Top

Gepubliceerd in:

01-11-2014 | Review

Practice-related optimization and transfer of executive functions: a general review and a specific realization of their mechanisms in dual tasks

Gepubliceerd in: Psychological Research | Uitgave 6/2014

Abstract

Improvements in performing demanding and complex task situations are typically related to the optimization of executive functions and efficient behavioral control. The present study systematizes and reviews the optimization of different executive function types: Shifting, Inhibition, Updating, and Dual tasking. In particular, we focus on optimisations of these functions with training and on transfer effects of related training skills to non-trained situations. The aim of the study’s empirical part (see also Appendix) was to investigate the specific mechanisms of executive functions in the context of Dual tasking, leading to improved dual-task performance after practice. More specifically, we tested the Efficient Task Instantiation (ETI) model that includes specific assumptions regarding practice-related improvements of executive task coordination skills: Dual-task performance is improved with practice because of an efficient and conjoint instantiation of sets of relevant task information in working memory at the onset of a dual task. According to our knowledge, the ETI model is one of the first that allows illustrating the contribution of cognitive mechanisms underlying practice-related improvements in performing dual tasks and the impact of task coordination skills on this performance.

vorige artikel Individual differences in cognitive plasticity: an investigation of training curves in younger and older adults

volgende artikel Working memory and executive functions: effects of training on academic achievement

Alleen toegankelijk voor geautoriseerde gebruikers

Baddeley, A. (1986). Working memory. New York: Clarendon Press/Oxford University Press.

Band, G. P. H., & van Nes, F. T. (2006). Reconfiguration and the bottleneck: does task switching affect the refractory-period effect? European Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 18, 593–623.CrossRef

Beringer, J. (2000). Experimental Runtime System. BeriSoft Cooperation, Frankfurt am Main (1987–2000).

Berryhill, M. E., & Hughes, H. C. (2009). On the minimization of task switch costs following long-term training. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 71, 503–514.CrossRef

Bherer, L., Kramer, A. F., Peterson, M. S., Colcombe, S., Erickson, K., & Becic, E. (2005). Training effects on dual-task performance: are there age-related differences in plasticity of attentional control? Psychology and Aging, 20(4), 695–709.PubMedCrossRef

Bherer, L., Kramer, A. F., Peterson, M. S., Colcombe, S., Erickson, K., & Becic, E. (2008). Transfer effects in task-set cost and dual-task cost after dual-task training in older and younger adults: further evidence for cognitive plasticity in attentional control in late adulthood. Experimental Aging Research, 34, 188–209.PubMedCrossRefPubMedCentral

Brehmer, Y., Westerberg, H., & Bäckman, L. (2012). Working-memory training in younger and older adults: training gains, transfer, and maintenance. Frontiers In Human Neuroscience, 6, 63.PubMedCrossRefPubMedCentral

Buchler, N. G., Hoyer, W. J., & Cerella, J. (2008). Rules and more rules: the effects of multiple tasks, extensive training, and aging on task-switching performance. Memory & Cognition, 36(4), 735–748.CrossRef

Bush, G., Whalen, P. J., Rosen, B. R., Jenike, M. A., McInerney, S. C., & Rauch, S. L. (1998). The Counting Stroop: an interference task specialized for functional neuroimaging: validation study with functional MRI. Human Brain Mapping, 6(4), 270–282.PubMedCrossRef

Cepeda, N. J., Kramer, A. F., & Gonzalez de Sather, J. C. M. (2001). Changes in executive control across the life span: examination of task-switching performance. Developmental Psychology, 37, 715–730.PubMedCrossRef

Dahlin, E., Nyberg, L., Bäckman, L., & Neely, A. (2008). Plasticity of executive functioning in young and older adults: immediate training gains, transfer, and long-term maintenance. Psychology and Aging, 23(4), 720–730.PubMedCrossRef

Davidson, D. J., Zacks, R. T., & Williams, C. C. (2003). Stroop interference, practice, and aging. Aging, Neuropsychology, And Cognition, 10(2), 85–98.CrossRef

De Jong, R. (1995). The role of preparation in overlapping-task performance. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Experimental Psychology, 48A, 2–25.CrossRef

Dotson, V.M., Sozda, C.N., Marsiske, M., & Perlstein, W.M. (2014). Within-session practice eliminates age differences in cognitive control. Aging, Neuropsychology and Cognition.

