To Switch or not to Switch: Role of Cognitive Control in Working Memory Training in Older Adults
It is currently not known what are the best working memory training strategies to offset the age-related declines in fluid cognitive abilities. In this randomized clinical double-blind trial, older adults were randomly assigned to one of two types of working memory training - one group was trained o...
Main Authors: | , |
---|---|
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2016-03-01
|
Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00230/full |
id |
doaj-4ee6c054e6f84340bd4a9fbf103146ff |
---|---|
record_format |
Article |
spelling |
doaj-4ee6c054e6f84340bd4a9fbf103146ff2020-11-24T22:24:37ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782016-03-01710.3389/fpsyg.2016.00230174400To Switch or not to Switch: Role of Cognitive Control in Working Memory Training in Older AdultsChandramallika eBasak0Margaret A O'Connell1University of Texas at DallasUniversity of Texas at DallasIt is currently not known what are the best working memory training strategies to offset the age-related declines in fluid cognitive abilities. In this randomized clinical double-blind trial, older adults were randomly assigned to one of two types of working memory training - one group was trained on a predictable memory updating task (PT) and another group was trained on a novel, unpredictable memory updating task (UT). Unpredictable memory updating, compared to predictable, requires greater demands on cognitive control (Basak & Verhaeghen, 2011a). Therefore, the current study allowed us to evaluate the role of cognitive control in working memory training. All participants were assessed on a set of near and far transfer tasks at three different testing sessions - before training, immediately after the training, and 1.5 months after completing the training. Additionally, individual learning rates for a comparison working memory task (performed by both groups) and the trained task were computed. Training on unpredictable memory updating, compared to predictable, significantly enhanced performance on a measure of episodic memory, immediately after the training. Moreover, individuals with faster learning rates showed greater gains in this episodic memory task and another new working memory task; this effect was specific to UT. We propose that the unpredictable memory updating training, compared to predictable memory updating training, may a better strategy to improve selective cognitive abilities in older adults, and future studies could further investigate the role of cognitive control in working memory training.http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00230/fullcognitive controlindividual differencesworking memory traininghealthy agingstrategies of training |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Chandramallika eBasak Margaret A O'Connell |
spellingShingle |
Chandramallika eBasak Margaret A O'Connell To Switch or not to Switch: Role of Cognitive Control in Working Memory Training in Older Adults Frontiers in Psychology cognitive control individual differences working memory training healthy aging strategies of training |
author_facet |
Chandramallika eBasak Margaret A O'Connell |
author_sort |
Chandramallika eBasak |
title |
To Switch or not to Switch: Role of Cognitive Control in Working Memory Training in Older Adults |
title_short |
To Switch or not to Switch: Role of Cognitive Control in Working Memory Training in Older Adults |
title_full |
To Switch or not to Switch: Role of Cognitive Control in Working Memory Training in Older Adults |
title_fullStr |
To Switch or not to Switch: Role of Cognitive Control in Working Memory Training in Older Adults |
title_full_unstemmed |
To Switch or not to Switch: Role of Cognitive Control in Working Memory Training in Older Adults |
title_sort |
to switch or not to switch: role of cognitive control in working memory training in older adults |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
series |
Frontiers in Psychology |
issn |
1664-1078 |
publishDate |
2016-03-01 |
description |
It is currently not known what are the best working memory training strategies to offset the age-related declines in fluid cognitive abilities. In this randomized clinical double-blind trial, older adults were randomly assigned to one of two types of working memory training - one group was trained on a predictable memory updating task (PT) and another group was trained on a novel, unpredictable memory updating task (UT). Unpredictable memory updating, compared to predictable, requires greater demands on cognitive control (Basak & Verhaeghen, 2011a). Therefore, the current study allowed us to evaluate the role of cognitive control in working memory training. All participants were assessed on a set of near and far transfer tasks at three different testing sessions - before training, immediately after the training, and 1.5 months after completing the training. Additionally, individual learning rates for a comparison working memory task (performed by both groups) and the trained task were computed. Training on unpredictable memory updating, compared to predictable, significantly enhanced performance on a measure of episodic memory, immediately after the training. Moreover, individuals with faster learning rates showed greater gains in this episodic memory task and another new working memory task; this effect was specific to UT. We propose that the unpredictable memory updating training, compared to predictable memory updating training, may a better strategy to improve selective cognitive abilities in older adults, and future studies could further investigate the role of cognitive control in working memory training. |
topic |
cognitive control individual differences working memory training healthy aging strategies of training |
url |
http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00230/full |
work_keys_str_mv |
AT chandramallikaebasak toswitchornottoswitchroleofcognitivecontrolinworkingmemorytraininginolderadults AT margaretaoconnell toswitchornottoswitchroleofcognitivecontrolinworkingmemorytraininginolderadults |
_version_ |
1725760522830217216 |