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INVITED
LECTURES
THE
EVOLVING CONCEPT OF WORKING MEMORY
Alan Baddeley
It
is now over 35 years since we introduced the concept of a
multi component working memory, expecting it to have a relatively
short lifespan. I will give a brief overview of the theory
and its development, giving examples of a wide range of applications.
I will then discuss some of the competing theories, arguing
that the multi component model should be seen as a theoretical
framework within which other more detailed models can develop
and compete.
WORKING
MEMORY: DEVELOPMENTAL AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
Graham
Hitch
One
reason the working memory system has attracted considerable
interest is evidence that it plays an important role in children's
cognitive development. A range of complex span tasks is widely
used to measure working memory capacity in children and has
been shown to be a useful predictor of a variety of cognitive
abilities. These tasks emphasise executive processes and suggest
that the overall capacity of working memory increases continuously
as children develop. In contrast, simpler span tasks tapping
into the phonological and visuo-spatial storage components
of working memory reveal interesting qualitative changes as
children develop. It seems that communication between the
phonological and visuo-spatial stores is highly restricted
early on in development, the emergence of full communication
between the subsystems being a developmental marker of some
sort. This change in binding information across modalities
may be related to a change in the operation of a multi-modal
episodic buffer.
DISORDERS
AND DRUGS THAT AFFECT WORKING MEMORY
MULTITASKING: HOW CAN PERFORMANCE ON THE MULTIPLE ERRANDS
TEST (MET) BE EXPLAINED
BY THE WORKING MEMORY MODEL
Katz N*
*Director Research Institute for Health and Medical Professions,
Ono Academic College, Israel, and Emeritus Professor School
of Occupational Therapy, Hebrew University Jerusalem, Israel.
The fundamental components of executive functions exemplified
in dual tasks and multitasking are the abilities to initiate
steps of a task, plan steps of the task, shift attention between
the steps, detect and correct errors and complete the task
in a timely manner. The Supervisory Attentional System Model
(SAS) (Norman & Shallice, 1986; Shallice & Burgess, 1996; Burgess
et al, 2006) was hypothesized to explain this
complex but everyday functioning. The MET was constructed
to assess multitasking while completing a complex shopping
task in a real mall (Burgess &
Schalice, 1991; Alderman et al, 2003; Knight et al, 2002).
The MET consists of three assignments that the user is required
to perform while shopping in a mall-like setting while following
certain rules (i.e., buy six items, find out four items of information and meet the
tester at a certain time and location). The
tester observes the participant, recording mistakes of different
kinds (inefficiency; rule breaking; Task
failures and use of strategies).
What is required to be able to complete the task successfully;
How does the Working Memory model (WM)
explain the performance of the task? Would it require the
central executive as well as the slave systems (Baddeley & Hitch, 1974) the verbal phonological
and the visuospatial systems; to what extent? The presentation
will include some data from studies utilizing the MET as well
as virtual reality versions in various patient populations
and controls. The issue of WM model explanation will be raised
and discussed.
EXECUTIVE
FUNCTIONS AND WORKING MEMORY ASSESSMENT OF ADHD BRAZILIAN
SAMPLES
Mattos P* & Coutinho G
Instituto de Psiquiatria, Universidade
Federal do Rio de Janeiro, UFRJ, Brazil.
Despite
controversial findings described in the literature, several
studies have shown that Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD) might occur
with neuropsychological deficits. Executive Functions (EFs) and attention deficits have been described among
ADHD individuals, but those deficits are neither necessary
nor sufficient to predict such a diagnosis. Some studies have
also shown working memory (WM) deficits to be frequently found among children and
adults with ADHD, but few Brazilian studies have investigated
this subject. The scarcity of available Brazilian neuropsychological
tasks with the purpose of evaluating attention and EFs (including
WM) is an important limitation for clinicians
in everyday clinical practice. We aimed to present findings
of studies that evaluated attention and EFs in Brazilian samples
with ADHD children and adults, both from clinical and non-clinical
populations. We also aimed to evaluate discriminant validity
of tests that had already been validated for use in Brazil – TAVIS-3, Digit Span and Arithmetic
tests – intended to assess attention and WM functions in children
and adolescents.
PROCESSING SPEED, DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS AND WORKING
MEMORY IN AGED INDIVIDUALS AND MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS PATIENTS.
Haase VG1* & Ferreira FO2
1Dep. de Psicologia, Universidade Federal
de Minas Gerais, UFMG; 2Dep. de Educação, Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto, UFOP, Brazil
Damage to the hemispheric white matter is observed both
in multiple sclerosis (MS)
and normal aging, causing neuropsychological deficits in tasks
of executive functions, working memory (WM),
and speed of information processing (SPEED).
Two main hypotheses were investigated: 1) that SPEED may constitute
a determining factor of WM impairment in MS and aged individuals;
and 2) that self-reported depressive symptoms may aggravate
cognitive deficits in MS patients. The study investigated
31 MS patients without depression, 36 MS individuals with
depressive symptoms, 108 demographically comparable controls
and 100 community recruited senior participants. Performance
of the groups were compared on a self-report measure of depression
(Beck Depression Inventory)
and on the Working Memory Assessment Battery (BAMT-UFMG).
