Nearest transfer effects of working memory training: A comparison of two programs focused on working memory updating

Abstract

This study analyzed the mechanisms involved in possible transfer effects for two different working memory updating (WMU) training programs administered to young adults and based on two updating paradigms: n -back and arithmetical updating. The influence of practice distribution on transfer effects was also explored by including two training regimens: massed and spaced practice. Performance on different WMU tasks more or less structurally similar to the tasks used in the training was assessed to analyze the nearest transfer effects. Near and far transfer effects were tested using complex working memory (WM) and fluid intelligence tasks. The results showed that the WMU training produced gains in only some of the WMU tasks structurally similar to those used in the training, not in those lacking the same structure, or in WM or fluid intelligence tasks. These limited nearest transfer effects suggest that gains could be due to the acquisition of a specific strategy appropriate for the task during the training rather than to any improvement in the updating process per se. Performance did not differ depending on the training regimen.

Training-induced improvement in working memory tasks results from switching to efficient strategies

“…Our results indicate that training-induced improvement in the n-back task is due to the discovery of a task-specific strategy, rather than a general enhancement of WM capacity. This finding explains previous findings of no transfer, or only very-near transfer to other types of the n-back task (Jakoby et al, 2019;Linares et al, 2019). Performance is expected to improve in untrained tasks only when this strategy applies, and its relevance is transparent to the participants.…”

“…Performance is expected to improve in untrained tasks only when this strategy applies, and its relevance is transparent to the participants. Thus, performance in tasks with the same structure may be improved (Redick, 2019), as previously reported (Linares et al, 2019). However, performance in most other WM tasks, and even in n-back tasks for which the strategy is difficult to implement (Jakoby et al, 2019), is not expected to benefit from the discovery of this strategy.…”

“…Therefore, differences in transfer may stem from the existence of a training protocol rather than from the specific training protocol of the experimental group (Foroughi, Monfort, Paczynski, McKnight, & Greenwood, 2016;Melby-Lervåg & Hulme, 2013;Shipstead, Redick, & Engle, 2012). Indeed, studies that used active control groups (trained with a similarly demanding task and a similar reward protocol) typically found either small near-only transfer (Linares, Borella, Teresa, Id, & Carretti, 2019) or no transfer at all (Jakoby, Raviv, Jaffe-dax, Lieder, & Ahissar, 2019).…”

“…We asked -what is it that participants learn which enables their substantial improvement in a challenging updating task designed to require limited-capacity online manipulations? The few recent studies that addressed this question suggest that the use of a task-specific strategy may facilitate training-induced improvement (Fellman et al, 2020;Laine, Fellman, Waris, & Nyman, 2018;Linares et al, 2019;. Indeed, the need for a strategy that reduces WM requirements has been gradually acknowledged (Redick, 2019).…”

Enhancing Working Memory Based on Mismatch Negativity Neurofeedback in Subjective Cognitive Decline Patients: A Preliminary Study

“…The auditory tones are the stimuli to induce MMN; thus, there is a limit of the performance of the WM effect with regard to the visual and auditory digits. Previous studies have shown an impact of the stimulation task type training on the WM types (Chan et al, 2019 ; Linares et al, 2019 ). A behavior study showed that enhanced transfer of the auditory discrimination learning is mediated by WM, which reflects that WM updating is related to fine auditory discrimination (Zhang et al, 2016 ).…”