Sample Of Healthy Young Adults Research Articles

Examining the impact of prism power on prism adaptation effects using a home-friendly procedure

Studies investigating the use of prism adaptation to treat symptoms of spatial neglect have used goggles inducing a rightward shift of 6 to 15°. However, the impact of prism power (i.e., the magnitude of visual shift) on after-effects (i.e., leftward shift in pointing movements after prism exposure), and effects on more functional tasks (e.g., a throwing task) are unknown. The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between these variables in a sample of healthy young adults as a first step towards the validation of a new home-friendly prism adaptation procedure (Peg-the-Mole/PTM). Sixty participants were randomly assigned to one of four conditions and used PTM with 5° (condition 1), 10° (condition 2), 5°/10°/15° deviating goggles (gradual shift – condition 3) or with sham/non-deviating goggles (condition 4). Pointing tasks and a throwing task were administered before and after PTM to assess a prism-induced leftward shift in pointing or throwing movements. The main effect of prism power on after-effects and throwing effects was significant ( P < 0.05). After-effects were larger in the gradual and 10° group when compared to the 5° and sham groups (gradual = 10° > 5° > sham). For the throwing task, only the effects in the gradual condition differed from the sham condition (only participants in the gradual condition threw significantly more to the left after PTM). Direct effects (pointing errors during PTM) predicted after-effects ( P < 0.05) but not throwing effects. Furthermore, after-effects did not correlate with throwing (functional) effects. These findings suggest that larger prism power induces larger after-effects and a gradual transition from increasingly larger prism power may facilitate the generalization of after-effects to functional tasks. The lack of relationship between after-effects and throwing effects should be investigated further as it may explain the mixed findings regarding the generalization of prism effects to functional activities.

Frequency of awake bruxism behaviours in the natural environment. A 7‐day, multiple‐point observation of real‐time report in healthy young adults

The aim of this study was to assess awake bruxism (AB) behaviours in a sample of healthy young adults using a smartphone-based application for a real-time report (ie, ecological momentary assessment [EMA], also called experience sampling method [ESM]). Forty-six dental students used a smartphone application that sent 15 alerts at random intervals during the day for 1week to collect AB self-reports. They had to answer on time by tapping on the display icon that refers to their current condition of jaw muscles: relaxed; teeth contact; teeth clenching; teeth grinding; jaw clenching without teeth contact (ie, bracing). The average frequency of relaxed jaw muscles, as a percentage of answers over the 7days, was 71.7%. Teeth contact (14.5%) and jaw clenching (10.0%) were the most frequent AB behaviours. No significant gender differences were detected. Interindividual differences were quite relevant, but the overall frequency was in general only moderately variable from day-to-day. Coefficient of variation (CV) was low for the condition "relaxed jaw muscles" (0.44). At the individual level, teeth contact was the most prevalent behaviour, with a 39.1%-52.2% proportion of subjects reporting it at least once a day. During a 7-day observation period, the frequency of real-time report of AB behaviours in a sample of healthy young adults was 28.3%. The low daily variability in the average frequency value for the relaxed jaw muscles condition suggests that EMA may be a reliable strategy to get deeper into the epidemiology of oral behaviours. This investigation introduced EMA principles to the study of AB and provided data on the frequency of AB behaviours in young adults that could be compared to populations with risk/associated factors and possible clinical consequences.

A descriptive study on selected growth parameters and growth hormone receptor gene in healthy young adults from the American Midwest

ContextThe first study of growth hormone receptor (GHR) genotypes in healthy young adults in the United States attending a Midwestern university and impact on selected growth parameters. ObjectiveTo describe the frequency of GHR genotypes in a sample of healthy young adults from the United States attending a university in the Midwest and analyze the relationship between GHR genotypes and selected growth parameters. DesignSaliva was collected from 459 healthy young adults (237 females, 222 males; age range = 18–25 y) and DNA isolated for genotyping of GHR alleles (fl/fl, fl/d3, or d3/d3). Selected growth parameters were collected and GHR genotype data examined for previously reported associations (e.g., height, weight or bone mass density) or novel findings (e.g., % body water and index finger length). ResultsWe found 219 participants (48%) homozygous for fl/fl, 203 (44%), heterozygous fl/d3 and 37 (8%) homozygous d3/d3. The distribution of GHR genotypes in our participants was consistent with previous reports of non-US populations. Several anthropometric measures differed by sex. The distribution of GHR genotypes did not significantly differ by sex, weight, or other anthropometric measures. However, the fl/d3 genotype was more common among African-Americans. ConclusionsOur study of growth and anthropometric parameters in relationship to GHR genotypes found no association with height, weight, right index finger length, BMI, bone mass density, % body fat or % body water in healthy young adults. We did identify sex differences with increased body fat, decreased bone density, body water and index finger length in females.