The BAMT is based on a processing model of WM, according to
which two components, represented by Operations Coordination
(Arithmetic and syntactic listening
span tasks) and Storage (Simple digit and word span tasks), are modulated by
processing speed (Speed of resolving
simple arithmetic and syntactic comprehension problems). Results showed that WM performance depends on
SPEED (explaining more than 40% of
variance in different groups), age, and schooling,
with these variables interacting in complex ways. WM performance
in MS patients was moderated by depressive symptoms.
EMOTIONAL WORKING MEMORY IN ALZHEIMER DISEASE
Satler C*, Tavares MC, Tomaz C
Dep. Ciências Fisiológicas, Universidade
de Brasília, UnB, Brazil.
Alzheimer’s disease (AD)
has been associated with a deficit in working memory (WM)
for verbal and visual information. This study examined differences
in WM for emotional information in 24 subjects (12
with AD, matched to controls according to age and education)
using a computerized delayed (non)
matching-to-sample (DMTS/DNMTS)
task with trial-unique stimuli and short delay intervals.
Thirty-six IAPS photographs were grouped in pairs into 3 sets
of 12 pictures (neutral, highly pleasant-arousing/relaxing and highly unpleasant-arousing),
plus 12 geometric figures for each task. The mean correct
responses were not above chance level in AD for DMTS and DNMTS
tasks, indicating a low performance compared to controls (DMTS,
p<0.005; DNMTS, p<0.001).
Pairs of stimuli, classified as congruent/divergent, showed
an interaction with the factor task displaying more correct
responses for congruent condition in DMTS and divergent condition
in DNMTS, regardless of group. Considering the sample stimuli
(emotional/neutral), controls but not AD, in both tasks,
showed a tendency to perform more correct responses when the
sample was an emotional one. These findings suggest a WM deficit
in AD subjects, indicating a lack of benefit of emotion for
this paradigm.
Financial Support: CNPq and FINATEC.
ARE THERE DIFFERENT BUFFERS FOR VERBAL WORKING MEMORY?
A CASE STUDY OF CONDUCTION APHASIA.
Strobilius R,
Monteiro F, Bolognani SP, Bueno OFA
Dep. Psicobiologia,
Universidade Federal de São Paulo, UNIFESP, Brazil
Objective : Our
aim is to use a case study of a patient with Conduction Aphasia
(CA) to evaluate how semantic and phonological domains
are related in processing verbal information. We will discuss
how our results can be explained by working memory models.
Participants and Methods: HR, male, 34 years-old, suffered brain
injury with temporal and parietal lesions at cortical and
sub cortical levels. He was submitted to neuropsychological
and language evaluation, with CA diagnosis and a curious predominance
of semantic paraphasias (SP). In order to investigate the nature of his deficit,
he was submitted to the following language tests: Word Repetition
(WR); Sentence Repetition (SR);
Pseudoword Repetition (PwR);
and Recognition by Visual Confrontation (RVC)
(with pictures and words).
Results: The neuropsychological evaluation
showed: verbal working memory difficulties with poor phonological
rehearsal; executive functions deficits when language abilities
were involved; and good performance at visual tasks. The language
evaluation showed: word repetition difficulties, with semantic
paraphasias and worse scores in abstract words: 9/21 versus
98/147 to concrete words; Sentence Repetition difficulties,
with semantic paraphasias and theme-related sentences. In
the RVC tests he also made several semantic errors by pointing
theme or category related pictures or writing words. Discussion:
HR’s worse performance in verbal working memory tests suggested
that he could not use the phonological loop to rehearse information.
His answers to repetition tests, and specially his worse performance
in abstract and pseudowords suggested that he could activate
his semantic memory, despite not being able to maintain the
exact phonological form to achieve the target. His performance
suggested that he can access the input form of the phonological
buffer, but he cannot use it for his production because he
has difficulty in retrieving the output form. Conclusion:
The observed occurrence of SP, even for non-verbal
answers (RVC test),
as well as the worse performance in pseudowords and in abstract
words, suggest there are multiple levels of representation
in verbal working memory: with phonological and semantic buffers.
RELATIONSHIP OF COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS AND BEHAVIORAL DISTURBANCES ON CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS WITH PRADER-WILLI SYNDROME.
Carreiro LRR*; Teixeira MCTV, Mesquita
MLG.
Programa de Distúrbios do Desenvolvimento,
Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie, Brazil.
Prader-Willi
syndrome (PWS) is a
genetic disorder caused by the loss of the paternal contribution
of the proximal part (15q11-q13) of the long arm of chromosome 15. The syndrome
is associated with mild to moderate mental retardation, behavioral
disturbances and deficits in executive functions. This study
aims to explore the relationship of cognitive functions, assessed
by WISC-III, and behavioral disturbances determined by the
Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL/6-18),
of 13 children and adolescents (average
age = 12.3 years) with clinical, cytogenetic
and molecular diagnosis of PWS. Spearman nonparametric correlation
were determined between pondered scores of WISC subtests,
QI (Verbal, Performance and Total),
and CBCL scores.
The main results showed a behavioral profile of inattention
classified as clinical in different behavioral scales. Significant
correlations was observed on somatic complaints and Digits
(0.66; p=0.01), Verbal
IQ (r=0.54; p=0.05), Verbal Behavior (r=0.57;
p=0.04) and resistance to distraction (r=0.67,
p<0,01) that constitute attentional and
working memory measures. On the other hand, rule-breaking
behavior showed a significant correlation to attention problems
(r=0.79; p<0.01);
aggressive behavior (r=0.64; p=0.02)
and ADHD problems (r=0.78; p<0.01).
