What Does the n-Back Task Measure as We Get Older? Relations Between Working-Memory Measures and Other Cognitive Functions Across the Lifespan

Abstract. Working memory supports our ability to maintain goal-relevant information that guides cognition in the face of distraction or competing tasks. The N-back task has been widely used in cognitive neuroscience to examine the functional neuroanatomy of working memory. Fewer studies have capitalized on the temporal resolution of event-related brain potentials (ERPs) to examine the time course of neural activity in the N-back task. The primary goal of the current study was to characterize slow wave activity observed in the response-to-stimulus interval in the N-back task that may be related to maintenance of information between trials in the task. In three experiments, we examined the effects of N-back load, interference, and response accuracy on the amplitude of the P3b following stimulus onset and slow wave activity elicited in the response-to-stimulus interval. Consistent with previous research, the amplitude of the P3b decreased as N-back load increased. Slow wave activity over the frontal and posterior regions of the scalp was sensitive to N-back load and was insensitive to interference or response accuracy. Together these findings lead to the suggestion that slow wave activity observed in the response-to-stimulus interval is related to the maintenance of information between trials in the 1-back task.

Download Full-text

Pattern of Near Transfer Effects Following Working Memory Training With a Dual N-Back Task

Experimental Psychology (formerly Zeitschrift für Experimentelle Psychologie) ◽

10.1027/1618-3169/a000370 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 64 (4) ◽

pp. 240-252 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Anna Soveri ◽

Eric P. A. Karlsson ◽

Otto Waris ◽

Petra Grönholm-Nyman ◽

Matti Laine

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Composite Score ◽

Memory Training ◽

Interference Control ◽

Transfer Effects ◽

Near Transfer ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Transfer Tasks ◽

Back Task

Abstract. In a randomized controlled trial, we investigated the pattern of near transfer effects of working memory (WM) training with an adaptive auditory-visuospatial dual n-back training task in healthy young adults. The results revealed significant task-specific transfer to an untrained single n-back task, and more general near transfer to a WM updating composite score plus a nearly significant effect on a composite score measuring interference control in WM. No transfer effects were seen on Active or Passive WM composites. The results are discussed in the light of cognitive versus strategy-related overlap between training and transfer tasks.

Download Full-text

Associations of separate working memory parameters with apolipoprotein E gene polymorphism in Siberian adolescents: a population study

Nauchno-prakticheskii zhurnal «Medicinskaia genetika» ◽

10.25557/2073-7998.2020.04.43-45 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 43-45

Author(s):

А.В. Суханов ◽

А.А. Гуражева ◽

Д.В. Денисова ◽

В.Н. Максимов

Keyword(s):

Central Nervous System ◽

Working Memory ◽

Cognitive Functions ◽

The State ◽

Apoe Gene ◽

Adolescent Population ◽

Apolipoprotein E Gene ◽

Negative Effect ◽

The Central Nervous System ◽

E4 Allele

Ген APOE - это один из наиболее известных генов, ассоциированных с развитием как сердечно-сосудистых, так и нейродегенеративных заболеваний центральной нервной системы, сопровождающихся нарушением когнитивных функций (КФ). В ходе настоящего исследования изучены ассоциации аллелей гена APOE с нарушением КФ у подростков г. Новосибирска. Состояние КФ было оценено у 231 мальчика (42,1%) и у 318 девочки (57,9%). Их средний возраст составил 15,66 ± 0,9 года. Выявлено, что наличие аллеля Е4 оказывает негативное влияние на состояние рабочей памяти уже в подростковом возрасте. The APOE gene is one of the most famous genes associated with the development of both cardiovascular diseases and neurodegenerative diseases of the central nervous system, accompanied by impaired cognitive functions. In the course of this study, the associations of APOE gene alleles with cognitive functions violation in the adolescent population of Novosibirsk were studied. The state of cognitive functions was evaluated in 231 boys (42.1%) and 318 girls (57.9%). Their average age was 15.66 ± 0.9 years. It was revealed that the presence of the E4 allele of the APOE gene has a negative effect on the state of working memory even in adolescence.