Dulaney, C. L., & Rogers, W. A. (1994). Mechanisms underlying reduction in Stroop interference with practice for young and old adults. Journal of Experimental Psychology. Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 20(2), 470–484.PubMedCrossRef

Edwards, S., Brice, C., Craig, C., & Penri-Jones, R. (1996). Effects of caffeine, practice and mode of presentation on Stroop task performance. Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior, 54(2), 309–315.PubMedCrossRef

Ellis, N. R., Woodley-Zanthos, P., Dulaney, C. L., & Palmer, R. L. (1989). Automatic-effortful processing and cognitive inertia in persons with mental retardation. American Journal On Mental Retardation, 93(4), 412–423.PubMed

Flowers, J. H., & Stoup, C. M. (1977). Selective attention between words, shapes, and colors in speeded classification and vocalization tasks. Memory & Cognition, 5(3), 299–307.CrossRef

Friedman, N. P., & Miyake, A. (2004). The relations among inhibition and interference control functions: a latent-variable analysis. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 133(1), 101–135.CrossRef

Green, C. S., Strobach, T., & Schubert, T. (2014). On methodological standards in training and transfer experiments. Psychological Research.

Harbeson, M. M., Krause, M., Kennedy, R. S., & Bittner, A. C. (1982). The Stroop as a performance evaluation test for environmental research. Journal of Psychology: Interdisciplinary and Applied, 111(2), 223–233.CrossRef

Hartley, A. A., & Little, D. M. (1999). Age-related differences and similarities in dual-task interference. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 128, 417–450.

Hartley, A. A., Maquestiaux, F., & Silverman Butts, N. (2011). A demonstration of dual-task performance without interference in some older adults. Psychology and Aging, 26, 181–187.PubMedCrossRef

Hazeltine, E., Teague, D., & Ivry, R. B. (2002). Simultaneous dual-task performance reveals parallel response selection after practice. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 28, 527–545.PubMed

Heinzel, S., Schulte, S., Onken, J., Duong, Q.-L., Riemer, T. G., Heinz, A., Kathmann, N., & Rapp, M. A. (2014). Working memory training improvements and gains in non-trained cognitive tasks in young and older adults. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition.

Hirst, W., Spelke, E. S., Reaves, C. C., Caharack, G., & Neisser, U. (1980). Dividing attention without alteration or automaticity. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 109, 98–117.CrossRef

Jaeggi, S. M., Buschkuehl, M., Jonides, J., & Perrig, W. J. (2008). Improving fluid intelligence with training on working memory. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105, 6829–6833.CrossRef

Jaeggi, S. M., Buschkuehl, M., Shah, P., & Jonides, J. (2014). The role of individual differences in cognitive training and transfer. Memory & Cognition.

Jaeggi, S. M., Studer-Luethi, B., Buschkuehl, M., Su, Y., Jonides, J., & Perrig, W. J. (2010). The relationship between n-back performance and matrix reasoning—Implications for training and transfer. Intelligence, 38(6), 625–635.CrossRef

Jonides, J., & Smith, E. E. (1997). The architecture of working memory. In M. D. Rugg (Ed.), Cognitive neuroscience (pp. 243–276). Cambridge: The MIT Press.

