Comparing the Effectiveness of two Implementation Method of Working Memory Training on Attentional Control and Working Memory Capacity of Young Employees

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

Department of Psychology, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Kerman, Iran

Abstract

This study aims to compare the effectiveness of two implementation methods of working memory (WM) training (the more complex task and the less complex task) on attentional control and WM capacity. The present study is one of the intervention studies with the active control group aiming to compare effectiveness. The study population consists of 25 to 35-year-old young employees working in Information Technology (IT) field in Kerman city in 2019. The sample of the study formed of 48 individuals who were selected by multistage sampling, randomly divided into two experimental groups (adaptive dual n-back task as the more complex task and non-adaptive dual 1-back task as the less complex task) and one active control group (non-adaptive single 1-back task). Data collection tools include simple Stroop task and Daneman-Carpenter Working Memory Task (DCWMT). The results showed that there was a significant difference between the effectiveness of WM training with adaptive dual task, non-adaptive dual task, and control group task in subscale of interference score related to attentional control and WM capacity. In other words, the complexity of the task made a significant difference in the effectiveness of the training program on interference score and WM capacity. However, this difference was not observed for subscale of time of interference related to attentional control.

Keywords

References

Au, J., Berkowitz-Sutherland, L., Schneider, A., Schweitzer, J. B., Hessl, D., & Hagerman, R. (2014). A Feasibility Trial of Cogmed Working Memory Training in Fragile X Syndrome. Journal of Pediatric Genetics, 3(3), 147–156.
Au, J., Sheehan, E., Tsai, N., Duncan, G. J., Buschkuehl, M., & Jaeggi, S. M. (2015). Improving Fluid Intelligence with Training on Working Memory: A Meta-Analysis. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 22(2), 366–377.
Baddeley, A. (2010). Working Memory. Current Biology. 20(4), R136–R140.
Chein, J. M., & Morrison, A. B. (2010). Expanding the Mind’s Workspace: Training and Transfer Effects with a Complex Working Memory Span Task. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 17(2), 193–199.
Conway, A. R., Cowan, N., Bunting, M. F., Therriault, D. J., & Minkoff, S. R. (2002). A Latent Variable Analysis of Working Memory Capacity, Short-Term Memory Capacity, Processing Speed, and General Fluid Intelligence. Intelligence. 30(2), 163–183.
Cowan, N. (2010). The Magical Mystery Four: How Is Working Memory Capacity Limited, and Why? Current Directions in Psychological Science, 19(1), 51–57.
Daneman, M., & Carpenter, P. A. (1980). Individual Differences in Working Memory and Reading. Journal of Memory and Language. 19(4), 450–466.
Dehn, M. J. (2011). Working Memory and Academic Learning: Assessment and Intervention. John Wiley & Sons.
Duncan, J., & Owen, A. M. (2000). Common Regions of the Human Frontal Lobe Recruited by Diverse Cognitive Demands. Trends in Neurosciences. 23(10), 475–483.
Faggian, A., Modrego, F., & McCann, P. (2019). Human Capital and Regional Development. In Handbook of Regional Growth and Development Theories. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Gathercole, S. E., & Alloway, T. P. (2007). Understanding Working Memory: A Classroom Guide. Lontoo: Harcourt Assessment.
Gazzaley, A., & Nobre, A. C. (2012). Top-Down Modulation: Bridging Selective Attention and Working Memory. Trends in Cognitive Sciences. 16(2), 129–135.
Gorfein, D. S., & MacLeod, C. M. (Eds.). (2007). Inhibition in Cognition (pp. xvii-337). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Green, C. S., & Bavelier, D. (2008). Exercising Your Brain: A Review of Human Brain Plasticity and Training-Induced Learning. Psychology and Aging, 23(4), 692–701.
Hotton, M., Derakshan, N., & Fox, E. (2018). A Randomised Controlled Trial Investigating the Benefits of Adaptive Working Memory Training for Working Memory Capacity and Attentional Control in High Worriers. Behaviour Research and Therapy. 100, 67–77.
Jaeggi, S. M., & Buschkuehl, M. (2014). Working Memory Training and Transfer: Theoretical and Practical Considerations. In New Frontiers of Multidisciplinary Research in STEAM-H (Science, Technology, Engineering, Agriculture, Mathematics, and Health) (pp. 19-43). Cham: Springer.
Jaeggi, S. M., Buschkuehl, M., Jonides, J., & Perrig, W. J. (2008). Improving Fluid Intelligence with Training on Working Memory. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 105(19), 6829–6833.
Karbach, J., & Verhaeghen, P. (2014). Making Working Memory Work: A Meta-Analysis of Executive-Control and Working Memory Training in Older Adults. Psychological Science, 25(11), 2027–2037.
Klingberg, T. (2010). Training and Plasticity of Working Memory. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 14(7), 317–324.
Küper, K., & Karbach, J. (2016). Increased Training Complexity Reduces the Effectiveness of Brief Working Memory Training: Evidence from Short-Term Single and Dual N-Back Training Interventions. Journal of Cognitive Psychology. 28(2), 199–208.
Lezak, M. D., Howieson, D. B., Loring, D. W., Hannay, H. J., & Fischer, J. S. (2004). Neuropsychological Assessment (4th Ed.). Oxford University Press.
 