These results characterizes PWS as a psychiatric risk group
with inhibitory control deficits involving executive functions
and conduct problems, expressed by attention problems, rule-breaking
behavior and aggressiveness.
Financial Support:
Instituto
Mackenzie de Pesquisa – MACKPESQUISA
VISUOSPATIAL WORKING MEMORY
ACUTE EFFECTS OF DONEPEZIL UNDERLINE
THE FRACTIONATION OF EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONING
Ginani GE1, Bueno OFA1, Pradella-Hallinan
M1, Tufik S1, Rusted J2,
Pompéia S1
1Dep.
Psicobiologia, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, UNIFESP,
Brazil; 2
Dep. Psychology, Sussex University, Brighton, UK.
Rationale:
The cholinergic system is involved in the modulation of top-down
and bottom-up attention in paradigms that study perception.
Top-down attention also involves controlled processes such
as executive functions, but few studies have investigated
the role of the cholinergic system in performance on such
processes, especially as regards the proposal of fractionation
of executive functions. Objective: To investigate the acute
effects of the pro-cholinergic donepezil in young, healthy
volunteers in distinct subtypes of executive functions. Methods:
We conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled, independent
groups design study including 36 young healthy male participants,
who were randomly assigned to one of three oral treatments:
glucose (placebo), donepezil 5 mg or donepezil 7.5 mg. The test
battery included measures of different subtypes of executive
functions (shifting, updating, inhibition, dual-task performance, planning, access
to long-term memory), and tasks used to evaluate
arousal/vigilance/visuomotor performance. Results: Donepezil
improved sustained attention, reaction times, decreased number
of lapses in an attentional task, improved dual-task performance
and the executive component of the digit span. The
positive effects in these executive tasks did not correlate
with other attentional arousal/visuomotor/vigilance measures.
Conclusions: Among the various executive domains investigated
donepezil selectively increased dual-task performance in a
manner that could not be ascribed to improvement in arousal/vigilance/visuomotor
performance. Other executive tasks may be modulated by the
cholinergic system when they rely heavily on visuospatial
processing.
Financial Support: AFIP, CAPES,
CNPq.
ACUTE
COGNITIVE EFFECTS OF DONEPEZIL IN VISUOSPATIAL WORKING MEMORY
Zaninotto ALC1, Bueno OFA1, Pradella-Hallinan M1,
Tufik S1, Rusted J2, Stough C3,
Pompéia S1
1Dep. Psicobiologia, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, UNIFESP,
Brazil;
2Dep.
Psychology, Sussex University,
Brighton, UK; 3Brain Sciences Institute, Swinburne University of Technology,
Melbourne, Australia.
Objective: Drugs such as donepezil that increase the availability of acetylcholine
(Ach) are known to
improve various cognitive processes, but the acute nootropic
potential of
this drug in young, healthy volunteers has not been shown,
possibly because effects were evaluated before peak-plasma
concentration was reached. Here we evaluated the cognitive
effects of an acute oral dose of donepezil in young, healthy
volunteers at peak-plasma concentration. Methods: This was
a double-blind, placebo controlled, parallel group design
study of cognitive effects of acute oral donepezil (5
mg). Subjects were tested twice after donepezil
ingestion: 90 min (time that coincides with previous testing in the literature)
and 210 min. (theoretical peak-plasma
concentration). The test battery included tasks
that tap cognitive domains that are sensitive to ACh manipulations.
Results: Most of donepezil’s effects were observed at both
testing times and included improvement in mood, long-term
recall of prose, objects recall, recall of spatial locations
and integration of objects with their locations. However,
improvement of performance in the central executive measure
(backward digit span)
occurred only at 210 min. Conclusion: positive cognitive effects
of acute donepezil can be observed in various cognitive domains
but its full nootropic potential is more clearly found at
peak-plasma concentration.
Financial Support: FAPESP, AFIP, CAPES, CNPq.
AUTOMATIC ATTENTION
EFFECTS AND WORKING MEMORY
Ribeiro do Valle
LE
Dep. de Fisiologia
e Biofísica, Universidade de São Paulo, USP, Brazil.
Automatic attention effects are commonly observed after
the presentation of a spatially non-informative peripheral
visual stimulus immediately before the presentation of a visual
target stimulus in the same location or in a distant location.
In some conditions, however, these effects do not appear.
For instance, when the prime stimulus features are different
from those of the target stimulus it does not usually produce
any attentional effect. It can be supposed that the representation
of the target stimulus in working memory causes similar prime-stimuli
but not very different prime-stimuli to be processed to the
point of mobilizing automatic attention. Another possibility
is that the brain tends to filter out all stimuli that are
irrelevant for task performance by inhibiting their processing
so as to let the representation of the target stimulus stand
out. This filtering would be difficult to perform when similar
prime and other irrelevant stimuli occur but very easy to
perform when different prime or other irrelevant stimuli occur.
