleep loss, high workload, and working at an adverse phase of the circadian rhythm, which collectively degrades task performance and the ability to learn and remember. To minimize fatigue and sustain performance, learning, and memory, humans generally need 7 to 8 hours of sleep in every 24-hour period. Methods In a naturalistic, within-subjects design, we studied 17 first- and second-year internal medicine residents working in a tertiary care medical center, rotating between day shift and night float every 4 weeks. We studied each resident for 2 weeks while he/she worked the day shift and for 2 weeks while he/she worked the night float, objectively measuring sleep by wrist actigraphy, vigilance by the Psychomotor Vigilance Task test, and visual-spatial and verbal learning and memory by the Brief Visuospatial Memory Test-Revised and the Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test. Results Residents, whether working day shift or night float, slept approximately 7 hours in every 24-hour period. Residents, when working day shift, consolidated their sleep into 1 main sleep period at night. Residents working night float split their sleep, supplementing their truncated daytime sleep with nighttime on-duty naps. There was no difference in vigilance or learning and memory, whether residents worked day shift or night float. Conclusions Off-duty sleep supplemented with naps while on duty appears to be an effective strategy for sustaining vigilance, learning, and memory when working night float. PMID:24455014

A novel cognitive intervention for compulsive checking: Targeting maladaptive beliefs about memory.

PubMed

Alcolado, Gillian M; Radomsky, Adam S

2016-12-01

Compulsive checking is one of the most common symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Recently it has been proposed that those who check compulsively may believe their memory is poor, rather than having an actual memory impairment. The current study sought to develop and assess a brief cognitive intervention focused on improving maladaptive beliefs about memory, as they pertain to both checking symptoms and memory performance. Participants (N = 24) with a diagnosis of OCD and clinical levels of checking symptomatology were randomly assigned either to receive two weekly 1-hour therapy sessions or to self-monitor during a similar waitlist period. Time spent checking, checking symptoms, maladaptive beliefs about memory, and visuospatial memory were assessed both pre- and post-treatment/waitlist. Results showed that compared to the waitlist condition, individuals in the treatment condition displayed significant decreases in their maladaptive beliefs about memory and checking symptoms from pre- to post-intervention. They also exhibited increased recall performance on a measure of visuospatial memory. Changes in beliefs about memory were predictors of reduced post-intervention checking, but were not predictive of increased post-intervention memory scores. The lack of long term follow-up data and use of a waitlist control leave questions about the stability and specificity of the intervention. Findings provide preliminary evidence that strategies targeting beliefs about memory may be worthy of inclusion in cognitive-behavioural approaches to treating compulsive checking. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Clinical Neuropsychology of Dementia with Lewy Bodies].

PubMed

Nagahama, Yasuhiro

2016-02-01

Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) shows lesser memory impairment and more severe visuospatial disability than Alzheimer disease (AD). Although deficits in both consolidation and retrieval underlie the memory impairment, retrieval deficit is predominant in DLB. Visuospatial dysfunctions in DLB are related to the impairments in both ventral and dorsal streams of higher visual information processing, and lower visual processing in V1/V2 may also be impaired. Attention and executive functions are more widely disturbed in DLB than in AD. Imitation of finger gestures is impaired more frequently in DLB than in other mild dementia, and provides additional information for diagnosis of mild dementia, especially for DLB. Pareidolia, which lies between hallucination and visual misperception, is found frequently in DLB, but its mechanism is still under investigation.

Factor structure of the Hooper Visual Organization Test: a cross-cultural replication and extension.

PubMed

Merten, Thomas

2005-01-01

To investigate construct validity of the Hooper Visual Organization Test (VOT), a principal-axis analysis was performed on the neuropsychological test results of 200 German-speaking neurological patients who received a comprehensive battery, encompassing tests of visuospatial functions, memory, attention, executive functions, naming ability, and vocabulary. A four-factor solution was obtained with substantial loadings of the VOT only on the first factor, interpreted as a global dimension of non-verbal cognitive functions. This factor loaded significantly on numerous measures of visuospatial processing and attention (with particularly high loadings on WAIS-R Block Design, Trails A and B, and Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices). The remaining three factors were interpreted as memory, verbal abilities (vocabulary), and a separate factor of naming abilities.

Probing the nature of deficits in the 'Approximate Number System' in children with persistent Developmental Dyscalculia.

PubMed

Bugden, Stephanie; Ansari, Daniel

2016-09-01

In the present study we examined whether children with Developmental Dyscalculia (DD) exhibit a deficit in the so-called 'Approximate Number System' (ANS). To do so, we examined a group of elementary school children who demonstrated persistent low math achievement over 4 years and compared them to typically developing (TD), aged-matched controls. The integrity of the ANS was measured using the Panamath (www.panamath.org) non-symbolic numerical discrimination test. Children with DD demonstrated imprecise ANS acuity indexed by larger Weber fraction (w) compared to TD controls. Given recent findings showing that non-symbolic numerical discrimination is affected by visual parameters, we went further and investigated whether children performed differently on trials on which number of dots and their overall area were either congruent or incongruent with each other. This analysis revealed that differences in w were only found between DD and TD children on the incongruent trials. In addition, visuo-spatial working memory strongly predicts individual differences in ANS acuity (w) during the incongruent trials. Thus the purported ANS deficit in DD can be explained by a difficulty in extracting number from an array of dots when area is anti-correlated with number. These data highlight the role of visuo-spatial working memory during the extraction process, and demonstrate that close attention needs to be paid to perceptual processes invoked by tasks thought to represent measures of the ANS. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effects of 2-day calorie restriction on cardiovascular autonomic response, mood, and cognitive and motor functions in obese young adult women.

PubMed

Solianik, Rima; Sujeta, Artūras; Čekanauskaitė, Agnė

2018-06-02

Although long-term energy restriction has been widely investigated and has consistently induced improvements in health and cognitive and motor functions, the responses to short-duration calorie restriction are not completely understood. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a 2-day very low-calorie diet on evoked stress, mood, and cognitive and motor functions in obese women. Nine obese women (body fatness > 32%) aged 22-31 years were tested under two randomly allocated conditions: 2-day very low-calorie diet (511 kcal) and 2-day usual diet. The perceived stressfulness of the diet, cardiovascular autonomic response, and cognitive and motor performances were evaluated before and after each diet. The subjective stress rating of the calorie-restricted diet was 41.5 ± 23.3. Calorie restriction had no detectable effects on the heart rate variability indices, mood, grip strength, or psychomotor functions. By contrast, calorie restriction increased (p < 0.05) spatial processing and visuospatial working memory accuracy, and decreased (p < 0.05) accuracy of cognitive flexibility. In conclusion, our results demonstrate that although a 2-day calorie restriction evoked moderate stress in obese women, cardiovascular autonomic function was not affected. Calorie restriction had complex effects on cognition: it declined cognitive flexibility, and improved spatial processing and visuospatial working memory, but did not affect mood or motor behavior.

Developmental change of visuo-spatial working memory in children: quantitative evaluation through an Advanced Trail Making Test.

PubMed

Kokubo, Naomi; Inagaki, Masumi; Gunji, Atsuko; Kobayashi, Tomoka; Ohta, Hidenobu; Kajimoto, Osami; Kaga, Makiko

2012-11-01

The present study aimed to investigate the developmental change in Visuo-Spatial Working Memory (VSWM) in typically developed children using a specially designed Advanced Trail Making Test for children (ATMT-C). We developed a new method for evaluating VSWM efficiency in children using a modified version ATMT to suit their shorter sustained attention. The ATMT-C consists of two parts; a number-based ATMT and a hiragana (Japanese phonogram)-based ATMT, both employing symbols familiar to young children. A total of 94 healthy participants (6-28 years of age) were enrolled in this study. A non-linear developmental change of VSWM efficiency was observed in the results from the ATMT-C. In the number-based ATMT, children under 8 years of age showed a relatively rapid increase in VSWM efficiency while older children (9-12 years) had a more gradual increase in VSWM efficiency. Results from the hiragana-based ATMT-C showed a slightly delayed increase pattern in VSWM efficiency compared to the pattern from the number-based ATMT. There were no significant differences in VSWM efficiency for gender, handedness and test order. VSWM in children gradually matures in a non steady-state manner and there is an important stage for VSWM maturation before reaching 12 years of age. VSWM efficiency may also vary depending on developmental condition of its cognitive subsystems. Copyright © 2012 The Japanese Society of Child Neurology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sex-based memory advantages and cognitive aging: a challenge to the cognitive reserve construct?

PubMed

Caselli, Richard J; Dueck, Amylou C; Locke, Dona E C; Baxter, Leslie C; Woodruff, Bryan K; Geda, Yonas E

2015-02-01

Education and related proxies for cognitive reserve (CR) are confounded by associations with environmental factors that correlate with cerebrovascular disease possibly explaining discrepancies between studies examining their relationships to cognitive aging and dementia. In contrast, sex-related memory differences may be a better proxy. Since they arise developmentally, they are less likely to reflect environmental confounds. Women outperform men on verbal and men generally outperform women on visuospatial memory tasks. Furthermore, memory declines during the preclinical stage of AD, when it is clinically indistinguishable from normal aging. To determine whether CR mitigates age-related memory decline, we examined the effects of gender and APOE genotype on longitudinal memory performances. Memory decline was assessed in a cohort of healthy men and women enriched for APOE ɛ4 who completed two verbal [Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT), Buschke Selective Reminding Test (SRT)] and two visuospatial [Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test (CFT), and Benton Visual Retention Test (VRT)] memory tests, as well as in a separate larger and older cohort [National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center (NACC)] who completed a verbal memory test (Logical Memory). Age-related memory decline was accelerated in APOE ɛ4 carriers on all verbal memory measures (AVLT, p=.03; SRT p<.001; logical memory p<.001) and on the VRT p=.006. Baseline sex associated differences were retained over time, but no sex differences in rate of decline were found for any measure in either cohort. Sex-based memory advantage does not mitigate age-related memory decline in either APOE ɛ4 carriers or non-carriers.

