scholarly journals On the Locus of the Practice Effect in Sustained Attention Tests

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iris Blotenberg ◽  
Lothar Schmidt-Atzert
Keyword(s):  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Test Performance ◽  
Process Model ◽  
Motor Response ◽  
Practice Effect ◽  
Cognitive Tasks ◽  
Limited Extent ◽  
Motor Reaction ◽  
Specific Component ◽  
Motor Processes

The present study set out to explore the locus of the poorly understood but frequently reported and comparatively large practice effect in sustained attention tests. Drawing on a recently proposed process model of sustained attention tests, several cognitive tasks were administered twice in order to examine which specific component of test performance benefitted from practice and to which extent. It was shown that the tasks representing the three sub-components of sustained attention tests, namely the perception of an item, the simple mental operation to solve an item, and the motor reaction to indicate a response to an item, benefitted from practice. Importantly, the largest practice gain was observed for the task that required item-solving processes in addition to perceptual and motor processes. Two additional postulated mechanisms in sustained attention tests—the deliberate shifting between items and the preprocessing of upcoming items—did not become more efficient through practice. Altogether, the present study shows that the practice effect in sustained attention tests seems to be primarily due to faster item-solving processes and, to a limited extent, due to a faster perception of the item, as well as a faster motor response. Moreover, besides the sub-components, it is likely that also the coordination of perceptual, item-solving, and motor processes benefitted from practice. Altogether, the present paper may have taken a first step towards a better understanding of the specific processes that cause the large practice gains in sustained attention tests.

scholarly journals Towards a Process Model of Sustained Attention Tests

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iris Blotenberg ◽  
Lothar Schmidt-Atzert
Keyword(s):  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Test Performance ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Process Model ◽  
Discriminant Validity ◽  
Memory Span ◽  
Motor Speed ◽  
Mental Operation ◽  
Operation Speed ◽  
Small Influence

Taking up new approaches and calls for experimental test validation, in the present study we propose and validate a process model of sustained attention tests. Four sub-components were postulated: the perception of an item, a simple mental operation to solve the item, a motor reaction, and the shift to the next item. In two studies, several cognitive tasks and modified versions of the d2-R test of sustained attention were applied in order to determine performance in the proposed sub-components. Their contribution for the prediction of performance in sustained attention tests and tests of higher cognitive abilities was assessed. The sub-components of the process model explained a large amount of variance in sustained attention tests, namely 55–74%. More specifically, perceptual and mental operation speed were the strongest predictors, while there was a trend towards a small influence of motor speed on test performance. The measures of item shifting showed low reliabilities and did not predict test scores. In terms of discriminant validity, results of Study 1 indicated that the postulated sub-components were insufficient to explain a large amount of variance in working memory span tasks, in Study 2 the same was demonstrated for reasoning tasks. Altogether, the present study is the first to disentangle sub-components in sustained attention tests and to determine their role for test performance.

scholarly journals Various Factors that Interfere with the Accurate Assessment of the Three-rods Test and Modified Three-rods Test to Resolve Monocular Cues

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atsuya Takeuchi ◽  
Nami Kawaguchi ◽  
Naofumi Uesaka ◽  
Yukiko Tsujimoto
Keyword(s):  
Everyday Life ◽  
Test Performance ◽  
Visual Function ◽  
Practice Effect ◽  
Accurate Assessment ◽  
Simple Modification ◽  
Multiple Tests ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Short Time ◽  
Occupational Settings

Abstract Binocular stereopsis is a higher-order visual function and is thought to play an important role in spatial cognition in everyday life and many occupational settings. Various stereotests are used clinically to evaluate binocular stereopsis, and the three-rods test is used to assess stereopsis in various occupations in Japan. It is known that there are factors such as monocular cues in various stereotests that make it difficult to accurately evaluate the stereoscopic function, but the existence of such factors in the three-rods test has not been clarified. Here, we show that practice effect and monocular cues exist in the conventional three-rods test and that we devised a modified three-rods test to address the monocular cues. In the conventional three-rods test, performance improved when multiple tests were performed in a short time under binocular condition, and performance was significantly better in the monocular condition compared to the blind condition, indicating the existence of practice effect and monocular cues, respectively. The modified three-rod test with a wider central rod excluded the effect of monocular cues and maintained binocular cues on test performance. Their results suggest that the three-rod test with the simple modification can be a useful method for testing stereoscopic functions.