In this last case the prime-stimulus would not mobilize attention
and the attentional effect would not appear. We performed
an experiment in which we used Posner procedure and a go/no-go
reaction time task to evaluate automatic attention. We observed
an attentional effect for a relatively difficult to discriminate
target stimulus and no attentional effect for a relatively
easy to discriminate target stimulus. Both hypotheses above
could explain these contrasting results. In a second experiment,
using the same procedures, we demonstrated that by increasing
the discrimination difficulty of the second target stimulus
the attentional effect could be obtained. This result suggests
that the brain tends indeed to inhibit processing of irrelevant
stimuli, reducing their influence on behavior. This would
be achieved, however, only when these stimuli are relatively
distinct from the target stimulus.
Cesar
Galera will present the following papers:
INTEGRATION
OF VISUAL AND
VERBAL FEATURES IN WORKING MEMORY.
Godoy
J & Galera C*
Dep. Psicologia e Educação. Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras
de Ribeirão Preto, FFCL- USP, Brazil.
The dual tasks paradigm was used to investigate the involvement of attention
in the binding of verbal and visual information in working
memory, and the specific role of these components when they
are integrated. Two experiments were carried out, with
33 subjects, who memorized sequences of Faces, Names, or face-name
Conjunctions. In the Experiment 1,
these conditions were performed in separate blocks, either
alone or with a backward counting in threes (CR3).
In Experiment 2, these conditions were performed in separate
blocks, with Articulatory Suppression (AS)
and Dynamic Visual Noise (DVN).
The CR3 caused greater loss in the Conjunction than in the
Faces and Names condition (Exp.1).
The SA and the DVN have equivalent effect and they show more relevant
effects in the Conjunction condition. The SA revealed more
relevant effect than the DVN
in the Face and Name conditions (Exp.2).
The greater prejudice of CR3 in binding, compared to that
obtained in Names and Faces suggested that the integration
of visual and verbal features demanded the involvement of
attention. Moreover, the differential effect of SA towards
DVN in the storage of isolated visual and verbal features,
suggests that they may be stored in different ways when integrated.
Financial Support: CAPES
APPEARANCE AND
LOCATION ARE
AUTOMATICALLY INTEGRATED IN VISUO-SPATIAL WORKING MEMORY.
Corder
AP & Galera C*
Dep. Psicologia e Educação. Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras
de Ribeirão Preto, FFCL- USP, Brazil.
The separation between systems supporting memory for
object and memory for location seems to be well established.
However, there are several evidences suggesting that object
and location are automatically integrated in visual working
memory. We investigated this question in a recognition
task that required the participants to memorize, in sequences
of four objects, just the objects information (appearance or name) or just objects location. We suppose
that, if recognition based on a relevant dimension (e.g.
appearance) is disrupted by a change in an
irrelevant dimension (e.g. location),
we can infer that both dimensions have been automatically
integrated in memory. The recognition of sequences based on
appearance, but not the recognition of sequences based on
names, is affected by changing the location of one object
in the sequence. The recognition based on location is affected
by both changes in object appearance and name. The effect of a change in location on the recognition
based on appearance is greater than the effect of a change
in appearance on the recognition based on location. These
results suggest that appearance and location are automatically
integrated in visuo-spatial working memory, but location seems
to play a more central role on recognition than appearence.
Financial Support: FAPESP.
AUTOMATIC CODING OF STIMULI ORDER IN A VISUAL-SPATIAL TASK
Santana
J & Galera C*
Dep.Psicologia e Educação. Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras
de Ribeirão Preto, FFCL- USP, Brazil.
We investigated whether the order of objects in a sequence
is automatically encoded by the visual appearance and position
in which these objects were presented. We consider that, if
the recognition based on a relevant dimension of the stimulus
is disturbed by a change in an irrelevant dimension, it is
possible to assume that the stored representation keeps the
integrated traces of the relevant and irrelevant dimensions.
The participants (n=60)
evaluated the sameness of two sequences of objects characterized
by visual appearance, spatial position and the binding of
both dimensions (relevant dimensions).
The order of the objects presentation (irrelevant dimension) could be equal or different in
the two sequences. The results indicated a better memory performance
in the spatial task followed by visual-spatial and a worse
performance in visual task. The recognition accuracy in equal
sequences (hit) was
better than in different sequences (correct
rejection). The performance is affected by
changes in the stimuli order, and this occurs in different
degrees for each relevant dimension; the interaction between
relevant and irrelevant dimensions occurs only in spatial
and visual-spatial tasks. These results suggest that the order
is stored automatically, depending on the memorized relevant
dimension.
Financial Support: CNPq
MECHANISMS AND PHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES
IN TASK INVOLVING WORKING MEMORY
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INTERACTIONS
BETWEEN CORTICAL ACTIVITIES AND
CARDIAC FREQUENCY DURING THE PERFORMANCE OF WORKING MEMORY
TASKS
Garcia A*, Conde
S, Uribe C, Tavares MC, Tomaz C
Dep de Ciências Fisiológicas, Universidade de Brasília, UnB, Brazil.
The participation of circuits of the frontal lobes in
executive functions can be explained by working memory (WM)
tasks that require distributed connections over the cortex.