The Facilitative Effect of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation on Visuospatial Working Memory in Patients with Diabetic Polyneuropathy: A Pre–post Sham-Controlled Study

PubMed Central

Wu, Yi-Jen; Tseng, Philip; Huang, Han-Wei; Hu, Jon-Fan; Juan, Chi-Hung; Hsu, Kuei-Sen; Lin, Chou-Ching

2016-01-01

Diabetes mellitus can lead to diabetic polyneuropathy (DPN) and cognitive deficits that manifest as peripheral and central neuropathy, respectively. In this study we investigated the relationship between visuospatial working memory (VSWM) capacity and DPN severity, and attempted to improve VSWM in DPN patients via the use of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Sixteen DPN patients and 16 age- and education-matched healthy control subjects received Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA) for baseline cognitive assessment. A forward- and backward-recall computerized Corsi block tapping task (CBT), both with and without a concurrent motor interference task was used to measure VSWM capacity. Each DPN patient underwent a pre-treatment CBT, followed by tDCS or sham treatment, then a post-treatment CBT on two separate days. We found that although patients with severe DPN (Dyck’s grade 2a or 2b) showed comparable general intelligence scores on WAIS-IV as their age- and education-matched healthy counterparts, they nonetheless showed mild cognitive impairment (MCI) on MOCA and working memory deficit on digit-span test of WAIS-IV. Furthermore, patients’ peripheral nerve conduction velocity (NCV) was positively correlated with their VSWM span in the most difficult CBT condition that involved backward-recall with motor interference such that patients with worse NCV also had lower VSWM span. Most importantly, anodal tDCS over the right DLPFC was able to improve low-performing patients’ VSWM span to be on par with the high-performers, thereby eliminating the correlation between NCV and VSWM. In summary, these findings suggest that (1) MCI and severe peripheral neuropathy can coexist with unequal severity in diabetic patients, (2) the positive correlation of VSWM and NCV suggests a link between peripheral and central neuropathies, and (3) anodal tDCS over the right DLPFC can improve DPN patients’ VSWM, particularly for the low-performing patients. PMID:27733822

A Cross-Modal Perspective on the Relationships between Imagery and Working Memory

PubMed Central

Likova, Lora T.

2013-01-01

Mapping the distinctions and interrelationships between imagery and working memory (WM) remains challenging. Although each of these major cognitive constructs is defined and treated in various ways across studies, most accept that both imagery and WM involve a form of internal representation available to our awareness. In WM, there is a further emphasis on goal-oriented, active maintenance, and use of this conscious representation to guide voluntary action. Multicomponent WM models incorporate representational buffers, such as the visuo-spatial sketchpad, plus central executive functions. If there is a visuo-spatial “sketchpad” for WM, does imagery involve the same representational buffer? Alternatively, does WM employ an imagery-specific representational mechanism to occupy our awareness? Or do both constructs utilize a more generic “projection screen” of an amodal nature? To address these issues, in a cross-modal fMRI study, I introduce a novel Drawing-Based Memory Paradigm, and conceptualize drawing as a complex behavior that is readily adaptable from the visual to non-visual modalities (such as the tactile modality), which opens intriguing possibilities for investigating cross-modal learning and plasticity. Blindfolded participants were trained through our Cognitive-Kinesthetic Method (Likova, 2010a, 2012) to draw complex objects guided purely by the memory of felt tactile images. If this WM task had been mediated by transfer of the felt spatial configuration to the visual imagery mechanism, the response-profile in visual cortex would be predicted to have the “top-down” signature of propagation of the imagery signal downward through the visual hierarchy. Remarkably, the pattern of cross-modal occipital activation generated by the non-visual memory drawing was essentially the inverse of this typical imagery signature. The sole visual hierarchy activation was isolated to the primary visual area (V1), and accompanied by deactivation of the entire extrastriate cortex, thus ’cutting-off’ any signal propagation from/to V1 through the visual hierarchy. The implications of these findings for the debate on the interrelationships between the core cognitive constructs of WM and imagery and the nature of internal representations are evaluated. PMID:23346061

Executive working memory load induces inattentional blindness.

PubMed

Fougnie, Daryl; Marois, René

2007-02-01

When attention is engaged in a task, unexpected events in the visual scene may go undetected, a phenomenon known as inattentional blindness (IB). At what stage of information processing must attention be engaged for IB to occur? Although manipulations that tax visuospatial attention can induce IB, the evidence is more equivocal for tasks that engage attention at late, central stages of information processing. Here, we tested whether IB can be specifically induced by central executive processes. An unexpected visual stimulus was presented during the retention interval of a working memory task that involved either simply maintaining verbal material or rearranging the material into alphabetical order. The unexpected stimulus was more likely to be missed during manipulation than during simple maintenance of the verbal information. Thus, the engagement of executive processes impairs the ability to detect unexpected, task-irrelevant stimuli, suggesting that IB can result from central, amodal stages of processing.

Untangling the Contribution of the Subcomponents of Working Memory to Mathematical Proficiency as Measured by the National Tests: A Study among Swedish Third Graders

PubMed Central

Wiklund-Hörnqvist, Carola; Jonsson, Bert; Korhonen, Johan; Eklöf, Hanna; Nyroos, Mikaela

2016-01-01

The aim with the present study was to examine the relationship between the subcomponents in working memory (WM) and mathematical performance, as measured by the National tests in a sample of 597 Swedish third-grade pupils. In line with compelling evidence of other studies, individual differences in WM capacity significantly predicted mathematical performance. Dividing the sample into four groups, based on their mathematical performance, revealed that mathematical ability can be conceptualized in terms of different WM profiles. Pupils categorized as High-math performers particularly differed from the other three groups in having a significant higher phonological ability. In contrast, pupils categorized as Low-math performers were particularly characterized by having a significant lower visuo-spatial ability. Findings suggest that it is important for educators to recognize and acknowledge individual differences in WM to support mathematical achievement at an individual level. PMID:27486413

Learning Mathematics in a Visuospatial Format: A Randomized, Controlled Trial of Mental Abacus Instruction.

PubMed

Barner, David; Alvarez, George; Sullivan, Jessica; Brooks, Neon; Srinivasan, Mahesh; Frank, Michael C

2016-07-01

Mental abacus (MA) is a technique of performing fast, accurate arithmetic using a mental image of an abacus; experts exhibit astonishing calculation abilities. Over 3 years, 204 elementary school students (age range at outset: 5-7 years old) participated in a randomized, controlled trial to test whether MA expertise (a) can be acquired in standard classroom settings, (b) improves students' mathematical abilities (beyond standard math curricula), and (c) is related to changes in basic cognitive capacities like working memory. MA students outperformed controls on arithmetic tasks, suggesting that MA expertise can be achieved by children in standard classrooms. MA training did not alter basic cognitive abilities; instead, differences in spatial working memory at the beginning of the study mediated MA learning. © 2016 The Authors. Child Development © 2016 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Cognitive strategies in the mental rotation task revealed by EEG spectral power.

PubMed

Gardony, Aaron L; Eddy, Marianna D; Brunyé, Tad T; Taylor, Holly A

2017-11-01

The classic mental rotation task (MRT; Shepard & Metzler, 1971) is commonly thought to measure mental rotation, a cognitive process involving covert simulation of motor rotation. Yet much research suggests that the MRT recruits both motor simulation and other analytic cognitive strategies that depend on visuospatial representation and visual working memory (WM). In the present study, we investigated cognitive strategies in the MRT using time-frequency analysis of EEG and independent component analysis. We scrutinized sensorimotor mu (µ) power reduction, associated with motor simulation, parietal alpha (pα) power reduction, associated with visuospatial representation, and frontal midline theta (fmθ) power enhancement, associated with WM maintenance and manipulation. µ power increased concomitant with increasing task difficulty, suggesting reduced use of motor simulation, while pα decreased and fmθ power increased, suggesting heightened use of visuospatial representation processing and WM, respectively. These findings suggest that MRT performance involves flexibly trading off between cognitive strategies, namely a motor simulation-based mental rotation strategy and WM-intensive analytic strategies based on task difficulty. Flexible cognitive strategy use may be a domain-general cognitive principle that underlies aptitude and spatial intelligence in a variety of cognitive domains. We close with discussion of the present study's implications as well as future directions. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Cognitive domains in the dog: independence of working memory from object learning, selective attention, and motor learning.