scholarly journals Effect of educational status on performance of older adults in digital cognitive tasks: A systematic review

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 114-120
Author(s):  
Lucas Pelegrini Nogueira de Carvalho ◽  
Diana Quirino Monteiro ◽  
Fabiana de Souza Orlandi ◽  
Marisa Silvana Zazzetta ◽  
Sofia Cristina Iost Pavarini
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Test Performance ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Educational Status ◽  
Cognitive Tasks ◽  
Cognitive State ◽  
Cognitive Tests ◽  
Cognitive Domains ◽  
Neuropsychological Instruments

ABSTRACT As people age, cognitive abilities may decline resulting in serious disabilities. Neuropsychological instruments can provide information on the cognitive state of older adults. Researchers worldwide have been using digital cognitive tests to assess cognitive domains. Objective: To determine whether educational status affects the performance of older adults on digital cognitive tasks. Methods: A systematic review of articles in English, Portuguese, or Spanish published in the last 5 years was conducted. The databases searched were SCOPUS, PubMed, Lilacs, Scielo and PsychInfo. The PRISMA method was used. Results: A total of 7,089 articles were initially retrieved. After search and exclusion with justification, seven articles were selected for further review. Conclusion: The findings revealed that researchers using digital tasks generally employed paper-based tests to compare results. Also, no association between years of education and test performance was found. Finally, a dearth of studies using digital tests published by Brazilian researchers was evident.

scholarly journals NEPHROTOXIC SERUM NEPHRITIS IN RATS

1956 ◽  
Vol 104 (4) ◽  
pp. 467-485 ◽  
Author(s):  
James H. Baxter ◽  
Howard C. Goodman
Keyword(s):  
Rat Kidney ◽  
Kidney Tissue ◽  
Rat Tissues ◽  
Rat Lung ◽  
Limited Extent ◽  
Specific Component ◽  
Physiological Importance ◽  
Serum Antigen ◽  
Antigen Present ◽  
Circulating Antibodies

Studies have been carried out to determine the distribution of antigen capable of inducing the formation in rabbits of antibodies nephrotoxic for the rat. The results indicate that the antigen is present both in cortex and medulla of rat kidney. It can be extracted to a limited extent with saline. It is non-dialyzable and destroyed by boiling. The nephrotoxic serum antigen is also present in rat lung and placenta, in amounts roughly comparable to that in kidney, and in a number of other rat organs in smaller amounts. These various tissues not only are capable of stimulating the production of nephrotoxic antibodies, but each tissue is also able to absorb the nephrotoxic antibodies induced by injections of other rat tissues. These studies indicate that the nephrotoxic serum antigen in various rat tissues is the same or closely related. The nephrotoxic serum antigen of the rat is distinct from that of the dog and the rabbit, but there appears to be a cross-reaction between the nephrotoxic serum antigens of the rat and mouse. It is concluded that the nephrotoxic serum antigen is not a specific component of kidney; it is neither limited to kidney in its distribution within the rat, nor is the rat antigen present in kidney tissue of 2 other species examined. Rather, it is probable that the antigen is to a large extent specific for tissue of a given species. The preponderance of renal injury following injections of the anti-organ sera presumably is due to the occurrence in the kidney of large amounts of the antigen in positions of physiological importance in which it is exposed directly to the circulating antibodies.

Detecting significant change in neuropsychological test performance: A comparison of four models

1999 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 357-369 ◽  
Author(s):  
NANCY R. TEMKIN ◽  
ROBERT K. HEATON ◽  
IGOR GRANT ◽  
SUREYYA S. DIKMEN
Keyword(s):  
Multiple Regression ◽  
Confidence Intervals ◽  
Test Performance ◽  
Neuropsychological Test ◽  
Error Rates ◽  
Practice Effect ◽  
Reliable Change Index ◽  
Reliable Change ◽  
The Individual