Additionally, the emotional factor can bring about the contribution
of other neuronal substrates including the autonomic nervous
system. This study aims to investigate the correlations between
cortical activities and autonomic responses. Changes in cortical
activity during WM tasks were examined with electroenphalogram
(EEG) and recorded simultaneously with a frequency cardiac
(FC) monitoring system
during the performance of the delayed (non)
matching-to-sample tasks (DMTS/DNMTS)
using pictures from the International Affective Picture System
(neutral and emotional) and others of geometric figures
as stimuli. The results (n=12; 6 male;
ages: 18-24; ~19.5+/-0.582) demonstrated a
significant difference between the tasks (DNMTS>DMTS;
p= 0,041), considering the average of power
of frontal and parietal derivations of EEG recording, and
the heart rate variability parameters - pNN50 (DMTS>DNMTS; p=0.038), LF/HF (DNMTS>DMTS;
p=0,012). This preliminary study indicates
a trend that the DNMTS task expresses higher cortical activation
concomitantly with the excitability as a result of heart rate,
and yielded better understanding of the interactions between
the central nervous system and the autonomic nervous system.
THE ROLE OF THE BASAL GANGLIA ON WORKING MEMORY ACCORDING
TO THE MOSAIC OF BROKEN MIRRORS MODEL
Da Cunha C.*
Dep. Farmacologia,
Universidade Federal do Paraná, UFPR, Brazil.
The basal ganglia (BG)
were traditionally related to motor control; however, more
recently, they have been recognized by many as a system specialized
in action selection, a function that affects the triggering
of motor programs that implement the selected actions. There
is evidence that the BG can also select a limited number of
information items that can be handled by the prefrontal cortex
in operations that depend on working memory. The “mosaic
of broken mirrors model” provides a mechanism by which
the BG can do such a selection (Behav.
Brain Res.199:157, 2009). It proposes that
units of information encoded by the neocortex, such as symbols,
words, digits, objects of the environment which the subject
can manipulate, and locations the subject can approach, are
projected to the striatum in a fragmented and repeated way,
like a mosaic made by fragmented images of broken mirrors.
These units also represent plans and parts of the body which
can perform an action. The selection of the unit related to
the proper action depends on the activation of a striatal
unit by cortical neurons that are active at the same time
and send convergent projections to that unit. This selection
also depends on the release of dopamine in the striatum. The
striatal units encoding the same information-action association
send convergent projections to the internal segment of the
globus pallidus and to the substantia nigra pars reticulata
that stimulate or hold on the action through a thalamus-frontal
cortex pathway. It is also by this mechanism that the prefrontal
cortex can reduce the number of informational units that can
be manipulated by the working memory central executive. Therefore,
this model can explain the working memory problems caused
by the abnormal level of striatal dopamine and/or lesions
in components of the BG, as observed in Parkinson’s disease,
schizophrenia, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and
other psychiatric and neurological diseases.
ENHANCEMENT OF FRONTAL LOBE METABOLISM THROUGH BIO-INTERACTIVE
GAMING
Dias, A.M.1, Van Deusen, A.2, Oda, E3
1Dep. Psicologia, Universidade de São Paulo, USP, Brazil;
2Itallis Consciousness Technologies, Brazil; 3Dep.
de Matemática Aplicada, Instituto de Matemática e Estatística,
USP, Brazil.
Rationale: The
authors, in a 6 year-long experience with HEG neurofeedback,
have observed considerable gains in impulse control, short
term memory and reaction time amongst the persons trained.
A clear case is made for increases in prefrontal metabolism
for practical cognitive and physical gains. Methods: In order to make HEG neurofeedback training more
palatable and engaging, one of the authors (AMVD)
has adapted existing, popular arcade style video games to
be driven by the player’s increase in brain blood perfusion.
Based on this new creation, a 15 person Brain Championship
was held, using the game’s scoring as an index of competence.
Sessions in the championship lasted 30 minutes of perfusion
training. Decrease mental and muscle latency were observed
pre and post testing; self-perception reports revealed that
the task made nearly all participants feel cognitively enhanced.
Results: Considering
that functional memory is chiefly related to decreases in
mental latency, and that changes in self-perception in part
correspond to changes in organic functioning, this experiment
leads to the conclusion that HEG neurofeedback in association
with the new brain video games that we have introduced may
represent a valid methodology for the enhancement of working
memory amongst persons without specific cognitive abnormalities.
RESPONSE DELAY
INVOLVEMENT IN RETROSPECTIVE TIME ESTIMATIONS FOR MUSIC TONAL
MODULATIONS MAY REVEAL THE DUALITY OF EXPLICIT AND IMPLICIT
EXPRESSIONS OF WORKING MEMORY
Firmino EA* & Bueno JLO
Dep. Psicologia
da Educação, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de
Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, USP, Brazil
Firmino and Bueno (2008)
found time underestimations relative to music filled by tonal
modulations. Longer distances between musical keys reduce
the subjective time more than shorter ones. If such pathways
include intermediate keys, the reduction impact is smaller.
These results were explained by the expected development fraction
model (EDF-model) containing
an implicit working memory process, since both stimulus and
behavior were non-verbal. Participants were instructed about
the reproduction of the music duration through stopwatch immediately
after listening. By contrast, a subsequent experiment showed
that if the time between the ending of the stimulus and the
beginning of the task is hardly shortened due to a very small
instruction, occasional time overestimations appear, although
maintaining the pattern of lesser time estimations in inverse
function of interkey distances. In turn, we propose the Contextual
EDF-model considering verbal/visual information captured from
environment/thought during music listening. Such contextual
information is weakly kept by a short-term central executive
process during time estimation simultaneously with the implicit
musical information provided by the EDF-model. Thus, the concern
of an explicit and implicit working memory duality is discussed
in light of the Contextual EDF-model, the multi-component
model, and other models of psychological time and tonal sense.