Download Full-text

Cognition in Early Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis: Consequences May Be Relative to Working Memory

Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society ◽

10.1017/s1355617713000696 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 19 (8) ◽

pp. 938-949 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Lindsay I. Berrigan ◽

Jo-Anne LeFevre ◽

Laura M. Rees ◽

Jason Berard ◽

Mark S. Freedman ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Multiple Sclerosis ◽

Working Memory ◽

Processing Speed ◽

Cognitive Functions ◽

Group Membership ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Mediating Role ◽

Relapsing Remitting ◽

Disease Stages

AbstractThe Relative Consequence Model proposes multiple sclerosis (MS) patients have a fundamental deficit in processing speed that compromises other cognitive functions. The present study examined the mediating role of processing speed, as well as working memory, in the MS-related effects on other cognitive functions for early relapsing-remitting patients. Seventy relapsing-remitting MS patients with disease duration not greater than 10 years and 72 controls completed tasks assessing processing speed, working memory, learning, and executive functioning. The possible mediating roles of speed and working memory in the MS-related effects on other cognitive functions were evaluated using structural equation modeling. Processing speed was not significantly related to group membership and could not have a mediating role. Working memory was related to group membership and functioned as a mediating/intervening factor. The results do not support the Relative Consequence Model in this sample and they challenge the notion that working memory impairment only emerges at later disease stages. The results do support a mediating/intervening role of working memory. These results were obtained for early relapsing-remitting MS patients and should not be generalized to the broader MS population. Instead, future research should examine the relations that exist at other disease stages. (JINS, 2013, 19, 1–12)

Download Full-text

Neuropsychology and malnutrition: a study with 7 to 10 years-old children in a poor community

Revista Brasileira de Saúde Materno Infantil ◽

10.1590/s1519-38292007000100006 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

pp. 45-54 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Mônica C. Miranda ◽

Fernando J. Nóbrega ◽

Kazue Sato ◽

Sabine Pompéia ◽

Elaine G. Sinnes ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Executive Functions ◽

Cognitive Functions ◽

Maternal Mental Health ◽

Average Birth Weight ◽

Term Memory ◽

Malnourished Children ◽

Visual Spatial ◽

Neuropsychological Profile ◽

Prenatal Malnutrition

OBJECTIVES: to compare the neuropsychological profile of eutrophic, stunted and chronically malnourished children, and to analyse the role of socio-economic factors on the cognitive development. METHODS: seven to 10 year-old girls and boys from a poor community in São Paulo were evaluated: 27 eutrophyc, 31 stunted and 15 chronically malnourished. Neuropsychological evaluation involved cognitive functions not fully assessed in this population, such as working, declarative and non-declarative memories, attention and executive functions. Socio-economic indicators, maternal mental health and the children's behaviour at school were also evaluated. RESULTS: malnourished children had a lower score on the vocabulary test than the eutrophic and stunted groups (p s<0.05), performed worse in the visuospatial working memory task (p = 0.01), were more anxious than the stunted (p = 0.006), and despite having lower average birth weight than eutrophic children (p = 0.01), only two children as had prenatal malnutrition. Stunted children exhibited no impairment. No differences in socio-economic variables were found among groups. CONCLUSIONS: chronic malnutrition was associated to impairment of expressive speech, visual-spatial short-term memory and increased anxiety. No effects were observed in intellectual abilities, executive functions, verbal working memory, long-term memory, nor in visuoconstructive function. Preservation of the latter cognitive functions can be attributed to adequate environmental conditions and the lack of overall prenatal malnutrition.