Probing the reproducibility of quantitative estimates of structural connectivity derived from global tractography

As quantitative measures derived from fiber tractography are increasingly being used to characterize the structural connectivity of the brain, it is important to establish their reproducibility. However, no such information is as yet available for global tractography. Here we provide the first comprehensive analysis of the reproducibility of streamline counts derived from global tractography as quantitative estimates of structural connectivity. In a sample of healthy young adults scanned twice within one week, within-session and between-session test-retest reproducibility was estimated for streamline counts of connections based on regions of the AAL atlas using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) for absolute agreement. We further evaluated the influence of the type of head-coil (12 versus 32 channels) and the number of reconstruction repetitions (reconstructing streamlines once or aggregated over ten repetitions). Factorial analyses demonstrated that reproducibility was significantly greater for within- than between-session reproducibility and significantly increased by aggregating streamline counts over ten reconstruction repetitions. Using a high-resolution head-coil incurred only small beneficial effects. Overall, ICC values were positively correlated with the streamline count of a connection. Additional analyses assessed the influence of different selection variants (defining fuzzy versus no fuzzy borders of the seed mask; selecting streamlines that end in versus pass through a seed) showing that an endpoint-based variant using fuzzy selection provides the best compromise between reproducibility and anatomical specificity. In sum, aggregating quantitative indices over repeated estimations and higher numbers of streamlines are important determinants of test-retest reproducibility. If these factors are taken into account, streamline counts derived from global tractography provide an adequately reproducible quantitative measure that can be used to gauge the structural connectivity of the brain in health and disease.

Validity and reliability of smartphone orientation measurement to quantify dynamic balance function

Objective: Postural control is frequently compromised after sub-concussive and concussive head trauma, and balance testing is an integral part of neuromotor assessment and management. The main objective of this paper is to develop a novel smartphone-based neuromotor assessment protocol for screening of dynamic balance decrements stemming from head trauma. Approach: Experiments 1 and 2 compared Android smartphone orientation detection algorithms to a biomechanics laboratory motion capture system using a pendulum (i.e. non-biological movement) and a human stepping task (i.e. biological movement). Experiment 3 examined the test-retest reliability of a stepping-in-place protocol in three different sensory conditions (eyes open, no-vision, head shake) using temporal and spatial variability metrics extracted from thigh orientation signal in a sample of healthy young adults. Main results: Smartphone sensors provided valid measurements of movement timing and amplitude variables. However, sensor firmware version and Android OS version significantly affected quality of measurement. High test-retest reliability was shown for the temporal and spatial variables of interest during the stepping-in-place task. Significance: Collectively, these experiments show that our smartphone application is a valid and reliable way to measure leg movement characteristics (mean stride time and its variability (CV), Peak Thigh SD, Thigh ROM, and Peak Return Velocity) during dynamic balance activity, which could provide an objective way to assess neuromotor function after head trauma and in other populations with balance dysfunction.

Identification of Two Distinct Working Memory-Related Brain Networks in Healthy Young Adults.

Working memory (WM) is an important cognitive domain for everyday life functioning and is often disturbed in neuropsychiatric disorders. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies in humans show that distributed brain areas typically described as fronto-parietal regions are implicated in WM tasks. Based on data from a large sample of healthy young adults (N = 1369), we applied independent component analysis (ICA) to the WM-fMRI signal and identified two distinct networks that were relevant for differences in individual WM task performance. A parietally-centered network was particularly relevant for individual differences in task measures related to WM performance (“WM dependent”) and a frontally-centered network was relevant for differences in attention-dependent task performance. Importantly, frontal areas that are typically considered as key regions for WM were either involved in both WM-dependent and attention-dependent performance, or in attention-dependent performance only. The networks identified here are provided as publicly available datasets. These networks can be applied in future studies to derive a low-dimensional representation of the overall WM brain activation.