Lilienthal, L., Tamez, E., Shelton, J. T., Myerson, J., & Hale, S. (2013). Dual N-Back Training Increases the Capacity of the Focus of Attention. Psychonomic bulletin & Review. 20(1), 135–141.
MacLeod, C. M. (1991). Half a Century of Research on the Stroop Effect: An Integrative Review. Psychological Bulletin. 109(2), 163–203.
McNab, F., Varrone, A., Farde, L., Jucaite, A., Bystritsky, P., Forssberg, H., & Klingberg, T. (2009). Changes in Cortical Dopamine D1 Receptor Binding Associated with Cognitive Training. Science, 323(5915), 800–802.
Melby-Lervåg, M., & Hulme, C. (2013). Is Working Memory Training Effective? A Meta-Analytic Review. Developmental Psychology, 49(2), 270–291.
Park, D. C. (1994). Aging, Cognition, and Work. Human Performance. 7(3), 181–205.
Miller, G. A. (1956). The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing Information. Psychological Review. 63(2), 81–97.
Morrison, A. B., & Chein, J. M. (2011). Does Working Memory Training Work? The Promise and Challenges of Enhancing Cognition by Training Working Memory. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 18(1), 46–60.
Oberauer, K. (2006). Is the Focus of Attention in Working Memory Expanded Through Practice? Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition. 32(2), 197–214.
Robinson, P. (2001). Task Complexity, Task Difficulty, and Task Production: Exploring Interactions in a Componential Framework. Applied Linguistics. 22(1), 27–57.
Sala, G., & Gobet, F. (2017). Working Memory Training in Typically Developing Children: A Meta-Analysis of the Available Evidence. Developmental Psychology, 53(4), 671–685.
Sari, B. A., Koster, E. H., Pourtois, G., & Derakshan, N. (2016). Training Working Memory to Improve Attentional Control in Anxiety: A Proof-of-Principle Study Using Behavioral and Electrophysiological Measures. Biological Psychology. 121(Pt B), 203–212.
Schmiedek, F., Lövdén, M., & Lindenberger, U. (2010). Hundred Days of Cognitive Training Enhance Broad Cognitive Abilities in Adulthood: Findings from the COGITO Study. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience. 2, 27.
Schmidt, F. L., & Hunter, J. (2004). General Mental Ability in the World of Work: Occupational Attainment and Job Performance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 86(1), 162–173.
Schwaighofer, M., Fischer, F., & Bühner, M. (2015). Does Working Memory Training Transfer? A Meta-Analysis Including Training Conditions as Moderators. Educational Psychologist. 50(2), 138–166.
Stroop, J. R. (1935). Studies of Interference in Serial Verbal Reactions. Journal of Experimental Psychology. 18(6), 643.
Sternberg, R. J., & Sternberg, K. (2016). Cognitive psychology. Melbourne, Australia: Nelson Education.
Shiffrin, R. M., & Nosofsky, R. M. (1994). Seven Plus or Minus Two: A Commentary on Capacity Limitations. Psychological Review. 101(2), 357–361.
Shing, Y. L., Lindenberger, U., Diamond, A., Li, S. C., & Davidson, M. C. (2010). Memory Maintenance and Inhibitory Control Differentiate from Early Childhood to Adolescence. Developmental Neuropsychology. 35(6), 679–697.
Shipstead, Z., Harrison, T. L., & Engle, R. W. (2016). Working Memory Capacity and Fluid Intelligence: Maintenance and Disengagement. Perspectives on Psychological Science. 11(6), 771–799.
Shipstead, Z., Redick, T. S., & Engle, R. W. (2012). Is Working Memory Training Effective? Psychological Bulletin. 138(4), 628–654.
Smith, A. (1776). The Wealth of Nations; the Essential Adam Smith. New York: WW Norton & Company.
Spencer-Smith, M., & Klingberg, T. (2015). Benefits of a Working Memory Training Program for Inattention in Daily Life: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. PloS one. 10(3), e0119522.
Thorell, L. B., Lindqvist, S., Bergman Nutley, S., Bohlin, G., & Klingberg, T. (2009). Training and Transfer Effects of Executive Functions in Preschool Children. Developmental Science. 12(1), 106–113.
Von Bastian, C. C., & Oberauer, K. (2014). Effects and Mechanisms of Working Memory Training: A Review. Psychological Research. 78(6), 803–820.
Zarghi, A., Zali, A, Tehranidost, M., Ashrafi, F., Zarindast, M. R., Moazzezi, M., & Khodadadi, S. M. (2012). Assessment of Selective Attention with CSCWT (Computerized Stroop Color-Word Test) among Children and Adults. US-China Education Review. A1, 121–127.
Journal of Applied Psychological Research
Volume 12, Issue 1
April 2021
Pages 265-282

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 28 May 2020
  • Revise Date: 22 August 2020
  • Accept Date: 07 October 2020
  • First Publish Date: 22 May 2021
  • Publish Date: 22 May 2021

Share

How to cite

Statistics