Download Full-text

Neuropsychological Profile of Intellectually Gifted Children: A Systematic Review

Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society ◽

10.1017/s1355617721000515 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-17

Author(s):

Aurélie Bucaille ◽

Christophe Jarry ◽

Justine Allard ◽

Sylvain Brochard ◽

Sylviane Peudenier ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Working Memory ◽

Cognitive Functions ◽

Empirical Studies ◽

Verbal Working Memory ◽

Social Problem Solving ◽

Gifted Children ◽

Neuropsychological Profile ◽

Intellectually Gifted ◽

Visuospatial Processing

Abstract Objective: The term intellectually gifted (IG) refers to children of high intelligence, which is classically measured by the intelligence quotient (IQ). Some researchers assume that the cognitive profiles of these children are characterized by both strengths and weaknesses, compared with those of their typically developing (TD) peers of average IQ. The aim of the present systematic review was to verify this assumption, by compiling data from empirical studies of cognitive functions (language, motor skills, visuospatial processing, memory, attention and executive functions, social and emotional cognition) and academic performances. Method: The literature search yielded 658 articles, 15 of which met the selection criteria taken from the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses model. We undertook a qualitative summary, to highlight any discrepancies between cognitive functions. Results: IG children exhibited better skills than TD children in a number of domains, including attention, language, mathematics, verbal working memory, shifting, and social problem solving. However, the two groups had comparable skills in visuospatial processing, memory, planning, inhibition, and visual working memory, or facial recognition. Conclusion: Although IG children may have some strengths, many studies have failed to find differences between this population and their TD peers on many other cognitive measures. Just like any other children, they can display learning disabilities, which can be responsible for academic underachievement. Further studies are needed to better understand this heterogeneity. The present review provides pointers for overcoming methodological problems and opens up new avenues for giftedness research.

Download Full-text

Developmental Fractionation of Working Memory and Response Inhibition During Childhood

Experimental Psychology (formerly Zeitschrift für Experimentelle Psychologie) ◽

10.1027/1618-3169.54.1.30 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 54 (1) ◽

pp. 30-37 ◽

Cited By ~ 42

Author(s):

Satoshi Tsujimoto ◽

Mariko Kuwajima ◽

Toshiyuki Sawaguchi

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Prefrontal Cortex ◽

Response Inhibition ◽

Cognitive Functions ◽

Cognitive Abilities ◽

Childhood Development ◽

Neural Systems ◽

Older Children ◽

Efficient Processing ◽

The Relationship

Abstract. The lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) plays a major role in both working memory (WM) and response inhibition (RI), which are fundamental for various cognitive abilities. We explored the relationship between these LPFC functions during childhood development by examining the performance of two groups of children in visuospatial and auditory WM tasks and a go/no-go RI task. In the younger children (59 5- and 6-year-olds), performance on the visuospatial WM task correlated significantly with that in the auditory WM task. Furthermore, accuracy in these tasks correlated significantly with performance on the RI task, particularly in the no-go trials. In contrast, there were no significant correlations among those tasks in older children (92 8- and 9-year-olds). These results suggest that functional neural systems for visuospatial WM, auditory WM, and RI, especially those in the LPFC, become fractionated during childhood, thereby enabling more efficient processing of these critical cognitive functions.

Download Full-text

Abnormal brain activity patterns during spatial working memory task in patients with end-stage renal disease on maintenance hemodialysis: a fMRI study

Brain Imaging and Behavior ◽

10.1007/s11682-020-00383-7 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Jinzhuang Huang ◽

Lei Xie ◽

Ruiwei Guo ◽

Jinhong Wang ◽

Jinquan Lin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Frontal Cortex ◽

Spatial Working Memory ◽

Brain Activity ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Parietal Lobule ◽

Stage Renal Disease ◽

End Stage ◽

Esrd Patients ◽

Back Task

Abstract Hemodialysis (HD) is associated with cognitive impairment in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). However, the neural mechanism of spatial working memory (SWM) impairment in HD-ESRD patients remains unclear. We investigated the abnormal alterations in SWM-associated brain activity patterns in HD-ESRD patients using blood oxygen level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging (BOLD-fMRI) technique during n-back tasks. Twenty-two HD-ESRD patients and 22 well-matched controls underwent an fMRI scan while undergoing a three-load n-back tasks with different difficulty levels. Cognitive and mental states were assessed using a battery of neuropsychologic tests. The HD-ESRD patients exhibited worse memory abilities than controls. Compared with the control group, the HD-ESRD patient group showed lower accuracy and longer response time under the n-back tasks, especially in the 2-back task. The patterns of brain activation changed under different working memory loads in the HD-ESRD patients, showing decreased activity in the right medial frontal gyrus and inferior frontal gyrus under 0-back and 1-back task, while more decreased activation in the bilateral frontal cortex, parietal lobule, anterior/posterior cingulate cortex and insula cortex under 2-back task. With the increase of task difficulty, the activation degree of the frontal and parietal cortex decreased. More importantly, we found that lower activation in frontal cortex and parietal lobule was associated with worse cognitive function in the HD-ESRD patients. These results demonstrate that the abnormal brain activity patterns of frontal cortex and parietal lobule may reflect the neural mediation of SWM impairment.