PubMed

Zanghi, Brian M; Araujo, Joseph; Milgram, Norton W

2015-05-01

Cognition in dogs, like in humans, is not a unitary process. Some functions, such as simple discrimination learning, are relatively insensitive to age; others, such as visuospatial learning can provide behavioral biomarkers of age. The present experiment sought to further establish the relationship between various cognitive domains, namely visuospatial memory, object discrimination learning (ODL), and selective attention (SA). In addition, we also set up a task to assess motor learning (ML). Thirty-six beagles (9-16 years) performed a variable delay non-matching to position (vDNMP) task using two objects with 20- and 90-s delay and were divided into three groups based on a combined score (HMP = 88-93 % accuracy [N = 12]; MMP = 79-86 % accuracy [N = 12]; LMP = 61-78 % accuracy [N = 12]). Variable object oddity task was used to measure ODL (correct or incorrect object) and SA (0-3 incorrect distractor objects with same [SA-same] or different [SA-diff] correct object as ODL). ML involved reaching various distances (0-15 cm). Age did not differ between memory groups (mean 11.6 years). ODL (ANOVA P = 0.43), or SA-same and SA-different (ANOVA P = 0.96), performance did not differ between the three vDNMP groups, although mean errors during ODL was numerically higher for LMP dogs. Errors increased (P < 0.001) for all dogs with increasing number of distractor objects during both SA tasks. vDNMP groups remained different (ANOVA P < 0.001) when re-tested with vDNMP task 42 days later. Maximum ML distance did not differ between vDNMP groups (ANOVA P = 0.96). Impaired short-term memory performance in aged dogs does not appear to predict performance of cognitive domains associated with object learning, SA, or maximum ML distance.

Spanish normative studies in young adults (NEURONORMA young adults project): norms for the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure (copy and memory) and Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test.

PubMed

Palomo, R; Casals-Coll, M; Sánchez-Benavides, G; Quintana, M; Manero, R M; Rognoni, T; Calvo, L; Aranciva, F; Tamayo, F; Peña-Casanova, J

2013-05-01

The Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure (ROCF) and the Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test (FCSRT) are widely used in clinical practice. The ROCF assesses visual perception, constructional praxis, and visuo-spatial memory. The FCSRT assesses verbal learning and memory. In this study, as part of the Spanish normative studies project in young adults (NEURONORMA young adults), we present age- and education-adjusted normative data for both tests obtained by using linear regression techniques. The sample consisted of 179 healthy participants ranging in age from 18 to 49 years. We provide tables for converting raw scores to scaled scores in addition to tables with scores adjusted by socio-demographic factors. The results showed that education affects scores for some of the memory tests and the figure-copying task. Age was only found to have an effect on the performance of visuo-spatial memory tests, and the effect of sex was negligible. The normative data obtained will be extremely useful in the clinical neuropsychological evaluation of young Spanish adults. Copyright © 2011 Sociedad Española de Neurología. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

A Virtual Object-Location Task for Children: Gender and Videogame Experience Influence Navigation; Age Impacts Memory and Completion Time.

PubMed

Rodriguez-Andres, David; Mendez-Lopez, Magdalena; Juan, M-Carmen; Perez-Hernandez, Elena

2018-01-01

The use of virtual reality-based tasks for studying memory has increased considerably. Most of the studies that have looked at child population factors that influence performance on such tasks have been focused on cognitive variables. However, little attention has been paid to the impact of non-cognitive skills. In the present paper, we tested 52 typically-developing children aged 5-12 years in a virtual object-location task. The task assessed their spatial short-term memory for the location of three objects in a virtual city. The virtual task environment was presented using a 3D application consisting of a 120″ stereoscopic screen and a gamepad interface. Measures of learning and displacement indicators in the virtual environment, 3D perception, satisfaction, and usability were obtained. We assessed the children's videogame experience, their visuospatial span, their ability to build blocks, and emotional and behavioral outcomes. The results indicate that learning improved with age. Significant effects on the speed of navigation were found favoring boys and those more experienced with videogames. Visuospatial skills correlated mainly with ability to recall object positions, but the correlation was weak. Longer paths were related with higher scores of withdrawal behavior, attention problems, and a lower visuospatial span. Aggressiveness and experience with the device used for interaction were related with faster navigation. However, the correlations indicated only weak associations among these variables.

Meta-Analysis of Cognitive Functioning in Breast Cancer Survivors Previously Treated With Standard-Dose Chemotherapy

PubMed Central

Jim, Heather S.L.; Phillips, Kristin M.; Chait, Sari; Anne Faul, Leigh; Popa, Mihaela A.; Lee, Yun-Hsiang; Hussin, Mallory G.; Jacobsen, Paul B.; Small, Brent J.

2012-01-01

Purpose Evidence is mixed regarding long-term cognitive deficits in patients treated with chemotherapy. Previous meta-analyses have not focused specifically on the postchemotherapy period and have not incorporated several recent studies. The goal of the current study was to conduct a meta-analysis of cognitive functioning in breast cancer survivors who were treated with chemotherapy ≥ 6 months previously. Methods A search of PubMed, PsycInfo, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, and Cochrane Library yielded 2,751 abstracts, which were independently evaluated by pairs of raters. Meta-analysis was conducted on 17 studies of 807 patients previously treated with standard-dose chemotherapy for breast cancer. Neuropsychological tests were categorized according to eight cognitive domains: attention, executive functioning, information processing, motor speed, verbal ability, verbal memory, visual memory, and visuospatial ability. Results Deficits in cognitive functioning were observed in patients treated with chemotherapy relative to controls or prechemotherapy baseline in the domains of verbal ability (g = −0.19; P < .01) and visuospatial ability (g = −0.27; P < .01). Patients treated with chemotherapy performed worse than noncancer controls in verbal ability and worse than patients treated without chemotherapy in visuospatial ability (both P < .01). Age, education, time since treatment, and endocrine therapy did not moderate observed cognitive deficits in verbal ability or visuospatial ability (all P ≥ .51). Conclusion Results indicate that, on average, observed cognitive deficits in patients with breast cancer previously treated with chemotherapy are small in magnitude and limited to the domains of verbal ability and visuospatial ability. This information can be used to inform interventions to educate patients with breast cancer regarding the long-term impact of chemotherapy on cognitive functioning. PMID:22927526

Pointing towards visuospatial patterns in short-term memory: differential effects on familiarity- and recollection-based judgments.

PubMed

Rossi-Arnaud, Clelia; Spataro, Pietro; Marques, Valeria R S; Longobardi, Emiddia

2015-03-01

Previous studies have indicated that pointing toward to-be-remembered visuospatial patterns enhances short-term memory (STM) when the presentation of pointing and no-pointing trials is mixed (Chum et al., 2007; Dodd & Shumborski, 2009; Rossi-Arnaud et al., 2012). By contrast, when presentation is blocked, pointing has inhibitory effects on memory (Dodd & Shumborski, 2009; Rossi-Arnaud et al., 2012). In the present study, we demonstrated that pointing has different effects on short-term recollection- and familiarity-based judgments, depending on the length of the visuospatial patterns (5- vs. 7-item arrays) and the interval between the encoding and test phases (2 vs. 5 s). More specifically, pointing decreased the accuracy of recollection-based judgments for 5-item arrays, but not for 7-item arrays (this negative effect did not interact with interval length). In contrast, pointing facilitated familiarity-based judgments when the interval between the study and test phases was 5 s, but not when it was 2 s (this positive effect did not interact with pattern length). We proposed that the negative effects might be accounted for by the simultaneous recruitment of attention resources in the planning and execution of pointing movements. As a consequence, executive resources are diverted from the primary memory task, resulting in a less efficient use of attention-demanding retrieval strategies, like chunking. By contrast, the positive effects on familiarity judgments might reflect the unitization of the to-be-remembered items into a single shape. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

[Gender differences in cognitive functions and influence of sex hormones].

PubMed

Torres, A; Gómez-Gil, E; Vidal, A; Puig, O; Boget, T; Salamero, M

2006-01-01

To review scientific evidence on gender differences in cognitive functions and influence of sex hormones on cognitive performance. Systematical search of related studies identified in Medline. Women outperform men on verbal fluency, perceptual speed tasks, fine motor skills, verbal memory and verbal learning. Men outperform women on visuospatial ability, mathematical problem solving and visual memory. No gender differences on attention and working memory are found. Researchers distinguish four methods to investigate hormonal influence on cognitive performance: a) patient with hormonal disorders; b) neuroimaging in individuals during hormone administration; c) in women during different phases of menstrual cycle, and d) in patients receiving hormonal treatment (idiopathic hypogonadotropic hypogonadism, postmenopausal women and transsexuals). The findings mostly suggest an influence of sex hormones on some cognitive functions, but they are not conclusive because of limitations and scarcity of the studies. There are gender differences on cognitive functions. Sex hormones seem to influence cognitive performance.

Effect of Insulin on Visuo-Spatial Memory and Histology of Cerebral Cortex in the Presence or Absence of Nitric Oxide Inhibition.

PubMed

Yarube, I U; Ayo, J O; Fatihu, M Y; Magaji, R A; Umar, I A; Alhassan, A W; Saleh, M Ia

2017-03-06

Insulin has emerged from its traditional 'peripheral' glucose-lowering function to become increasingly regarded as a brain hormone that controls a wide range of functions including learning and memory. Insulin action on learning and memory is linked to nitric oxide (NO) signalling, but its effects on memory and histology of cerebral cortex in conditions of varied NO availability is unclear. This research sought to determine the effect of insulin on visuo-spatial learning, memory and histology of cerebral cortex during NO deficiency. Twenty-four mice weighing 21-23 g, were divided into four groups (n = 6) and treated daily for seven days with 0.2 ml distilled water subcutaneously (s.c.) (control), 10 I.U/kg insulin s.c., 10 I.U/kg insulin + 50 mg/kg L-NAME intraperitoneally (i.p.), and 50 mg/kg i.p. L-NAME s.c., respectively. The 3-day MWM paradigm was used to assess memory. Brain tissue was examined for histological changes. There was no significant difference between day 1 and day 2 latencies for all the groups. The mice in all (but L-NAME) groups spent more time in the target quadrant, and the difference was significant within but not between groups. There was significant reduction in number of platform site crossings (4.83 ± 0.5, 0.67 ± 0.3, 0.50 ± 0.3 and 0.50 ± 0.3 for control, insulin, insulin+L-NAME and L-NAME groups, respectively) in all the groups compared to control. Normal histology of the cortex and absence of histological lesions were observed in brain slides of control and treatment groups. It was concluded that insulin administration impairs visuo-spatial memory to a greater extent in the presence of NO block, and to a lesser extent in the absence of NO block. Nitric oxide has a role in insulin-induced memory impairment. Insulin administration in the presence or absence of NO block had no effect on histology of cortex.

