Abstract
In this longitudinal intervention study with experimental and control groups, we investigated the effects of video game training on the visuospatial working memory (WM) and episodic memory of healthy older adults. Participants were 19 volunteer older adults, who received 15 1-h video game training sessions with a series of video games selected from a commercial package (Lumosity), and a control group of 20 healthy older adults. The results showed that the performance of the trainees improved significantly in all the practiced video games. Most importantly, we found significant enhancements after training in the trained group and no change in the control group in two computerized tasks designed to assess visuospatial WM, namely the Corsi blocks task and the Jigsaw puzzle task. The episodic memory and short-term memory of the trainees also improved. Gains in some WM and episodic memory tasks were maintained during a 3-month follow-up period. These results suggest that the aging brain still retains some degree of plasticity, and that video game training might be an effective intervention tool to improve WM and other cognitive functions in older adults.
Highlights
IntroductionAge-related brain changes occurring mainly in the prefrontal cortex and the medial temporal lobe system (including the hippocampus and the cerebellum) are associated with cognitive declines (Raz et al, 2005) in several functions, including processing speed (Salthouse, 1996), peripheral vision (Muiños and Ballesteros, 2014), dynamic visual acuity (Muiños and Ballesteros, 2015), working memory (WM), executive control functioning, and episodic memory (e.g., Baltes and Lindenberger, 1997; Hoyer and Verhaeghen, 2006; Nilsson, 2003; Park and Gutchess, 2002; Rönnlund et al, 2005)
The main dependent variables of this intervention study were the scores obtained on the memory tests, we analyzed performance on the video games to evaluate whether the trained participants improved as a consequence of playing the video games
We investigated whether training with video games improved memory abilities that decline with age, especially visuospatial working memory (WM) and episodic memory
Summary
Age-related brain changes occurring mainly in the prefrontal cortex and the medial temporal lobe system (including the hippocampus and the cerebellum) are associated with cognitive declines (Raz et al, 2005) in several functions, including processing speed (Salthouse, 1996), peripheral vision (Muiños and Ballesteros, 2014), dynamic visual acuity (Muiños and Ballesteros, 2015), working memory (WM), executive control functioning, and episodic memory (e.g., Baltes and Lindenberger, 1997; Hoyer and Verhaeghen, 2006; Nilsson, 2003; Park and Gutchess, 2002; Rönnlund et al, 2005). Experience-related changes induced by the modification of the social environment, physical activity, and cognitive training affect brain structure and function (for a recent review see, Ballesteros et al, 2015a). Research on brain plasticity in older adults and its relationship to experiential changes is currently attracting substantial public interest (Raz and Lindenberger, 2013). Research on training-induced changes in brain and behavior has attracted a great interest in cognitive neuroscience across lifespan, especially in the older age. Studies on this field might contribute to improve our knowledge on brain plasticity and result of a great help for designing effective interventions (see Karbach and Schubert, 2013)
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