Working Memory Ability Research Articles

Impact of over 6 months of digital hearing aid usage on auditory working memory in acquired severe to profound hearing loss

ABSTRACT Introduction: Hearing amplification devices provide ample auditory input that can help to decrease the cognitive strain caused by hearing loss. Depending on the kind and severity of hearing loss, using hearing aids has variable effects on auditory working memory. This study looked into the auditory working memory capacity after using hearing aids for more than 6 months. Method: Sixty individuals of a mean age of 53.4 ± 6.07 years with severe to profound hearing loss in the age range of 40–60 years participated. Out of them, 30 individuals with a mean age of 53.5 ± 6.7 were using digital hearing aids and another 30 individuals with a mean age of 53.3 ± 5.4 years were not using a hearing aid. Forward and backward digit span task (DST) and Mini-Mental Status Examination (MMSE) were investigated to estimate the auditory working memory capacity. Results: Mean MMSE scores of those individuals with severe to profound hearing loss (53.3 ± 5.43) using (HAU) a hearing aid (25.7 ± 2.97) and individuals not using (NHAU) a hearing aid (22.1 ± 5.11) were compared across each other. The result revealed that the mean MMSE score of HAU was significantly higher than the mean score of NHAU. The mean DST (forward, backward, and total) score of HAU (6.40 ± 1.47) was cosiderably higher than the mean score of NHAU (5.33 ± 1.12). Conclusion: Results showed that mean MMSE and DST scores were higher in the HAU category, but when compared across the gender, no statistical differences were observed. The change in auditory working memory and other cognitive abilities were attributed to the usage duration of the hearing aids.

Inconclusive evidence for associations between adverse experiences in adulthood and working memory performance.

Decades of research have shown that adversity tends to be associated with lower working memory (WM) performance. This literature has mainly focused on impairments in the capacity to hold information available in WM for further processing. However, some recent adaptation-based studies suggest that certain types of adversity can leave intact, or even enhance, the ability to rapidly update information in WM. One key challenge is that WM capacity and updating tasks tend to covary, as both types of tasks require the creation and maintenance of bindings in WM; links between mental representations of information in WM. To estimate the associations between adversity and different processes in WM, we need to isolate variance in performance related to WM capacity from variance in performance related to updating ability. In this Registered Report, participants from the Dutch Longitudinal Internet studies for the Social Sciences (LISS) panel completed three WM tasks: two complex span tasks and a task measuring both binding and updating of information. In addition, we estimated participants' exposure to neighbourhood threat, material deprivation and unpredictability. We estimated associations between the three types of adversity and latent estimates of WM capacity and updating using structural equation modelling. We did not find consistent associations between adversity and WM capacity or updating, nor did we find evidence that the associations were practically equivalent to zero. Our results show that adversity researchers should account for overlap in WM tasks when estimating specific WM abilities.

Exploring the Potentials of Integrating Immersive Virtual Reality (VR) Into Neuroanatomy Education

Neuroanatomy teaching requires students to understand complex spatial relations of the brain structures, traditionally accomplished using a cadaver. However, dissecting neuroanatomical structures remains a challenge due to their intricate nature. Digital technology is increasingly being adopted as a three-dimensional (3D) visualization tool, and immersive virtual reality (VR) has attracted great interest. A literature review was conducted using EMBASE, MEDLINE, Web of Science, Scopus, and ProQuest databases. Studies published from 2015 onwards that compared VR-based neuroanatomy teaching with traditional methods were included. Only English-language, peer-reviewed articles with quantitative learning outcomes were analyzed. This review included 6 studies and suggests that VR is non-inferior to other teaching methods and performs better in spatial-related questions. VR is also favored to increase student motivation and engagement. These positive learning experiences are expected to diminish neurophobia. Meanwhile, as a novel technology, challenges for incorporating VR into neuroanatomy education include costly technical requirements, inadequate image resolution, anatomy details, absence of texture perception, and health concerns such as cyber-sickness. Future studies should employ a large sample size (>100), assess participants' working memory and spatial abilities, conduct longer experiment duration, and examine long-term retention. Digital simulation through VR is also attainable and can be implemented further for neurosurgical training. As technology advances, immersive VR technology can potentially be an effective teaching tool for neuroanatomy.