Predictors of reading fluency in Italian orthography: evidence from a cross-sectional study of primary school students.

PubMed

Tobia, Valentina; Marzocchi, Gian Marco

2014-01-01

This study investigates the role of linguistic and visuospatial attentional processes in predicting reading fluency in typical Italian readers attending primary school. Tasks were administered to 651 children with reading fluency z scores > -1.5 standard deviation to evaluate their phonological awareness, rapid automatized naming (RAN), verbal short-term memory, vocabulary, visual search skills, verbal-visual recall, and visual-spatial attention. Hybrid models combining confirmatory factor analysis and path analysis were used to evaluate the data obtained from younger (first and second grade) and older (third-fifth grade) children, respectively. The results showed that phonological awareness and RAN played a significant role among younger children, while also vocabulary, verbal short-term memory, and visuospatial attention were significant factors among older children.

Working memory training and transfer in older adults: effects of age, baseline performance, and training gains.

PubMed

Zinke, Katharina; Zeintl, Melanie; Rose, Nathan S; Putzmann, Julia; Pydde, Andrea; Kliegel, Matthias

2014-01-01

Recent studies suggest that working memory training may benefit older adults; however, findings regarding training and transfer effects are mixed. The current study aimed to investigate the effects of a process-based training intervention in a diverse sample of older adults and explored possible moderators of training and transfer effects. For that purpose, 80 older adults (65-95 years) were assigned either to a training group that worked on visuospatial, verbal, and executive working memory tasks for 9 sessions over 3 weeks or to a control group. Performance on trained and transfer tasks was assessed in all participants before and after the training period, as well as at a 9-month follow-up. Analyses revealed significant training effects in all 3 training tasks in trained participants relative to controls, as well as near transfer to a verbal working memory task and far transfer to a fluid intelligence task. Encouragingly, all training effects and the transfer effect to verbal working memory were stable at the 9-month follow-up session. Further analyses revealed that training gains were predicted by baseline performance in training tasks and (to a lesser degree) by age. Gains in transfer tasks were predicted by age and by the amount of improvement in the trained tasks. These findings suggest that cognitive plasticity is preserved over a large range of old age and that even a rather short training regime can lead to (partly specific) training and transfer effects. However, baseline performance, age, and training gains moderate the amount of plasticity. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

Effectiveness of a computerised working memory training in adolescents with mild to borderline intellectual disabilities.

PubMed

Van der Molen, M J; Van Luit, J E H; Van der Molen, M W; Klugkist, I; Jongmans, M J

2010-05-01

The goal of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a computerised working memory (WM) training on memory, response inhibition, fluid intelligence, scholastic abilities and the recall of stories in adolescents with mild to borderline intellectual disabilities attending special education. A total of 95 adolescents with mild to borderline intellectual disabilities were randomly assigned to either a training adaptive to each child's progress in WM, a non-adaptive WM training, or to a control group. Verbal short-term memory (STM) improved significantly from pre- to post-testing in the group who received the adaptive training compared with the control group. The beneficial effect on verbal STM was maintained at follow-up and other effects became clear at that time as well. Both the adaptive and non-adaptive WM training led to higher scores at follow-up than at post-intervention on visual STM, arithmetic and story recall compared with the control condition. In addition, the non-adaptive training group showed a significant increase in visuo-spatial WM capacity. The current study provides the first demonstration that WM can be effectively trained in adolescents with mild to borderline intellectual disabilities.

Moving to higher ground: The dynamic field theory and the dynamics of visual cognition

PubMed Central

Johnson, Jeffrey S.; Spencer, John P.; Schöner, Gregor

2009-01-01

In the present report, we describe a new dynamic field theory that captures the dynamics of visuo-spatial cognition. This theory grew out of the dynamic systems approach to motor control and development, and is grounded in neural principles. The initial application of dynamic field theory to issues in visuo-spatial cognition extended concepts of the motor approach to decision making in a sensori-motor context, and, more recently, to the dynamics of spatial cognition. Here we extend these concepts still further to address topics in visual cognition, including visual working memory for non-spatial object properties, the processes that underlie change detection, and the ‘binding problem’ in vision. In each case, we demonstrate that the general principles of the dynamic field approach can unify findings in the literature and generate novel predictions. We contend that the application of these concepts to visual cognition avoids the pitfalls of reductionist approaches in cognitive science, and points toward a formal integration of brains, bodies, and behavior. PMID:19173013

Japanese and English sentence reading comprehension and writing systems: An fMRI study of first and second language effects on brain activation.

PubMed

Buchweitz, Augusto; Mason, Robert A; Hasegawa, Mihoko; Just, Marcel A

2009-01-28

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to compare brain activation from Japanese readers reading hiragana (syllabic) and kanji (logographic) sentences, and English as a second language (L2). Kanji showed more activation than hiragana in right-hemisphere occipito-temporal lobe areas associated with visuospatial processing; hiragana, in turn, showed more activation than kanji in areas of the brain associated with phonological processing. L1 results underscore the difference in visuospatial and phonological processing demands between the systems. Reading in English as compared to either of the Japanese systems showed more activation in inferior frontal gyrus, medial frontal gyrus, and angular gyrus. The additional activation in English in these areas may have been associated with an increased cognitive demand for phonological processing and verbal working memory. More generally, L2 results suggest more effortful reading comprehension processes. The study contributes to the understanding of differential brain responses to different writing systems and to reading comprehension in a second language.

Incidence of cognitively defined late-onset Alzheimer's dementia subgroups from a prospective cohort study.

PubMed

Crane, Paul K; Trittschuh, Emily; Mukherjee, Shubhabrata; Saykin, Andrew J; Sanders, R Elizabeth; Larson, Eric B; McCurry, Susan M; McCormick, Wayne; Bowen, James D; Grabowski, Thomas; Moore, Mackenzie; Bauman, Julianna; Gross, Alden L; Keene, C Dirk; Bird, Thomas D; Gibbons, Laura E; Mez, Jesse

2017-12-01

There may be biologically relevant heterogeneity within typical late-onset Alzheimer's dementia. We analyzed cognitive data from people with incident late-onset Alzheimer's dementia from a prospective cohort study. We determined individual averages across memory, visuospatial functioning, language, and executive functioning. We identified domains with substantial impairments relative to that average. We compared demographic, neuropathology, and genetic findings across groups defined by relative impairments. During 32,286 person-years of follow-up, 869 people developed Alzheimer's dementia. There were 393 (48%) with no domain with substantial relative impairments. Some participants had isolated relative impairments in memory (148, 18%), visuospatial functioning (117, 14%), language (71, 9%), and executive functioning (66, 8%). The group with isolated relative memory impairments had higher proportions with ≥ APOE ε4 allele, more extensive Alzheimer's-related neuropathology, and higher proportions with other Alzheimer's dementia genetic risk variants. A cognitive subgrouping strategy may identify biologically distinct subsets of people with Alzheimer's dementia. Copyright © 2017 the Alzheimer's Association. All rights reserved.

Impact of Combined Estradiol and Norethindrone Therapy on Visuospatial Working Memory Assessed by Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging**

PubMed Central

Smith, Yolanda R.; Love, Tiffany; Persad, Carol C.; Tkaczyk, Anne; Nichols, Thomas E.; Zubieta, Jon-Kar

2007-01-01

Context Hormones regulate neuronal function in brain regions critical to cognition; however the cognitive effects of postmenopausal hormone therapy are controversial. Objective The goal was to evaluate the effect of postmenopausal hormone therapy on neural circuitry involved in spatial working memory. Design A randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled cross-over study was performed. Setting The study was performed in a tertiary care university medical center. Participants Ten healthy postmenopausal women of average age 56.9 years were recruited. Interventions Volunteers were randomized to the order they received hormone therapy, 5 ug ethinyl estradiol and 1 mg norethindrone acetate. Subjects received hormone therapy or placebo for 4 weeks, followed by a one month washout period with no medications, and then received the other treatment for 4 weeks. At the end of each 4 week treatment period a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study was performed utilizing a nonverbal (spatial) working memory task, the Visual Delayed Matching to Sample task. Main Outcome Measure The effects of hormone therapy on brain activation patterns were compared to placebo. Results Compared to the placebo condition, hormone therapy was associated with a more pronounced activation in the prefrontal cortex (BA 44 and 45), bilaterally (p<0.001). Conclusions Hormone therapy was associated with more effective activation of a brain region critical in primary visual working memory tasks. The data suggest a functional plasticity of memory systems in older women that can be altered by hormones. PMID:16912129

Alcohol and Drug Use and the Developing Brain

PubMed Central

Gray, Kevin M.