A major use of neuropsychological assessment is to measure changes in functioning over time; that is, to determine whether a difference in test performance indicates a real change in the individual or just chance variation. Using 7 illustrative test measures and retest data from 384 neurologically stable adults, this paper compares different methods of predicting retest scores, and of determining whether observed changes in performance are unusual. The methods include the Reliable Change Index, with and without correction for practice effect, and models based upon simple and multiple regression. For all test variables, the most powerful predictor of follow-up performance was initial performance. Adding demographic variables and overall neuropsychological competence at baseline significantly but slightly improved prediction of all follow-up scores. The simple Reliable Change Index without correction for practice performed least well, with high error rates and large prediction intervals (confidence intervals). Overall prediction accuracy was similar for the other three methods; however, different models produce large differences in predicted scores for some individuals, especially those with extremes of initial test performance, overall competency, or demographics. All 5 measures from the Halstead–Reitan Battery had residual (observed − predicted score) variability that increased with poorer initial performance. Two variables showed significant nonnormality in the distribution of residuals. For accurate prediction with smallest prediction–confidence intervals, we recommend multiple regression models with attention to differential variability and nonnormality of residuals. (JINS, 1999, 5, 357–369.)

scholarly journals Neural encoding of reliability and validity of directional information during the preparation of targeted movements

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charidimos Tzagarakis ◽  
Sarah West ◽  
Giuseppe Pellizzer
Keyword(s):  
Reaction Time ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Motor Response ◽  
Reliability And Validity ◽  
Motor Preparation ◽  
Theta Band ◽  
Beta Band ◽  
Motor Processes ◽  
Band Power ◽  
The Brain

AbstractVisual information about an upcoming target can be used to prepare an appropriate motor response and reduce its reaction time. However, when the anticipation is incorrect and the planned response must be changed, the reaction time is lengthened. Here, we investigated the brain mechanisms associated with the reliability and validity of visual information used for motor preparation. We recorded brain activity using magnetoencephalography (MEG) during a delayed reaching task in which a visual cue provided valid information about the location of the upcoming target with 50, 75 or 100% reliability. We found that reaction time increased as cue reliability decreased and that trials with invalid cues had longer reaction times than trials with valid cues. MEG channel analysis showed that beta-band power from left mid-anterior channels correlated with the reliability of the cue after cue onset but before target onset. This effect was source localized over a large motor-related cortical and subcortical network. In addition, during invalid-cue trials there was a phasic increase of theta-band power following target onset from left posterior channels, localized to the left occipito-parietal cortex. Furthermore, the theta-beta cross-frequency coupling between left mid-occipital and motor cortex also transiently increased before responses to invalid-cue trials. In conclusion, beta-band power in motor-related areas reflected the reliability of visual information used during motor preparation, whereas phasic theta-band activity signaled whether the target was at the expected location or not. These results elucidate mechanisms of interaction between attentional and motor processes.Significance StatementWe used magnetoencephalography to investigate how the brain mechanisms preparing a motor response take into account the reliability of information about the upcoming location of a target to reach, and how these mechanisms adjust when that information turns out to be incorrect. We found that during the response preparation, the power of motor-related beta-band oscillations changed with the reliability of the visual information. In addition, we found that after the onset of the target the power of the left occipito-parietal theta-band signaled whether the prior information was correct or not. The pattern of activity of the beta-band and theta-band explain the pattern of latency of responses in the task, and demonstrate how attentional and motor processes interact.

scholarly journals Inhibition of Eye Movements Disrupts Spatial Sequence Learning

2021 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 221-228
Author(s):  
Srdan Medimorec ◽  
Petar Milin ◽  
Dagmar Divjak
Keyword(s):  
Eye Movements ◽  
Reaction Time ◽  
Sequence Learning ◽  
Motor Response ◽  
Implicit Sequence Learning ◽  
Restricted Movement ◽  
Motor Responses ◽  
Motor Processes ◽  
Relative Contribution ◽  
Serial Reaction

Abstract. Implicit sequence learning is an integral part of human experience, yet the nature of the mechanisms underlying this type of learning remains a matter of debate. In the current study, we provide a test for two accounts of implicit sequence learning, that is, one that highlights sequence learning in the absence of any motor responses (with suppressed eye movements) and one that highlights the relative contribution of the motor processes (i.e., eye movements) to learning. To adjudicate between these accounts and determine whether a motor response is a requisite process in sequence learning, we used anticipation measures to compare performance on the standard oculomotor serial reaction time (SRT) task and on a version of the SRT task where the eye movements were restricted during the learning phase. our results demonstrated an increased proportion of correct anticipations in the standard SRT task compared to the restricted-movement task.

