scholarly journals 3-year-old children’s memory flexibility allows adaptation to an altered context

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krisztina Peres ◽  
Dora Kampis ◽  
Ildikó Király
Keyword(s):  
Goal Attainment ◽  
Reliable Method ◽  
Target Object ◽  
Memory Functions ◽  
Relevant Object ◽  
Successful Solution ◽  
Memory Flexibility ◽  
Children's Memory ◽  
Task Irrelevant

Imitation provides a reliable method to investigate the developing memory functions in childhood. The present study explored whether 3-year-old children are able to revise their previous experiences after a 1 week delay in order to adapt to an altered context. We used a combined immediate (Session 1) and delayed (Session 2) imitation paradigm. The constraints (target object close/far) and relatedly the relevance of using a tool in a goal attainment task (irrelevant/relevant, respectively) changed between the sessions. We found that children in Session 1 used the tool only when it was needed (relevant/object far context). After the 1 week delay when the tool was previously irrelevant and then became relevant, children remembered the irrelevant act and applied it in the altered context. When the tool lost its relevance after 1 week, children used the tool less than before, but did not fully omit it, despite its reduced efficiency. We propose that the flexible restoration of a formerly irrelevant act and the maintenance of a formerly successful solution indicate flexibility of children’s memory when guiding imitation. This flexibility, however, interacts with children’s tendency to remain faithful to strategies that were previously ostensively demonstrated to them.

scholarly journals Object-based Selection of Irrelevant Features Is Not Confined to the Attended Object

2011 ◽  
Vol 23 (9) ◽  
pp. 2231-2239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carsten N. Boehler ◽  
Mircea A. Schoenfeld ◽  
Hans-Jochen Heinze ◽  
Jens-Max Hopf
Keyword(s):  
Visual Search ◽  
Visual Field ◽  
Target Object ◽  
Neural Processing ◽  
Irrelevant Feature ◽  
Distractor Object ◽  
Object Based ◽  
Irrelevant Color ◽  
Task Irrelevant ◽  
Selection Of

Attention to one feature of an object can bias the processing of unattended features of that object. Here we demonstrate with ERPs in visual search that this object-based bias for an irrelevant feature also appears in an unattended object when it shares that feature with the target object. Specifically, we show that the ERP response elicited by a distractor object in one visual field is modulated as a function of whether a task-irrelevant color of that distractor is also present in the target object that is presented in the opposite visual field. Importantly, we find this modulation to arise with a delay of approximately 80 msec relative to the N2pc—a component of the ERP response that reflects the focusing of attention onto the target. In a second experiment, we demonstrate that this modulation reflects enhanced neural processing in the unattended object. These observations together facilitate the surprising conclusion that the object-based selection of irrelevant features is spatially global even after attention has selected the target object.

Reward- and Attention-related Biasing of Sensory Selection in Visual Cortex

2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 1049-1065 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antje Buschschulte ◽  
Carsten N. Boehler ◽  
Hendrik Strumpf ◽  
Christian Stoppel ◽  
Hans-Jochen Heinze ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Visual Cortex ◽  
Target Object ◽  
Extrastriate Cortex ◽  
Brain Response ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Extrastriate Visual Cortex ◽  
Response Enhancement ◽  
Irrelevant Color ◽  
Task Irrelevant ◽  
Attention To Task