2016-01-01

Adolescence is an important neurodevelopmental period marked by rapidly escalating rates of alcohol and drug use. Over the past decade, research has attempted to disentangle pre- and post-substance use effects on brain development by using sophisticated longitudinal designs. This review focuses on recent, prospective studies and addresses the following important questions: (1) what neuropsychological and neural features predate adolescent substance use, making youth more vulnerable to engage in heavy alcohol or drug use, and (2) how does heavy alcohol and drug use affect normal neural development and cognitive functioning? Findings suggest that pre-existing neural features that relate to increased substance use during adolescence include poorer neuropsychological functioning on tests of inhibition and working memory, smaller gray and white matter volume, changes in white matter integrity, and altered brain activation during inhibition, working memory, reward, and resting state. After substance use is initiated, alcohol and marijuana use are associated with poorer cognitive functioning on tests of verbal memory, visuospatial functioning, psychomotor speed, working memory, attention, cognitive control, and overall IQ. Heavy alcohol use during adolescence is related to accelerated decreases in gray matter and attenuated increases in white matter volume, as well as increased brain activation during tasks of inhibition and working memory, relative to controls. Larger longitudinal studies with more diverse samples are needed to better understand the interactive effects of alcohol, marijuana, and other substances, as well as the role of sex, co-occurring psychopathology, genetics, sleep, and age of initiation on substance use. PMID:26984684

Interference effects between memory systems in the acquisition of a skill.

PubMed

Gagné, Marie-Hélène; Cohen, Henri

2016-10-01

There is now converging evidence that the declarative memory system (hippocampus dependent) contributes to sequential motor learning in concert with the procedural memory system (striatum dependent). Because of the competition for shared neuronal resources, introducing a declarative memory task can impair learning of a new motor sequence and interference may occur during the procedural consolidation process. Here, we investigated the extent to which interference effects between memory systems are seen at the retrieval phase of skill learning. Healthy participants were assigned to a control (n = 15) or a declarative condition (n = 15) and trained on a sequence of finger movements (FOS task). Both groups showed similar improvement at the end of the practice session on the first day. Twenty-four hours later, controls were tested solely on the FOS task, while subjects in the declarative condition first engaged in a visuospatial task. Additional offline gains in performance were observed only in the control condition. The introduction of a visuospatial memory task just before retrieval of the motor skill was sufficient to eliminate these gains. This suggests that interference between procedural and declarative memory systems may also occur during subsequent motor recall. It is proposed that the interference effects are linked, in part, to the spatial nature of the motor and declarative tasks, which specifically depends upon hippocampal involvement.

Parietal cortex integrates contextual and saliency signals during the encoding of natural scenes in working memory.

PubMed

Santangelo, Valerio; Di Francesco, Simona Arianna; Mastroberardino, Serena; Macaluso, Emiliano

2015-12-01

The Brief presentation of a complex scene entails that only a few objects can be selected, processed indepth, and stored in memory. Both low-level sensory salience and high-level context-related factors (e.g., the conceptual match/mismatch between objects and scene context) contribute to this selection process, but how the interplay between these factors affects memory encoding is largely unexplored. Here, during fMRI we presented participants with pictures of everyday scenes. After a short retention interval, participants judged the position of a target object extracted from the initial scene. The target object could be either congruent or incongruent with the context of the scene, and could be located in a region of the image with maximal or minimal salience. Behaviourally, we found a reduced impact of saliency on visuospatial working memory performance when the target was out-of-context. Encoding-related fMRI results showed that context-congruent targets activated dorsoparietal regions, while context-incongruent targets de-activated the ventroparietal cortex. Saliency modulated activity both in dorsal and ventral regions, with larger context-related effects for salient targets. These findings demonstrate the joint contribution of knowledge-based and saliency-driven attention for memory encoding, highlighting a dissociation between dorsal and ventral parietal regions. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Cognitive Risk Factors for Specific Learning Disorder: Processing Speed, Temporal Processing, and Working Memory.

PubMed

Moll, Kristina; Göbel, Silke M; Gooch, Debbie; Landerl, Karin; Snowling, Margaret J

2016-01-01

High comorbidity rates between reading disorder (RD) and mathematics disorder (MD) indicate that, although the cognitive core deficits underlying these disorders are distinct, additional domain-general risk factors might be shared between the disorders. Three domain-general cognitive abilities were investigated in children with RD and MD: processing speed, temporal processing, and working memory. Since attention problems frequently co-occur with learning disorders, the study examined whether these three factors, which are known to be associated with attention problems, account for the comorbidity between these disorders. The sample comprised 99 primary school children in four groups: children with RD, children with MD, children with both disorders (RD+MD), and typically developing children (TD controls). Measures of processing speed, temporal processing, and memory were analyzed in a series of ANCOVAs including attention ratings as covariate. All three risk factors were associated with poor attention. After controlling for attention, associations with RD and MD differed: Although deficits in verbal memory were associated with both RD and MD, reduced processing speed was related to RD, but not MD; and the association with RD was restricted to processing speed for familiar nameable symbols. In contrast, impairments in temporal processing and visuospatial memory were associated with MD, but not RD. © Hammill Institute on Disabilities 2014.

EEG activity during the spatial span task in young men: Differences between short-term and working memory.

PubMed

Guevara, Miguel Angel; Cruz Paniagua, Edwin Iván; Hernández González, Marisela; Sandoval Carrillo, Ivett Karina; Almanza Sepúlveda, Mayra Linné; Hevia Orozco, Jorge Carlos; Amezcua Gutiérrez, Claudia

2018-03-15

Short-term memory and working memory are two closely-related concepts that involve the prefrontal and parietal areas. These two types of memory have been evaluated by means of the spatial span task in its forward and backward conditions, respectively. To determine possible neurofunctional differences between them, this study recorded electroencephalographic activity (EEG) in the frontopolar (Fp1, Fp2), dorsolateral (F3, F4), and parietal (P3 and P4) areas during performance of the forward and backward conditions of this task in young men. The backward condition (an indicator of working memory) was characterized by fewer correct answers, higher absolute power (AP) of the delta band in dorsolateral areas, and a lower correlation between frontopolar and dorsolateral regions in the fast bands (alpha, beta and gamma), mainly in the right hemisphere. The prefrontal EEG changes during backward performance may be associated with the higher attentional demands and inhibition processes required to invert the order of reproduction of a sequence. These data provide evidence that the forward and backward conditions of the spatial span task can be distinguished on the basis of neurofunctional activity and performance, and that each one is associated with a distinct pattern of electrical activity and synchronization between prefrontal areas. The higher AP of the delta band and lower correlation of the fast bands, particularly between right prefrontal areas during the backward condition of this visuospatial task, suggest greater participation by the right prefrontal areas in working memory. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Dual-Task Processing as a Measure of Executive Function: A Comparison between Adults with Williams and Down Syndromes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kittler, Phyllis M.; Krinsky-McHale, Sharon J.; Devenny, Darlynne A.

2008-01-01

Behavioral phenotypes of individuals with Williams syndrome and individuals with Down syndrome have been contrasted in relation to short-term memory. People with Down syndrome are stronger visuospatially and those with Williams syndrome are stronger verbally. We examined short-term memory, then explored whether dual-task processing further…

Retrosplenial Cortex Is Required for the Retrieval of Remote Memory for Auditory Cues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Todd, Travis P.; Mehlman, Max L.; Keene, Christopher S.; DeAngeli, Nicole E.; Bucci, David J.

2016-01-01

The retrosplenial cortex (RSC) has a well-established role in contextual and spatial learning and memory, consistent with its known connectivity with visuo-spatial association areas. In contrast, RSC appears to have little involvement with delay fear conditioning to an auditory cue. However, all previous studies have examined the contribution of…

Memory outcome 2 years after anterior temporal lobectomy in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy.

PubMed

Grammaldo, Liliana G; Di Gennaro, Giancarlo; Giampà, Teresa; De Risi, Marco; Meldolesi, Giulio N; Mascia, Addolorata; Sparano, Antonio; Esposito, Vincenzo; Quarato, Pier Paolo; Picardi, Angelo

2009-03-01

Memory decline is often observed after anterior temporal lobectomy (ATL), particularly in patients with dominant hemisphere resections. However, the follow-up length has been 1 year or less in most studies. Our aims were to examine postoperative memory changes over a longer period and to identify baseline demographic and clinical predictors of memory outcome. We administered material-specific memory tests at baseline, and 1 and 2 years after surgery to 82 consecutive right-handed patients (52% males) who underwent ATL for drug-resistant temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) (35 left, 47 right) after a non-invasive presurgical protocol. Repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance (RM-MANOVA) was used to examine the relationship between changes in memory tests scores over time and side of TLE and pathology. Also, standardized residual change scores were calculated for each memory test and entered in multiple linear regression models aimed at identifying baseline predictors of better memory outcome. RM-MANOVA revealed a significant change in memory test scores over time, with an interaction between time and side of surgery, as 2 years after surgery patients with RTLE were improved while patients with LTLE were not worse as compared with baseline. Pathology was not associated with changes in memory scores. In multiple regression analysis, significant associations were found between right TLE and greater improvement in verbal memory, younger age and greater improvement in visuospatial memory, and male gender and greater improvement in both verbal and visuospatial memory. Our results suggest that the long-term memory outcome of TLE patients undergoing ATL without invasive presurgical assessment may be good in most cases not only for right-sided but also for left-sided resections.

Extrapyramidal Signs and Cognitive Subdomains in Alzheimer Disease.

