Memory Task Research Articles

An insight from the default mode network in patients with amnesia following left thalamic infarction involving the mediodorsal nucleus and mammillothalamic tract.

The role of the medial part of the thalamus, and in particular the mediodorsal nucleus (MD) and the mammillothalamic tract (MTT), in memory has long been studied, but their contribution remains unclear. While the main functional hypothesis regarding the MTT focuses on memory, some authors postulate that the MD plays a supervisory executive role (indirectly affecting memory retrieval) due to its dense structural connectivity with the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Recently, it has been proposed that the MD, MTT and PFC form part of the DMN the default mode network (DMN). Due to the theoretical presence of MD and MTT in the DMN, we aimed to show the effect of thalamic lesions on functional connectivity (FC) and its putative role in cognitive impairment. We recruited 12 patients with left thalamic infarction and 12 matched healthy controls. They underwent neuropsychological assessment including memory tasks, morphological 3D MRI and resting state fMRI. A ROI-to-ROI method was used for group-level FC analyses. Patients had lesions in the MD and ventrolateral nuclei, with a damaged mammillothalamic tract (MTT) in seven of them. They showed lower performance than controls on verbal memory, executive function and language tests, with more impairment in memory, working memory, semantic verbal fluency and attention in the MTT-damaged patients. Contrast analyses between patients and matched controls showed lower FC in the ventral and dorsal DMN. Correlation analyses (patients and controls pooled) showed i/a positive correlation between memory and DMN, and ii/that MTT volume correlated with decreased functional connectivity in the dorsal DMN, whereas there was no correlation with MD lesion volume. These results suggest that both the memory impairment and the DMN functional change we observed may reflect an effect of the MTT lesion rather than MD damage.

Dynamic reconfiguration of default and frontoparietal network supports creative incubation.

Although creative ideas often emerge during distraction activities unrelated to the creative task, empirical research has yet to reveal the underlying neurocognitive mechanism. Using an incubation paradigm, we temporarily disengaged participants from the initial creative ideation task and required them to conduct two different distraction activities (moderately-demanding: 1-back working memory task, non-demanding: 0-back choice reaction time task), then returned them to the previous creative task. On the process of creative ideation, we calculated the representational dissimilarities between the two creative ideation phases before and after incubation period to estimate the neural representational change underlying successful incubation. The results found that, for the 0-back condition, successful incubation was associated with the representational change in precuneus (PCU), whereas for the 1-back condition, it was associated with change in rostrolateral PFC (rlPFC), suggesting the dual processes of the DMN-mediated associative thinking and PFC-mediated controlled thinking for the 0- or the 1-back incubation conditions to prompt creation. On the incubation delay, we found the successful incubation in both conditions was accompanied with network integration between frontoparietal (FP) and default mode (DM) network, further suggesting the coupling of the controlled- and associative-thinking for the incubation to work. Moreover, we found the FP-DM integration during incubation period could respectively predict the representational change in PCU or rlPFC in the creative ideation phase of 0- or 1-back condition. This means both conditions benefits from the coordination of the controlled and of the associative thinking in incubation period, but for the representational change in creative ideation phase, 1-back condition relies more on the controlled thinking, whereas the 0-back on the associative ones. Additionally, we created a neural encoding indicator to assess the degree to which temporal activities in the rlPFC or PCU during incubation delay is related to the after-incubation successful problem-solving, and we found a positive relation between this indicator and dynamic reconfiguration of brain networks. This further indicates that FP-DM integration supports creative incubation through offline processing.

Real-time mechanism-based interventions for daily alcohol challenges: Protocol for ecological momentary assessment and intervention.

Advancing evidence-based, tailored interventions for substance use disorders (SUDs) requires understanding temporal directionality while upholding ecological validity. Previous studies identified loneliness and craving as pivotal factors associated with alcohol consumption, yet the precise directionality of these relationships remains ambiguous. This study aims to establish a smartphone-based real-life intervention platform that integrates momentary assessment and intervention into everyday life. The platform will explore the temporal directionality of contextual influences on alcohol use among individuals experiencing loneliness and craving. We will target 180 individuals aged 18 to 70 in Germany who report loneliness, alcohol cravings, and meet risk or binge drinking criteria (over 14 standard drinks per week or five drinks in a single day for males, and over seven drinks per week or four drinks in a single day for females). Using a Within-Person-Encouragement-Design and Just-In-Time-Adaptive-Interventions, we will manipulate the contexts of loneliness and alcohol craving with cognitive reappraisal and physical activity interventions against a control condition (working memory task). Recruitment started in June 2024, with data collection and processing expected by June 2027. Our real-life intervention platform endeavors to serve as a robust tool for discerning the directionality of the effects from time series data in everyday life influences on alcohol use for the future study. Ultimately, it will pave the way for low-threshold prevention, clinical treatment, and therapy to target diverse contexts of everyday life in SUD. German Clinical Trials Register DRKS00033133.

