| 1. |
- Bellander, Martin, et al.
(författare)
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Lower baseline performance but greater plasticity of working memory for carriers of the val allele of the comt val158met polymorphism
- 2015
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Ingår i: Neuropsychology. - : American Psychological Association (APA). - 0894-4105 .- 1931-1559. ; 29:2, s. 247-254
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: Little is known about genetic contributions to individual differences in cognitive plasticity. Given that the neurotransmitter dopamine is critical for cognition and associated with cognitive plasticity, we investigated the effects of 3 polymorphisms of dopamine-related genes (LMX1A, DRD2, COMT) on baseline performance and plasticity of working memory (WM), perceptual speed, and reasoning. Method: One hundred one younger and 103 older adults underwent approximately 100 days of cognitive training, and extensive testing before and after training. We analyzed the baseline and posttest data using latent change score models. Results: For working memory, carriers of the val allele of the COMT polymorphism had lower baseline performance and larger performance gains from training than carriers of the met allele. There was no significant effect of the other genes or on other cognitive domains. Conclusions: We relate this result to available evidence indicating that met carriers perform better than val carriers in WM tasks taxing maintenance, whereas val carriers perform better at updating tasks. We suggest that val carriers may show larger training gains because updating operations carry greater potential for plasticity than maintenance operations.
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| 2. |
- Berggren, Rasmus, et al.
(författare)
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Foreign language learning in older age does not improve memory or intelligence : Evidence from a randomized controlled study.
- 2020
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Ingår i: Psychology and Aging. - : American Psychological Association (APA). - 0882-7974 .- 1939-1498. ; 35:2, s. 212-219
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Foreign language learning in older age has been proposed as a promising avenue for combatting age-related cognitive decline. We tested this hypothesis in a randomized controlled study in a sample of 160 healthy older participants (aged 65-75 years) who were randomized to 11 weeks of either language learning or relaxation training. Participants in the language learning condition obtained some basic knowledge in the new language (Italian), but between-groups differences in improvements on latent factors of verbal intelligence, spatial intelligence, working memory, item memory, or associative memory were negligible. We argue that this is not due to either poor measurement, low course intensity, or low statistical power, but that basic studies in foreign languages in older age are likely to have no or trivially small effects on cognitive abilities. We place this in the context of the cognitive training and engagement literature and conclude that while foreign language learning may expand the behavioral repertoire, it does little to improve cognitive processing abilities. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
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| 3. |
- Brehmer, Yvonne, et al.
(författare)
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The importance of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex for associative memory in older adults : A latent structural equation analysis
- 2020
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Ingår i: NeuroImage. - : Elsevier BV. - 1053-8119 .- 1095-9572. ; 209
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Older adults show relatively minor age-related decline in memory for single items, while their memory for associations is markedly reduced. Inter-individual differences in memory function in older adults are substantial but the neurobiological underpinnings of such differences are not well understood. In particular, the relative importance of inter-individual differences in the medio-temporal lobe (MTL) and the lateral prefrontal cortex (PFC) for associative and item recognition in older adults is still ambiguous. We therefore aimed to first establish the distinction between inter-individual differences in associative memory (recollection-based) performance and item memory (familiarity-based) performance in older adults and subsequently link these two constructs to differences in cortical thickness in the MTL and lateral PFC regions, in a latent structural equation modelling framework. To this end, a sample of 160 older adults (65-75 years old) performed three intentional itemassociative memory tasks, of which a subsample (n = 72) additionally had cortical thickness measures in MTL and PFC regions of interest available. The results provided support for a distinction between familiarity-based item memory and recollection-based associative memory performance in older adults. Cortical thickness in the ventro-medial prefrontal cortex was positively correlated with associative recognition performance, above and beyond any relationship between item recognition performance and cortical thickness in the same region and between associative recognition performance and brain structure in the MTL (parahippocampus). The findings highlight the relative importance of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex in allowing for intentional recollection-based associative memory functioning in older adults.
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| 4. |
- Brose, Annette, et al.