PubMed

Park, Jin Hong; Myung, Woojae; Choi, Junbae; Kim, Sangha; Chung, Jae Won; Kang, Hyo Shin; Na, Duk L; Kim, Seong Yoon; Lee, Jae-Hong; Han, Seol-Heui; Choi, Seong Hye; Kim, Sang Yun; Kim, Doh Kwan

2016-07-01

Extrapyramidal signs (EPS), commonly observed in Alzheimer disease (AD), predict cognitive impairment and functional decline. This study investigated the association between EPS and five cognitive subdomains in a large number of participants with AD. Cross-sectional analyses of the nationwide Clinical Research of Dementia of South Korea (CREDOS) study, 2005-2012. Multicenter clinical settings. 1,737 participants with AD drawn from the CREDOS study. The EPS group was defined by the presence of at least one EPS based on neurologic examination. We assessed five cognitive subdomains: attention, language, visuospatial function, memory, and frontal/executive function using the Seoul Neuropsychological Screening Battery-Dementia version. The associations of EPS with each cognitive subdomain were analyzed with a multiple linear regression model after controlling for confounding factors: sex, age, years of education, severity of dementia (Clinical Dementia Rating Sum of Boxes), and white matter hyperintensities. 164 AD participants (9.4%) had EPS. AD participants with EPS showed lower performance compared with those without EPS in two cognitive subdomains: attention and visuospatial function. The language, memory, and frontal/executive subdomains did not differ between the EPS-positive and the EPS-negative groups. In addition, we found a significant moderating relationship between EPS and deep white matter hyperintensities on visuospatial function score. EPS in AD are associated with severe cognitive impairment in attention and visuospatial function. Careful screening for EPS in patients with AD may assist in prediction of cognitive profile. Copyright © 2016 American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

When this means that: the role of working memory and inhibitory control in children's understanding of representations.

PubMed

Astle, Andrea; Kamawar, Deepthi; Vendetti, Corrie; Podjarny, Gal

2013-10-01

We investigated cognitive skills that contribute to 4-year-olds' understanding of representations. In our main task, children used representations on a perspective line drawing to find stickers hidden in a model room. To compare the contributions made by various cognitive skills with children's understanding of different types of representations, we manipulated the resemblance between the representations and their referents. Our results indicate that when representations are iconic (i.e., look like their referents), children have very little difficulty with the task. Controlling for performance on this baseline version of the task, we found that specific cognitive skills are differentially predictive of performance when using arbitrary and conflicting representations (i.e., symbols). When the representation was arbitrarily linked to the sticker, performance was related to phonological and visuospatial working memory. When the representation matched the color of an alternate sticker (thereby conflicting with the desired sticker), performance was related to phonological working memory and inhibitory control. We discuss the role that different cognitive skills play in representational understanding as a function of the nature of the representation-referent relation. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hypertext comprehension of deaf and hard-of-hearing students and students with specific language impairment.

PubMed

Blom, Helen; Segers, Eliane; Hermans, Daan; Knoors, Harry; Verhoeven, Ludo

2017-02-01

This paper provides insight into the reading comprehension of hierarchically structured hypertexts within D/HH students and students with SLI. To our knowledge, it is the first study on hypertext comprehension in D/HH students and students with SLI, and it also considers the role of working memory. We compared hypertext versus linear text comprehension in D/HH students and students with SLI versus younger students without language problems who had a similar level of decoding and vocabulary. The results demonstrated no difference in text comprehension between the hierarchically structured hypertext and the linear text. Text comprehension of D/HH students and students with SLI was comparable to that of the students without language problems. In addition, there was a similar positive predictive value of visuospatial and not verbal working memory on hypertext comprehension for all three groups. The findings implicate that educational settings can make use of hierarchically structured hypertexts as well as linear texts and that children can navigate in the digital world from young age on, even if language or working memory problems are present. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A meta-analysis of the effects of antidepressants on cognitive functioning in depressed and non-depressed samples.

PubMed

Prado, Catherine E; Watt, Stephanie; Crowe, Simon F

2018-03-01

A thorough understanding of the cognitive effects of antidepressant medications is essential given their frequency of use. This meta-analysis was conducted to investigate whether antidepressants differentially affect the various domains of cognitive functioning for depressed and non-depressed participants. An electronic search of PsycInfo, Medline and Google Scholar was conducted for all journal articles published between January 1998 and January 2017. Thirty-three studies were included enabling calculation of Hedges' g using a random effects model for the cognitive domains of divided attention, executive function, expressive language, immediate memory, perceptual motor skills, processing speed, recent memory, sustained attention, visuospatial-constructional skills and working memory. Results revealed that overall, antidepressants have a modest, positive effect on divided attention, executive function, immediate memory, processing speed, recent memory and sustained attention for depressed participants. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI's) were found to have the greatest positive effect on cognition for depressed participants, as compared to the other classes of antidepressants analysed. Antidepressants did not significantly affect cognitive function in non-depressed participants.

Endogenous IL-1 in Cognitive Function and Anxiety: A Study in IL-1RI−/− Mice

PubMed Central

Murray, Carol L.; Obiang, Pauline; Bannerman, David; Cunningham, Colm

2013-01-01

Interleukin-1 (IL-1) is a key pro-inflammatory cytokine, produced predominantly by peripheral immune cells but also by glia and some neuronal populations within the brain. Its signalling is mediated via the binding of IL-1α or IL-1β to the interleukin-1 type one receptor (IL-1RI). IL-1 plays a key role in inflammation-induced sickness behaviour, resulting in depressed locomotor activity, decreased exploration, reduced food and water intake and acute cognitive deficits. Conversely, IL-1 has also been suggested to facilitate hippocampal-dependent learning and memory: IL-1RI−/− mice have been reported to show deficits on tasks of visuospatial learning and memory. We sought to investigate whether there is a generalised hippocampal deficit in IL-1RI−/− animals. Therefore, in the current study we compared wildtype (WT) mice to IL-1RI−/− mice using a variety of hippocampal-dependent learning and memory tasks, as well as tests of anxiety and locomotor activity. We found no difference in performance of the IL-1RI−/− mice compared to WT mice in a T-maze working memory task. In addition, the IL-1RI−/− mice showed normal learning in various spatial reference memory tasks including the Y-maze and Morris mater maze, although there was a subtle deficit in choice behaviour in a spatial discrimination, beacon watermaze task. IL-1RI−/− mice also showed normal memory for visuospatial context in the contextual fear conditioning paradigm. In the open field, IL-1RI−/− mice showed a significant increase in distance travelled and rearing behaviour compared to the WT mice and in the elevated plus-maze spent more time in the open arms than did the WT animals. The data suggest that, contrary to prior studies, IL-1RI−/− mice are not robustly impaired on hippocampal-dependent memory and learning but do display open field hyperactivity and decreased anxiety compared to WT mice. The results argue for a careful evaluation of the roles of endogenous IL-1 in hippocampal and limbic system function. PMID:24205219

Longitudinal Analysis of Music Education on Executive Functions in Primary School Children

PubMed Central

Jaschke, Artur C.; Honing, Henkjan; Scherder, Erik J. A.

2018-01-01

Background: Research on the effects of music education on cognitive abilities has generated increasing interest across the scientific community. Nonetheless, longitudinal studies investigating the effects of structured music education on cognitive sub-functions are still rare. Prime candidates for investigating a relationship between academic achievement and music education appear to be executive functions such as planning, working memory, and inhibition. Methods: One hundred and forty-seven primary school children, Mage = 6.4 years, SD = 0.65 were followed for 2.5 years. Participants were randomized into four groups: two music intervention groups, one active visual arts group, and a no arts control group. Neuropsychological tests assessed verbal intelligence and executive functions. Additionally, a national pupil monitor provided data on academic performance. Results: Children in the visual arts group perform better on visuospatial memory tasks as compared to the three other conditions. However, the test scores on inhibition, planning and verbal intelligence increased significantly in the two music groups over time as compared to the visual art and no arts controls. Mediation analysis with executive functions and verbal IQ as mediator for academic performance have shown a possible far transfer effect from executive sub-function to academic performance scores. Discussion: The present results indicate a positive influence of long-term music education on cognitive abilities such as inhibition and planning. Of note, following a two-and-a-half year long visual arts program significantly improves scores on a visuospatial memory task. All results combined, this study supports a far transfer effect from music education to academic achievement mediated by executive sub-functions. PMID:29541017

Longitudinal Analysis of Music Education on Executive Functions in Primary School Children.

PubMed

Jaschke, Artur C; Honing, Henkjan; Scherder, Erik J A

2018-01-01

Background: Research on the effects of music education on cognitive abilities has generated increasing interest across the scientific community. Nonetheless, longitudinal studies investigating the effects of structured music education on cognitive sub-functions are still rare. Prime candidates for investigating a relationship between academic achievement and music education appear to be executive functions such as planning, working memory, and inhibition. Methods: One hundred and forty-seven primary school children, M age = 6.4 years, SD = 0.65 were followed for 2.5 years. Participants were randomized into four groups: two music intervention groups, one active visual arts group, and a no arts control group. Neuropsychological tests assessed verbal intelligence and executive functions. Additionally, a national pupil monitor provided data on academic performance. Results: Children in the visual arts group perform better on visuospatial memory tasks as compared to the three other conditions. However, the test scores on inhibition, planning and verbal intelligence increased significantly in the two music groups over time as compared to the visual art and no arts controls. Mediation analysis with executive functions and verbal IQ as mediator for academic performance have shown a possible far transfer effect from executive sub-function to academic performance scores. Discussion: The present results indicate a positive influence of long-term music education on cognitive abilities such as inhibition and planning. Of note, following a two-and-a-half year long visual arts program significantly improves scores on a visuospatial memory task. All results combined, this study supports a far transfer effect from music education to academic achievement mediated by executive sub-functions.

Cognitive function in patients with primary adrenal insufficiency (Addison's disease).