Kamienkowski, J. E., Pashler, H., Sigman, M., & Dehaene, S. (2011). Effects of practice on task architecture: combined evidence from interference experiments and random-walk models of decision making. Cognition, 119, 81–95.PubMedCrossRef

Karbach, J., & Kray, J. (2009). How useful is executive control training? Age differences in near and far transfer of task-switching training. Developmental Science., 12(6), 978–990.PubMedCrossRef

Karbach, J., Mang, S., & Kray, J. (2010). Transfer of task-switching training in older age: the role of verbal processes. Psychology and Aging, 25(3), 677–683.PubMedCrossRef

Karbach, J., Strobach, T., & Schubert, T. (2014). Effects of working memory training on academic abilities: Adaptive training benefits reading, but not math in second and third graders. Child Neuropsychology.

Kiesel, A., Steinhauser, M., Wendt, M., Falkenstein, M., Jost, K., Phillip, A., et al. (2010). Control and interference in task switching-a review. Psychological Bulletin, 136, 849–874.PubMedCrossRef

Klingberg, T. (2010). Training and plasticity of working memory. Trends In Cognitive Sciences, 14(7), 317–324.PubMedCrossRef

Klingberg, T., Fernell, E., Olesen, P. J., Johnson, M., Gustafsson, P., Dahlstrom, K., et al. (2005). Computerized training of working memory in children with ADHD—A randomized, controlled trial. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 44, 177–186.PubMedCrossRef

Kramer, A. F., Hahn, S., & Gopher, D. (1999a). Task coordination and aging: explorations of executive control processes in the task switching paradigm. Acta Psychologica, 101(2–3), 339–378.PubMedCrossRef

Kramer, A. F., Larish, J. F., & Strayer, D. L. (1995). Training for attentional control in dual task settings: a comparison of young and old adults. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 1(10), 50–76.

Kramer, A. F., Larish, J. L., Weber, T. A., & Bardell, L. (1999b). Training for executive control: Task coordination strategies and aging. In D. Gopher & A. Koriat (Eds.), Attention and performance XVII: Cognitive regulation of performance: Interaction of theory and application (pp. 617–652). Cambridge: The MIT Press.

Kray, J., Eber, J., & Karbach, J. (2008). Verbal self-instructions in task switching: a compensatory tool for action-control deficits in childhood and old age? Developmental Science, 11(2), 223–236.PubMedCrossRef

Kray, J., & Eppinger, B. (2006). Effects of associative learning on age differences in task-set switching. Acta Psychologica, 123(3), 187–203.PubMedCrossRef

Kray, J., Karbach, J., Haenig, S., & Freitag, C. (2012). Can task-switching training enhance executive control functioning in children with attention deficit/-hyperactivity disorder? Frontiers In Human Neuroscience, 5, 180.PubMedCrossRefPubMedCentral

Kray, J., & Lindenberger, U. (2000). Adult age differences in task switching. Psychology and Aging, 15, 126–147.PubMedCrossRef

Li, S., Schmiedek, F., Huxhold, O., Röcke, C., Smith, J., & Lindenberger, U. (2008). Working memory plasticity in old age: practice gain, transfer, and maintenance. Psychology and Aging, 23(4), 731–742.PubMedCrossRef

Lien, M., Ruthruff, E., Remington, R. W., & Johnston, J. C. (2005). On the limits of advance preparation for a task switch: do people prepare all the task some of the time or some of the task all the time? Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 31(2), 299–315.PubMed

Lien, M.-C., Schweickert, R., & Proctor, R. W. (2003). Task switching and response correspondence in the psychological refractory period paradigm. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 29, 692–712.PubMed

Liepelt, R., Strobach, T., Frensch, P., & Schubert, T. (2011). Improved intertask coordination after extensive dual-task practice. The Quarterly Journal Of Experimental Psychology, 64(7), 1251–1272.PubMedCrossRef

Loosli, S. V., Buschkuehl, M., Perrig, W. J., & Jaeggi, S. M. (2012). Working memory training improves reading processes in typically developing children. Child Neuropsychology, 18, 62–78.PubMedCrossRef

MacLeod, C. M. (1991). Half a century of research on the Stroop effect: an integrative review. Psychological Bulletin, 109(2), 163–203.PubMedCrossRef