Individual variation in encoding strategy optimization in visual working memory: Evidence from a change detection task.

Extensive research has shown that differences in cognitive ability predict working memory (WM) performance. However, strategy use may also explain individual differences in WM. Here we explored individual variation in encoding strategy optimization in visual WM. Participants searched for a target that changed between two alternating displays that cycled until response. Critically, participants could freely choose between one red and one blue target, and the ratio of red to blue items varied randomly across trials. Therefore, the optimal strategy was to selectively encode items in the smaller color subset. Results showed a general tendency to choose the optimal (small subset) target, but there were large individual differences in strategy choice, with many participants using suboptimal strategies. While Experiment 1 found no relationship between ability and strategy, a larger sample replication in Experiment 5 found a small, positive correlation between WM ability and strategy optimization. Experiment 2 showed that strategy use was not stable over time. Many participants spontaneously shifted to highly optimal target choices, suggesting a sudden discovery of the optimal strategy. Experiment 3 confirmed the importance of explicit knowledge in strategy choice. Informing participants about the optimal strategy induced a large strategy improvement. Moreover, optimally performing participants demonstrated explicit awareness of the optimal strategy. Experiment 4 showed that, even under greater task demands, when participants viewed the displays only once, strategy use was still suboptimal. Our findings highlight strategy choice as an important source of individual variation and therefore should be considered alongside the ability to fully understand differences in WM. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Prefrontal Hemodynamic Activity during Working Memory Challenges: Investigating Stimulus Influence

AbstractBackgroundResearch on hemodynamic responses in the prefrontal cortex during working memory tasks has mainly been performed in cognitive neuroscience research. However, the specific stimuli contributing to working memory deficits in major depressive disorder (MDD) are currently lacking. This study aims to compare working memory performance and prefrontal cortex activation in individuals with MDD and healthy controls during working memory tasks involving textual, visual, and emotional stimuli.MethodFunctional near‐infrared spectroscopy was utilized to record hemodynamic responses from 71 adults (30 with MDD and 41 controls) during the 2‐back tasks with four stimulus types: numbers, letters, polygons, and facial expressions. Working memory performance was measured by accuracy and reaction time during the tasks, and hemodynamic responses were collected by oxyhemoglobin (HbO) activation of the prefrontal cortex during the tasks.ResultMDD demonstrated lower working memory performance than controls during polygon and facial expression‐based 2‐back tasks, while there was no significant difference under number and letter conditions. MDD under the polygon stimulus exhibited abnormal HbO activation in the bilateral ventrolateral prefrontal cortex compared to controls, while under the facial expression stimulus, it showed exclusive abnormal HbO activation in the left medial prefrontal cortex, bilateral orbito prefrontal cortex, and bilateral ventrolateral prefrontal cortex.ConclusionThese findings indicate the importance of stimuli that require cognitive processing not only for logical aspects, such as polygons, but also for emotional aspects, like facial expressions, in evaluating hemodynamic responses of prefrontal cortex and working memory abilities in individuals with MDD.

Visuospatial working memory and (free and cued) recall of survey knowledge after environment navigation.

Navigating environments is a fundamental ability of daily life, with survey knowledge playing a crucial role. Survey knowledge varies between individuals, and these variations may be related to individual differences in visuospatial working memory (VSWM) ability. However, other factors, such as the modalities of recall (cued vs. free recall) of survey knowledge, could interact with VSWM resources. The present study aimed to clarify whether various types of VSWM contribute to survey knowledge under specific recall modalities or regardless of how spatial information is retrieved. A sample of 74 young adults performed VSWM tasks with varying processing demands and degrees of active involvement. Then, they actively learned a virtual city path in a Cave Automatic Virtual Environment (CAVE) environment, and their survey knowledge was assessed using a sketch map task in free and cued recall modalities (within-participants). Cued recall demonstrated an advantage in sketch map accuracy over free recall. VSWM with simultaneous processing and active mental imagery is associated with sketch map accuracy, but not other VSWM. Importantly, no interaction was found between VSWM and the modality of recall. Therefore, survey knowledge is primarily related to VSWM, regardless of recall modality, emphasizing the importance of VSWM ability in capturing survey knowledge after active navigation.

