Who Volunteers? Results from a Regular Cognitive Monitoring Study

Previous research indicates volunteering promotes well-being of individuals and communities. Volunteering in later-life may buffer some of the negative health effects experienced during retirement, facilitating opportunities for older adults to engage in meaningful activities and stay active. The current study examined characteristics of older adults who volunteered outside of participation in a regular cognitive monitoring study. All 124 members (M= 76.87, SD= 7.47; 80 volunteers, 44 non-volunteers) of a regular cognitive monitoring study, requiring completion of a 15-minute cognitive online test once a month, with complete data on personal characteristics, volunteer activities, as well as study adherence and dropout rates were included. ANCOVA and logistic regression analyses adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics were used to assess differences between volunteers and non-volunteers. Results indicated that volunteers were less educated (p<.05), and slightly more likely to be younger and women compared to non-volunteers. There were no differences in cognitive performance (ps>.05). Volunteers had lower scores for neuroticism (p=.02) and were marginally higher agreeable and extraverted (ps<.09). Volunteers needed more reminders to complete the monthly test (ps<.01) but had lower dropout rates (p=.001). The most frequent type of volunteer activity reported was religious. Volunteers were motivated mainly by altruism, although most reported multiple reasons such as building social relationships and feeling important. Findings provide information about characteristics that can help identify older adults who are likely to volunteer. Results regarding study adherence may have implications for promoting recruitment and retention among older adult volunteers.

A Platform for Cognitive Monitoring of Neurosurgical Patients During Hospitalization

Intracranial recordings in epilepsy patients are increasingly utilized to gain insight into the electrophysiological mechanisms of human cognition. There are currently several practical limitations to conducting research with these patients, including patient and researcher availability and the cognitive abilities of patients, which limit the amount of task-related data that can be collected. Prior studies have synchronized clinical audio, video, and neural recordings to understand naturalistic behaviors, but these recordings are centered on the patient to understand their seizure semiology and thus do not capture and synchronize audiovisual stimuli experienced by patients. Here, we describe a platform for cognitive monitoring of neurosurgical patients during their hospitalization that benefits both patients and researchers. We provide the full specifications for this system and describe some example use cases in perception, memory, and sleep research. We provide results obtained from a patient passively watching TV as proof-of-principle for the naturalistic study of cognition. Our system opens up new avenues to collect more data per patient using real-world behaviors, affording new possibilities to conduct longitudinal studies of the electrophysiological basis of human cognition under naturalistic conditions.

Boston Cognitive Assessment (BOCA) — a comprehensive self-administered smartphone- and computer-based at-home test for longitudinal tracking of cognitive performance

Longitudinal cognitive testing is essential for developing novel preventive interventions for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease; however, the few available tools have significant practice effect and depend on an external evaluator. We developed a self-administered 10-minute at-home test intended for longitudinal cognitive monitoring, Boston Cognitive Assessment or BOCA. The goal of this project was to validate BOCA. BOCA uses randomly selected non-repeating tasks to minimize practice effects. BOCA evaluates eight cognitive domains: 1) Memory/Immediate Recall, 2) Language Comprehension/Prefrontal Synthesis, 3) Visuospatial Reasoning / Mental rotation, 4) Executive function / Clock Test, 5) Attention, 6) Mental math, 7) Orientation, and 8) Memory/Delayed Recall. BOCA was administered to patients with cognitive impairment (n = 50) and age- and education-matched controls (n = 50). Test scores were significantly different between patients and controls (p < 0.001) suggesting good discriminative ability. The Cronbach’s alpha was 0.87 implying good internal consistency. BOCA demonstrated strong correlation with Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA) (R= 0.90, p <0.001). The study revealed strong (R=0.94, p <0.001) test-retest reliability of the total BOCA score one week after participants’ initial administration. The practice effect tested by daily BOCA administration over 10 days was insignificant (β=0.03, p=0.74). BOCA has the potential to reduce the cost and improve the quality of longitudinal cognitive tracking essential for testing novel interventions designed to reduce or reverse cognitive aging. BOCA is available online gratis at www.bocatest.org.