Cognitive Benefits of Open-Skill Sports in Childhood: Evidence from the ABCD Study.

Sports participation in childhood is known to benefit physical health, but its impact on cognitive development, particularly comparing open-skill and closed-skill sports, is less understood. This study analyzed baseline data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study, comprising 11,869 children aged 9-10 years. Participants were categorized into open-skill sports group (OSG), closed-skill sports group (CSG), and non-sport group (NSG). Cognitive performance was assessed using seven tasks from the NIH Toolbox, covering executive function, processing speed, and language domains. Group differences were examined using ANCOVA, controlling for sex, race, parental education, income, Area Deprivation Index (ADI), body mass index (BMI), and total time spent in activities. In the final analytical sample of 9,898 ABCD participants, the OSG outperformed both the CSG and NSG on executive function tasks, including the Flanker task (p < .01) and List Sorting Working Memory task (p < .01). No significant group differences were found on tasks assessing processing speed, or language domains. Our findings suggest that participation in open-skill sports may be associated with enhanced cognitive performance in childhood, particularly in executive function and working memory. These results support the idea that dynamic and cognitively demanding activities could play a role in cognitive development during key developmental periods.

Cognitive control in individuals with heroin use disorder after prolonged methadone maintenance treatment

BackgroundAlthough impaired cognitive control is common during the acute detoxification phase of substance use disorders (SUD) and is considered a major cause of relapse, it remains unclear after prolonged methadone maintenance treatment (MMT). The aim of the present study was to elucidate cognitive control in individuals with heroin use disorder (HUD) after prolonged MMT and its association with previous relapse.MethodsA total of 63 HUD subjects (41 subjects with previous relapse and 22 non-relapse subjects, mean MMT duration: 12.24 ± 2.92 years) and 31 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. Eye tracking tasks, prospective memory tasks, the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Adult Version (BRIEF-A) and the Prospective and Retrospective Memory Questionnaire (PRMQ) were used to assess cognitive control.ResultsHUD individuals exhibited worse saccade error rate and executive dysfunction but showed no significant impairment in prospective memory. Additionally, the relapsers performed worse in terms of antisaccade amplitude and velocity at higher difficulty gradients (11° or 16°). Antisaccade performance in terms of amplitude and velocity was negatively correlated with executive function scores. Deficits in inhibition, cognitive flexibility, and self-monitoring were found to mediate the relationship between previous relapse and impaired antisaccade performance.ConclusionsEven after prolonged MMT, HUD individuals still show partial impairments in cognitive control and antisaccade performance. Previous relapse exacerbates cognitive control deficits through executive dysfunction in inhibition, cognitive flexibility and self-monitoring, which can be screened by higher difficulty of antisaccade amplitude and velocity. More importantly, saccade error rate can reflect impaired inhibitory control in HUD individuals, whereas antisaccade amplitude and velocity appear to have potential diagnostic value for relapse.

Ranking tasks in recognition memory: A direct test of the two-high-threshold contrast model.

It has long been debated whether latent memory signals determine recognition judgments directly or through a small number of discrete states. Often, signal detection theory (SDT) models instantiate the former perspective, whereas the two-high-threshold (2HT) model instantiates the latter. Kellen and Klauer (2014) conducted a critical test using a ranking paradigm that yielded results in line with common SDT models and incompatible with the 2HT model. However, Malejka et al. (2022) recently challenged their conclusion. They argued that the 2HT model can account for the critical effect if detection probabilities were determined by a memory-signal contrast between simultaneously presented stimuli. Here, we test this contrast mechanism directly. We show that when only a single old item is presented, such a contrast mechanism entails a decrease in the probability of correctly rejecting the accompanying new items as their number increases. SDT models, on the other hand, predict the opposite pattern. Results of an empirical investigation were in agreement with SDT and inconsistent with the 2HT contrast model. Thus, our findings strengthen the conclusions of Kellen and Klauer (2014) and provide further evidence for SDT models of recognition memory. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Sociodemographic factors, cognitive performance and cognitive reserve in brazilian High Performance Older Adults (HPOAs)