Attention to task-relevant features leads to a biasing of sensory selection in extrastriate cortex. Features signaling reward seem to produce a similar bias, but how modulatory effects due to reward and attention relate to each other is largely unexplored. To address this issue, it is critical to separate top–down settings defining reward relevance from those defining attention. To this end, we used a visual search paradigm in which the target's definition (attention to color) was dissociated from reward relevance by delivering monetary reward on search frames where a certain task-irrelevant color was combined with the target-defining color to form the target object. We assessed the state of neural biasing for the attended and reward-relevant color by analyzing the neuromagnetic brain response to asynchronously presented irrelevant distractor probes drawn in the target-defining color, the reward-relevant color, and a completely irrelevant color as a reference. We observed that for the prospect of moderate rewards, the target-defining color but not the reward-relevant color produced a selective enhancement of the neuromagnetic response between 180 and 280 msec in ventral extrastriate visual cortex. Increasing reward prospect caused a delayed attenuation (220–250 msec) of the response to reward probes, which followed a prior (160–180 msec) response enhancement in dorsal ACC. Notably, shorter latency responses in dorsal ACC were associated with stronger attenuation in extrastriate visual cortex. Finally, an analysis of the brain response to the search frames revealed that the presence of the reward-relevant color in search distractors elicited an enhanced response that was abolished after increasing reward size. The present data together indicate that when top–down definitions of reward relevance and attention are separated, the behavioral significance of reward-associated features is still rapidly coded in higher-level cortex areas, thereby commanding effective top–down inhibitory control to counter a selection bias for those features in extrastriate visual cortex.

scholarly journals Equivalent noise characterization of human lightness constancy

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vijay Singh ◽  
Johannes Burge ◽  
David H. Brainard
Keyword(s):  
Receptive Field ◽  
Field Model ◽  
Internal Noise ◽  
Target Object ◽  
Relevant Variable ◽  
External Sources ◽  
Background Object ◽  
Task Irrelevant ◽  
Noise Characterization

A goal of visual perception is to provide stable representations of task-relevant scene properties (e.g. object reflectance) despite variation in task-irrelevant scene properties (e.g. illumination, reflectance of other nearby objects). To study such representational stability in the context of lightness representations in humans, we introduce a threshold-based psychophysical paradigm. We measure how thresholds for discriminating the achromatic reflectance of a target object (task-relevant property) in rendered naturalistic scenes are impacted by variation in the reflectance functions of background objects (task-irrelevant property). We refer to these thresholds as lightness discrimination thresholds. Our approach has roots in the equivalent noise paradigm. This paradigm relates signals to internal and external sources of noise and has been traditionally used to investigate contrast coding. For low variation in background reflectance, lightness discrimination thresholds were nearly constant, indicating that observers' internal noise determines threshold in this regime. As background object reflectance variation increases, its effects start to dominate performance. We report lightness discrimination thresholds as a function of the amount of variability in the background object reflectance to determine the equivalent noise - the smallest level of task-irrelevant (i.e. background reflectance) variation that substantially corrupts the visual representation (i.e. perceived object lightness) of the task-relevant variable (i.e. achromatic reflectance). A linear receptive field model, which employs a single center-surround receptive field tailored to our stimulus set, captures human behavior in this task. Our approach provides a method for characterizing the effect of task-irrelevant scene variations on the perceptual representation of a task-relevant scene property.

Quantitative Diameter Measurements of Chromatin and TMV Fibers in the Freeze-Dried State

1988 ◽  
Vol 46 ◽  
pp. 170-171
Author(s):  
B. D. Athey ◽  
A. L. Stout ◽  
M. F. Smith ◽  
J. P. Langmore
Keyword(s):  
Reliable Method ◽  
Fiber Diameter ◽  
Quantitative Agreement ◽  
One Dimension ◽  
Fiber Axis ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
Fiber Density ◽  
Variable Diameter ◽  
Freeze Dried ◽  
Expected Values

Although there is general agreement that Inactive chromosome fibers consist of helically packed nucleosomes, the pattern of packing is still undetermined. Only one of the proposed models, the crossed-linker model, predicts a variable diameter dependent on the length of DNA between nucleosomes. Measurements of the fiber diameter of negatively-stained and frozen- hydrated- chromatin from Thyone sperm (87bp linker) and Necturus erythrocytes (48bp linker) have been previously reported from this laboratory. We now introduce a more reliable method of measuring the diameters of electron images of fibrous objects. The procedure uses a modified version of the computer program TOTAL, which takes a two-dimensional projection of the fiber density (represented by the micrograph itself) and projects it down the fiber axis onto one dimension. We illustrate this method using high contrast, in-focus STEM images of TMV and chromatin from Thyone and Necturus. The measured diameters are in quantitative agreement with the expected values for the crossed-linker model for chromatin structure