Assessment of mental fatigue using electroencephalography (EEG) and virtual reality (VR) for construction fall hazard prevention

PurposeDespite the importance of cognitive monitoring, limited studies attempted to continuously monitor cognitive status of workers regarding mental fatigue effects on fall hazard. Thus, the objective of this study is to investigate and understand the effects of working at height on mental fatigue development for fall hazard prevention.Design/methodology/approachA quantitative framework using two well-known methods, i.e. Wavelet Packet Decomposition and Sample entropy, is developed to analyze the captured brain signals from Electroencephalography (EEG) to quantitatively assess mental fatigue levels, and seven mental fatigue indices were obtained. Between-subjects lab experiment was designed and conducted to assess mental fatigue in Virtual Reality (VR) environment.FindingsBoth of the quantitative methods confirmed that height exposure can adversely affect subjects' vigilance levels and indicated higher levels of mental fatigue. Significant differences were found between the two tested groups (i.e. working at height or on the ground) for six out of seven indices. The results suggested that working-at-height group had higher mental fatigue levels.Research limitations/implicationsOne limitation of this study is the limited number of subjects recruited for the experiment. Overall, this study is a preliminary and exploratory work towards mental fatigue monitoring and assessment in subjects exposed to fall risk.Originality/valueThis is the first study to explore and focus on mental fatigue assessment, particularly for construction falling-from-height hazard prevention by continuously monitoring mental fatigue levels of workers. The research provides insight into construction safety enhancement using smart technologies.