MacLeod, C. M. (1998). Training on integrated versus separated Stroop tasks: the progression of interference and facilitation. Memory & Cognition, 26(2), 201–211.CrossRef

MacLeod, C. M., & Dunbar, K. (1988). Training and Stroop-like interference: evidence for a continuum of automaticity. Journal of Experimental Psychology. Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 14(1), 126–135.PubMedCrossRef

Manuel, A. L., Grivel, J., Bernasconi, F., Murray, M. M., & Spierer, L. (2010). Brain dynamics underlying training-induced improvement in suppressing inappropriate action. The Journal Of Neuroscience, 30(41), 13670–13678.PubMedCrossRef

Maquestiaux, F., Hartley, A. A., & Bertsch, J. (2004). Can practice overcome age-related differences in the psychological refractory period effect? Psychology and Aging, 19, 649–667.PubMedCrossRef

Mayr, U., & Keele, S. W. (2000). Changing internal constraints on action: the role of backward inhibition. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 129(1), 4–26.CrossRef

Meiran, N. (1996). Reconfiguration of processing mode prior to task performance. Journal of Experimental Psychology. Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 22(6), 1423–1442.CrossRef

Meyer, D. E., & Kieras, D. E. (1997). A computational theory of executive cognitive processes and multiple-task performance: part 1. Basic mechanisms. Psychological Review, 104, 3–65.CrossRef

Meyer, D. E., & Kieras, D. E. (1999). Précis to a practical unified theory of cognition and action: Some lessons from EPIC computational models of human multiple-task performance. In D. Gopher, A. Koriat, D. Gopher, & A. Koriat (Eds.), Attention and performance XVII: Cognitive regulation of performance: Interaction of theory and application (pp. 17–88). Cambridge: The MIT Press.

Minear, M., & Shah, P. (2008). Training and transfer effects in task switching. Memory & Cognition, 36(8), 1470–1483.CrossRef

Miyake, A., & Friedman, N. P. (2012). The nature and organization of individual differences in executive functions: four general conclusions. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 21(1), 8–14.PubMedCrossRefPubMedCentral

Miyake, A., Friedman, N. P., Emerson, M. J., Witzki, A. H., & Howerter, A. (2000). The unity and diversity of executive functions and their contributions to complex ‘frontal lobe’ tasks: a latent variable analysis. Cognitive Psychology, 41(1), 49–100.PubMedCrossRef

Monsell, S. (1996). Control of mental processes. In V. Bruce (Ed.), Unsolved mysteries of the mind: Tutorial essays in cognition (pp. 93–148). Oxford England: Erlbaum (Uk) Taylor & Francis.

Monsell, S. (2003). Task switching. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 7, 134–140.PubMedCrossRef

Morris, N., & Jones, D. M. (1990). Memory updating in working memory: the role of the central executive. British Journal of Psychology, 81(2), 111–121.CrossRef

Morrison, A. B., & Chein, J. M. (2011). Does working memory training work? The promise and challenges of enhancing cognition by training working memory. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 18(1), 46–60.CrossRef

Mozolic, J. L., Long, A. B., Morgan, A. R., Rawley-Payne, M., & Laurienti, P. J. (2011). A cognitive training intervention improves modality-specific attention in a randomized controlled trial of healthy older adults. Neurobiology of Aging, 32(4), 655–668.PubMedCrossRefPubMedCentral

Oberauer, K., Süß, H., Wilhelm, O., & Wittmann, W. W. (2003). The multiple faces of working memory: storage, processing, supervision, and coordination. Intelligence, 31(2), 167–193.CrossRef

Pashler, H. (1994). Dual-task interference in simple tasks: data and theory. Psychological Bulletin, 116, 220–244.PubMedCrossRef

Pereg, M., Shahar, N., & Meiran, N. (2013). Task switching training effects are mediated by working-memory management. Intelligence, 41(5), 467–478.CrossRef

Redick, T. S., Shipstead, Z., Harrison, T. L., Hicks, K. L., Fried, D. E., Hambrick, D. Z., & Engle, R. W. (2013). No evidence of intelligence improvement after working memory training: A randomized, placebo-controlled study. Journal Of Experimental Psychology: General, 142(2), 359–379.