The impact of targeted lifestyle interventions on brain function in young and middle-aged patients with hypertension: A retrospective cohort analysis.

To explore the impact of targeted lifestyle interventions on brain function in young and middle-aged patients with hypertension. Clinical data of 104 young and middle-aged patients with hypertension, treated in Huashan Hospital, Fudan University from June 2021 to September 2023, were retrospectively analyzed. Forty nine patients received routine nursing care (control group), and 55 patients received targeted lifestyle interventions in addition to routine nursing care (observation group). Blood pressure levels, cognitive function, memory function, executive function, and working memory ability were compared between the two groups before and after the intervention. After the intervention, blood pressure levels in both groups decreased compared to before the intervention, and were significantly lower in the observation group compared to the control group (P<0.05). After the intervention, both groups showed significant improvements in cognitive function, memory function, executive function, and working memory ability (P<0.05). Targeted lifestyle interventions can significantly improve blood pressure control levels and brain function in young and middle-aged patients with hypertension.

Relationship Between Working Memory, Compression, and Beamformers in Ideal Conditions.

Previous research has shown that speech recognition with different wide dynamic range compression (WDRC) time-constants (fast-acting or Fast and slow-acting or Slow) is associated with individual working memory ability, especially in adverse listening conditions. Until recently, much of this research has been limited to omnidirectional hearing aid settings and colocated speech and noise, whereas most hearing aids are fit with directional processing that may improve the listening environment in spatially separated conditions and interact with WDRC processing. The primary objective of this study was to determine whether there is an association between individual working memory ability and speech recognition in noise with different WDRC time-constants, with and without microphone directionality (binaural beamformer or Beam versus omnidirectional or Omni) in a spatial condition ideal for the beamformer (speech at 0 , noise at 180 ). The hypothesis was that the relationship between speech recognition ability and different WDRC time-constants would depend on working memory in the Omni mode, whereas the relationship would diminish in the Beam mode. The study also examined whether this relationship is different from the effects of working memory on speech recognition with WDRC time-constants previously studied in colocated conditions. Twenty-one listeners with bilateral mild to moderately severe sensorineural hearing loss repeated low-context sentences mixed with four-talker babble, presented across 0 to 10 dB signal to noise ratio (SNR) in colocated (0 ) and spatially separated (180 ) conditions. A wearable hearing aid customized to the listener's hearing level was used to present four signal processing combinations which combined microphone mode (Beam or Omni) and WDRC time-constants (Fast or Slow). Individual working memory ability was measured using the reading span test. A signal distortion metric was used to quantify cumulative temporal envelope distortion from background noise and the hearing aid processing for each listener. In a secondary analysis, the role of working memory in the relationship between cumulative signal distortion and speech recognition was examined in the spatially separated condition. Signal distortion was greater with Fast WDRC compared with Slow WDRC, regardless of the microphone mode or spatial condition. As expected, Beam reduced signal distortion and improved speech recognition over Omni, especially at poorer SNRs. Contrary to the hypothesis, speech recognition with different WDRC time-constants did not depend on working memory in Beam or Omni (in the spatially separated condition). However, there was a significant interaction between working memory and cumulative signal distortion, such that speech recognition increased at a faster rate with lower distortion for an individual with better working memory. In Omni, the effect of working memory on speech recognition in different spatial conditions (colocated versus spatially separated) was inconclusive. The findings highlight the benefit of binaural beamformers for all listeners, especially at poorer signal to noise ratios for target speech from the front and noise behind the listener. Individuals with better working memory are more likely to benefit from reduced signal distortions than individuals with poorer working memory in these conditions. There was no clear evidence for benefit or detriment in speech recognition with Fast versus Slow WDRC, regardless of individual working memory.

