This longitudinal study explored the importance of kindergarten measures of phonological awareness, working memory, and quantity–number competencies (QNC) for predicting mathematical school ...achievement in third graders (mean age 8 years 8 months). It was found that the impact of phonological awareness and visual–spatial working memory, assessed at 5 years of age, was mediated by early QNC, which predicted math achievement in third grade. Importantly, and confirming our isolated number words hypothesis, phonological awareness had no impact on higher numerical competencies (i.e., when number words needed to be linked with quantities QNC Level II and above) but predicted basic numerical competencies (i.e., when number words were isolated from quantities QNC Level I), explaining the moderate relationship between early literacy development and the development of mathematical competencies.
Visual-spatial working memory measures are widely used in clinical and experimental settings. Furthermore, it has been argued that the male advantage in spatial abilities can be explained by a sex ...difference in visual-spatial working memory. Therefore, sex differences in visual-spatial working memory have important implication for research, theory, and practice, but they have yet to be quantified. The present meta-analysis quantified the magnitude of sex differences in visual-spatial working memory and examined variables that might moderate them. The analysis used a set of 180 effect sizes from healthy males and females drawn from 98 samples ranging in mean age from 3 to 86 years. Multilevel meta-analysis was used on the overall data set to account for non-independent effect sizes. The data also were analyzed in separate task subgroups by means of multilevel and mixed-effects models. Results showed a small but significant male advantage (mean
d
= 0.155, 95 % confidence interval = 0.087-0.223). All the tasks produced a male advantage, except for memory for location, where a female advantage emerged. Age of the participants was a significant moderator, indicating that sex differences in visual-spatial working memory appeared first in the 13-17 years age group. Removing memory for location tasks from the sample affected the pattern of significant moderators. The present results indicate a male advantage in visual-spatial working memory, although age and specific task modulate the magnitude and direction of the effects. Implications for clinical applications, cognitive model building, and experimental research are discussed.
•Audible self-talk usage predicts improvement in visual-spatial memory performance.•Link between private speech usage and performance is invariant across baseline.•Labeling stimuli dominates adults’ ...private speech content in a card-matching task.
This study used a card-matching game that relies on visual-spatial working memory to investigate whether the amount one talks out loud to themselves (referred to as private speech) predicts cognitive performance in young adults (n = 118, mean age = 20.13 years). Each participant's performance was measured in two “Private Speech” trials, in which they were instructed to complete the game efficiently, while using private speech as much as they can. Using multilevel modeling, we found that participants performed significantly better on trials for which they produced more private speech. This relationship was not moderated by baseline competency on the task (measured in a condition where participants were not instructed to use, and rarely ever used, private speech). The study shows that the degree to which adults use private speech — when instructed to do so, is associated with cognitive performance, which may have important implications for educational/instructional settings.
Three studies were conducted to examine the relation of spatial visualization to solving kinematics problems that involved either predicting the two‐dimensional motion of an object, translating from ...one frame of reference to another, or interpreting kinematics graphs. In Study 1, 60 physics‐naíve students were administered kinematics problems and spatial visualization ability tests. In Study 2, 17 (8 high‐ and 9 low‐spatial ability) additional students completed think‐aloud protocols while they solved the kinematics problems. In Study 3, the eye movements of fifteen (9 high‐ and 6 low‐spatial ability) students were recorded while the students solved kinematics problems. In contrast to high‐spatial students, most low‐spatial students did not combine two motion vectors, were unable to switch frames of reference, and tended to interpret graphs literally. The results of the study suggest an important relationship between spatial visualization ability and solving kinematics problems with multiple spatial parameters.
Is there one optimal topology of functional brain networks at rest from which our cognitive performance would profit? Previous studies suggest that functional integration of resting state brain ...networks is an important biomarker for cognitive performance. However, it is still unknown whether higher network integration is an unspecific predictor for good cognitive performance or, alternatively, whether specific network organization during rest predicts only specific cognitive abilities.
Here, we investigated the relationship between network integration at rest and cognitive performance using two tasks that measured different aspects of working memory; one task assessed visual–spatial and the other numerical working memory. Network clustering, modularity and efficiency were computed to capture network integration on different levels of network organization, and to statistically compare their correlations with the performance in each working memory test.
The results revealed that each working memory aspect profits from a different resting state topology, and the tests showed significantly different correlations with each of the measures of network integration. While higher global network integration and modularity predicted significantly better performance in visual–spatial working memory, both measures showed no significant correlation with numerical working memory performance. In contrast, numerical working memory was superior in subjects with highly clustered brain networks, predominantly in the intraparietal sulcus, a core brain region of the working memory network.
Our findings suggest that a specific balance between local and global functional integration of resting state brain networks facilitates special aspects of cognitive performance. In the context of working memory, while visual–spatial performance is facilitated by globally integrated functional resting state brain networks, numerical working memory profits from increased capacities for local processing, especially in brain regions involved in working memory performance.
•Integration of brain networks can be measured at different topological scales.•Local integration of resting state networks facilitates numerical working memory.•More globally integrated resting state networks support visuospatial working memory.•The different patterns of network integration predict specific cognitive capacities.
The current study investigated the relationship between private speech usage and cognitive performance in young adults. Participants (n = 103, mean age = 20.21 years) were instructed to complete a ...visual-spatial working memory task while talking out loud to themselves as much as possible (Private Speech condition). We found that participants performed better on trials for which they produced a greater amount of private speech. To establish causality, we further found that participants performed better in the Private Speech condition than in a condition in which they were instructed to remain silent (Quiet condition). These beneficial effects of private speech were not moderated by task difficulty, which was manipulated by varying image labelability. However, participants who used more private speech during the task, as well as those who reported greater use of self-management private speech in everyday life, showed the greatest benefits. These findings have implications for real-world educational/instructional settings.
