Four-Week Strategy-Based Training to Enhance Prospective Memory in Older Adults: Targeting Intention Retention Is More Beneficial than Targeting Intention Formation

Abstract

Background: So far, training of prospective memory (PM) focused on very short instances (single sessions) and targeted the intention-formation phase only. Objective: We aimed to compare the effectiveness of 2 different 4-week strategy-based PM training types, namely imagery training (targeting the encoding of the PM intention in the intention-formation phase) versus rehearsal training (targeting the maintenance of the PM intention in the intention-retention phase) in older adults. Methods: We used a 4-week training protocol (8 sessions in total, 2 sessions per week). From the 44 participants, 21 were randomly assigned to the imagery training (vividly imagining a mental picture to memorize the connection between the PM cue words and related actions during intention formation) and 23 to the rehearsal training (rehearsing the PM cue words during intention retention). The criterion PM task was assessed before and after the training. Results: Comparing the effectiveness of both training types, we found a significant time by training type interaction on PM accuracy in terms of PM cue detection, F(1, 42) = 6.07, p = 0.018, η²_p = 0.13. Subsequent analyses revealed that the rehearsal training was more effective in enhancing PM accuracy in terms of PM cue detection than the imagery training. Conclusion: Strategy-based PM training in older adults targeting the maintenance of the PM intention in the intention-retention phase may be more effective in enhancing PM accuracy in terms of PM cue detection than the strategy targeting the encoding of the PM intention in the intention-formation phase. This suggests that for successful prospective remembering, older adults may need more support to keep the PM cues active in memory while working on the ongoing task than to initially encode the PM intention.

Effects of Mental Imagery on Prospective Memory: A Process Analysis in Individuals with Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment

“…It was revealed that plan retention could predict intention initiation and plan fidelity. A study showed that rehearsal training that targeted intention maintenance outperformed imagery training that targeted intention encoding and formation for older adults [38]. However, the present study showed that mental imagery may work on not only intention formation but also intention retention, thereby facilitating performance in subsequent PM phases.…”

Prospective Memory Development Across the Lifespan

“…In this context, research suggests that learning to frequently and actively monitor for PM cues can improve performance (Umanath, Toglia, & McDaniel, 2016). Similarly, in recent study, Ihle, Albinski, Gurynowicz, and Kliegel (2018) show that repeatedly rehearsing the planned actions (thinking of which tasks one was supposed to do) can increase PM performance of older adults. Thus, it may be beneficial to teach older adults to regularly think of what they had planned to do, to evaluate and control their activities and to strategically check the clock.…”

The Efficacy of a Multicomponent Functional Fitness Program Based on Exergaming on Cognitive Functioning of Healthy Older Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial

“…Cognitive functioning (CF) declines with age. There is evidence that regular physical exercise (Bherer, Erickson, & Liu-Ambrose, 2013;Northey, Cherbuin, Pumpa, Smee, & Rattray, 2018) and cognitive training (Ballesteros, Kraft, Santana, & Tziraki, 2015;Ihle, Albiński, Gurynowicz, & Kliegel, 2018) are non-pharmaceutical interventions that attenuate age-related cognitive decline, and improve CF in older people.…”