Child maltreatment and executive function development throughout adolescence and into young adulthood.

Child maltreatment impacts approximately one in seven children in the United States, leading to adverse outcomes throughout life. Adolescence is a time period critical for the development of executive function, but there is little research examining how abuse and neglect may differently affect the developmental trajectories of executive function throughout adolescence and into young adulthood. In the current study, 167 adolescents participated at six time points from ages 14 to 20. At each time point, adolescents completed behavioral tasks measuring the three dimensions of executive function (working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility). Neglect and abuse in early life (ages 1-13) were reported at ages 18-19. Unconditional growth curve models revealed age-related improvement in all three executive function dimensions. Conditional growth curve models tested the prospective effects of recalled neglect and abuse on the developmental trajectories of executive function. The results revealed that neglect was associated with developmental changes in working memory abilities, such that greater levels of neglect during ages 1-13 were associated with slower increases in working memory abilities across ages 14-20. These findings highlight the adverse consequences of early neglect experiences shown by delayed working memory development during adolescence into young adulthood.

A comparison of working memory abilities between children with intellectual disability with non-specific aetiology and children with Down syndrome in schools for intellectual development in Germany

Objectives The study compares the working memory performance of students with Down syndrome (DS) to that of matched controls with non-specific intellectual disability (NSID). Even though empirical evidence is somewhat mixed and inconclusive, previous research suggests that students with DS display a relative weakness in the phonological loop. In contrast, no differences are reported in the visuo-spatial sketchpad and the central executive. Methods The sample consisted of 23 students with DS and 23 matched controls with NSID. The phonological loop was assessed using nonword repetition and picture span. Measures of the visuo-spatial sketchpad included a corsi-block task and a pattern span. Finally, an odd-one-out task was used to assess the executive-loaded working memory (ELWM) as a part of the central executive. Results Supporting our hypotheses, students with DS significantly differed from their peers with NSID in the phonological loop, while we found no performance differences for the visuo-spatial sketchpad and the ELWM. Conclusions Weaknesses in the phonological loop in students with DS are documented in literature and supported by this study. Important conclusions can be drawn for teachers’ instruction and students’ reading development. However, the study’s limitations mean that any inferences must be drawn cautiously.

Brain activity associated with emotion regulation predicts individual differences in working memory ability.

Previous behavioral research has found that working memory is associated with emotion regulation efficacy. However, there has been mixed evidence as to whether the neural mechanisms between emotion regulation and working memory overlap. The present study tested the prediction that individual differences on the working memory subtest of the Weschler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-IV) could be predicted from the pattern of brain activity produced during emotion regulation in regions typically associated with working memory, such as the dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC). A total of 101 participants completed an emotion regulation fMRI task in which they either viewed or reappraised negative images. Participants also completed working memory test outside the scanner. A whole brain covariate analysis contrasting the reappraise negative and view negative BOLD response found that activity in the right dlPFC positively related to working memory ability. Moreover, a multivoxel pattern analysis approach using tenfold cross-validated support vector regression in regions-of-interest associated with working memory, including bilateral dlPFC, demonstrated that we could predict individual differences in working memory ability from the pattern of activity associated with emotion regulation. These findings support the idea that emotion regulation shares underlying cognitive processes and neural mechanisms with working memory, particularly in the dlPFC.

Methamphetamine-related working memory difficulties underpinned by reduced frontoparietal responses.