Given the increasing aging population, investigating the cognitive functioning of older adults is crucial. Various factors are associated with both cognitive decline and preservation. High Performance Older Adults (HPOAs) are a subset of older individuals demonstrating exceptional cognitive abilities, often exhibiting phenotypic characteristics such as superior cognitive skills. This study aims to investigate the relationship between sociodemographic factors, cognitive reserve and cognitive performance in a sample of brazilian older adults identified as having high cognitive abilities. To examine this phenomenon, data were collected via a sociodemographic questionnaire and cognitive assessments. Of an initial sample of 62 participants, 54 completed the study (38.8% men, 61.1% women). Analysis revealed 12 participants (22.2%) met HPOA criteria, while 42 (77.7%) were classified as Standard Performance Older Adults (SPOAs). HPOAs demonstrated significantly better performance on the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT) in trials A1-A5, A6, A7, and Recognition Memory (p &lt; 0.001); on the Rey Complex Figure in Immediate and Delayed Recall (p = 0.006), and on the Trail Making Test A (TMT A) (p = 0.003). Significant differences were also found in the analysis items of the Cognitive Reserve Scale (CRS) (p &lt; 0.001; p = 0.008; p = 0.002). The findings reveal that HPOAs exhibit superior performance in episodic memory, attention and processing speed tasks. The model coefficients in logistic regression revealed a statistically significant association between Total Points in CRS and HPOA (β = 0.0508, standard error = 0.0147, z = 3.45, p &lt; 0.001). These results emphasize the importance of cognitive reserve for preserving cognitive performance in the elderly. New research should aim to elucidate the complex interplay of markers associated with HPOAs, employing rigorous research protocols sensitive to sociocultural context.

Individual differences in working memory and attentional control continue to predict memory performance despite extensive learning.

Individual differences in working memory predict a wide range of cognitive abilities. However, little research has been done on whether working memory continues to predict task performance after repetitive learning. Here, we tested whether working memory ability continued to predict long-term memory (LTM) performance for picture sequences even after participants showed massive learning. In Experiments 1-3, subjects performed a source memory task in which they were presented a sequence of 30 objects shown in one of four quadrants and then were tested on each item's position. We repeated this procedure for five times in Experiment 1 and 12 times in Experiments 2 and 3. Interestingly, we discovered that individual differences in working memory continually predicted LTM accuracy across all repetitions. In Experiment 4, we replicated the stable working memory demands with word pairs. In Experiment 5, we generalized the stable working memory demands model to attentional control abilities. Together, these results suggest that people, instead of relying less on working memory, optimized their working memory and attentional control throughout learning. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Working Memory as the Focus of the Bilingual Effect in Executive Functions

The bilingual effect on executive functions (EFs) has garnered considerable attention, with most studies focusing on the visual domain and largely overlooking the auditory domain. Furthermore, research has predominantly concentrated on specific subcomponents of executive functions, with few studies systematically examining all three key subcomponents. This raises two important questions: (a) Is the bilingual effect specific to certain modalities (modality-specific), or a more general phenomenon (modality-general)? (b) Is the bilingual effect concentrated in a specific component of executive functions (process-specific), or does it extend to all three components (process-general)? To explore these questions, this study recruited monolingual Chinese and bilingual Chinese–English participants, using matched visual and auditory Stroop, N-back, and task-switching tasks to assess inhibitory control, working memory, and cognitive flexibility in both groups. The results showed that, after controlling for variables like intelligence, socioeconomic status, and age, bilingualism significantly predicted performance in both auditory and visual working memory tasks, explaining 34% and 19% of the variance, respectively. However, no evidence was found to support a bilingual effect in inhibitory control or cognitive flexibility. In conclusion, these results suggest that bilingual effects are not only process-specific (affecting only working memory) but also modality-general (providing advantages in both visual and auditory modalities).

Representational geometry explains puzzling error distributions in behavioral tasks

Measuring and interpreting errors in behavioral tasks is critical for understanding cognition. Conventional wisdom assumes that encoding/decoding errors for continuous variables in behavioral tasks should naturally have Gaussian distributions, so that deviations from normality in the empirical data indicate the presence of more complex sources of noise. This line of reasoning has been central for prior research on working memory. Here, we reassess this assumption and find that even in ideal observer models with Gaussian encoding noise, the error distribution is generally non-Gaussian, contrary to the commonly held belief. Critically, we find that the shape of the error distribution is determined by the geometrical structure of the encoding manifold via a simple rule. In the case of a high-dimensional geometry, the error distributions naturally exhibit flat tails. Using this insight, we apply our theory to visual short-term memory tasks, and find that it can account for a large array of experimental data with only two free parameters. Our results challenge the dominant view in the mechanisms and capacity constraints of working memory systems. They instead suggest that the Bayesian framework, which explains various aspects of perceptual behavior, also provides an excellent account of working memory. Overall, our results establish a direct connection between neural manifold geometry and behavior, and call attention to the geometry of the representation as a critically important, yet underappreciated factor in determining the character of errors in human behavior.