LRS-Elterngruppenprogramm: Teilnehmerzufriedenheit und subjektive Effektivität

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-57
Author(s):  
Anke Buschmann ◽  
Bettina Multhauf
Keyword(s):  
Goal Attainment ◽  
Goal Attainment Scaling ◽  
Eine Hohe ◽  
Post Test

Zusammenfassung. Das Ziel vorliegender Studie bestand in einer Überprüfung der Akzeptanz und Teilnehmerzufriedenheit eines Gruppentrainings für Eltern von Kindern mit Lese- und/oder Rechtschreibschwierigkeiten. Zudem sollten erste Indikatoren bezüglich der Wirksamkeit des Programmes untersucht werden. Dazu wurden Daten von 25 Müttern zu 2 Messzeitpunkten (Post-Test, 3-Monats-Follow-up) analysiert. Die Probandinnen nahmen über einen Zeitraum von 3 Monaten an 5 Sitzungen des Programms «Mein Kind mit Lese- und Rechtschreibschwierigkeiten verstehen, stärken und unterstützen: Heidelberger Elterntraining zum Umgang mit LRS» teil. Ein Paper-Pencil-Fragebogen diente zum Post-Test der Erhebung von Teilnahmeparametern, der Zufriedenheit mit dem Training, der Relevanz einzelner Themen und der wahrgenommenen Veränderungen in wichtigen Zielbereichen. Zusätzlich kam eine für das Gruppensetting adaptierte Form des Goal Attainment Scaling zum Einsatz, um das Erreichen persönlich relevanter Ziele unmittelbar nach dem Training sowie 3 Monate später zu erfassen. Die Analyse des Fragebogens zeigte eine hohe Partizipationsbereitschaft der Mütter. Die Rahmenbedingungen des Trainings (Gruppengröße, Dauer des Trainings und der Sitzungen) sowie die didaktischen Methoden wurden als ideal und die Themen als relevant eingeschätzt. Die Mütter sahen sich in der Lage, die Inhalte im Alltag anzuwenden und nahmen positive Veränderungen hinsichtlich Einfühlungsvermögen, Unterstützung des Kindes, Hausaufgabensituation und Beziehung zum Kind wahr. Das Ausmaß des Erreichens individueller Ziele zum Post-Test variierte je nach Zielbereich: Einfühlen und Verstehen (75 %), Optimierung der Hausaufgabensituation (76 %), Unterstützung psychosozialer Entwicklung (86 %), Lese-Rechtschreibförderung (60 %) und war auch 3 Monate später noch vergleichbar hoch. Die Überprüfung der Wirksamkeit hinsichtlich einer Belastungsreduktion und Kompetenzstärkung seitens der Eltern erfolgt aktuell im Vergleich zu einer unbehandelten Kontrollgruppe.

Goal Attainment and Treatment Compliance in a Cognitive-Behavioral Telephone Intervention for Family Caregivers of Persons with Dementia

GeroPsych ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 115-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriele Wilz ◽  
Denise Schinköthe ◽  
Renate Soellner
Keyword(s):  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Mentally Ill ◽  
Goal Attainment ◽  
Outcome Measurement ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Treatment Success ◽  
Treatment Compliance ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Telephone Intervention ◽  
Effective Interventions

Introduction: The evaluation of effective interventions is still needed to prevent family caregivers of persons with dementia from becoming physically or mentally ill. However, in most existing intervention studies, primary outcomes are not well matched to the treatment goals. Method: A randomized controlled trial (N = 229) was conducted to compare a treatment group (CBT), a treated control group, and an untreated control group. In theses analyses we focused on the primary outcome measurement (GAS) as a perceived treatment success as well as treatment compliance and participants’ evaluation. Results: Results showed that 30.1% achieved complete goal attainment, 39.8% partial goal attainment, and 24.1% declared no change (overachievement 2.4%; deterioration 3.6%). Discussion: The intervention can be considered to have been successful.