Working memory difficulties are common, debilitating, and may pose barriers to recovery for people who use methamphetamine. Yet, little is known regarding the neural dysfunctions accompanying these difficulties. Here, we acquired cross-sectional, functional magnetic resonance imaging while people with problematic methamphetamine-use experience (MA+, n =65) and people without methamphetamine-use experience (MA-, n =44) performed a parametric n-back task (0-back through 2-back). Performance on tasks administered outside of the scanner, together with n-back performance, afforded to determine a latent dimension of participants' working memory ability. Behavioural results indicated that MA+ participants exhibited lower scores on this dimension compared to MA- participants (d = -1.39, p < .001). Whole-brain imaging results also revealed that MA+ participants exhibited alterations in load-induced responses predominantly in frontoparietal and default-mode areas. Specifically, while the MA- group exhibited monotonic activation increases within frontoparietal areas and monotonic decreases within default-mode areas from 0-back to 2-back, MA+ participants showed a relative attenuation of these load-induced activation patterns (d = -1.55, p < .001). Moreover, increased activations in frontoparietal areas from 0- to 2-back were related to greater working memory ability among MA+ participants (r = .560, p = .004). No such effects were observed for default-mode areas. In sum, reductions in working memory ability were observed alongside load-induced dysfunctions in frontoparietal and default-mode areas for people with problematic methamphetamine-use experience. Among them, load-induced activations within frontoparietal areas were found to have a strong and specific relationship to individual differences in working memory ability, indicating a putative neural signature of the working memory difficulties associated with chronic methamphetamine use.

Digital Tools in Language Learning: Optimizing Memory and Attention for College Students

College English teaching often encounters challenges related to students’ memory and attention in the educational process. This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of integrating memory and attention management technologies supported by the digital environment in college English teaching. To achieve this goal, the author use an action research method with testing as well as descriptive and statistical analysis. The experimental group studied using Quizlet and Busuu for one academic semester. The findings showed that the overall average scores of the experimental and control groups on the Sustained Attention test were 23.3 and 22.5, respectively. Additionally, an Automated Working Memory Assessment showed that the experimental group performed better on working memory tasks than the control group. These results highlighted the potential benefits of incorporating technology-integrated learning tools into language learning including improvements in language skills, attentional resource allocation, and working memory abilities. The novelty of this study lies in the combination of memory and attention management techniques, which are usually studied separately.

Cognitive abilities predict performance in everyday computer tasks

Fluency with computer applications has assumed a crucial role in work-related and other day-to-day activities. While prior experience is known to predict performance in tasks involving computers, the effects of more stable factors like cognitive abilities remain unclear. Here, we report findings from a controlled study (N=88) covering a wide spectrum of commonplace applications, from spreadsheets to video conferencing. Our main result is that cognitive abilities exert a significant, independent, and broad-based effect on computer users’ performance. In particular, users with high working memory, executive control, and perceptual reasoning ability complete tasks more quickly and with greater success while experiencing lower mental load. Remarkably, these effects are similar to or even larger in magnitude than the effects of prior experience in using computers and in completing tasks similar to those encountered in our study. However, the effects are varying and application-specific. We discuss the role that user interface design bears on decreasing ability-related differences, alongside benefits this could yield for functioning in society.

Speech Recognition and Spatial Hearing in Young Adults With Down Syndrome: Relationships With Hearing Thresholds and Auditory Working Memory.

Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) have a higher incidence of hearing loss (HL) compared with their peers without developmental disabilities. Little is known about the associations between HL and functional hearing for individuals with DS. This study investigated two aspects of auditory functions, "what" (understanding the content of sound) and "where" (localizing the source of sound), in young adults with DS. Speech reception thresholds in quiet and in the presence of interferers provided insight into speech recognition, that is, the "what" aspect of auditory maturation. Insights into "where" aspect of auditory maturation were gained from evaluating speech reception thresholds in colocated versus separated conditions (quantifying spatial release from masking) as well as right versus left discrimination and sound location identification. Auditory functions in the "where" domain develop during earlier stages of cognitive development in contrast with the later developing "what" functions. We hypothesized that young adults with DS would exhibit stronger "where" than "what" auditory functioning, albeit with the potential impact of HL. Considering the importance of auditory working memory and receptive vocabulary for speech recognition, we hypothesized that better speech recognition in young adults with DS, in quiet and with speech interferers, would be associated with better auditory working memory ability and receptive vocabulary. Nineteen young adults with DS (aged 19 to 24 years) participated in the study and completed assessments on pure-tone audiometry, right versus left discrimination, sound location identification, and speech recognition in quiet and with speech interferers that were colocated or spatially separated. Results were compared with published data from children and adults without DS and HL, tested using similar protocols and stimuli. Digit Span tests assessed auditory working memory. Receptive vocabulary was examined using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test Fifth Edition. Seven participants (37%) had HL in at least 1 ear; 4 individuals had mild HL, and 3 had moderate HL or worse. Participants with mild or no HL had ≥75% correct at 5° separation on the discrimination task and sound localization root mean square errors (mean ± SD: 8.73° ± 2.63°) within the range of adults in the comparison group. Speech reception thresholds in young adults with DS were higher than all comparison groups. However, spatial release from masking did not differ between young adults with DS and comparison groups. Better (lower) speech reception thresholds were associated with better hearing and better auditory working memory ability. Receptive vocabulary did not predict speech recognition. In the absence of HL, young adults with DS exhibited higher accuracy during spatial hearing tasks as compared with speech recognition tasks. Thus, auditory processes associated with the "where" pathways appear to be a relative strength than those associated with "what" pathways in young adults with DS. Further, both HL and auditory working memory impairments contributed to difficulties in speech recognition in the presence of speech interferers. Future larger-sized samples are needed to replicate and extend our findings.