PubMed

Schultebraucks, Katharina; Wingenfeld, Katja; Heimes, Jana; Quinkler, Marcus; Otte, Christian

2015-05-01

Patients with primary adrenal insufficiency (AI) need to replace glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids that act on glucocorticoid (GR) and mineralocorticoid receptors (MR). Both receptors are highly expressed in the hippocampus and are closely associated with cognitive function, which might be impaired by insufficient or increased GR and MR stimulation. However, little is known about cognitive function in patients with AI. It was examined whether patients with AI exhibit worse cognitive function compared to sex-, age-, and education-matched controls. Cognitive function (executive function, concentration, verbal memory, visual memory, working memory, and autobiographical memory) was assessed in 30 patients with AI (mean age 52.4 yrs. ±14.4, n=21 women, mean duration of illness 18.2 yrs. ±11.1) and 30 matched controls. We also measured depressive symptoms, body mass index (BMI), and blood pressure. Patients with AI showed more depressive symptoms, had a greater BMI and lower systolic blood pressure compared to controls. Adjusted analyses controlling for these variables revealed that patients with AI performed significantly worse in verbal learning (F=7.8, p=.007). Executive function, concentration, working memory, verbal memory, visuospatial memory, and autobiographical memory did not differ between groups. No clinically relevant cognitive impairment was found in patients with AI compared to matched controls. Even long-term glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid substitution over almost two decades appears to have only subtle effects on cognition in patients with AI. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Stereopsis, Visuospatial Ability, and Virtual Reality in Anatomy Learning

PubMed Central

Vorstenbosch, Marc; Kooloos, Jan

2017-01-01

A new wave of virtual reality headsets has become available. A potential benefit for the study of human anatomy is the reintroduction of stereopsis and absolute size. We report a randomized controlled trial to assess the contribution of stereopsis to anatomy learning, for students of different visuospatial ability. Sixty-three participants engaged in a one-hour session including a study phase and posttest. One group studied 3D models of the anatomy of the deep neck in full stereoptic virtual reality; one group studied those structures in virtual reality without stereoptic depth. The control group experienced an unrelated virtual reality environment. A post hoc questionnaire explored cognitive load and problem solving strategies of the participants. We found no effect of condition on learning. Visuospatial ability however did impact correct answers at F(1) = 5.63 and p = .02. No evidence was found for an impact of cognitive load on performance. Possibly, participants were able to solve the posttest items based on visuospatial information contained in the test items themselves. Additionally, the virtual anatomy may have been complex enough to discourage memory based strategies. It is important to control the amount of visuospatial information present in test items. PMID:28656109

Stereopsis, Visuospatial Ability, and Virtual Reality in Anatomy Learning.

PubMed

Luursema, Jan-Maarten; Vorstenbosch, Marc; Kooloos, Jan

2017-01-01

A new wave of virtual reality headsets has become available. A potential benefit for the study of human anatomy is the reintroduction of stereopsis and absolute size. We report a randomized controlled trial to assess the contribution of stereopsis to anatomy learning, for students of different visuospatial ability. Sixty-three participants engaged in a one-hour session including a study phase and posttest. One group studied 3D models of the anatomy of the deep neck in full stereoptic virtual reality; one group studied those structures in virtual reality without stereoptic depth. The control group experienced an unrelated virtual reality environment. A post hoc questionnaire explored cognitive load and problem solving strategies of the participants. We found no effect of condition on learning. Visuospatial ability however did impact correct answers at F (1) = 5.63 and p = .02. No evidence was found for an impact of cognitive load on performance. Possibly, participants were able to solve the posttest items based on visuospatial information contained in the test items themselves. Additionally, the virtual anatomy may have been complex enough to discourage memory based strategies. It is important to control the amount of visuospatial information present in test items.

Domain-Specific Control of Selective Attention

PubMed Central

Lin, Szu-Hung; Yeh, Yei-Yu

2014-01-01

Previous research has shown that loading information on working memory affects selective attention. However, whether the load effect on selective attention is domain-general or domain-specific remains unresolved. The domain-general effect refers to the findings that load in one content (e.g. phonological) domain in working memory influences processing in another content (e.g., visuospatial) domain. Attentional control supervises selection regardless of information domain. The domain-specific effect refers to the constraint of influence only when maintenance and processing operate in the same domain. Selective attention operates in a specific content domain. This study is designed to resolve this controversy. Across three experiments, we manipulated the type of representation maintained in working memory and the type of representation upon which the participants must exert control to resolve conflict and select a target into the focus of attention. In Experiments 1a and 1b, participants maintained digits and nonverbalized objects, respectively, in working memory while selecting a target in a letter array. In Experiment 2, we presented auditory digits with a letter flanker task to exclude the involvement of resource competition within the same input modality. In Experiments 3a and 3b, we replaced the letter flanker task with an object flanker task while manipulating the memory load on object and digit representation, respectively. The results consistently showed that memory load modulated distractibility only when the stimuli of the two tasks were represented in the same domain. The magnitude of distractor interference was larger under high load than under low load, reflecting a lower efficacy of information prioritization. When the stimuli of the two tasks were represented in different domains, memory load did not modulate distractibility. Control of processing priority in selective attention demands domain-specific resources. PMID:24866977

The contribution of acetylcholine and dopamine to subprocesses of visual working memory--what patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment and Parkinson׳s disease can tell us.

PubMed

Blatt, Joana; Vellage, Anne; Baier, Bernhard; Müller, Notger G

2014-08-01

Attentional selection, i.e. filtering out of irrelevant sensory input and information storage are two crucial components of working memory (WM). It has been proposed that the two processes are mediated by different neurotransmitters, namely acetylcholine for attentional selection and dopamine for memory storage. However, this hypothesis has been challenged by others, who for example linked a lack in dopamine levels in the brain to filtering deficits. Here we tested the above mentioned hypothesis in two patient cohorts which either served as a proxy for a cholinergic or a dopaminergic deficit. The first group comprised 18 patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), the second 22 patients with Parkinson׳s disease (PD). The two groups did not differ regarding their overall cognitive abilities. Both patient groups as well as a control group without neurological deficits (n=25) performed a visuo-spatial working memory task in which both the necessity to filter out irrelevant information and memory load, i.e. the number of items to be held in memory, were manipulated. In accordance with the primary hypothesis, aMCI patients displayed problems with filtering, i.e., were especially impaired when the task required ignoring distracting stimuli. PD patients on the other hand showed difficulties when memory load was increased suggesting that they mainly suffered from a storage deficit. In sum, this study underlines how the investigation of neurologic patients with a presumed neurotransmitter deficit can aid to clarify these neurotransmitters׳ contribution to specific cognitive functions. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Spatial-simultaneous working memory and selective interference in Down syndrome.

PubMed

Lanfranchi, Silvia; Mammarella, Irene C; Carretti, Barbara

2015-01-01

Several studies have suggested that individuals with Down syndrome (DS) have impairments in some aspects of the visuospatial domain. It has been reported that they are particularly impaired in the spatial-simultaneous working memory (WM) even in advantageous conditions such as when information is grouped to form a configuration. This study aimed to assess the performance of individuals with DS carrying out a spatial-simultaneous WM task in single and dual selective interference conditions in order to better explore the characteristics of their impairment in this area. Groups of individuals with DS and mentally age-matched typically developing (TD) children were asked to carry out a spatial-simultaneous WM task in a single- and in two dual-task conditions. In the single condition, the participants were required to recall an increasing number of positions of red squares presented simultaneously in a matrix. In the dual-task conditions, together with the spatial-simultaneous WM task, the participants were asked to carry out an articulatory suppression task or a tapping task. As has already been shown in other studies, individuals with DS were found to be impaired in carrying out a spatial-simultaneous WM task and showed a worse performance with respect to the TD group in both the conditions. These findings indicate that individuals with DS use the same coding modality as TD children of the same mental age. Just as the TD children, they performed lower in the dual- than in the single-task condition and there was no difference between the verbal and visuospatial conditions.

Relationship between Auditory and Cognitive Abilities in Older Adults

PubMed Central

Sheft, Stanley

2015-01-01

Objective The objective was to evaluate the association of peripheral and central hearing abilities with cognitive function in older adults. Methods Recruited from epidemiological studies of aging and cognition at the Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center, participants were a community-dwelling cohort of older adults (range 63–98 years) without diagnosis of dementia. The cohort contained roughly equal numbers of Black (n=61) and White (n=63) subjects with groups similar in terms of age, gender, and years of education. Auditory abilities were measured with pure-tone audiometry, speech-in-noise perception, and discrimination thresholds for both static and dynamic spectral patterns. Cognitive performance was evaluated with a 12-test battery assessing episodic, semantic, and working memory, perceptual speed, and visuospatial abilities. Results Among the auditory measures, only the static and dynamic spectral-pattern discrimination thresholds were associated with cognitive performance in a regression model that included the demographic covariates race, age, gender, and years of education. Subsequent analysis indicated substantial shared variance among the covariates race and both measures of spectral-pattern discrimination in accounting for cognitive performance. Among cognitive measures, working memory and visuospatial abilities showed the strongest interrelationship to spectral-pattern discrimination performance. Conclusions For a cohort of older adults without diagnosis of dementia, neither hearing thresholds nor speech-in-noise ability showed significant association with a summary measure of global cognition. In contrast, the two auditory metrics of spectral-pattern discrimination ability significantly contributed to a regression model prediction of cognitive performance, demonstrating association of central auditory ability to cognitive status using auditory metrics that avoided the confounding effect of speech materials. PMID:26237423

Pursuing the flow of information: connectivity between bilateral premotor cortices predicts better accuracy in the phonological working memory task.

