Attention Networks in ADHD Adults after Working Memory Training with a Dual n-Back Task

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Version: Final published version
License: CC BY 4.0
Serval ID
serval:BIB_BD88720A1BD6
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Title
Attention Networks in ADHD Adults after Working Memory Training with a Dual n-Back Task
Journal
Brain Sciences
Author(s)
Dotare Masashi, Bader Michel, Mesrobian Sarah K., Asai Yoshiyuki, Villa Alessandro E. P., Lintas Alessandra
ISSN
2076-3425
Publication state
Published
Issued date
08/10/2020
Volume
10
Number
10
Pages
715
Language
english
Abstract
Patients affected by Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are characterized by impaired executive functioning and/or attention deficits. Our study aim is to determine whether the outcomes measured by the Attention Network Task (ANT), i.e., the reaction times (RTs) to specific target and cue conditions and alerting, orienting, and conflict (or executive control) effects are affected by cognitive training with a Dual n-back task. We considered three groups of young adult participants: ADHD patients without medication (ADHD), ADHD with medication (MADHD), and age/education-matched controls. Working memory training consisted of a daily practice of 20 blocks of Dual n-back task (approximately 30 min per day) for 20 days within one month. Participants of each group were randomly assigned into two subgroups, the first one with an adaptive mode of difficulty (adaptive training), while the second was blocked at the level 1 during the whole training phase (1-back task, baseline training). Alerting and orienting effects were not modified by working memory training. The dimensional analysis showed that after baseline training, the lesser the severity of the hyperactive-impulsive symptoms, the larger the improvement of reaction times on trials with high executive control/conflict demand (i.e., what is called Conflict Effect), irrespective of the participants' group. In the categorical analysis, we observed the improvement in such Conflict Effect after the adaptive training in adult ADHD patients irrespective of their medication, but not in controls. The ex-Gaussian analysis of RT and RT variability showed that the improvement in the Conflict Effect correlated with a decrease in the proportion of extreme slow responses. The Dual n-back task in the adaptive mode offers as a promising candidate for a cognitive remediation of adult ADHD patients without pharmaceutical medication.
Pubmed
Web of science
Open Access
Yes
Funding(s)
Swiss National Science Foundation / Projects / CR13I1-138032
Create date
17/11/2020 9:17
Last modification date
27/02/2024 7:29
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