Examining Working Memory Performance in Adult Psychosomatic Inpatients

BackgroundThere is cumulating evidence that working memory (WM) processing is impaired in individuals suffering from a psychosomatic and a psychological disorder. However, it is unclear how repetitive negative thinking (RNT), depressive symptoms, and patient characteristics (i.e., age and incapability to work) contribute to WM impairments. The present study examines how these factors affect WM performance in highly distressed adult psychosomatic inpatients.MethodsSeventy-six inpatients (Mage = 52.7, SD = 8.4) from a psychosomatic rehabilitation clinic performed a two-block WM updating task, with accuracy and reaction time as indicators of WM functioning.ResultsMultivariate mixed effect model results show that accuracy and reaction time significantly decreased from WM Block 1 to WM Block 2. Higher levels of RNT, more severe depressive symptoms and higher age were associated with worse WM accuracy in Block 1. None of these variables were significantly associated with WM reaction time (in Block 1).ConclusionFrom a clinical perspective, the results suggest that screening for the presence of high RNT levels, severe depressive symptoms or higher age may help to identify patients with impaired WM functioning and to intervene on these important patient characteristics early in the rehabilitation process.

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Testing whether implicit emotion regulation mediates the association between discrimination and symptoms of psychopathology in late childhood: An RDoC perspective

Development and Psychopathology ◽

10.1017/s0954579421000638 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-14

Author(s):

T.G. Vargas ◽

V.A. Mittal

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Emotion Regulation ◽

Depressive Symptoms ◽

Inhibitory Control ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Neurocognitive Functions ◽

Units Of Analysis ◽

Race Ethnicity ◽

Implicit Emotion Regulation ◽

Multiple Units

Abstract Discrimination has been associated with adverse mental health outcomes, though it is unclear how early in life this association becomes apparent. Implicit emotion regulation, developing during childhood, is a foundational skill tied to a range of outcomes. Implicit emotion regulation has yet to be tested as an associated process for mental illness symptoms that can often emerge during this sensitive developmental period. Youth aged 9–11 were recruited for the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. Associations between psychotic-like experiences, depressive symptoms, and total discrimination (due to race, ethnicity, nationality, weight, or sexual minority status) were tested, as well as associations with implicit emotion regulation measures (emotional updating working memory and inhibitory control). Analyses examined whether associations with symptoms were mediated by implicit emotion regulation. Discrimination related to decreased implicit emotion regulation performance, and increased endorsement of depressive symptoms and psychotic-like experiences. Emotional updating working memory performance partially mediated the association between discrimination and psychotic-like experiences, while emotional inhibitory control did not. Discrimination and implicit emotion regulation could serve as putative transdiagnostic markers of vulnerability. Results support the utility of using multiple units of analysis to improve understanding of complex emerging neurocognitive functions and developmentally sensitive periods.

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Effects of Acceleration-Induced Reductions in Retinal and Cerebral Oxygenation on Human Performance

Aerospace Medicine and Human Performance ◽

10.3357/amhp.5731.2021 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 92 (2) ◽

pp. 75-82

Author(s):

Rodney J. Croft ◽

Roger Kölegård ◽

Arne Tribukait ◽

Nigel A. S. Taylor ◽

Ola Eiken

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Reaction Time ◽

Visual Perception ◽

Visual Working Memory ◽

Human Performance ◽

Near Infrared ◽

Cerebral Oxygenation ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Memory Task ◽