ESTRATÉGIAS METACOGNITIVAS NAS PRÁTICAS DE ESTÁGIO SUPERVISIONADO

Estratégias metacognitivas podem ser ferramentas muito úteis, se aplicadas no processo de estruturação e execução do estágio supervisionado, especialmente nos cursos de licenciatura. Por metacognição, compreende-se um tipo elaborado de gerenciamento sobre o próprio pensamento, uma atitude autorregulatória cujo traço distintivo consiste em promover a busca constante do “aprender a aprender”. O andaimento, a documentação e a organização de registros por meio de dossiês ou portfólios, os contratos de aprendizagem firmados entre estudantes e professores, a autoavaliação e o planejamento coletivo são algumas estratégias autorregulatórias que visam instrumentalizar o estudante em contexto de estágio, para que possa atuar nele de forma autônoma e participativa. Para tanto, o contexto que envolve todas as etapas do estágio, desde a sua concepção, passando pela implementação e avaliação, deve proporcionar uma atmosfera que instigue o aluno a conduzir as suas ações e decisões com segurança e assertividade. Consequentemente, o planejamento precisa ser entendido como “coletivo”, contemplando os principais envolvidos no processo, ou seja, os professores orientador e supervisor bem como o próprio acadêmico. Para chegar a esse ponto de maneira satisfatória, a configuração final do estágio não deve ser “engessada”, mas organizada, permitindo antecipar ao mesmo tempo problemas e alternativas para resolvê-los. Tal movimento não é viável se não houver articulação entre universidade e escola visando a um constante aprimoramento dos métodos e técnicas empregados no processo. Nessa perspectiva, além de cumprirem seu papel previsto em lei de associarem de forma eficiente os conhecimentos teóricos e o fazer docente, as práticas de estágio podem se constituir em situações propícias a reflexões, iniciativas, projetos e propostas de intervenção capazes de beneficiar os atores e cenários envolvidos nessa ação.Referências:ALCÂNTARA, Marcelo Silveira de. Metacognição e auto-regulação na graduação universitária: estratégias de estudo individual e ensino-aprendizagem em contexto de iniciação à expertise. 254 f. Tese (Doutorado em Educação) Universidade Católica de Brasília, Brasília, 2014.BRASIL. Lei de Diretrizes e Bases da Educação Nacional nº 9.394, de 20 de dezembro de 1996. Disponível em: http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/l9394.htm Acesso em: 28 jan. 2021.BRASIL. Lei nº 11.788, de 25 de setembro de 2008. Disponível em: http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/_ato2007-2010/2008/lei/l11788.htm Acesso em: 29 jan. 2021.CALDERANO, Maria da Assunção. Docência compartilhada entre universidade e escola: formação no estágio curricular. São Paulo: FCC/SEP, 2014. Disponível em: http://publicacoes.fcc.org.br/ojs/index.php/textosfcc/issue/download/305/67 Acesso em: 29 jan. 2021.CARLBERG, Simone. Considerações. In.: O processo educativo: articulações possíveis frente à diversidade. São José dos Campos: Pulso, 2006, p. 106-108.CARLBERG, Simone; PILATTI, Elisangela; JUNGHANS, Marianne Kollarz. Portfólio: Instrumento-meio de educação. In.: O processo educativo: articulações possíveis frente à diversidade. São José dos Campos: Pulso, 2006, p. 111-128.CHAUÍ, Marilena de Souza. Ideologia e Educação: educação e sociedade. São Paulo: Cortez, 1980.HATTIE, John. Aprendizagem visível para professores: como maximizar o impacto da aprendizagem. (Trad.)Luís Fernando Marques Dorvillé. Porto Alegre: Penso: 2017.FAGUNDES, Gustavo. Educação Superior Comentada. A diferença entre as figuras de orientador e supervisor de estágio na educação superior. Ano 2 Nº 16 de 15 a 21 de julho de 2014. Disponível em: https://abmes.org.br/colunas/detalhe/1105/educacao-superior-comentada-%E2%80%93-a-diferenca-entre-as-figuras-de-orientador-e-supervisor-de-estagio-na-educacao-superior# Acesso em 31 jan. 2021.FLAVELL, John H. Metacognition and cognitive monitoring: A new area of cognitive-developmental inquiry. American Psychologist, v. 34, No. 10, 906-911, October, 1979. Disponível em:http://jwilson.coe.uga.edu/EMAT7050/Students/Wilson/Flavell%20(1979).pdf Acesso em: 26 abr. 2021.FREIRE, Paulo. Pedagogia da autonomia: Saberes necessários à prática educativa. São Paulo: Paz e Terra. 2009.PINTO, Rosimar Sabino; MARCOTTI, Paulo. Metacognição - uma proposta de intervenção psicopedagógica no Ensino Fundamental I. Revista de Pós-Graduação Multidisciplinar, São Paulo, v. 1, n. 4, p. 169-178, mar. 2018/set. 2018. Disponível em: https://www.fics.edu.br/index.php/rpgm/article/view/781/711 Acesso em: 28 jan. 2021.SANTOS, Denise. Ensino de língua inglesa: foco em estratégias. Barueri: Disal, 2012.SEVERO, Suzan Severo de; KRAMER, Rossana. O professor de Inglês e o livro didático: uma relação crítico-dialógica. XII Semana de Extensão, Pesquisa e Pós-Graduação - Mentes Inquietas: pessoas, experiências e atitudes. SEPesq Centro Universitário Ritter dos Reis, Porto Alegre, RS - 24 a 28 de outubro de 2016. Disponível em: https://www.uniritter.edu.br/files/sepesq/arquivos_trabalhos_2017/4368/1695/2039.pdf Acesso em: 31 jan. 2021.VASCONCELLOS, Maria de Nazareth Machado de Barros. Gestão de Sistemas Educacionais. Curitiba, IESDE Brasil S.A., 2009.WEIL, Pierre. A arte de viver em paz: por uma nova consciência e educação. São Paulo: Gente, 2002.WOLF, Rosângela Abreu do Prado; GOMES, Thaís de Sá. A prática de estágio supervisionado no Ensino Superior. IX Congresso Nacional de Educação – EDUCERE – III Encontro Sul Brasileiro de Psicopedagogia. 26 a 29 de outubro de 2006 – PUC-PR. Anais... Curitiba: 2006. Disponível em: https://educere.bruc.com.br/cd2009/pdf/3174_1460.pdf Acesso em: 28 jan. 2021.Recebido em 01-02-2021Revisões requeridas em 15-04-2021Aceito em 10-05-2021