Financial
Support: CNPq.
WORKING MEMORY AND DEVELOPMENT
WORKING MEMORY
AND LEARNING: A LONGITUDINAL STUDY OF TRILINGUAL CHILDREN
Pascale E
Dep.
Psychology, Oxford University, UK
The aim of the present study was to investigate the contribution
of two working memory systems (the
phonological loop and the central executive)
to children’s learning in the areas of vocabulary, language
comprehension, reading, spelling, mathematical skills, and
foreign language acquisition. The term working memory refers
to the ability to store and manipulate information in mind
for a brief period of time, in the course of ongoing cognitive
activities (Baddeley, 2000). A sample of 119 Luxembourgish children, learning German
and French as secondary languages were assessed longitudinally
over a 3-year time period. In Luxembourg,
children learn to speak, read, and write in two languages
that are different from their native language Luxembourgish. A battery of
working memory, and learning ability tests were administered.
Children were tested in kindergarten (5
years of age), in first, and in second grade
with a one year interval between each testing wave. Multiple
assessments of each construct made it possible to construct
latent variables, and apply structural equation modeling techniques
to explore the underlying theoretical structure of working
memory in young children, and possible links with learning.
Results indicate that relations
between the working memory measures were best characterized
by a model consisting
of two related but separable constructs corresponding to the
phonological loop and the central executive. Individual differences
in phonological loop functioning and the central executive
were found to be remarkably stable from kindergarten through
second grade. The data further showed that both memory components were
differentially associated with learning: Whereas the phonological
loop was more specifically linked to early language development
and vocabulary in particular, the central executive appeared
to make more general contributions to classroom related learning.
The findings lend strong support to the position that the
phonological loop is one of the main contributors to new word learning in both
native and non-native languages by supporting the formation of stable phonological representations
of new words in long-term memory. Furthermore the
findings fit well with the position that the central executive
might play an important role in the monitoring and processing
of information during complex and demanding activities present
in many classroom situations. In conclusion, the presented evidence of (a) the stability of individual differences in young
children’s working memory capacity and, (b)
causal relations of working memory with learning reinforces
the value of early screening of working memory abilities to
identify children who are at risk of
poor academic progress over the coming years.
VISUAL
WORKING MEMORY DEVELOPMENTAL TRAITS: VALIDITY EVIDENCE IN
A BRAZILIAN SAMPLE
Berberian
AA1, Dias
NM 2,
Trevisan BT 2, Cozza
HF 3, Seabra AG 2
1Dep.
Psiquiatria,
Universidade Federal de São Paulo, UNIFESP, Brazil; 2Dep.
Distúrbios do Desenvolvimento, Universidade Presbiteriana
Mackenzie, Brazil; 3Anhanguera Educacional, Centro Universitário de Santo André,
Brazil.
Introduction: Development
of working memory has been attributed to the protracted maturation
of prefrontal cortex, beginning in early childhood and continuing
into adult age. However, few studies have replicated such
pattern of development in a Brazilian sample, and there is
also lack of validity evidences of neuropsychological instruments
in Brazil.
This study examined the developmental trajectories of visual
working memory (VWM) and sought for validity evidences of a computerized
VWM task. Method:
Participants were 626 individuals in nine age groups (6,
7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 20 or older but no older
than 37 years old) who carried out one computerized
VWM task. Results: Analysis of variance to examine developmental trends
revealed that continuation of VWM performance was seen among
9, 10, 11, 12, and 13 years old. The group of participants
with age between 20 and 37 had significant superior performance
when compared to all other groups. Conclusion: These data suggest
that VWM process develops at different rates and continue
increasing into adult life. This corroborates development
theories about trajectories of VWM in a Brazilian sample and
provides validity evidences for this computerized way of evaluation,
which showed sensitivity to discriminate individual performances
through various ages.
Financial
Support: FAPESP, CNPq.
MEMORY AND STRESS IN PRE-COLLEGE
STUDENTS: EFFECTS OF MANUAL THERAPY.
Fraga-Sousa GA1*,
Ferreira HA1, Ferrari EA1, Balthazar
M2, Spadari RC3
1Dep. de
Anatomia, Biologia Celular e Fisiologia, Universidade Estadual
de Campinas, UNICAMP, Brazil; 2Dep. de Neurologia,
Universidade Estadual de Campinas, UNICAMP, Brazil; 3Dep.
de Biociências, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, UNIFESP
– Santos, Brazil.
Career choice and college entrance exams are stressful
situations for students, which may impair cognitive performance.
Thus, therapeutic strategies to cope with stress could be
useful. Here, the perceived stress index (PSI)
and performance in tests of episodic and working memory were
evaluated in 54 students, aged 17-27, allocated in two groups:
one (MTG, n=26) that
received manual therapy (lymphatic
drainage and muscle mobilization) from September
to November and the control group (CG,
n=28) that received no therapy. Rey Auditory
Learning Test (RALT),
Logical Memory Test (LMT)
and Digit Span Test were used to assess episodic and working
memories in November, one week before the exams. There was
significant reduction in the PSI for MTG (154.5±34.3 vs. 139.9±39.8; p=0.02; t-Student Test) after
the period of manual therapy, but no difference was found
for CG (137.6±27.6 vs. 144.3±37.5; p=0.45; t-Student Test).