Game-based training of flexibility and attention improves task-switch performance: near and far transfer of cognitive training in an EEG study

There is a demand for ways to enhance cognitive flexibility, as it can be a limiting factor for performance in daily life. Video game training has been linked to advantages in cognitive functioning, raising the question if training with video games can promote cognitive flexibility. In the current study, we investigated if game-based computerized cognitive training (GCCT) could enhance cognitive flexibility in a healthy young adult sample (N = 72), as measured by task-switch performance. Three GCCT schedules were contrasted, which targeted: (1) cognitive flexibility and task switching, (2) attention and working memory, or (3) an active control involving basic math games, in twenty 45-min sessions across 4–6 weeks. Performance on an alternating-runs task-switch paradigm during pretest and posttest sessions indicated greater overall reaction time improvements after both flexibility and attention training as compared to control, although not related to local switch cost. Flexibility training enhanced performance in the presence of distractor-related interference. In contrast, attention training was beneficial when low task difficulty undermined sustained selective attention. Furthermore, flexibility training improved response selection as indicated by a larger N2 amplitude after training as compared to control, and more efficient conflict monitoring as indicated by reduced Nc/CRN and larger Pe amplitude after training. These results provide tentative support for the efficacy of GCCT and suggest that an ideal training might include both task switching and attention components, with maximal task diversity both within and between training games.

Aerobic Fitness Explains Individual Differences in the Functional Brain Connectome of Healthy Young Adults.

A wealth of neuroscience evidence demonstrates that aerobic fitness enhances structural brain plasticity, promoting the development of gray matter volume and maintenance of white matter integrity within networks for executive function, attention, learning, and memory. However, the role of aerobic fitness in shaping the functional brain connectome remains to be established. The present work therefore investigated the effects of aerobic fitness (as measured by VO2max) on individual differences in whole-brain functional connectivity assessed from resting state fMRI data. Using a connectome-wide association study, we identified significant brain-fitness relationships within a large sample of healthy young adults (N = 242). The results revealed several regions within frontal, temporal, parietal, and cerebellar cortex, having significant association with aerobic fitness. We further characterized the influence of these regions on 7 intrinsic connectivity networks, demonstrating the greatest association with networks that are known to mediate the beneficial effects of aerobic fitness on executive function (frontoparietal network), attention and learning (dorsal and ventral attention network), and memory (default mode network). In addition, we provide evidence that connectivity strength between these regions and the frontoparietal network is predictive of individuals' fluid intelligence.

Global associations between regional gray matter volume and diverse complex cognitive functions: evidence from a large sample study

Correlations between regional gray matter volume (rGMV) and psychometric test scores have been measured to investigate the neural bases for individual differences in complex cognitive abilities (CCAs). However, such studies have yielded different rGMV correlates of the same CCA. Based on the available evidence, we hypothesized that diverse CCAs are all positively but only weakly associated with rGMV in widespread brain areas. To test this hypothesis, we used the data from a large sample of healthy young adults [776 males and 560 females; mean age: 20.8 years, standard deviation (SD) = 0.8] and investigated associations between rGMV and scores on multiple CCA tasks (including non-verbal reasoning, verbal working memory, Stroop interference, and complex processing speed tasks involving spatial cognition and reasoning). Better performance scores on all tasks except non-verbal reasoning were associated with greater rGMV across widespread brain areas. The effect sizes of individual associations were generally low, consistent with our previous studies. The lack of strong correlations between rGMV and specific CCAs, combined with stringent corrections for multiple comparisons, may lead to different and diverse findings in the field.

Comparison of the effects of interferential current between male and female healthy adults

***Comparison of the effects of interferential current between male and female healthy adults***AIMS: To assess accommodation phenomena characteristics (threshold, time and amplitude/intensity) during stimulation with interferential current, comparing male and female healthy adults.METHODS: A non randomized clinical trial with intentional sampling by gender included 30 healthy adult volunteers aged between 18 and 25 years, who were divided in two groups (15 in the Female Group and 15 in the Male Group) and received a tetrapolar interferential current for 20 minutes, close to L1 and L5 vertebrae. The subjects were instructed to refer an intense but comfortable paresthesia sensation and to report the moment it diminished (accommodation), requiring increasing of the current intensity. The first three events of accommodation (AV1, AV2 and AV3), including time and amplitude threshold, were analyzed. The differences from AV1 to AV2 (D1) and AV2 to AV3 (D2) were also considered. The number of accommodations for each subject during the 20 minutes experiment was identified. ANOVA and Student's t-test were used for analysis and the significance level was set at 5%. RESULTS: In the Male Group the mean time for accommodation was higher in AV3 compared to AV1 and AV2. In the Female Group the accommodation mean time was higher in AV3 in relation to AV2, and in AV2 in relation to AV1. No differences were found in the Male Group for D1 and D2, but in the Female Group, D2 was superior to D1. Women were accommodated more quickly than men in all three assessments, but the differences between one evaluation and another were constant considering both groups. Both groups showed similar current intensity behavior comparing the three evaluations within the same group. In the comparison between groups, women had lower mean values of intensity in the three evaluations. The Female Group had 7.5±1.5 accommodations, and the Male Group had 5.9±2.0 accommodations (p=0.0367) during the 20 minutes of the experiment.CONCLUSIONS: In this sample of healthy young adults, men required higher interferential current amplitude to obtain a comfortable paresthesia and took more time to have accommodations, while women had more accommodation episodes.