Multimodal language processing in school-aged Mandarin-speaking children: the role of beat gesture in enhancing memory for discourse information

Abstract Communication is typically multimodal, meaning that communication involves the utilization of various cues from different modalities. While spoken words in the auditory modality primarily convey semantic information, gestures from the visual modality complement and enhance the communication process. However, the role of visual cues, specifically beat gestures, a type of non-verbal co-speech gesture used to emphasize certain information, in language processing remains largely underexplored. The present study, using a memory task where 90 Mandarin-speaking schoolchildren aged 6–9 viewed stories individually and were later asked about what happened in the stories, investigates the role of beat gestures in enhancing the memory for discourse information in Mandarin. The results show that words with beat gestures were generally recalled better for children of all grades, indicating that by age 6, Mandarin children have already acquired the ability to utilize beat gestures to encode a discourse. This study contributes significantly to our limited understanding of the significance of visual cues in multimodal language processing.

Short-term pitch memory predicts both incidentally and intentionally acquired absolute pitch categories.

Tonal short-term memory has been positively associated with both incidentally acquired absolute pitch memory (e.g., for popular songs) and explicitly learned absolute pitch (AP) categories; however, the relationship between these constructs has not been directly tested within the same individuals. The current study investigated how tonal short-term memory relates to both incidentally and intentionally acquired AP. Participants (n = 192) completed a tonal short-term memory task, an incidental AP task, and an AP categorization task. The tonal short-term assessment involved adjusting a starting tone to match a target tone. The incidental AP task involved judging whether excerpts of popular songs were presented in the correct key. The AP categorization task involved associating six pitch chroma categories with arbitrary labels, including a generalization test that used Shepard tones to discourage pitch height cues. We found that all three pitch measures were positively correlated with one another. Critically, however, we found that tonal short-termmemoryfully mediated the relationship between incidental AP and explicit AP categorization. This finding held even when controlling for musical training and tonal language fluency. Overall, these results suggest that pitch memory is a consistent individual difference measure across different timescales and different measures (e.g., incidental measures, explicit measures). However, tonal short-term memory appears to be foundational to both incidentally acquired and explicitly learned AP categories.

EXPRESS: Familiarity Influences on Proactive Interference in Verbal Memory.

Proactive interference occurs when older memories interfere with current information processing and retrieval. It is often explained with reference to familiarity, where the reappearance of highly familiar items from the recent past produces more disruption than older, less familiar items. However, there are other forms of familiarity beyond recency that may be important, and these were explored in a verbal recent-probes task. Participants viewed eight targets per trial and then determined whether a probe matched any of those targets. Probes matching a target from the previous trial, rather than an earlier trial, led to more errors, revealing proactive interference. However, this effect was influenced by experimental familiarity (whether stimuli were repeated or unique) and pre-experimental familiarity (whether stimuli were meaningful words or meaningless nonwords). Specifically, proactive interference was strongest for repeated nonwords, and smallest for unique nonwords, but stimulus repetition had little impact for words. In addition, the time separating trials (temporal familiarity) was unrelated to proactive interference. The present findings revealed more complex effects of familiarity than have previously been assumed. To understand proactive interference in a working memory task, it is necessary to consider the role of long-term memory via experimental and pre-experimental stimulus familiarity.