Disrupting self-evaluative processing with electrostimulation mapping during awake brain surgery

Brain awake surgery with cognitive monitoring for tumor removal has become a standard of treatment for functional purpose. Yet, little attention has been given to patients’ interpretation and awareness of their own responses to selected cognitive tasks during direct electrostimulation (DES). We aim to report disruptions of self-evaluative processing evoked by DES during awake surgery. We further investigate cortico-subcortical structures involved in self-assessment process and report the use of an intraoperative self-assessment tool, the self-confidence index (SCI). Seventy-two patients who had undergone awake brain tumor resections were selected. Inclusion criteria were the occurrence of a DES-induced disruption of an ongoing task followed by patient’s failure to remember or criticize these impairments, or a dissociation between patient’s responses to an ongoing task and patient’s SCI. Disruptions of self-evaluation were frequently associated with semantic disorders and critical sites were mostly found along the left/right ventral semantic streams. Disconnectome analyses generated from a tractography-based atlas confirmed the high probability of the inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus to be transitory ‘disconnected’. These findings suggest that white matters pathways belonging to the ventral semantic stream may be critically involved in human self-evaluative processing. Finally, the authors discuss the implementation of the SCI task during multimodal intraoperative monitoring.

Attentional and cognitive monitoring brain networks in long-term meditators depend on meditation states and expertise

Meditation practice is suggested to engage training of cognitive control systems in the brain. To evaluate the functional involvement of attentional and cognitive monitoring processes during meditation, the present study analysed the electroencephalographic synchronization of fronto-parietal (FP) and medial-frontal (MF) brain networks in highly experienced meditators during different meditation states (focused attention, open monitoring and loving kindness meditation). The aim was to assess whether and how the connectivity patterns of FP and MF networks are modulated by meditation style and expertise. Compared to novice meditators, (1) highly experienced meditators exhibited a strong theta synchronization of both FP and MF networks in left parietal regions in all mediation styles, and (2) only the connectivity of lateralized beta MF networks differentiated meditation styles. The connectivity of intra-hemispheric theta FP networks depended non-linearly on meditation expertise, with opposite expertise-dependent patterns found in the left and the right hemisphere. In contrast, inter-hemispheric FP connectivity in faster frequency bands (fast alpha and beta) increased linearly as a function of expertise. The results confirm that executive control systems play a major role in maintaining states of meditation. The distinctive lateralized involvement of FP and MF networks appears to represent a major functional mechanism that supports both generic and style-specific meditation states. The observed expertise-dependent effects suggest that functional plasticity within executive control networks may underpin the emergence of unique meditation states in expert meditators.

Unmasking the Difficulty of Listening to Talkers With Masks: lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic

Interactions with talkers wearing face masks have become part of our daily routine since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Using an on-line experiment resembling a video conference, we examined the impact of face masks on speech comprehension. Typical-hearing listeners performed a speech-in-noise task while seeing talkers with visible lips, talkers wearing a surgical mask, or just the name of the talker displayed on screen. The target voice was masked by concurrent distracting talkers. We measured performance, confidence and listening effort scores, as well as meta-cognitive monitoring (the ability to adapt self-judgments to actual performance). Hiding the talkers behind a screen or concealing their lips via a face mask led to lower performance, lower confidence scores, and increased perceived effort. Moreover, meta-cognitive monitoring was worse when listening in these conditions compared with listening to an unmasked talker. These findings have implications on everyday communication for typical-hearing individuals and for hearing-impaired populations.