MTG performed better in RALT delayed recall (p=0.025;
Mann-Whitney Test) and LMT immediate recall
(p=0.005, ANOVA) as compared to CG. These results support
manual therapy as an effective coping strategy in stress situation
favoring more efficient cognitive performance.
WORKING
MEMORY IN CHILDREN ASSESSED BY THE BROWN-PETERSON TASK.
Vaz IA* &
Lukasova K
Dep. Psicologia,
Universidade Cruzeiro do Sul de São Paulo, Brazil.
Working memory is a cognitive skill that contributes
to development of language and reading and writing acquisition.
Continuous evaluation of working memory in pre-school and
school aged children is shown to be important for early identification
of possible learning impairment. The present study aims to
evaluate development of working memory along the first school
grades of basic education and check the applicability of the
Brown-Peterson Task in children’s memory skills assessment.
One hundred and three children, 63 males, with mean age of
9.75, recruited from 1st to 6th grade
of basic school participated in the study. Participants were
assessed with the Brown-Peterson Task, the Digit Span forward
and the Digit Span Backward. Results were compared for the
variables of sex, age and grade. The score on the Brow-Peterson
Task showed increase along the grades and age groups. Linear
decrease in scoring was shown in longer interference intervals.
Positive correlation was found between the Brown-Peterson
Task and Digit Span, yet the Brown-Peterson Task proved to
differentiate better between school grades. The study confirmed
continuous development of working memory during basic education
indicating late maturation of related brain areas. The Brown-Peterson
Task proved to be an adequate tool for assessment of working
memory in children.
Financial Support: Undergraduate Research from Universidade
Cruzeiro do Sul.
Fernando Capovilla will present
the following papers:
STANDARDIZATION OF COMPUTERIZED
PICTURE RECOGNITION MEMORY TEST (PRMT):
NORMS OF RECOGNITION SCORE, RECOGNITION DURATION, AND RECOGNITION
RATE FOR 1ST-4TH ELEMENTARY-SCHOOL GRADERS
Capovilla FC* & Thomazette LM
Dep. Psicologia, Universidade de São
Paulo, USP, Brazil.
The
Computerized Picture Recognition Memory Test (PRMT)
was standardized with 337 1st-4th elementary-school graders.
PRMT requires memorization of 112 pictures under four exposure
durations (.5, 1, 1.5, 2 sec)
and three sequence sizes (4, 8, 16
pictures). Anovas followed by post-hoc pair-wise
tests revealed PRMT scores and points-per-minute increased
(while response times decreased)
along successive school-grade levels. Norms are: For 1st graders:
those very delayed (VD)
(-3to-1dp) scored 45-60
points in 6,9-8,1 min (0-7 points/min);
delayed (D) (-2to-1dp):
61-77 in 5,6-6,8 (8-15 points/min);
average (M) (-1to+1do):
76-108 in 3,1-5,5 (16-31 points/min),
advanced (A) (+1to+2dp):
109-112 in 1,8-30 (32-39 points/min),
very advanced (VA)
(+2to+3dp): 112 in
0,5-1,7 (40-48 points/min).
For 2nd graders: VD: 66-76 in 5,2-5,9 (10-15
points/min); D: 77-88 in 4,4-5,1 (16-20
points/min); M: 89-11 in 2,9-4,3 (21-34
points/min); A: 110-112 in 2,1-2,8 (35-41
points/min), VA: 112 in 1,3-2,0 (42-47
points/min). For 3rd graders: VD: 67-78 in 5,5-6,4 (4-13 points/min); D: 79-89 in 4,5-5,4 (14-21 points/min); M: 90-110 in 2,6-4,4 (22-39 points/min); A: 110-112 in 1,6-2,5 (40-49 points/min), VA: 112 in 0,6-1,5 (50-57 points/min). For
4th graders: VD: 79-97 in 4,8-5,4 (12-17
points/min); D: 88-95 in 4,1-4,7 (18-24
points/min); M: 96-111 in 2,8-4,0 (25-39
points/min); A: 112 in 2,1-2,7 (40-45
points/min); VA: 112 in 1,4-2,0 (46-52
points/min).
Financial
Support: CNPq, Capes
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PHONOLOGICAL
LEXICON AND PICTURE RECOGNITION MEMORY IN ELEMENTARY-SCHOOL
CHILDREN
Capovilla FC* & Thomazette LM
Dep. Psicologia, Universidade de São
Paulo, USP, Brazil.
If
sub-vocal naming is involved in picture memorization and subsequent
recognition, then there must be positive correlation between
phonological lexicon size (the repository
of spoken names that allows one to sub-vocally label pictures)
and picture recognition memory (RM)
skill. In this study 337 1st-4th elementary-school graders
were exposed to Picture Auditory Vocabulary Test (PAVT)
and Picture Recognition Memory Test (PRMT).