The Relationship of Interrogative Suggestibility to Memory and Attention

2006 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 79-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
R.C. Howard ◽  
A. Chaiwutikornwanich
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Short Story ◽  
Oddball Paradigm ◽  
Memory Processes ◽  
Memory And Attention ◽  
Irrelevant Distractors ◽  
Alternative Hypotheses ◽  
Visual Oddball Paradigm ◽  
Interrogative Suggestibility ◽  
Task Irrelevant

This study combined an individual differences approach to interrogative suggestibility (IS) with ERP recordings to examine two alternative hypotheses regarding the source of individual differences in IS: (1) differences in attention to task-relevant vis-à-vis task-irrelevant stimuli, and (2) differences in one or more memory processes, indexed by ERP old/new effects. Sixty-five female participants underwent an ERP recording during the 50 min interval between immediate and delayed recall of a short story. ERPs elicited by pictures that either related to the story (“old”), or did not relate to the story (“new”), were recorded using a three-stimulus visual oddball paradigm. ERP old/new effects were examined at selected scalp regions of interest at three post-stimulus intervals: early (250-350 ms), middle (350-700 ms), and late (700-1100 ms). In addition, attention-related ERP components (N1, P2, N2, and P3) evoked by story-relevant pictures, story-irrelevant pictures, and irrelevant distractors were measured from midline electrodes. Late (700-1100 ms) frontal ERP old/new differences reflected individual differences in IS, while early (250-350 ms) and middle latency (350-700 ms) ERP old/new differences distinguished good from poor performers in memory and oddball tasks, respectively. Differences in IS were not reflected in ERP indices of attention. Results supported an account of IS as reflecting individual differences in postretrieval memory processes.

A New Technique to Measure the Level of Interest Using Heartbeat-Evoked Brain Potential

2021 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-22
Author(s):  
Kohei Fuseda ◽  
Jun’ichi Katayama
Keyword(s):  
Brain Activity ◽  
Random Order ◽  
Overt Response ◽  
Brain Potential ◽  
Probe Technique ◽  
Dynamic Stimuli ◽  
Attentional Resources ◽  
Opposite Sex ◽  
A New Technique ◽  
Task Irrelevant

Abstract. Interest is a positive emotion related to attention. The event-related brain potential (ERP) probe technique is a useful method to evaluate the level of interest in dynamic stimuli. However, even in the irrelevant probe technique, the probe is presented as a physical stimulus and steals the observer’s attentional resources, although no overt response is required. Therefore, the probe might become a problematic distractor, preventing deep immersion of participants. Heartbeat-evoked brain potential (HEP) is a brain activity, time-locked to a cardiac event. No probe is required to obtain HEP data. Thus, we aimed to investigate whether the HEP can be used to evaluate the level of interest. Twenty-four participants (12 males and 12 females) watched attractive and unattractive individuals of the opposite sex in interesting and uninteresting videos (7 min each), respectively. We performed two techniques each for both the interesting and the uninteresting videos: the ERP probe and the HEP techniques. In the former, somatosensory stimuli were presented as task-irrelevant probes while participants watched videos: frequent (80%) and infrequent (20%) stimuli were presented at each wrist in random order. In the latter, participants watched videos without the probe. The P2 amplitude in response to the somatosensory probe was smaller and the positive wave amplitudes of HEP were larger while watching the videos of attractive individuals than while watching the videos of unattractive ones. These results indicate that the HEP technique is a useful method to evaluate the level of interest without an external probe stimulus.

An Information-Processing View of Children's Memory

1990 ◽  
Vol 35 (12) ◽  
pp. 1129-1131
Author(s):  
Hilary Horn Ratner
Keyword(s):  
Information Processing ◽  
Children's Memory
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