Initial planning benefits complex prospective memory at a cost.

The effect of initial planning on complex prospective memory was investigated using a virtual environment and a sample of healthy young adults (N = 34). Participants were assigned to either an initial planning or a control condition and were asked to complete a series of time- and event-based prospective memory tasks. The planning group completed the tasks more quickly and accurately than the control group. However, the total time spent, including both planning and task execution, was comparable for the two groups. Within the planning group, tasks that were planned were more likely to be completed than unplanned tasks, but inclusion of overly detailed information in the plans resulted in poorer performance. These results suggest that although initial planning can be beneficial to task completion, the complexity of a plan may contribute to decrements in performance.

Comparing brain activations associated with working memory and fluid intelligence

Working memory (WM) and fluid intelligence (Gf) are thought to be highly related, though psychometrically distinct cognitive constructs. Both are important in a wide range of cognitively demanding tasks, and predictive of success in educational, occupational, and social domains. From a cognitive perspective, WM and Gf may share a capacity constraint due to the shared demand for attentional resources. Neuroimaging investigations of these two cognitive constructs have suggested similar shared frontal and parietal areas of neural activation as well, though to our knowledge the two have not been investigated in the same population. Here, we examine group level functional activations for tasks of WM (dual n-back), Gf (Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices; RSPM), as well as a theoretically unrelated comparison task of visual word/pseudoword decoding (lexical decision task) in a large sample of healthy young adults (N=63) aged 18–40. Consistent with previous research, results indicate large areas of fronto-parietal activation in response to increasing task demands for the n-back task (dorsolateral, ventrolateral, and rostral prefrontal cortex, premotor cortex, and posterior parietal cortex), which largely subsume similar but more circumscribed regions of activation for the RSPM and lexical decision tasks. These results are discussed in terms of a task-general central network which may underlie performance of WM, Gf, and word decoding tasks alike, and perhaps even goal-directed behaviour more generally.

Cognitive and mood improvements following acute supplementation with purple grape juice in healthy young adults

PurposeBerry-derived phenolic compounds found in grapes have been associated with a number of health benefits, including the augmentation of human brain function and cognition. Previous intervention studies of Concord grape juice have demonstrated improvement to memory and driving ability following 3- to 4-month supplementation in middle-aged and older adults. However, no studies to date have demonstrated acute cognitive benefits of grape juice, and investigation of these effects in young adults is lacking.MethodsThis randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind, counterbalanced-crossover study, assessed the effects of 230 ml purple grape juice or sugar-matched control in 20 healthy young adults. Computerised measures of episodic memory, working memory, attention and mood were completed at baseline and following a 20-min absorption period.ResultsPurple grape juice significantly improved reaction time on a composite attention measure (p = 0.047) and increased calm ratings (p = 0.046) when compared to placebo. Order effects also indicated an enduring positive effect on pre-dose memory reaction time (p = 0.018) and post-dose calm ratings (p = 0.019) when purple grape was consumed first.ConclusionsThese findings in a small sample of healthy young adults suggest that purple grape juice can acutely enhance aspects of cognition and mood. No significant effects of juice were observed on memory measures, suggesting that these may be less susceptible to manipulation following acute supplementation in healthy young adults. Potential mechanisms underlying these effects include modulation of cerebral blood flow, glucoregulation and inhibition of monoamine oxidase activity, all of which require further exploration.

Resting and Postexercise Heart Rate Detection From Fingertip and Facial Photoplethysmography Using a Smartphone Camera: A Validation Study.