초등 읽기부진 아동의 음운인식과 인지기능 요인 간의 관계 분석

The purpose of this study is to provide basic data for acquiring phonological awareness of children with poor reading by grasping the relationship between phonological perception and cognitive function factors of children with poor reading skills in elementary school. The subjects of this study were analyzed with 95 students enrolled in the 1st to 6th grades of elementary school commissioned by four regional education support offices in Jeollanam-do for poor reading. The analysis results are as follows. First, as a result of conducting an independent sample t-test to verify the difference between the measurement variables through intelligence tests, attention tests, and phonological awareness tests of children with poor reading in elementary school, there was a significant difference between grades(low grades, upper grades) in attention and phonological awareness. Second, as a result of conducting correlation analysis to find out the relationship between phonological awareness and measurement factors of children with poor reading in elementary school, attention, language understanding, and working memory had a significant positive correlation. Third, as a result of conducting hierarchical multiple regression analysis to find out the relative influence of the measurement variables on the phonological awareness of children with poor reading in elementary school, it was found that selective attention and working memory abilities had the greatest influence on phonological awareness.

Similar gaze behaviour during dialogue perception in congenitally deaf children with cochlear Implants and normal hearing children.

Perceptual and speech production abilities of children with cochlear implants (CIs) are usually tested by word and sentence repetition or naming tests. However, these tests are quite far apart from daily life linguistic contexts. Here, we describe a way of investigating the link between language comprehension and anticipatory verbal behaviour promoting the use of more complex listening situations. The setup consists in watching the audio-visual dialogue of two actors. Children's gaze switches from one speaker to the other serve as a proxy of their prediction abilities. Moreover, to better understand the basis and the impact of anticipatory behaviour, we also measured children's ability to understand the dialogue content, their speech perception and memory skills as well as their rhythmic skills, that also require temporal predictions. Importantly, we compared children with CI performances with those of an age-matched group of children with normal hearing (NH). While children with CI revealed poorer speech perception and verbal working memory abilities than NH children, there was no difference in gaze anticipatory behaviour. Interestingly, in children with CI only, we found a significant correlation between dialogue comprehension, perceptual skills and gaze anticipatory behaviour. Our results extend to a dialogue context of previous findings showing an absence of predictive deficits in children with CI. The current design seems an interesting avenue to provide an accurate and objective estimate of anticipatory language behaviour in a more ecological linguistic context also with young children. What is already known on the subject Children with cochlear implants seem to have difficulties extracting structure from and learning sequential input patterns, possibly due to signal degradation and auditory deprivation in the first years of life. They also seem to have a reduced use of contextual information and slow language processing among children with hearing loss. What this paper adds to existing knowledge Here we show that when adopting a rather complex linguistic context such as watching a dialogue of two individuals, children with cochlear implants are able to use the speech and language structure to anticipate gaze switches to the upcoming speaker. What are the clinical implications of this work? The present design seems an interesting avenue to provide an accurate and objective estimate of anticipatory behaviour in a more ecological and dynamic linguistic context. Importantly, this measure is implicit and it has been previously used with very young (normal-hearing) children, showing that they spontaneously make anticipatory gaze switches by age two. Thus, this approach may be of interest to refine the speech comprehension assessment at a rather early age after cochlear implantation where explicit behavioural tests are not always reliable and sensitive.

