scholarly journals Compensatory effects of pointing and predictive cueing on age-related declines in visuospatial working memory

2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (6) ◽  
pp. 950-965 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kim Ouwehand ◽  
Tamara van Gog ◽  
Fred Paas
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Visuospatial Working Memory ◽  
Age Related

Shared Neural Circuits for Visuospatial Working Memory and Arithmetic in Children and Adults

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Anna A. Matejko ◽  
Daniel Ansari
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Strong Relationship ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Visuospatial Working Memory ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Arithmetic Networks ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Superior Frontal Sulcus

Abstract Visuospatial working memory (VSWM) plays an important role in arithmetic problem solving, and the relationship between these two skills is thought to change over development. Even though neuroimaging studies have demonstrated that VSWM and arithmetic both recruit frontoparietal networks, inferences about common neural substrates have largely been made by comparisons across studies. Little work has examined how brain activation for VSWM and arithmetic converge within the same participants and whether there are age-related changes in the overlap of these neural networks. In this study, we examined how brain activity for VSWM and arithmetic overlap in 38 children and 26 adults. Although both children and adults recruited the intraparietal sulcus (IPS) for VSWM and arithmetic, children showed more focal activation within the right IPS, whereas adults recruited the bilateral IPS, superior frontal sulcus/middle frontal gyrus, and right insula. A comparison of the two groups revealed that adults recruited a more left-lateralized network of frontoparietal regions for VSWM and arithmetic compared with children. Together, these findings suggest possible neurocognitive mechanisms underlying the strong relationship between VSWM and arithmetic and provide evidence that the association between VSWM and arithmetic networks changes with age.

scholarly journals Age-Related Declines in Visuospatial Working Memory Correlate With Deficits in Explicit Motor Sequence Learning

2009 ◽  
Vol 102 (5) ◽  
pp. 2744-2754 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Bo ◽  
V. Borza ◽  
R. D. Seidler
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Working Memory ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
Sequence Learning ◽  
Working Memory Capacity ◽  
Memory Capacity ◽  
Visuospatial Working Memory ◽  
Motor Sequence Learning ◽  
Motor Sequence ◽  
Age Related

Numerous studies have shown that older adults exhibit deficits in motor sequence learning, but the mechanisms underlying this effect remain unclear. Our recent work has shown that visuospatial working-memory capacity predicts the rate of motor sequence learning and the length of motor chunks formed during explicit sequence learning in young adults. In the current study, we evaluate whether age-related deficits in working memory explain the reduced rate of motor sequence learning in older adults. We found that older adults exhibited a correlation between visuospatial working-memory capacity and motor sequence chunk length, as we observed previously in young adults. In addition, older adults exhibited an overall reduction in both working-memory capacity and motor chunk length compared with that of young adults. However, individual variations in visuospatial working-memory capacity did not correlate with the rate of learning in older adults. These results indicate that working memory declines with age at least partially explain age-related differences in explicit motor sequence learning.

scholarly journals Preserved Contextual Cueing in Realistic Scenes in Patients with Age-Related Macular Degeneration

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Pollmann ◽  
Lisa Rosenblum ◽  
Stefanie Linnhoff ◽  
Eleonora Porracin ◽  
Franziska Geringswald ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Macular Degeneration ◽  
Vision Loss ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Movement Control ◽  
Age Related Macular Degeneration ◽  
Contextual Cueing ◽  
Visuospatial Working Memory ◽  
Guided Search ◽  
Age Related

Foveal vision loss has been shown to reduce efficient visual search guidance due to contextual cueing by incidentally learned contexts. However, previous studies used artificial (T among L-shape) search paradigms that prevent the memorization of a target in a semantically meaningful scene. Here, we investigated contextual cueing in real-life scenes that allow explicit memory of target locations in semantically rich scenes. In contrast to the contextual cueing deficits in artificial scenes, contextual cueing in patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) did not differ from age-matched normal-sighted controls. We discuss this in the context of visuospatial working memory demands for which both eye-movement control in the presence of central vision loss and for memory-guided search may compete. Memory-guided search in semantically rich scenes may depend less on visuospatial working memory than search in abstract displays, potentially explaining intact contextual cueing in the former but not the latter. In a practical sense, our findings may indicate that Patients with AMD are less deficient than expected after previous lab experiments. This shows the usefulness of realistic stimuli in experimental clinical research.

scholarly journals Long-term reduction of short wavelength light affects sustained attention and visuospatial working memory

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aleksandra Domagalik ◽  
Halszka Oginska ◽  
Ewa Beldzik ◽  
Magdalena Fafrowicz ◽  
Tadeusz Marek
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Cognitive Functioning ◽  
Blue Light ◽  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Short Wavelength ◽  
Contact Lenses ◽  
Sleep Problems ◽  
Short Exposure ◽  
Visuospatial Working Memory ◽  
Age Related