Reisberg, D., Baron, J., & Kemler, D. G. (1980). Overcoming Stroop interference: the effects of practice on distractor potency. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 6(1), 140–150.PubMed

Roe, W. T., Wilsoncroft, W. E., & Griffiths, R. S. (1980). Effects of motor and verbal practice on the Stroop task. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 50(2), 647–650.PubMedCrossRef

Rogers, W. A., & Fisk, A. D. (1991). Are age differences in consistent-mapping visual search due to feature learning or attention training? Psychology and Aging, 6(4), 542–550.PubMedCrossRef

Rogers, R. D., & Monsell, S. (1995). Costs of a predictable switch between simple cognitive tasks. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 124, 207–231.CrossRef

Rubinstein, J. S., Meyer, D. E., & Evans, J. E. (2001). Executive control of cognitive processes in task switching. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 27, 763–797.PubMed

Ruthruff, E., Johnston, J. C., Van Selst, M. V., Whitsell, S., & Remington, R. (2003). Vanishing dual-task interference after practice: has the bottleneck been eliminated or is it merely latent? Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 29, 280–289.PubMed

Ruthruff, E., Van Selst, M., Johnston, J. C., & Remington, R. W. (2006). How does practice reduce dual-task interference: integration, automatization, or simply stage-shortening? Psychological Research, 70, 125–142.PubMedCrossRef

Salminen, T., Strobach, T., & Schubert, T. (2011). Working memory training: Transfer effects on executive control processes. In J. Özyurt, A. Anschütz, S. Bernholt, & J. Lenk (Eds.). Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Cognition, Education, and the Brain. Hanse Studies, (Vol. 7, pp. 121–129). Oldeburg: BIS-Verlag.

Salminen, T., Strobach, T., & Schubert, T. (2012). On the impacts of working memory training on executive functioning. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 6, 166.PubMedCrossRefPubMedCentral

Schubert, T. (1999). Processing differences between simple and choice reaction affect bottleneck localization in overlapping tasks. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 25, 408–425.

Schubert, T. (2008). The central attentional limitation and executive control. Frontiers of Bioscience, 13, 3569–3580.CrossRef

Schubert, T., & Strobach, T. (2012). Video game experience and optimized executive control skills—On false positives and false negatives: reply to Boot and Simons (2012). Acta Psychologica, 141(2), 278–280.CrossRef

Schubert, T., & Szameitat, A. (2003). Functional neuroanatomy of interference in overlapping dual tasks: an fMRI study. Cognitive Brain Research, 17(3), 733–746.PubMedCrossRef

Schumacher, E. H., Seymour, T. L., Glass, J. M., Fencsik, D. E., Lauber, E. J., Kieras, D. E., et al. (2001). Virtually perfect time sharing in dual-task performance: uncorking the central cognitive bottleneck. Psychological Science, 12(2), 101–108.PubMedCrossRef

Shipstead, Z., & Engle, R. W. (2013). Interference within the focus of attention: working memory tasks reflect more than temporary maintenance. Journal of Experimental Psychology. Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 39(1), 277–289.PubMedCrossRef

Strobach, T., Frensch, P. A., Müller, H., & Schubert, T. (2012a). Age- and practice-related influences on dual-task costs and compensation mechanisms under optimal conditions for dual-task performance. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 19(1–2), 222–247.CrossRef

Strobach, T., Frensch, P. A., Müller, H., & Schubert, T. (2012b). Testing the limits of optimizing dual-task performance in younger and older adults. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 6, 39.PubMedCrossRefPubMedCentral

Strobach, T., Frensch, P. A., & Schubert, T. (2008). The temporal stability of skilled dual-task performance. In: H. D. Zimmer, C. Frings, A. Mecklinger, B. Opitz, M. Pospeschill, & D. Wentura (Eds.), Cognitive Science 2007. Saarbrücken: Proceedings of the 8th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society of Germany.

