Because of enduring experience of managing two languages, bilinguals have been argued to develop superior executive functioning compared with monolinguals. Despite extensive investigation, there is, however, no consensus regarding the existence of such a bilingual advantage. Here we synthesized comparisons of bilinguals' and monolinguals' performance in six executive domains using 891 effect sizes from 152 studies on adults. We also included unpublished data, and considered the potential influence of a number of study-, task-, and participant-related variables. Before correcting estimates for observed publication bias, our analyses revealed a very small bilingual advantage for inhibition, shifting, and working memory, but not for monitoring or attention. No evidence for a bilingual advantage remained after correcting for bias. For verbal fluency, our analyses indicated a small bilingual disadvantage, possibly reflecting less exposure for each individual language when using two languages in a balanced manner. Moreover, moderator analyses did not support theoretical presuppositions concerning the bilingual advantage. We conclude that the available evidence does not provide systematic support for the widely held notion that bilingualism is associated with benefits in cognitive control functions in adults. (PsycINFO Database Record

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Is Bilingualism Associated With Enhanced Executive Functioning in Adults? A Meta-Analytic Review

The purposes of this study were to investigate the effects of an intervention designed to improve at-risk 4th graders’ understanding of fractions and to examine the processes by which effects occurred. The intervention focused more on the measurement interpretation of fractions; the control condition focused more on the part-whole interpretation of fractions and on procedures. Intervention was also designed to compensate for at-risk students’ limitations in the domain-general abilities associated with fraction learning. At-risk students (n = 259) were randomly assigned to intervention and control. Whole-number calculation skill, domain-general abilities (working memory, attentive behavior, processing speed, listening comprehension), and fraction proficiency were pretested. Intervention occurred for 12 weeks, 3 times per week, 30 min per session, and then fraction performance was reassessed. On each conceptual and procedural fraction outcome, effects favored intervention over control (effect sizes = 0.29 to 2.50), and the gap between at-risk and low-risk students narrowed for the intervention group but not the control group. Improvement in the accuracy of children’s measurement interpretation of fractions mediated intervention effects. Also, intervention effects were moderated by domain-general abilities, but not whole-number calculation skill.

/pdf/improving-at-risk-learners-understanding-of-fractions-4xyp8dsty9.pdf

Improving At-Risk Learners' Understanding of Fractions

Functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a non-invasive, safe, and portable optical neuroimaging method that can be used to assess brain dynamics during skill acquisition and performance of complex work and everyday tasks. In this paper we describe neuroergonomic studies that illustrate the use of fNIRS in the examination of training-related brain dynamics and human performance assessment. We describe results of studies investigating cognitive workload in air traffic controllers, acquisition of dual verbal-spatial working memory skill, and development of expertise in piloting unmanned vehicles. These studies used conventional fNIRS devices in which the participants were tethered to the device while seated at a workstation. Consistent with the aims of mobile brain imaging (MoBI), we also describe a compact and battery-operated wireless fNIRS system that performs with similar accuracy as other established fNIRS devices. Our results indicate that both wired and wireless fNIRS systems allow for the examination of brain function in naturalistic settings, and thus are suitable for reliable human performance monitoring and training assessment.

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Continuous monitoring of brain dynamics with functional near infrared spectroscopy as a tool for neuroergonomic research: empirical examples and a technological development

Executive functions include a number of higher-level cognitive control abilities, such as cognitive flexibility, inhibition, and working memory serving action control and the flexible adaptation to changes in the environment. These control functions are supported by the prefrontal cortex and therefore develop rapidly across childhood and mature well into late adolescence. Given that executive control is a strong predictor for various life outcomes, such as academic attainment, socioeconomic status, and physical health, numerous training interventions have been designed to improve executive functioning across the lifespan, many of them targeting children and adolescents. Despite the increasing popularity of these trainings, their results are neither robust nor consistent, and the transferability of training-induced performance improvements to untrained tasks seems to be limited. In this review, we provide a selective overview of the developmental literature on process-based cognitive interventions by discussing (1) the concept and the development of executive functions and their neural underpinnings, (2) the effects of different types of executive control training in normally developing children and adolescents, (3) individual differences in training-related performance gains as well as (4) the potential of cognitive training interventions for the application in clinical and educational contexts. Based on recent findings, we consider how transfer of process-based executive control trainings may be supported and how interventions may be tailored to the needs of specific age groups or populations.

/pdf/executive-control-training-from-middle-childhood-to-3qt6dawhmg.pdf

Executive control training from middle childhood to adolescence

Background : Three intrinsic connectivity networks in the brain, namely the central executive, salience, and default mode networks, have been identified as crucial to the understanding of higher cognitive functioning, and the functioning of these networks has been suggested to be impaired in psychopathology, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Objective : 1) To describe three main large-scale networks of the human brain; 2) to discuss the functioning of these neural networks in PTSD and related symptoms; and 3) to offer hypotheses for neuroscientifically-informed interventions based on treating the abnormalities observed in these neural networks in PTSD and related disorders. Methods : Literature relevant to this commentary was reviewed. Results : Increasing evidence for altered functioning of the central executive, salience, and default mode networks in PTSD has been demonstrated. We suggest that each network is associated with specific clinical symptoms observed in PTSD, including cognitive dysfunction (central executive network), increased and decreased arousal/interoception (salience network), and an altered sense of self (default mode network). Specific testable neuroscientifically-informed treatments aimed to restore each of these neural networks and related clinical dysfunction are proposed. Conclusions : Neuroscientifically-informed treatment interventions will be essential to future research agendas aimed at targeting specific PTSD and related symptoms. Keywords: Intrinsic networks; default mode network; salience network; central executive network; insula; PTSD; interoception; neurofeedback; mindfulness; dissociation (Published: 31 March 2015) Citation: European Journal of Psychotraumatology 2015, 6 : 27313 - http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/ejpt.v6.27313

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.3402/ejpt.v6.27313

Restoring large-scale brain networks in PTSD and related disorders: a proposal for neuroscientifically-informed treatment interventions

orking memory — a critical brain function — has gained broad acceptance as a primary indicator of academic, professional and personal performance. And after nearly a decade of research evidence and clinical success, the concept of training working memory to increase focus and cognitive reasoning is being heralded as a major development in neuroscience. How a scientific discovery is changing the way we understand and overcome the limits of the brain

Amitay Sygal

Papers

Working memory training