PubMed

Ono, Yumie; Nanjo, Tatsuya; Ishiyama, Atsushi

2013-01-01

Using Magnetoencephalography (MEG) we studied functional connectivity of cortical areas during phonological working memory task. Six subjects participated in the experiment and their neuronal activity was measured by a 306-channel MEG system. We used a modified version of the visual Sternberg paradigm, which required subjects to memorize 8 alphabet letters in 2s for a late recall period. We estimated functional connectivity of oscillatory regional brain activities during the encoding session for each trial of each subject using beamformer source reconstruction and Granger causality analysis. Regional brain activities were mostly found in the bilateral premotor cortex (Brodmann area (BA) 6: PMC), the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (BA 9: DLPFC), and the right frontal eye field (BA 8). Considering that the left and right PMCs participate in the functions of phonological loop (PL) and the visuospatial sketchpad (VS) in the Baddeley's model of working memory, respectively, our result suggests that subjects utilized either single function or both functions of working memory circuitry to execute the task. Interestingly, the accuracy of the task was significantly higher in the trials where the alpha band oscillatory activities in the bilateral PMCs established functional connectivity compared to those where the PMC was not working in conjunction with its counterpart. Similar relationship was found in the theta band oscillatory activities between the right PMC and the right DLPFC, however in this case the establishment of functional connectivity significantly decreased the accuracy of the task. These results suggest that sharing the memory load with both PL- and VS- type memory storage circuitries contributed to better performance in the highly-demanding cognitive task.

Recent and past musical activity predicts cognitive aging variability: direct comparison with general lifestyle activities.

PubMed

Hanna-Pladdy, Brenda; Gajewski, Byron

2012-01-01

Studies evaluating the impact of modifiable lifestyle factors on cognition offer potential insights into sources of cognitive aging variability. Recently, we reported an association between extent of musical instrumental practice throughout the life span (greater than 10 years) on preserved cognitive functioning in advanced age. These findings raise the question of whether there are training-induced brain changes in musicians that can transfer to non-musical cognitive abilities to allow for compensation of age-related cognitive declines. However, because of the relationship between engagement in general lifestyle activities and preserved cognition, it remains unclear whether these findings are specifically driven by musical training or the types of individuals likely to engage in greater activities in general. The current study controlled for general activity level in evaluating cognition between musicians and nomusicians. Also, the timing of engagement (age of acquisition, past versus recent) was assessed in predictive models of successful cognitive aging. Seventy age and education matched older musicians (>10 years) and non-musicians (ages 59-80) were evaluated on neuropsychological tests and general lifestyle activities. Musicians scored higher on tests of phonemic fluency, verbal working memory, verbal immediate recall, visuospatial judgment, and motor dexterity, but did not differ in other general leisure activities. Partition analyses were conducted on significant cognitive measures to determine aspects of musical training predictive of enhanced cognition. The first partition analysis revealed education best predicted visuospatial functions in musicians, followed by recent musical engagement which offset low education. In the second partition analysis, early age of musical acquisition (<9 years) predicted enhanced verbal working memory in musicians, while analyses for other measures were not predictive. Recent and past musical activity, but not general lifestyle activities, predicted variability across both verbal and visuospatial domains in aging. These findings are suggestive of different use-dependent adaptation periods depending on cognitive domain. Furthermore, they imply that early age of musical acquisition, sustained and maintained during advanced age, may enhance cognitive functions and buffer age and education influences.

DISC1 gene and affective psychopathology: a combined structural and functional MRI study.

PubMed

Opmeer, Esther M; van Tol, Marie-José; Kortekaas, Rudie; van der Wee, Nic J A; Woudstra, Saskia; van Buchem, Mark A; Penninx, Brenda W; Veltman, Dick J; Aleman, André

2015-02-01

The gene Disrupted-In-Schizophrenia-1 (DISC1) has been indicated as a determinant of psychopathology, including affective disorders, and shown to influence prefrontal cortex (PFC) and hippocampus functioning, regions of major interest for affective disorders. We aimed to investigate whether DISC1 differentially modulates brain function during executive and memory processing, and morphology in regions relevant for depression and anxiety disorders (affective disorders). 128 participants, with (n = 103) and without (controls; n = 25) affective disorders underwent genotyping for Ser704Cys (with Cys-allele considered as risk-allele) and structural and functional (f) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) during visuospatial planning and emotional episodic memory tasks. For both voxel-based morphometry and fMRI analyses, we investigated the effect of genotype in controls and explored genotypeXdiagnosis interactions. Results are reported at p < 0.05 FWE small volume corrected. In controls, Cys-carriers showed smaller bilateral (para)hippocampal volumes compared with Ser-homozygotes, and lower activation in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and dorsolateral PFC during visuospatial planning. In anxiety patients, Cys-carriers showed larger (para)hippocampal volumes and more ACC activation during visuospatial planning. In depressive patients, no effect of genotype was observed and overall, no effect of genotype on episodic memory processing was detected. We demonstrated that Ser704Cys-genotype influences (para)hippocampal structure and functioning the dorsal PFC during executive planning, most prominently in unaffected controls. Results suggest that presence of psychopathology moderates Ser704Cys effects. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Virtual Object-Location Task for Children: Gender and Videogame Experience Influence Navigation; Age Impacts Memory and Completion Time

PubMed Central

Rodriguez-Andres, David; Mendez-Lopez, Magdalena; Juan, M.-Carmen; Perez-Hernandez, Elena

2018-01-01

The use of virtual reality-based tasks for studying memory has increased considerably. Most of the studies that have looked at child population factors that influence performance on such tasks have been focused on cognitive variables. However, little attention has been paid to the impact of non-cognitive skills. In the present paper, we tested 52 typically-developing children aged 5–12 years in a virtual object-location task. The task assessed their spatial short-term memory for the location of three objects in a virtual city. The virtual task environment was presented using a 3D application consisting of a 120″ stereoscopic screen and a gamepad interface. Measures of learning and displacement indicators in the virtual environment, 3D perception, satisfaction, and usability were obtained. We assessed the children’s videogame experience, their visuospatial span, their ability to build blocks, and emotional and behavioral outcomes. The results indicate that learning improved with age. Significant effects on the speed of navigation were found favoring boys and those more experienced with videogames. Visuospatial skills correlated mainly with ability to recall object positions, but the correlation was weak. Longer paths were related with higher scores of withdrawal behavior, attention problems, and a lower visuospatial span. Aggressiveness and experience with the device used for interaction were related with faster navigation. However, the correlations indicated only weak associations among these variables. PMID:29674988

Frequent Sexual Activity Predicts Specific Cognitive Abilities in Older Adults.

PubMed

Wright, Hayley; Jenks, Rebecca A; Demeyere, Nele

2017-06-21

This study replicates and extends the findings of previous research (Wright, H., & Jenks, R. A. (2016). Sex on the brain! Associations between sexual activity and cognitive function in older age. Age and Ageing, 45, 313-317. doi:10.1093/ageing/afv197) which found a significant association between sexual activity (SA) and cognitive function in older adults. Specifically, this study aimed to generalize these findings to a range of cognitive domains, and to assess whether increasing SA frequency is associated with increasing scores on a variety of cognitive tasks. Seventy-three participants aged 50-83 years took part in the study (38.4% male, 61.6% female). Participants completed the Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination-III (ACE-III) cognitive assessment and a questionnaire on SA frequency (never, monthly, or weekly), and general health and lifestyle. Weekly SA was a significant predictor of total ACE-III, fluency, and visuospatial scores in regression models, including age, gender, education, and cardiovascular health. Greater frequency of SA was associated with better overall ACE-III scores and scores on subtests of verbal fluency and visuospatial ability. Both of these tasks involve working memory and executive function, and links between sexual behavior, memory, and dopamine are discussed. The findings have implications for the maintenance of intimate relationships in later life. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America.

Intranasal Insulin: A Novel Treatment for Gulf War Multisymptom Illness

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-10-01

unexplained health symptoms; common among them were attention and memory difficulties, fatigue, joint pain, headaches, gastrointestinal complaints...slowing of response speed that affects mental flexibility across multiple cognitive domains (memory, attention , visuospatial functions) especially...Krengel and Sullivan, 2008; Toomey et al., 2009; Chao et al., 2011). Recent studies also have suggested that the response inhibition deficits shown in

Searching for the Hebb effect in Down syndrome: evidence for a dissociation between verbal short-term memory and domain-general learning of serial order.

PubMed

Mosse, E K; Jarrold, C

2010-04-01

The Hebb effect is a form of repetition-driven long-term learning that is thought to provide an analogue for the processes involved in new word learning. Other evidence suggests that verbal short-term memory also constrains now vocabulary acquisition, but if the Hebb effect is independent of short-term memory, then it may be possible to demonstrate its preservation in a sample of individuals with Down syndrome, who typically show a verbal short-term memory deficit alongside surprising relative strengths in vocabulary. In two experiments, individuals both with and without Down syndrome (matched for receptive vocabulary) completed immediate serial recall tasks incorporating a Hebb repetition paradigm in either verbal or visuospatial conditions. Both groups demonstrated equivalent benefit from Hebb repetition, despite individuals with Down syndrome showing significantly lower verbal short-term memory spans. The resultant Hebb effect was equivalent across verbal and visuospatial domains. These studies suggest that the Hebb effect is essentially preserved within Down syndrome, implying that explicit verbal short-term memory is dissociable from potentially more implicit Hebb learning. The relative strength in receptive vocabulary observed in Down syndrome may therefore be supported by largely intact long-term as opposed to short-term serial order learning. This in turn may have implications for teaching methods and interventions that present new phonological material to individuals with Down syndrome.