Download Full-text

Different trait markers for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder: a neurocognitive approach

Psychological Medicine ◽

10.1017/s0033291701004068 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 31 (5) ◽

pp. 915-922 ◽

Cited By ~ 146

Author(s):

S. KÉRI ◽

O. KELEMEN ◽

G. BENEDEK ◽

Z. JANKA

Keyword(s):

Bipolar Disorder ◽

Working Memory ◽

Information Processing ◽

Cognitive Functions ◽

Visual Information ◽

Spatial Information ◽

Target Location ◽

Memory Task ◽

Visual Information Processing ◽

Verbal Recall

Background. The aim of this study was to assess visual information processing and cognitive functions in unaffected siblings of patients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and control subjects with a negative family history.Methods. The siblings of patients with schizophrenia (N = 25), bipolar disorder (N = 20) and the controls subjects (N = 20) were matched for age, education, IQ, and psychosocial functioning, as indexed by the Global Assessment of Functioning scale. Visual information processing was measured using two visual backward masking (VBM) tests (target location and target identification). The evaluation of higher cognitive functions included spatial and verbal working memory, Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, letter fluency, short/long delay verbal recall and recognition.Results. The relatives of schizophrenia patients were impaired in the VBM procedure, more pronouncedly at short interstimulus intervals (14, 28, 42 ms) and in the target location task. Marked dysfunctions were also found in the spatial working memory task and in the long delay verbal recall test. In contrast, the siblings of patients with bipolar disorder exhibited spared performances with the exception of a deficit in the long delay recall task.Conclusions. Dysfunctions of sensory-perceptual analysis (VBM) and working memory for spatial information distinguished the siblings of schizophrenia patients from the siblings of individuals with bipolar disorder. Verbal recall deficit was present in both groups, suggesting a common impairment of the fronto-hippocampal system.

Download Full-text

The Effect of Single Bout of Acute Exercise on Working Memory Performance

Birat Journal of Health Sciences ◽

10.3126/bjhs.v3i2.20966 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 3 (2) ◽

pp. 484-487

Author(s):

Santosh Kumar Deo ◽

Kopila Agrawal ◽

Prem Bhattrai ◽

Raju Kumar Chaudhary

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Working Memory ◽

Acute Exercise ◽

Test Procedure ◽

Step Test ◽

Moderate Intensity ◽

Exercise Session ◽

Moderate Intensity Exercise ◽

Single Bout ◽

Back Task

Introduction: Working memory is a kind of short term memory important for reasoning and guiding decision-making and behavioral process.Objective: The goal of the present research was to study the outcome of single bout of acute moderate-intensity exercise on working memory.Methodology: Twenty two male subjects were asked to perform working memory task by 2n back task in baseline resting, immediately after exercise and after five minute of exercise session. 3 minute step test procedure was used as a moderate intensity exercise intervention.Results: The percentage correctness of 2n back task of working memory was found to be 64.36% for baseline resting condition, 78.01 % for immediately after 3-minute step test and 80.70% for 5 minute after the exercise. In both exercise session (i.e. immediately after exercise and after 5 minute of exercise), significant improvement (p value <0.05) in working memory was seen as compared to the baseline resting session while no such significant beneficial improvement was seen when compared between immediately after exercise and after 5 minute of exercise.Conclusion: Improvement in working memory after moderate exercise intervention was seen, which is important for learning and memory and decision-making. BJHS 2018;3(2)6:484-487.

Download Full-text