Abstract
Cognitive impairments in learning and memory are core symptoms of schizophrenia, associated with reduced self-reported quality of life. The most effective treatment of cognitive impairments is drill and practice cognitive training. Still, to date no study has investigated the effect of varying the frequency of training on cognitive outcomes. Here we utilized a verbal memory based language learning task, tapping into implicit cognitive processes, to investigate the role of training intensity on learning rates in individuals with schizophrenia. Data from 47 participants across two studies was utilized, one with a daily training regimen over 5 days and the other with a more intensive schedule of 5 sessions delivered over 2 days. The primary outcome measure was the change in implicit learning performance across five sessions, quantified with the Matthews Correlation Coefficient (MCC). Participants in the daily training group showed improved performance compared to the intensive group only at session 4. This is the first study to show that implicit learning rates are influenced by training intensity, with daily sessions outperforming a more intensive regimen; a period of consolidation overnight may be necessary to optimize cognitive training for individuals with schizophrenia.
Highlights
Cognitive impairments in learning and memory are core symptoms of schizophrenia, associated with reduced self-reported quality of life
All participants scored on Wechsler Test of Adult Reading (WTAR) within the normal range
There were no between group differences in Matthews Correlation Coefficient (MCC) at session 1, (b = − 0.002, − 0.05 to 0.04, p = 0.93)
Summary
Cognitive impairments in learning and memory are core symptoms of schizophrenia, associated with reduced self-reported quality of life. The most effective treatments involve practice and drill exercises, including computerized training, with the goal of improving functioning. Meta-analytic work suggests that the cognitive training response is associated with characteristics that can be broadly grouped into cognitive, psychological and biological factors, and may include among others, cognitive factors such as baseline cognitive performance[12], psychological factors including motivation[13], biological factors such as age[14] and genetic and familial p redisposition[15] Since many of these characteristics, such as age or genetic predisposition, are non-amenable, there is an urgent need to investigate factors that can be therapeutically impacted such as treatment regimen characteristics that demonstrate highest learning and retention rate as well as acceptability and convenience in terms of patient adherence and service costs.
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