(författare)
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Adult Age Differences in Covariation of Motivation and Working Memory Performance: Contrasting Between-Person and Within-Person Findings
- 2010
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Ingår i: Research in Human Development. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1542-7609 .- 1542-7617. ; 7:1, s. 61-78
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Developmental theorists have proposed for a long time that the prevailing focus on stable individual differences has obstructed the discovery of short-term covariations between cognitive performance and contextual influences within individuals that may help to uncover mechanisms underlying long-term change. As an initial step to overcome this imbalance, we observed measures of motivation and working memory (WM) in 101 younger and 103 older adults across 100 occasions. Our main goals were to (1) investigate day-to-day relations between motivation and WM, (2) show that these relations differ between groups of younger and older adults, and (3) test whether the within-person and between-person structures linking motivational variables to WM are equivalent (i.e., the ergodicity assumption). The covariation between motivation and WM was generally positive in younger adults. In contrast, older adults showed reduced variability in motivation, increased variability across trials, and small reliability-adjusted correlations between motivation and WM. Within-person structures differed reliably across individuals, defying the ergodicity assumption. We discuss the implications of our findings for developmental theory and design, stressing the need to explore the effects of between-person differences in short-term covariations on long-term developmental change.
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| 5. |
- Brose, Annette, et al.
(författare)
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Daily Fluctuations in Positive Affect Positively Co-Vary With Working Memory Performance
- 2014
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Ingår i: Emotion. - : American Psychological Association (APA). - 1528-3542 .- 1931-1516. ; 14:1, s. 1-6
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Positive affect is related to cognitive performance in multiple ways. It is associated with motivational aspects of performance, affective states capture attention, and information processing modes are a function of affect. In this study, we examined whether these links are relevant within individuals across time when they experience minor ups and downs of positive affect and work on cognitive tasks in the laboratory on a day-to-day basis. Using a microlongitudinal design, 101 younger adults (20-31 years of age) worked on 3 working memory tasks on about 100 occasions. Every day, they also reported on their momentary affect and their motivation to work on the tasks. In 2 of the 3 tasks, performance was enhanced on days when positive affect was above average. This performance enhancement was also associated with more motivation. Importantly, increases in task performance on days with above-average positive affect were mainly unrelated to variations in negative affect. This study's results are in line with between-person findings suggesting that high levels of well-being are associated with successful outcomes. They imply that success on cognitively demanding tasks is more likely on days when feeling happier.
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| 6. |
- Brose, Annette, et al.
(författare)
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Daily variability in working memory is coupled with negative affect : the role of attention and motivation
- 2012
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Ingår i: Emotion. - : American Psychological Association (APA). - 1528-3542 .- 1931-1516. ; 12:3, s. 605-617
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Across days, individuals experience varying levels of negative affect, control of attention, and motivation. We investigated whether this intraindividual variability was coupled with daily fluctuations in working memory (WM) performance. In 100 days, 101 younger individuals worked on a spatial N-back task and rated negative affect, control of attention, and motivation. Results showed that individuals differed in how reliably WM performance fluctuated across days, and that subjective experiences were primarily linked to performance accuracy. WM performance was lower on days with higher levels of negative affect, reduced control of attention, and reduced task-related motivation. Thus, variables that were found to predict WM in between-subjects designs showed important relationships to WM at the within-person level. In addition, there was shared predictive variance among predictors of WM. Days with increased negative affect and reduced performance were also days with reduced control of attention and reduced motivation to work on tasks. These findings are in line with proposed mechanisms linking negative affect and cognitive performance.
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| 7. |
- Brose, Annette, et al.
(författare)
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Differences in the Between-Person and Within-Person Structures of Affect Are a Matter of Degree
- 2015
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Ingår i: European Journal of Personality. - : SAGE Publications. - 0890-2070 .- 1099-0984. ; 29:1, s. 55-71
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study tested whether the structure of affect observed on the basis of between-person (BP) differences is equivalent to the affect structures that organize the variability of affective states within persons (WP) over time. Further aims were to identify individual differences in the degree of divergence between the WP and BP structure and examine its association to dispositional and contextual variables (neuroticism, extraversion, well-being and stress). In 100 daily sessions, 101 younger adults rated their mood on the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule. Variability of five negative affect items across time was so low that they were excluded from the analyses. We thus worked with a modified negative affect subscale. WP affect structures diverged reliably from the BP structure, with individual differences in the degree of divergence. Differences in the WP structural characteristics and the degree of divergence could be predicted by well-being and stress. We conclude that BP and WP structures of affect are not equivalent and that BP and WP variation should be considered as distinct phenomena. It would be wrong, for example, to conceive of positive and negative affect as independent at the WP level, as suggested by BP findings. Yet, individual differences in WP structural characteristics are related to stable BP differences, and the degree to which individuals' affect structures diverge from the BP structure can provide important insights into intraindividual functioning.