On the Measurement of Simple Reaction Time for Sight, Hearing, and Touch

1895 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 328-329
Author(s):  
Rutherford
Keyword(s):  
Reaction Time ◽  
Simple Reaction Time ◽  
Motor Response ◽  
Motor Nerve ◽  
Sensory Nerve ◽  
Sense Organ ◽  
Motor Reaction ◽  
Nerve Fibres ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Stimulation Of

Sensori-motor reaction time is the interval that elapses between the stimulation of a sense organ and a motor response. The physiological process involved consists of (a) an afferent factor,—the stimulation of a sensory terminal, and transmission of an impulse along sensory nerve fibres to the brain; (b) a psychical factor, involving an act of sensory perception and the voluntary production of a motor impulse; (c) an efferent factor,—the transmission of an impulse along motor nerve fibres, and consequent contraction of muscle.

scholarly journals The effect of background music and noise on the cognitive test performance of Chinese introverts and extraverts

2017 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Siyi Kou ◽  
Alastair McClelland ◽  
Adrian Furnham
Keyword(s):  
Test Performance ◽  
Cognitive Test ◽  
Background Music ◽  
Cognitive Tasks ◽  
Partial Replication ◽  
Noisy Environments ◽  
Distraction Condition ◽  
Cognitive Test Performance ◽  
Auditory Distractors

Previous research has shown that background auditory distractors (music and sound/noise) have a more severe impact on introverts’ performances on complex cognitive tasks than extraverts (Dobbs, Furnham, & McClelland, 2011). The present study is a partial replication of Dobbs et al., but involving Chinese rather than English participants. Ninety-two Chinese participants (59 female) carried out three cognitive tasks with the presence of Chinese pop songs, background office noise, and silence. The results did not reveal any differences in performance as a function of the distraction condition, nor was there a difference in performance between extraverts and introverts. The failure to replicate is explained in terms of habituation to noisy environments among Chinese participants.

The possible mechanisms of electromagnetic phone effects on the auditory system of children and adolescents

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
N.I. Khorseva ◽  
P.E. Grigoriev
Keyword(s):  
Electromagnetic Radiation ◽  
Mobile Phone ◽  
Children And Adolescents ◽  
Auditory System ◽  
Motor Response ◽  
Pearson Correlation ◽  
Motor Reaction ◽  
The Right ◽  
Contralateral Effects ◽  
Daily Time

For the first time, we compared the gradients of changes in the simple auditory-motor response (SAMR) and the daily time of using a mobile phone (MP), which made it possible to describe the variants of possible changes in lateralization of effects and the frequency of their occurrence for different variants of SAMR changes. This study has no analogues neither in Russian nor in foreign publications and is currently exclusive. Objective – to determine the patterns of manifestation of contra- and ipsilateral effects, using individual changes in indicators of a simple auditory-motor response obtained as a result of longitudinal observations. The analysis of changes in the parameters of a simple auditory-motor reaction was carried out during mono-presentation of a sound signal on the left and on the right in 145 children and adolescents aged 7-14 years (470 measurements), who were under observation for 2 or more years, depending on changes in the mode of use mobile phone. Further, 48 cases were excluded (change in the lateralization of use, for example, the respondent brought the phone to both the right and the left ear, “changed” the leading ear, etc.). Three variants of changes in the mode of using MP in the longitude period (gradient of time change) were established: an increase in time (the group "less–more"), a decrease in time (group "more–less") and no changes. For each group, 4 variants of changes in the parameters of SAMR were revealed in the dynamics of observations along the longitude: decrease in SAMR indicators on the left (left ear) and increase in the right (right ear); decrease in indicators on the left and increase on the right and synchronous decrease or increase in indicators on the right and left. An assessment of the strength of the correlation was carried out (a linear Pearson correlation coefficient was used and an assessment of the statistical significance was carried out): between changes in the gradient of changes in the time of MP usage and SAMR, as well as changes in the lateralization of effects (changes in the frequency of occurrence of ipsi- and contralateral effects). The multivariance of changes in SAMR indicators and lateralization of effects was revealed depending on the mode of MP use. The proposed approach to the analysis of changes in a simple auditory-motor reaction and daily time of using a mobile phone makes it possible to suggest some mechanisms of changes in the parameters of the auditory analyzer in response to the duration of exposure to electromagnetic radiation from a mobile phone. The presence of contralateral effects of changes in SAMR parameters can serve as an assessment of the “capture” of the brain structures of children and adolescents by MP electromagnetic radiation. The results obtained once again prove the level of negative impact on the auditory system of children and adolescents. The current situation requires an immediate solution by clear regulation of the use of cellular communications by the younger generation.

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