BackgroundModern smartphones allow measurement of heart rate (HR) by detecting pulsatile photoplethysmographic (PPG) signals with built-in cameras from the fingertips or the face, without physical contact, by extracting subtle beat-to-beat variations of skin color.ObjectiveThe objective of our study was to evaluate the accuracy of HR measurements at rest and after exercise using a smartphone-based PPG detection app.MethodsA total of 40 healthy participants (20 men; mean age 24.7, SD 5.2 years; von Luschan skin color range 14-27) underwent treadmill exercise using the Bruce protocol. We recorded simultaneous PPG signals for each participant by having them (1) facing the front camera and (2) placing their index fingertip over an iPhone’s back camera. We analyzed the PPG signals from the Cardiio-Heart Rate Monitor + 7 Minute Workout (Cardiio) smartphone app for HR measurements compared with a continuous 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) as the reference. Recordings of 20 seconds’ duration each were acquired at rest, and immediately after moderate- (50%-70% maximum HR) and vigorous- (70%-85% maximum HR) intensity exercise, and repeated successively until return to resting HR. We used Bland-Altman plots to examine agreement between ECG and PPG-estimated HR. The accuracy criterion was root mean square error (RMSE) ≤5 beats/min or ≤10%, whichever was greater, according to the American National Standards Institute/Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation EC-13 standard.ResultsWe analyzed a total of 631 fingertip and 626 facial PPG measurements. Fingertip PPG-estimated HRs were strongly correlated with resting ECG HR (r=.997, RMSE=1.03 beats/min or 1.40%), postmoderate-intensity exercise (r=.994, RMSE=2.15 beats/min or 2.53%), and postvigorous-intensity exercise HR (r=.995, RMSE=2.01 beats/min or 1.93%). The correlation of facial PPG-estimated HR was stronger with resting ECG HR (r=.997, RMSE=1.02 beats/min or 1.44%) than with postmoderate-intensity exercise (r=.982, RMSE=3.68 beats/min or 4.11%) or with postvigorous-intensity exercise (r=.980, RMSE=3.84 beats/min or 3.73%). Bland-Altman plots showed better agreement between ECG and fingertip PPG-estimated HR than between ECG and facial PPG-estimated HR.ConclusionsWe found that HR detection by the Cardiio smartphone app was accurate at rest and after moderate- and vigorous-intensity exercise in a healthy young adult sample. Contact-free facial PPG detection is more convenient but is less accurate than finger PPG due to body motion after exercise.

Depressive Symptoms Are Positively Associated with Time Spent Sedentary in Healthy Young US Adults

Introduction: Sedentary time and depressive symptoms are positively associated in elderly adults and adults with chronic disease; however, little is known about this relationship in generally healthy young adults. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between objectively measured sedentary time and depressive symptoms in a large sample of healthy young adults. Methods: Time spent sedentary and in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) was measured in 430 participants (49% men; 28 ± 4 years; 25.5 ± 3.3 kg/m2) using the SenseWear Mini Armband over a 10-day period. The Profile of Mood States depression scale was administered to assess depressive symptoms. Independent samples t tests investigated differences in MVPA, time spent sedentary, and Profile of Mood States scores between males and females. Linear regression analyses, adjusting for MVPA, sex, and body mass index, were employed to examine associations between sedentary time and depressive symptoms. Results: Mean time spent sedentary while awake was 681 ± 94 min/d. Holding MVPA constant, depressive symptoms were positively associated with sedentary time (β = 1.80; P < 0.01; R2 = 0.54). This association was statistically significant in males (β = 2.06; P < 0.01; R2 = 0.59) but not females (P = 0.10). Conclusions: Depressive symptoms are positively associated with time spent sedentary in healthy young US adults, independent of MVPA, particularly in men. A reduction in sedentary time may provide a valuable, low cost, option in the prevention of depressive symptoms.

Pharmacogenetics of stimulant abuse liability: association of CDH13 variant with amphetamine response in a racially-heterogeneous sample of healthy young adults.

A previous genome-wide association study (GWAS) in a predominately Caucasian sample of healthy young adults linked greater amphetamine-induced rewarding effects with the rs3784943 G allele of the cadherin 13 (CDH13; i.e., a cell adhesion molecule implicated in neuronal connectivity) gene. This association has not been subsequently examined, nor has it been studied in Asian populations, which may have greater frequencies of the risk allele. The objective of this study was to examine the association of rs3784943 with amphetamine response in a racially heterogeneous sample (37% Asian) of healthy young adults. Participants (N=84; 18-35years old) genotyped for rs3784943 completed counterbalanced sessions involving 20mg oral d-amphetamine or placebo administration. At both sessions, cardiovascular and subjective drug effects measures were collected. In the combined racially heterogeneous sample, amphetamine (vs. placebo) effects were significantly greater on "Feel Drug" ratings (p<0.05) and marginally greater on "Feel High" ratings and systolic blood pressure (p<0.10) in G/A + G/G genotypes than A/A genotypes. The G allele was more common among Asian than other racial groups. Among the subsample of Asian participants (N=31), drug effects were significantly greater on Feel Drug (p<0.05) and marginally greater on Feel High and heart rate (p<0.10) among Asians with G/A + G/G (vs. A/A) genotypes. In concert with a previous GWAS result, this candidate gene study provides convergent evidence implicating CDH13 rs3784943 variant in d-amphetamine's drug effect profile and suggests generalization to Asian populations. CDH13 and genes coding for other cell adhesion molecules may be worthy of study in the biology of psychostimulant abuse liability.