ABSTRACTThe short wavelength, i.e. blue light, is crucial for non-image forming effects such as entrainment of circadian system. Moreover, many studies showed that blue light enhances alertness and performance in cognitive tasks. However, most of scientific reports in this topic is based on studies using short exposure to blue or blue-enriched light and only few focused on the effects of its reduced transmittance, especially in longer period. The latter could potentially give insight into understanding if age-related sleep problems and cognitive decline are related to less amount of blue light reaching the retina, as our lenses become more yellow with age. In this study, we investigated the effects of prolonged blocking of blue light on cognitive functioning, in particular - sustained attention and visuospatial working memory, and sleep. We used amber contact lenses reducing transmittance of blue light by approximately 90% for the period of four weeks on a group of young, healthy participants. No changes were observed for measurements related to sleep and sleep-wake rhythm. The significant effect was shown both for sustained attention and visuospatial memory, i.e. the longer blocking the blue light lasted, the greater decrease in performance was observed. Additionally, the follow-up session was conducted (approximately one week after taking off the blue-blocking lenses) and revealed that in case of sustained attention this detrimental effect of blocking BL is fully reversible. Our findings provide evidence that prolonged reduction of BL exposure directly affects human cognitive functioning regardless of sleep-related conditions.

scholarly journals Age-related differentiation in verbal and visuospatial working memory processing in childhood

2019 ◽  
Vol 84 (8) ◽  
pp. 2354-2360
Author(s):  
Frances Buttelmann ◽  
Tanja Könen ◽  
Lauren V. Hadley ◽  
Julie-Anne Meaney ◽  
Bonnie Auyeung ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Visuospatial Working Memory ◽  
Memory Processing ◽  
Age Related

scholarly journals Preserved Contextual Cueing in Realistic Scenes in Patients with Age-Related Macular Degeneration

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 941
Author(s):  
Stefan Pollmann ◽  
Lisa Rosenblum ◽  
Stefanie Linnhoff ◽  
Eleonora Porracin ◽  
Franziska Geringswald ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Macular Degeneration ◽  
Vision Loss ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Movement Control ◽  
Age Related Macular Degeneration ◽  
Contextual Cueing ◽  
Visuospatial Working Memory ◽  
Guided Search ◽  
Age Related

Foveal vision loss has been shown to reduce efficient visual search guidance due to contextual cueing by incidentally learned contexts. However, previous studies used artificial (T- among L-shape) search paradigms that prevent the memorization of a target in a semantically meaningful scene. Here, we investigated contextual cueing in real-life scenes that allow explicit memory of target locations in semantically rich scenes. In contrast to the contextual cueing deficits in artificial scenes, contextual cueing in patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) did not differ from age-matched normal-sighted controls. We discuss this in the context of visuospatial working-memory demands for which both eye movement control in the presence of central vision loss and memory-guided search may compete. Memory-guided search in semantically rich scenes may depend less on visuospatial working memory than search in abstract displays, potentially explaining intact contextual cueing in the former but not the latter. In a practical sense, our findings may indicate that patients with AMD are less deficient than expected after previous lab experiments. This shows the usefulness of realistic stimuli in experimental clinical research.

Do Children With Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) Have Difficulties With Interference Control, Visuospatial Working Memory, and Selective Attention? Developmental Patterns and the Role of Severity and Persistence of DLD

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (9) ◽  
pp. 3036-3050
Author(s):  
Elma Blom ◽  
Tessel Boerma
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Selective Attention ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
Visuospatial Working Memory ◽  
Interference Control ◽  
Developmental Patterns ◽  
Search Tasks ◽  
The Impact

Purpose Many children with developmental language disorder (DLD) have weaknesses in executive functioning (EF), specifically in tasks testing interference control and working memory. It is unknown how EF develops in children with DLD, if EF abilities are related to DLD severity and persistence, and if EF weaknesses expand to selective attention. This study aimed to address these gaps. Method Data from 78 children with DLD and 39 typically developing (TD) children were collected at three times with 1-year intervals. At Time 1, the children were 5 or 6 years old. Flanker, Dot Matrix, and Sky Search tasks tested interference control, visuospatial working memory, and selective attention, respectively. DLD severity was based on children's language ability. DLD persistence was based on stability of the DLD diagnosis. Results Performance on all tasks improved in both groups. TD children outperformed children with DLD on interference control. No differences were found for visuospatial working memory and selective attention. An interference control gap between the DLD and TD groups emerged between Time 1 and Time 2. Severity and persistence of DLD were related to interference control and working memory; the impact on working memory was stronger. Selective attention was unrelated to DLD severity and persistence. Conclusions Age and DLD severity and persistence determine whether or not children with DLD show EF weaknesses. Interference control is most clearly impaired in children with DLD who are 6 years and older. Visuospatial working memory is impaired in children with severe and persistent DLD. Selective attention is spared.

Visual Search Facilitation in Repeated Displays Depends on Visuospatial Working Memory

2012 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angela A. Manginelli ◽  
Franziska Geringswald ◽  
Stefan Pollmann
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Visual Search ◽  
Control Experiment ◽  
Memory Load ◽  
Contextual Cueing ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Visuospatial Working Memory ◽  
Working Memory Load ◽  
Memory Resources

When distractor configurations are repeated over time, visual search becomes more efficient, even if participants are unaware of the repetition. This contextual cueing is a form of incidental, implicit learning. One might therefore expect that contextual cueing does not (or only minimally) rely on working memory resources. This, however, is debated in the literature. We investigated contextual cueing under either a visuospatial or a nonspatial (color) visual working memory load. We found that contextual cueing was disrupted by the concurrent visuospatial, but not by the color working memory load. A control experiment ruled out that unspecific attentional factors of the dual-task situation disrupted contextual cueing. Visuospatial working memory may be needed to match current display items with long-term memory traces of previously learned displays.

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