ABSTRACT
Implicit learning of spatial layouts occurs when target-distractor configurations repeat during a visual search task [contextual cueing; Chun and Jiang in Cogn Psychol 36(1): 28-17, 1998]. This study addressed the extent to which contextual cueing depends on executive working memory (WM). In three experiments, participants performed a contextual cueing visual search task concurrently with a WM task. The WM task was either executive (subtract 3 from each digit in WM) or non-executive (hold digits in WM), and was either low load (Experiment 1) or high load (Experiment 2). Contextual cueing was attenuated in the high-load executive WM condition. Experiment 3 replicated our findings using a within-subjects design, and confirmed the interpretation that executive functions of WM are required in contextual learning.
Subject(s)
Cues , Executive Function/physiology , Memory, Short-Term/physiology , Pattern Recognition, Visual/physiology , Psychomotor Performance/physiology , Recognition, Psychology/physiology , Adult , Attention/physiology , Female , Humans , Male , Young AdultABSTRACT
This paper reports the findings of a study investigating the relationship of executive working memory (WM) and phonological short-term memory (PSTM) to fluency and self-repair behavior during an unrehearsed oral task performed by second language (L2) speakers of English at two levels of proficiency, elementary and lower intermediate. Correlational analyses revealed a negative relationship between executive WM and number of pauses in the lower intermediate L2 speakers. However, no reliable association was found in our sample between executive WM or PSTM and self-repair behavior in terms of either frequency or type of self-repair. Taken together, our findings suggest that while executive WM may enhance performance at the conceptualization and formulation stages of the speech production process, self-repair behavior in L2 speakers may depend on factors other than working memory.
Subject(s)
Memory, Short-Term/physiology , Multilingualism , Speech/physiology , HumansABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Working memory training for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has focused on increasing working memory capacity, with inconclusive evidence for its effectiveness. Alternative training targets are executive working memory (EWM) processes that promote flexibility or bolster stability of working memory contents to guide behavior via selective attention. This randomized, placebo-controlled study was designed to assess feasibility, tolerability, and behavioral target engagement of a novel EWM training for ADHD. METHOD: 62 ADHD-diagnosed adolescents (12-18 years) were randomized to EWM training or placebo arms for 20 remotely coached sessions conducted over 4-5 weeks. Primary outcome measures were behavioral changes on EWM tasks. Secondary outcomes were intervention tolerability, trial retention, and responsiveness to adaptive training difficulty manipulations. RESULTS: Linear regression analyses found intervention participants showed medium effect size improvements, many of which were statistically significant, on Shifting and Filtering EWM task accuracy and Shifting and Updating reaction time measures. Intervention participants maintained strong self-rated motivation, mood, and engagement and progressed through the adaptive difficulty measures, which was further reflected in high trial retention. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that these EWM processes show promise as training targets for ADHD. The subsequent NIMH R33-funded extension clinical trial will seek to replicate and extend these findings.
Subject(s)
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity , Executive Function , Feasibility Studies , Memory, Short-Term , Humans , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/therapy , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/psychology , Adolescent , Male , Female , Executive Function/physiology , Child , Treatment Outcome , Cognitive Behavioral Therapy/methods , Cognitive TrainingABSTRACT
The component of working memory that the frontal cortex subserves is frequently characterized as the executive working memory (EWM). This study applied a neuropsychological measure of EWM (NPM-EWM) in older adults with memory impairment to investigate the EWM. Thirty-two older adults from the community were recruited as older healthy controls (OHCs), and 58 older adults from a memory clinic were diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and mild dementia (MD). Significant differences were found among the three groups in the Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR), the Chinese version of Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE-C), and the Cognitive Abilities Screening Instrument (CASI). The NPM-EWM was applied by using the learning task of the Comprehensive Nonverbal Memory Test Battery, where the 7 scores were divided into two categories: mnemonic capacity and executive error. All OHCs, more than 50% MCI, and less than 25% of MD patients passed the NPM-EWM. The MCI-passed and MD-passed subgroups showed similar mnemonic capacity and executive errors, and both the subgroups had significantly worse performance than the OHC group. The MD-passed subgroup had a higher Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) score than did the MD-failed subgroup. The MCI-failed subgroup had a higher Hierarchy of Care Required (HCR) level in instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) than did the MCI-passed subgroup. These findings indicated that applying the NPM-EWM for older adults with memory impairment may offer precise and tailored care to a whole person, especially for the MCI patients with poorer EWM and the MD patients with relatively intact EWM.