A growing body of evidence suggests that there is a link between laughter and memory. However, no research has been done to show a link between simulated laughter (laughter yoga) and the enhancement ...of working memory. Because laughter has numerous benefits, we examined whether simulated laughter can improve healthy adults’ working memory (WM). A total of 30 participants (15 experimental and 15 control) were enrolled in this study. The research design was experimental and pretest-posttest with a control group. Participants in the laughter yoga intervention group had eight sessions twice a week for four weeks, whereas the control group received no intervention. We assessed all participants before and after laughter activity with the WM measures (Corsi Block Test and Digit Span). The laughter intervention programme focused on simulated laughter (laughter yoga) without relying on humour, jokes, or comedy. The results revealed a significant improvement in the memory of both visual and verbal WM performances in the experimental group after the intervention programme. In contrast, the study found no significant differences in the control group. Simulated laughter intervention is the easiest, practical, and cost-efficient method that seems to affect WM positively.
The contribution of working memory to mathematics has been extensively studied. It has been proposed that verbal working memory (VWM) and visual-spatial working memory (VSWM) have distinct ...contributions, but results have been inconclusive. Here, we hypothesized that VWM and VSWM contribute differentially to separate sub-domains of mathematics. To test this hypothesis, we enrolled 199 primary school students and measured their VWM and VSWM with number/letter/matrix backward span tasks, and tested mathematics performance with simple subtraction, complex subtraction, multi-step calculation and number series completion, while controlling for several aspects of cognition. We found that while letter backward span had a significant contribution to complex subtraction, multi-step computation and number series completion, number backward span only had a significant contribution to multi-step computation, and matrix span had no effect on any math task. These results suggest that only VWM associated with complex mathematics, which might reflect verbal rehearsal. In contrast, VSWM does not appear to associated with mathematics.
Anxiety is associated with low visual spatial working memory capacity (VSWMC) in the presence of task-irrelevant distractors. Because anxious individuals have difficulty suppressing processing of ...distractors, VSWMC is depleted. However, results of association between anxiety and VSWMC in the absence of distractors are inconsistent among previous studies. In the present study, distinct roles of trait and state anxiety were focused. The present study investigated the interactive effects of trait and state anxiety on VSWMC without distractors using a change detection task. In the task, a memory array of oriented bars to be encoded was presented followed by a test array, and participants were required to answer whether the test array was identical to or different from the memory array. Orientation of one bar changed largely (i.e., low-precision condition) in Experiment 1 and slightly (high-precision condition) in Experiment 2. In Experiment 1, the interactive effects of trait and state anxiety on VSWMC were observed. VSWMC was positively associated with state anxiety when trait anxiety was low, whereas VSWMC was negatively associated with state anxiety when trait anxiety was high. These interactive effects were not observed under high-precision condition in Experiment 2, in which VSWMC was negatively correlated with state anxiety irrespective of trait anxiety. These results indicated that under low-precision condition, high state anxiety widely allocate working-memory resources and VSWMC becomes high. However, because high trait anxious individuals have difficulty controlling allocation of working-memory resources, high trait anxiety decreases VSWMC under high state anxiety. Under high-precision condition, it is necessary to allocate working-memory resources narrowly to detect slight change. Because of wide allocation of working-memory resources in high state anxious individuals, state anxiety is negatively correlated with VSWMC under high-precision condition.
Visual-spatial working memory (vsWM) impairment in treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS) currently has no satisfactory treatment. Our study aimed to improve vsWM function in TRS through ...intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS) using neuronavigation equipment to target the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex.
TRS patients (n = 59) were randomly allocated to receive iTBS (n = 33) or a sham treatment (n = 26) over 2 weeks. The participants including TRS patients and healthy controls (HCs) performed the vsWM n-back task, and TRS patients’ neuroimaging data were acquired before and after treatment. All patients also underwent a battery of symptom measures to assess the severity of illness. The main outcome measure was the accuracy (ACC) of n-back target responses, particularly 3-back ACC.
The iTBS group showed considerable improvement in n-back ACC compared to the sham group, especially 3-back ACC. After iTBS, performance on the n-back task was comparable to that of HCs. The interaction (group × time) results showed increased fractional amplitude of low frequency fluctuations (fALFF) in the right occipital areas and decreased fALFF in the right precuneus. However, there was a negative correlation between the 3-back ACC and improved clinical symptoms scores. Improvements in 3-back ACC were positively correlated with activity in the right visual cortex.
Our study suggested that 2 weeks of iTBS intervention may be a novel, efficacious treatment for vsWM deficits in TRS, which can modulate the activity of local brain regions. iTBS can provide a solution for clinical treatment of TRS and may help patients approach normalcy.
•Visual-spatial working memory (vsWM) impairment as ubiquitous impairment in treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS) during the prodromal stage and persists throughout the disease.•rTMS might be considered a safe technique for ameliorating working memory deficits.•iTBS group showed large improvements in the n-back ACC, especially 3 back, which modified local regions within the visual cortex and right precuneus.•There was a significant correlation between the increased ACC of 3-back and the improved clinical symptoms and increased activity in visual cortex.•iTBS might be a potential cognitive enhancing tool, particularly for vsWM.
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