Parallel patterns of cognitive aging in marmosets and macaques.

As humans age, some experience cognitive impairment while others do not. When impairment does occur, it is not expressed uniformly across cognitive domains and varies in severity across individuals. Translationally relevant model systems are critical for understanding the neurobiological drivers of this variability, which is essential to uncovering the mechanisms underlying the brain's susceptibility to the effects of aging. As such, non-human primates are particularly important due to shared behavioral, neuroanatomical, and age-related neuropathological features with humans. For many decades, macaque monkeys have served as the primary non-human primate model for studying the neurobiology of cognitive aging. More recently, the common marmoset has emerged as an advantageous model for this work due to its short lifespan that facilitates longitudinal studies. Despite their growing popularity as a model, whether marmosets exhibit patterns of age-related cognitive impairment comparable to those observed in macaques and humans remains unexplored. To address this major limitation for the development and evaluation of the marmoset as a model of cognitive aging, we directly compared working memory ability as a function of age in macaques and marmosets on the identical working memory task. Our results demonstrate that marmosets and macaques exhibit remarkably similar age-related working memory deficits, highlighting the value of the marmoset as a model for cognitive aging research within the neuroscience community.

Effects of Time Interval and Interference Manipulations on Word-Level Repetition and Naming Performance in Persons with Aphasia

Objectives: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact on the repetition and naming ability of Korean aphasia patients by controlling their working memory load through time intervals and interference effects using the Temple Assessment of Language and verbal Short-term memory in Aphasia (TALSA) protocol. In addition, we examined the phonological and lexical-meaning processing abilities of persons with aphasia through word repetition tasks, nonword repetition tasks, and picture naming tasks to examine phonological and lexical-meaning production abilities. Methods: Thirteen native Korean speakers with aphasia participated in the study, along with twelve control group participants. The word and nonword repetition tasks were conducted under three conditions to examine the time delay and interference effects. Each condition entailed listening to each ten words of two and three syllables. Similarly, the picture naming tasks were carried out under three conditions involving viewing ten pictures of two and three syllables each. Results: This study examined how the repetition and naming ability of persons with aphasia, i.e., the ability to producing phonemes and lexical-meaning of persons with aphasia, varies when adjusting the working memory load under time interval and interference effect conditions. This study found that the difference in performance between groups was significant for both tasks. In particular, the larger the time interval, the greater the interference effect; that is, the greater the load of working memory, the lower the performance of aphasia subjects compared to the control group. Conclusion: Since the aphasia subjects have poor working memory ability, the results of this study indicate that as the cognitive load increases, they are more affected by the ability to process phonological and semantic activations.

Central Auditory Processing Abilities in Children with Non-Syndromic Cleft Lip/and Palate-a Behavioural Study.

The present study aimed to assess the central auditory processing abilities and working memory in children with non-syndromic cleft lip and palate (NSCLP) and to compare with the developed normative and craniofacially normal peers. Sixteen NSCLP children aged 7 to 12 years and fifteen craniofacially normal peers were recruited in this study. Speech perception in noise Kannada (SPIN-K), gap detection threshold (GDT), dichotic consonant-vowel (DCV), and masking level difference (MLD) tests were administered to assess various central auditory processing abilities. Working memory abilities were assessed by using forward-digit span and backward-digit span tests. The results showed significant differences in SPIN-K, dichotic CV, GDT, forward digit, and backward digit span scores between children with NSCLP and craniofacially normal peers. Thus, it can be concluded from the present study that children with NSCLP have a risk of developing auditory processing deficits. To conclude, assessment of central auditory processing abilities in children with NSCLP is recommended.