The relationship between self-monitoring and cognitive strategy use in midlife and older adults

ABSTRACT Introduction Self-monitoring abilities, both in the moment (online) and general self-knowledge (offline) of one’s errors, are crucial to implementing modification to tasks to support healthy, independent aging. Cognitive strategies (CS) aid in functional, physical, and cognitive abilities, but without recognition of their need, individuals may struggle to complete daily tasks. The current study examined whether higher levels of self-monitoring would predict higher use and quality of real-world cognitive strategies in older adults. Methods Participants included 80 community-dwelling midlife and older adults. Participants completed a remote battery of neuropsychological tasks, including a computerized go-no-go task that evaluated online self-monitoring, and a self-reported questionnaire to measure offline self-monitoring (Cognitive Self-Efficacy Questionnaire). To assess CS, a count score (CS Quantity) and utility score (CS Quality) were computed based on strategies utilized in completion of real-world prospective memory tasks. Results Online self-monitoring was not significantly related to offline self-monitoring (r(77) = –.07, p = .52). A hierarchical regression revealed that while offline self-monitoring significantly predicted 7% of the variance in CS Quality, above and beyond age, global cognition, and premorbid functioning (ΔR 2 = .07, ΔF = 6.23, p = .02), the addition of online self-monitoring did not contribute significant incremental validity (ΔR 2 = .001, ΔF = 0.12, p = .73). The second hierarchical regression revealed that neither online nor offline self-monitoring significantly predicted CS Quantity, after controlling for sex (ΔR 2 = .004, ΔF = 0.29, p = .60). Conclusion The results support the distinction between online and offline self-monitoring concepts and their assessment. For community-dwelling midlife and older adults without dementia, clinicians may consider an individual’s perceptions of their ability to self-monitor when working to facilitate the use of cognitive strategies.

The effects of an acute Tai Chi on emotional memory and prefrontal cortex activation: a fNIRS study

ObjectiveAcute exercise has the potential to influence emotional memory and cortical hemodynamics, but the specific effects depend on the type of exercise. This study aimed to determine whether acute Tai Chi practice enhances emotional memory and prefrontal cortex activation compared to cycling and a control condition.MethodsUsing a within-subjects crossover design, 36 healthy university students completed three interventions: Tai Chi, cycling, and a resting control condition. Emotional memory performance was assessed before and after each intervention, and cortical hemodynamics were measured using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). The correlation between oxyhemoglobin (Oxy-Hb) concentration in the prefrontal cortex and emotional memory accuracy was analyzed.ResultsCompared to cycling and the control group, the Tai Chi intervention showed: (1) a significantly higher accuracy of positive emotional memory; (2) a greater increase in Oxy-Hb concentration in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (L-DLPFC) during positive emotional memory tasks; (3) a stronger positive correlation between Oxy-Hb concentration in the L-DLPFC and emotional memory accuracy. In contrast, cycling improved positive emotional memory accuracy to a lesser extent, while the control group showed no significant changes.ConclusionTai Chi, compared to cycling and rest, significantly enhanced positive emotional memory and L-DLPFC activation. These findings highlight the unique potential of Tai Chi to improve emotional memory through increased cortical activation, suggesting its effectiveness as a cognitive-emotional intervention.

Criterion validity of five open-source app-based cognitive and sensory tasks in an Australian adult life course sample aged 18 to 82: Labs without walls

With recent technical advances, many cognitive and sensory tasks have been adapted for smartphone testing. This study aimed to assess the criterion validity of a subset of self-administered, open-source app-based cognitive and sensory tasks by comparing test performance to lab-based alternatives. An in-person baseline was completed by 43 participants (aged 21 to 82) from the larger Labs without Walls project (Brady et al., 2023) to compare the self-administered, app-based tasks with researcher-administered equivalents. 4 preset tasks sourced from Apple’s ResearchKit (Spatial Memory, Trail Making Test, Stroop Test, and dBHL Tone Audiometry) and 1 custom-built task (Ishihara Color Deficiency Test) were compared. All tasks except the Spatial Memory task demonstrated high comparability to the researcher-administered version. Specifically, the Trail Making Tests were strongly correlated (.77 and .78 for parts A and B, respectively), Stroop correlations ranged from .77 to .89 and the Ishihara tasks were moderately correlated (r = .69). ICCs for the Audiometry task ranged from .56 to .96 (Moderate to Excellent) with 83% sensitivity and 100% specificity. Bland–Altman plots revealed a mean bias between -5.35 to 9.67 dB for each ear and frequency with an overall bias of 3.02 and 1.98 for the left and right ears, respectively, within the minimum testing interval. Furthermore, all app-based tasks were significantly correlated with age. These results offer preliminary evidence of the validity of four open-source cognitive and sensory tasks with implications for effective remote testing in non-lab settings.

Exploring predementia: Understanding the characteristics of subjective cognitive decline plus from India.

