Effect of visual working memory contents on visual function and fluid intelligence

Abstract

Objective To explore the influence of visual working memory contents on visual function and fluid intelligence. Methods 42 subjects were randomly divided into three groups: controll group including 17 people who had no training, working memory based on Gabor vision group including 13 people and standard working memory group including 12 people who received the N-back working memory training for 15 days, and lasted half an hour in every day.The contrast sensitivity was recorded and measured using OPTEC6500, and the fluid intelligence was measured with the Raven's advanced progressive matrices before and after training. Results In the Gabor working memory group, there were salient gains in contrast sensitivity(respectively(1.48±0.26)log, (1.87±0.13)log, P 0.05), the fluid intelligence increased significantly(respectively(11.25±1.91), (13.00±1.86), P 0.05)and in fluid intelligence(respectively(11.41±1.87), (11.58±1.94), P>0.05) between pre- and post-test. Conclusion Working memory training based on Gabor vision can enhance the subjective perception of visual stimuli and improve the behavioral effect of visual contrast sensitivity, but the visual working memory contents do not affect the migration effect of working memory training on fluid intelligence. Key words: Visual working memory contents; Visual function; Fluid intelligence; Visual contrast sensitivity