PRMT requires memorization of 112 pictures under four exposure
durations (.5, 1, 1.5, 2 sec) and three sequence sizes (4, 8, 16 pictures). PAVT presented 92 sets of 4 pictures
each and required students to choose pictures to match spoken
words. Anovas followed by post-hoc pair-wise comparison tests
revealed that PRMT and PAVT scores significantly increased
with school-grade level. PRMT was validated internally (RM
decreased as sequence size increased and exposure duration
diminished) and externally (regression of PRMT scores upon PAVT scores revealed positive significant
correlation: Covariant Analysis of PRMT scores as function
of PAVT score level, having controlled the effect of school-grade
level as covariant, revealed that RM increased strongly with
vocabulary level). Such findings suggest that
internal speech promotes picture RM, supporting the notion
that internal speech fosters picture RM, and that interventions
to increase phonological lexicon (vocabulary
size) may benefit RM in children.
Financial
Support: CNPq, Capes
STRONG EVIDENCE OF SUB-VOCAL SPEECH
INVOLVEMENT IN IMAGE (PICTURE X NON-PICTURE)
RECOGNITION MEMORY BY COLLEGE STUDENTS
Capovilla* FC & Thomazette LM
Dep. Psicologia, Universidade de São
Paulo, USP, Brazil.
Because
pictures can be sub-vocally named, they allow double processing
(primary visual, secondary phonological), whereas non-pictures
allow only visual processing. Because secondary processing
demands time, short exposure time hinders sub-vocal naming,
especially during long image sequences. This study tested
whether picture recognition memory (RM) is higher than non-picture RM, and whether such
picture RM advantage decreases as exposure time is diminished,
especially in long sequences of pictures to be memorized.
Participated 103 college students who were exposed to IRMT
(Image Recognition Memory Test)
and had to memorize 620 images (310
pictures and 310 non-pictures) presented with
different exposure duration (.5, 1,
1.5, 2, 2.5 sec) and sequence size (4,
8, 16, 32, 64 images per sequence). RM scores
were computed as function of image type, exposure time, and
sequence size. Results revealed that: 1) picture RM is greater
than non-picture RM, 2) image RM increases with the increase
in exposure duration, 3) exposure duration benefits more picture
RM than it does non-picture RM, 4) image RM decreases with
the increase in the sequence size, 5) increase in sequence
size hinders non-picture RM more than it does picture RM.
Such findings fully support the notion that internal speech
fosters picture RM.
Financial
Support: CNPq, Capes
AUTHORING TOOL FOR CREATING COMPUTERIZED
IMAGE (PICTURE X NON-PICTURE)
RECOGNITION MEMORY TESTS
Capovilla FC* & Thomazette LM
Dep. Psicologia, Universidade de São
Paulo, USP, Brazil.
The
authoring tool FaberMemo permits developing computerized image
recognition memory tests in psychology for clinical, educational
and scientific purposes. FaberMemo permits controlling the
effects several variables, such as the type of the images
to be shown (pictures versus non-pictures),
the time during which each image is to be shown (image exposure time: from .5 sec to 4 seconds per image),
and the number of images to be presented at each sequence
(sequence size from 4 to 64 images
per sequence). It was developed in the platform
Access 2005, and permits recording recognition scores and
recognition time as function of image type, image exposure
time, and number of images in sequence. Pictures are line-drawings
that depict well-known referents; non-pictures contain the
same line segments but arranged in random order so as to prevent
recognition and naming. FaberMemo contains an image bank of
630 pictures, and their corresponding 630 non-pictures to
be used in memory tests. In the bank, each picture has a precisely
determined degree of name agreement (standardized for 3-18 year old students) and its corresponding
picture-name has a precisely determined degree of orthographic
familiarity standardized for 4-10 year old students. FaberMemo
is being published and will be fully demonstrated.
Financial
Support: CNPq, Capes
PRELIMINARY EVIDENCE OF VISEMIC-LALEMIC
REVERBERATION INVOLVEMENT IN PICTURE RECOGNITION MEMORY SKILL
IN PRESCHOOLERS
Capovilla FC*, Graton-Santos LE, Sousa-Sousa
CC
Dep. Psicologia, Universidade de São
Paulo, USP, Brazil.
Phonological
lexicon (as assessed via Auditory
Vocabulary Test: AVT) enables understanding
spoken words. Visemic lexicon (as
assessed via Orofacial Reading Vocabulary Test: ORT)
enables understanding spoken words in the absence of sound.
Both lexicons permit coverting a sequence of pictures into
a sequence of names thus enabling subvocal rehearsal of those
names. Phonologically-formed words are rehearsed in the phonemic-lalemic
loop. Visemically-formed words are rehearsed in the visemic-lalemic
loop. Theoretically, the greater the lexicons, the greater
the memory (as assessed via Picture
Recognition Memory Test: PRT). This study investigated
the relationship between phonological lexicon (AVT
scores), visemic lexicon (ORT
scores), and visual recognition memory skill
(PRT scores), as well
as their development, in 43 hearing preschoolers aged 4-6
years old. Results showed significant positive correlation
between AVT-PRT and ORT-PRT scores (the
greater the phonological lexicon or visemic lexicon, the greater
the recognition memory). Results also showed
that orofacial reading skill (ORT
scores) increased significantly above chance
level only when children acquired literacy at
6 years of age. Results suggest that, when children
become literate, they can begin to lipread, and use their
recently-acquired visemic-lalemic loop to rehearse picture
names so as to better recognize those pictures when they see
them again.
Financial
Support: CNPq, Capes
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