Blood Oxygenation

BACKGROUND: Ischemic hypoxia induced by suprathreshold G-force loading can adversely affect vision, cognition, and lead to loss of consciousness (LOC). The purpose of this study was to determine whether reductions in cerebral oxygenation, caused by subthreshold G-forces (up to 4 Gz and of limited durations that do not lead to LOC), would affect visual perception and working memory performance.METHODS: Sixteen subjects performed visual perception and working memory tasks both before and during Gz exposures (1, 2.2, 3, 4 with leg pressurization, 4 with leg and abdomen pressurization) within a human-use centrifuge.RESULTS: As measured using near-infrared spectroscopy, blood oxygenation over medial prefrontal cortex was similar in the 1 and 2.2 Gz conditions, but was reduced to a similar extent in the 3 and 4 Gz conditions. In parallel, visual perception accuracy was reduced in the 3 and 4 Gz conditions, with no difference between the 3 and 4 Gz conditions. No change in reaction time was seen. Conversely, neither accuracy nor reaction time changes were observed for the visual working memory task.DISCUSSION: These results indicate that although visual working memory is not affected, the ability to visually discriminate between stimuli is reduced at G-forces as low as 3 and 4 Gz. This may have important ramifications for pilots who are routinely subjected to such forces.Croft RJ, Klegrd R, Tribukait A, Taylor NAS, Eiken O. Effects of acceleration-induced reductions in retinal and cerebral oxygenation on human performance. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2021; 92(2):7582.

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A Daytime Nap Enhances Visual Working Memory Performance and Alters Event-Related Delay Activity

10.31234/osf.io/587hm ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Kevin John MacDonald ◽

Holly A. Lockhart ◽

Alex C. Storace ◽

Stephen Emrich ◽

Kimberly A. Cote

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Visual Representations ◽

Time On Task ◽

Neural Processing ◽

Mixed Effect ◽

Mixed Effect Models ◽

Within Subjects ◽

Daytime Nap

Working memory (WM) is impaired following sleep loss and may be improved after a nap. The goal of the current study was to better understand sleep-related WM enhancement by: 1) employing a WM task that assesses the ability to hold and report visual representations as well as the fidelity of the reports on a fine scale, 2) investigating neurophysiological properties of sleep and WM capacity as potential predictors or moderators of sleep-related enhancement, and 3) exploring frontal and occipital event-related delay activity to index the neural processing of stimuli in WM. In a within-subjects design, thirty-six young adults (Mage = 20, 20 men, 16 women) completed a 300-trial, continuous-report task of visual WM following a 90-min nap opportunity and an equivalent period of wakefulness. Mixed-effect models were used to estimate the odds of successful WM reports and the fidelity of those reports. The odds of a successful report were approximately equal between nap and wake conditions at the start of the task, but by the end, the odds of success were 1.26 times greater in the nap condition. Successful WM reports were more accurate after a nap, independent of time on task. Neither WM capacity nor any of the sleep variables measured were found to significantly moderate the nap effect on WM. Lastly, amplitude of frontal and occipital delay activity was altered in the nap relative to the wake condition. The findings are discussed in relation to the role of sleep in sustained attention and contemporary models of visual WM.

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Memory, subjective memory and motor functioning in non-demented elders with and without Parkinson’s disease

Europe’s Journal of Psychology ◽

10.5964/ejop.v15i2.1672 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 404-420 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Maria Chiara Fastame ◽

Paul Kenneth Hitchcott ◽

Federica Corona ◽

Giuseppina Pilloni ◽

Micaela Porta ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Working Memory ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Depressive Symptoms ◽

Depressive Symptomatology ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Functional Mobility ◽

Subjective Memory ◽

Memory Efficiency

Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a progressive neurological condition characterized by motor and non-motor symptoms impacting life quality. The main aim of the current study was to investigate the effect of PD on objective (i.e., working memory and semantic memory) and subjective memory (i.e., self-reported seriousness of forgetting, mnemonic usage and actual memory efficiency) controlling for the effect of depressive symptomatology. The relationship of working memory performance to gait and mobility indices was also examined, as well as the factors predicting subjective memory were explored. Fifty-four community-dwelling adults (mean age = 72.3 years, SD = 8.8) were recruited in Sardinia, an Italian island located in the Mediterranean Sea. Specifically, 27 non-demented adults with mild, early-stage PD were matched for years of education, age, and gender with a sample of healthy individuals. Participants completed a test battery assessing objective memory, subjective memory, and depressive symptoms, and an instrumental analysis of gait and functional mobility was performed. Participants with PD had poorer objective memory across all indices measured and displayed a restricted set of gait and posture impairments. Working memory performance was selectively related to gait and posture measures. Moreover, participants with PD had lower trust in their memory efficiency relative to the past than the control healthy group. Finally, 22% of the variance in seriousness of the consequences of forgetting was predicted by education and general cognitive efficiency. Overall, the present findings confirm the presence of changes in both objective and subjective memory in PD, independent from depressive symptoms.