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| 8. |
- Brose, Annette, et al.
(författare)
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Normal aging dampens the link between intrusive thoughts and negative affect in reaction to daily stressors
- 2011
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Ingår i: Psychology and aging. - Arlington, VA : American Psychological Association (APA). - 0882-7974 .- 1939-1498. ; 26:2, s. 488-502
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We charted daily variations in intrusive thoughts to gain access to adult age differences in affective reactivity to daily stressors. On 100 days, 101 younger and 103 older adults reported stressors, intrusive thoughts, and negative affect. Although increments in intrusive thoughts were similar in both age groups on days with stressors, older adults' negative affect increased less than younger adults' on such days. In addition, (a) levels of intrusive thoughts and negative affect across study time were positively associated; (b) days with increased thoughts were days with increased negative affect; and (c) experiencing above-average intrusive thoughts about stressors strengthened affective reactions to stress. Relative to younger adults, all three associations were reduced in older adults. We tentatively conclude that normal aging dampens the stress-induced link between intrusive thoughts and affect. This dampening may contribute to preserved affective well-being and reduced affective reactivity to daily stress in old age.
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| 9. |
- Grandy, Thomas H., et al.
(författare)
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Individual alpha peak frequency is related to latent factors of general cognitive abilities
- 2013
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Ingår i: NeuroImage. - : Elsevier BV. - 1053-8119 .- 1095-9572. ; 79, s. 10-18
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Some eighty years after the discovery of the human electroencephalogram (EEG) and its dominant rhythm, alpha (similar to 10 Hz), the neurophysiological functions and behavioral correlates of alpha oscillations are still under debate. Similarly, the biological mechanisms contributing to the general factor of intelligence, or g, have been under scrutiny for decades. Individual alpha frequency (IAF), a trait-like parameter of the EEG, has been found to correlate with individual differences in cognitive performance and cognitive abilities. Informed by large-scale theories of neural organization emphasizing the general functional significance of oscillatory activity, the present study replicates and extends these findings by testing the hypothesis that IAF is related to intelligence at the level of g, rather than at the level of specific cognitive abilities. Structural equation modeling allowed us to statistically control for measurement error when estimating the association between IAF and intellectual functioning. In line with our hypothesis, we found a statistically reliable and substantial correlation between IAF and g (r = .40). The magnitude of this correlation did not differ significantly between younger and older adults, and captured all of the covariation between IAF and the cognitive abilities of reasoning, memory, and perceptual speed. The observed association between IAF and g provides a parsimonious explanation for the commonly observed diffuse pattern of correlations between IAF and cognitive performance. We conclude that IAF is a marker of global architectural and functional properties of the human brain.
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| 10. |
- Grandy, Thomas H., et al.
(författare)
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Peak individual alpha frequency qualifies as a stable neurophysiological trait marker in healthy younger and older adults
- 2013
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Ingår i: Psychophysiology. - : Wiley. - 0048-5772 .- 1469-8986 .- 1540-5958. ; 50:6, s. 570-582
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The individual alpha frequency (IAF) of the human EEG reflects systemic properties of the brain, is highly heritable, and relates to cognitive functioning. Not much is known about the modifiability of IAF by cognitive interventions. We report analyses of resting EEG from a large-scale training study in which healthy younger (2031 years, N=30) and older (6580 years, N=28) adults practiced 12 cognitive tasks for approximate to 100 1-h sessions. EEG was recorded before and after the cognitive training intervention. In both age groups, IAF (and, in a control analysis, alpha amplitude) did not change, despite large gains in cognitive performance. As within-session reliability and test-retest stability were high for both age groups, imprecise measurements cannot account for the findings. In sum, IAF is highly stable in healthy adults up to 80 years, not easily modifiable by cognitive interventions alone, and thus qualifies as a stable neurophysiological trait marker.
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