Strobach, T., Frensch, P. A., & Schubert, T. (2012c). Video game practice optimizes executive control skills in dual-task and task switching situations. Acta Psychologica, 140(1), 13–24.PubMedCrossRef

Strobach, T., Frensch, P. A., Soutschek, A., & Schubert, T. (2012d). Investigation on the improvement and transfer of dual-task coordination skills. Psychological Research, 76(6), 794–811.PubMedCrossRef

Strobach, T., Liepelt, R., Pashler, H., Frensch, P. A., & Schubert, T. (2013). Effects of extensive dual-task practice on processing stages in simultaneous choice tasks. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 75(5), 900–920.CrossRef

Strobach, T., Liepelt, R., Schubert, T., & Kiesel, A. (2012e). Task switching: effects of practice on switch and mixing costs. Psychological Research, 76(1), 74–83.PubMedCrossRef

Strobach, T., Schubert, T., Pashler, H., & Rickard, T. (2014). The specificity of learned parallelism in dual-memory retrieval. Memory & Cognition.

Stroop, J. R. (1935). Studies of interference in serial verbal reactions. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 18(6), 643–662.CrossRef

Szameitat, A. J., Lepsien, J., von Cramon, D., Sterr, A., & Schubert, T. (2006). Task-order coordination in dual-task performance and the lateral prefrontal cortex: an event-related fMRI study. Psychological Research, 70(6), 541–552.PubMedCrossRef

Szameitat, A. J., Schubert, T., Müller, K., & von Cramon, D. (2002). Localization of executive functions in dual-task performance with fMRI. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 14(8), 1184–1199.PubMedCrossRef

Titz, C. & Karbach, J. (2014). Working memory and executive functions: Effects of training on academic achievement. Psychological Research.

Töllner, T., Strobach, T., Schubert, T., & Müller, H. (2012). The effect of task order predictability in audio-visual dual task performance: just a central capacity limitation? Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience, 6, 75.PubMedCrossRefPubMedCentral

Tombu, M., & Jolicoeur, P. (2004). Virtually no evidence for virtually perfect time-sharing. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 30, 795–810.PubMed

Verhaeghen, P. (2011). Aging and executive control: reports of a demise greatly exaggerated. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 20(3), 174–180.CrossRef

von Bastian, C. C., & Oberauer, K. (2013). Distinct transfer effects of training different facets of working memory capacity. Journal of Memory and Language, 69(1), 36–58.CrossRef

Wilkinson, A. J., & Yang, L. (2012). Plasticity of inhibition in older adults: retest practice and transfer effects. Psychology and Aging, 27(3), 606–615.PubMedCrossRef

Zinke, K., Einert, M., Pfennig, L., & Kliegel, M. (2012). Plasticity of executive control through task switching training in adolescents. Frontiers In Human Neuroscience, 6, 41.PubMedCrossRefPubMedCentral

Zinke, K., Zeintl, M., Rose, N. S., Putzmann, J., Pydde, A., & Kliegel, M. (2013). Working memory training and transfer in older adults: effects of age, baseline performance, and training gains. Developmental Psychology.

Titel: Practice-related optimization and transfer of executive functions: a general review and a specific realization of their mechanisms in dual tasks
Publicatiedatum: 01-11-2014
Gepubliceerd in: Psychological Research / Uitgave 6/2014
Print ISSN: 0340-0727
Elektronisch ISSN: 1430-2772
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-014-0563-7

Bohn Stafleu van Loghum

Deel dit onderdeel of sectie (kopieer de link)

Abstract

Log in om toegang te krijgen

Andere artikelen Uitgave 6/2014

New directions in cognitive training: on methods, transfer, and application

On the validity and generality of transfer effects in cognitive training research

Working memory and executive functions: effects of training on academic achievement

Prospective memory training in older adults and its relevance for successful aging

Effect of working memory training on working memory, arithmetic and following instructions

Plasticity of brain and cognition in older adults