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How do worry and clinical status impact working memory performance? An experimental investigation

BMC Psychiatry ◽

10.1186/s12888-020-02694-x ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Judith Held ◽

Andreea Vîslă ◽

Richard E. Zinbarg ◽

Christine Wolfer ◽

Christoph Flückiger

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Reaction Time ◽

Anxiety Disorder ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Clinical Status ◽

Reaction Times ◽

Control Group ◽

Clinical Group ◽

Generalised Anxiety Disorder ◽

The Impact

Abstract Background Previous research has suggested that worry is negatively associated with working memory performance. However, it is unclear whether these findings would replicate across different worry levels and in individuals with anxiety and depressive disorders (i.e. clinical statuses). Method One-hundred-thirty-eight participants performed a two-block working memory task (150 trials per block). Based on participants` current clinical status, four groups were considered (generalised anxiety disorder group: n = 36; clinical group with another anxiety or mood disorders: n = 33; subclinical group: n = 27; control group: n = 42). Trait worry levels were collected from all of the participants. Working memory performance was measured as accuracy and reaction time. Results During the first block, higher worry scores were significantly associated with longer reaction times. Moreover, the generalised anxiety disorder group, clinical group, and subclinical groups demonstrated significantly longer reaction times compared to the control group in Block 1, when age was controlled for. From Block 1 to Block 2, all of the participants demonstrated a significant decrease in accuracy and reaction time, regardless of worry level or clinical status. Conclusion The results indicate that higher worry levels negatively impact WM processing efficiency. Moreover, when age was controlled for, we found participants` clinical status to be linked with WM impairments. The results highlight the relevance of investigating the impact of different worry levels on cognitive processes across clinical and non-clinical populations.

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Temporal dynamics of depression, cognitive performance and sleep in older persons with depressive symptoms and cognitive impairments: a series of eight single-subject studies

International Psychogeriatrics ◽

10.1017/s1041610221000065 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-13

Author(s):

Marij Zuidersma ◽

Astrid Lugtenburg ◽

Willeke van Zelst ◽

Fransje E. Reesink ◽

Peter Paul De Deyn ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Depressive Symptoms ◽

Cognitive Performance ◽

Sleep Duration ◽

Temporal Dynamics ◽

Cognitive Impairments ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Temporal Association ◽

Single Subject ◽

Older Individuals

ABSTRACT Objectives: To investigate the presence, nature and direction of the daily temporal association between depressive symptoms, cognitive performance and sleep in older individuals. Design, setting, participants: Single-subject study design in eight older adults with cognitive impairments and depressive symptoms. Measurements: For 63 consecutive days, depressive symptoms, working memory performance and night-time sleep duration were daily assessed with an electronic diary and actigraphy. The temporal associations of depressive symptoms, working memory and total sleep time were evaluated for each participant separately with time-series analysis (vector autoregressive modeling). Results: For seven out of eight participants we found a temporal association between depressive symptoms and/or sleep and/or working memory performance. More depressive symptoms were preceded by longer sleep duration in one person (r = 0.39; p < .001), by longer or shorter sleep duration than usual in one other person (B = 0.49; p < .001), by worse working memory in one person (B = −0.45; p = .007), and by better working memory performance in one other person (B = 0.35; p = .009). Worse working memory performance was preceded by longer sleep duration (r = −.35; p = .005) in one person, by shorter or longer sleep duration in three other persons (B = −0.76; p = .005, B = −0.61; p < .001; B = −0.34; p = .002), and by more depressive symptoms in one person (B = −0.25; p = .009). Conclusion: The presence, nature and direction of the temporal associations between depressive symptoms, cognitive performance and sleep differed between individuals. Knowledge of personal temporal associations may be valuable for the development of personalized intervention strategies in order to maintain their health, quality of life, functional outcomes and independence.

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