Subjective cognitive decline (SCD) is the early predementia syndrome. that occurs even before the development of objective cognitive decline. SCD plus refers to an additional set of criteria that increases the likelihood of developing mild cognitive impairment and further progressing to Alzheimer's disease (AD). Studying the progression of SCD-plus participants will help in understanding the importance of diagnosing this condition at an early stage and delaying its onset. The present tries to examine neurocognitive changes in individuals who met the criteria of SCD-plus patients. The study also investigated the imaging correlates of these individuals in both cohorts. This study included 94 participants from Srinivaspura Aging, Neuro Senescence, and COGnition (SANSCOG) and Tata Longitudinal Study of Aging (TLSA) cohorts who satisfy the criteria of SCD plus. Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the SCD plus participants and healthy controls. Regression analysis was performed to find the association between SCD plus and cognition. The SCD-plus group performed poorer than the healthy group in episodic memory delayed recall (p = 0.049), name face recognition (p = 0.023), and letter fluency (p = 0.004) tasks. The generalized linear model revealed that the SCD-plus group had lower left cerebellar cortex (p = 0.010) and right inferior occipital cortex (p = 0.016) volumes than the healthy control group. The participants in the SCD-plus group performed poorly on memory and language-related tasks, and the volumes of the associated brain regions decreased. This study suggested that the SCD-plus group had characteristics similar to AD group and can help in identifying AD at the earliest.

The development of social offloading.

Across two experiments, we explored the conditions under which 4- to 11-year-old children (N=138) were more likely to seek social cognitive helpers and whether they preferentially relied on help from those that had previously shown proficiency in a relevant cognitive context. Children completed a memory task with varying levels of difficulty, after which they were introduced to two characters that exhibited either a high memory ability (task-relevant) or a high motor skill ability (task-irrelevant) in a distinct context. Children then completed the memory task a second time with the option to choose one of the two characters to assist them. From 6 years of age, children preferentially offloaded memory demand onto the character that had previously demonstrated a high memory ability and were also more likely to ask for help on difficult trials compared with easy trials. Our results also indicated potential differences in factors influencing children's social and nonsocial cognitive offloading decisions.

Maternal education and prenatal smoking associations with adolescent executive function are substantially confounded by genetics.

Twin studies have suggested extremely high estimates of heritability for adolescent executive function, with no substantial contributions from shared environment. However, developmental psychology research has found significant correlations between executive function outcomes and elements of the environment that would be shared in twins. It is unclear whether these seemingly contradictory findings are best explained by genetic confounding in developmental studies or limitations in twin studies, which can potentially underestimate shared environment. In this study, we use genetic and phenotypic data from 5,939 participants, 4,827 participant mothers, and 2,903 participant fathers in the Millennium cohort to examine the role of genetics in explaining common environmental associations with executive function, assessed by the spatial working memory (SWM) task and Cambridge Gambling task. Bivariate genome-wide complex trait analysis (GCTA) revealed that single-nucleotide polymorphism effects were the sole significant predictor of the association between SWM and both maternal education and prenatal smoking. maternal GCTA and trioGCTA also found no significant evidence of indirect genetic effects on SWM, indicating that genetic nurture is unlikely to explain the bivariate GCTA results. The Cambridge Gambling task showed no significant single-nucleotide polymorphism heritability, suggesting that genetic influences on hot executive function may differ significantly from those on cool executive function. This study supports the twin study claim that the working memory component of executive function is primarily a genetic trait with minimal influence from shared environment, emphasizing the importance of using genetically sensitive designs to ensure that genetic confounding does not falsely inflate estimates of environmental influences on traits. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

What does a verbal working memory task measure? The process-specific and age-dependent nature of attentional demands in verbal working memory tasks.

Most models of verbal working memory (WM) consider attention as an important determinant of WM. The detailed nature of attentional processes and the different dimensions of verbal WM they support remains, however, poorly investigated. The present study distinguished between attentional capacity (scope of attention) and attentional control (control of attention) and examined their respective role for two fundamental dimensions of verbal WM: the retention of item versus serial order information and the simple versus complex nature of WM tasks. Three hundred four young and older adult participants performed simple or complex recall or reconstruction tasks involving the retention of item and/or serial order information, as well as attention tasks estimating scope and control of attention abilities. In young participants, scope of attention measures was most robustly associated with all WM tasks; control of attention measures were additionally involved when item and order information had to be maintained in more complex WM tasks. Older adult participants presented a similar pattern of results with, however, a tendency for increased reliance on control of attention already for the simple storage of information, and this most robustly for serial order information. These results reveal the task-dependent and partly age-dependent intervention of scope and control of attention in verbal WM measures, calling for dynamic models of verbal WM and attention. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).