Creative females have larger white matter structures: Evidence from a large sample study.

The importance of brain connectivity for creativity has been theoretically suggested and empirically demonstrated. Studies have shown sex differences in creativity measured by divergent thinking (CMDT) as well as sex differences in the structural correlates of CMDT. However, the relationships between regional white matter volume (rWMV) and CMDT and associated sex differences have never been directly investigated. In addition, structural studies have shown poor replicability and inaccuracy of multiple comparisons over the whole brain. To address these issues, we used the data from a large sample of healthy young adults (776 males and 560 females; mean age: 20.8 years, SD = 0.8). We investigated the relationship between CMDT and WMV using the newest version of voxel-based morphometry (VBM). We corrected for multiple comparisons over whole brain using the permutation-based method, which is known to be quite accurate and robust. Significant positive correlations between rWMV and CMDT scores were observed in widespread areas below the neocortex specifically in females. These associations with CMDT were not observed in analyses of fractional anisotropy using diffusion tensor imaging. Using rigorous methods, our findings further supported the importance of brain connectivity for creativity as well as its female-specific association. Hum Brain Mapp 38:414-430, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Neuroanatomical bases of effortful control: evidence from a large sample of young healthy adults using voxel-based morphometry.

Effortful control (EC) is a base of individuality in cognition and psychological adjustment. EC is defined as a capacity to control responses and behaviors. We investigated associations between individual differences of EC and regional gray and white matter volume (rGMV/rGMV) in 374 men and 306 women (age, 20.61 ± 1.82 years) using Japanese version of Effortful control scale (J-ECS). J-ECS consists of three subscales such as inhibitory control (IC), activation control (ACTC), and attentional control (ATC). Results showed that (a) IC was associated with larger rGMV in the dorsal part of anterior cingulate cortex (dACC), the supplementary motor area (SMA) and the pre SMA and larger rWMV in the dACC, (b) ACTC was correlated with smaller rGMV in the insula and the putamen, and (c) ATC was associated with larger rWMV in the inferior frontal gyrus, orbital frontal gyrus, ACC, and insula. Our study revealed key neuroanatomical correlations between EC and rGMV and rWMV.

Guidelines for a cancer prevention smartphone application: A mixed-methods study

ObjectivesThis study sought to explore the views and experiences of healthy young adults concerning the fundamental features of a cancer prevention smartphone app that seeks behaviour change. MethodsThree focus groups were conducted with 16 healthy young adults that explored prior experiences, points of view and opinions about currently available health-related smartphone apps. Then, an online questionnaire was designed and applied to a larger sample of healthy young adults. Focus group and online questionnaire data were analysed and confronted. ResultsStudy results identified behaviour tracking, goal setting, tailored information and use of reminders as the most desired features in a cancer prevention app. Participants highlighted the importance of privacy and were reluctant to share personal health information with other users. The results also point out important dimensions to be considered for long-term use of health promotion apps related with usability and perceived usefulness. Participants didn’t consider gamification features as important dimensions for long-term use of apps. ConclusionsThis study allowed the definition of a guideline set for the development of a cancer prevention app.

On the Relation of Working Memory and Multitasking: Memory Span and Synthetic Work Performance

Recent research has identified working memory as a critical component of multitasking ability. These studies showed that working memory accounted for multitasking variance over-and-above that predicted by other cognitive, personality, and experience-based variables. However, a limitation of these previous studies was that the tasks selected to measure working memory were dual-tasks themselves. The purpose of the current research was to determine if working memory measures must be dual-tasks to predict multitasking performance, or if other types of working memory measures that do not rely upon the dual-task methodology predict multitasking just as well, if not better. Three different serial order memory span tasks (one dual-task and two single-task) and one multitask were administered to a sample of healthy young adults. The results showed that single- and dual-task working memory measures predicted multitasking to a similar degree. The results indicate there is something fundamental about working memory's relationship with multitasking ability.