Material-specific retroactive interference effects of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition on the Wechsler Memory Scale-Fourth Edition in a nonclinical sample

INTRODUCTION

This study investigated proactive and retroactive interference effects between the Wechsler Memory Scale-Fourth Edition (WMS-IV) using the flexible approach, and the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV).

METHOD

One hundred and eighty nonclinical participants were assigned to a four (visual interference, verbal interference, visual and verbal interference, vs. no interference) by two (retroactive vs. proactive) between-subjects design. The administration order of the tests was counterbalanced (i.e., administration of the WAIS-IV prior to the WMS-IV, and the WAIS-IV administered during the delay interval of the WMS-IV).

RESULTS

The WAIS-IV produced significant retroactive interference effects on the WMS-IV; however, no proactive interference effect was observed. The retroactive interference effect was dependent on material specificity.

CONCLUSIONS

The results indicate that material presented within the delay of the WMS-IV can have a significant effect on subsequent delayed recall. Clinicians should carefully consider the effects associated with carry-over effects of these tests when using them in combination.

Shame, guilt, and facial emotion processing: initial evidence for a positive relationship between guilt-proneness and facial emotion recognition ability

Shame and guilt are closely related self-conscious emotions of negative affect that give rise to divergent self-regulatory and motivational behaviours. While guilt-proneness has demonstrated positive relationships with self-report measures of empathy and adaptive interpersonal functioning, shame-proneness tends to be unrelated or inversely related to empathy and is associated with interpersonal difficulties. At present, no research has examined relationships between shame and guilt-proneness with facial emotion recognition ability. Participants (N = 363) completed measures of shame and guilt-proneness along with a facial emotion recognition task which assessed the ability to identify displays of anger, sadness, happiness, fear, disgust, and shame. Guilt-proneness was consistently positively associated with facial emotion recognition ability. In contrast, shame-proneness was unrelated to capacity for facial emotion recognition. Findings provide support for theory arguing that guilt and empathy operate synergistically and may also help explain the inverse relationship between guilt-proneness and propensity for aggressive behaviour.

The acute cognitive effects of zopiclone, zolpidem, zaleplon, and eszopiclone: a systematic review and meta-analysis

The "z-drugs" zopiclone, zolpidem, eszopiclone, and zaleplon were introduced in the 1980s for the treatment of insomnia, as it was observed that the side effect profile associated with these medications were more benign than those related to the benzodiazepines. This meta-analysis set out to ascertain which domains of cognitive function, if any, were affected by the ingestion of these medications. A total of 20 studies met the study inclusion criteria. Results revealed medium effect sizes for zopiclone and zolpidem on measures of verbal memory. An additional medium effect size was observed for zolpidem on attention. Finally, smaller effect sizes were observed for zolpidem speed of processing and for zopiclone on working memory. It is clear from these data that the use of a single dose of the z-drugs in healthy adults as measured in the morning following the exposure does produce a specific rather than a generalized negative effect on cognitive function. However, there were only enough studies to evaluate the individual cognitive effects of the zolpidem and zopiclone medications; the specific effects of zaleplon and eszopiclone cannot be ascertained because only one study met the inclusion and exclusion criteria for the review.

Is the Boston Naming Test still fit for purpose?

The Boston Naming Test (BNT) (Kaplan, Goodglass, & Weintraub, 1983) is the most commonly used test of confrontation naming in neuropsychology (Rabin, Barr, & Burton, 2005). However, there are significant criticisms of the BNT which suggest that it might not be the assessment measure of choice. These criticisms are that the BNT has poor psychometric properties, is not adequately standardized, and has inadequate norms. It is further suggested that when considered in the context of contemporary conceptualizations of the neuropsychology of naming, the BNT does not adequately capture the processes known to be required for successful naming, and does not sample widely enough from the content domain of "naming". These criticisms suggest that the BNT is flawed as a measure of naming, and are discussed in detail in this review. Other stand-alone visual confrontation naming tasks are reviewed to evaluate whether any might be viable substitutes for the BNT in clinical neuropsychology. The Naming Test from the Neuropsychological Assessment Battery (Stern & White, 2009) was identified as a possible alternative to the BNT, however, neither of these tests was designed with reference to models of the neuropsychology of naming, and development of a new test of naming is indicated.

Does the presence of posttraumatic anosmia mean that you will be disinhibited?

Dispute has surrounded the issue of whether the relationship between anosmia and executive dysfunction in traumatic brain injury (TBI) may be artefactual due to poor ascertainment. Three groups matched for age, gender, education, Full Scale IQ, and the Wechsler Working Memory Index and showing adequate symptom validity were compared: 30 anosmic TBIs (TBI-A) matched for posttraumatic amnesia (PTA) and working memory functioning with 36 nonanosmic TBIs (TBI-NA) and 51 controls. The groups performed the FAS test, the Animal Fluency test, the Stroop Neurological Screening Test (SNST), the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test-64 (WCST-64) and the Trail Making Test (TMT-B) as well as tests of emotional functioning and return to work outcome. After adjusting for the covariates (i.e., gender; Wechsler Test of Adult Reading, WTAR; and years of education), a significant effect was found for items successfully completed on the SNST, the FAS task, the Animal Fluency task, and the WCST-64 categories completed. After adjusting for the covariates, a significant difference was found for number of errors on the SNST and for the number and type of errors on TMT-B. The two groups did not differ in terms of their affective functioning (i.e., Beck Depression Inventory or Beck Anxiety Inventory), or in terms of their outcome with regard to return to work. The findings support the notion that the TBI-A group demonstrated considerably weaker performance on executive tasks than did the nonanosmic TBIs. These patients were not, however, more prone to an error-prone pattern of performance, and, if anything, their executive deficit was more likely attributable to a reduced productivity of response.

Piracetam, an AMPAkine drug, facilitates memory consolidation in the day-old chick

Piracetam is an AMPAkine drug that may have a range of different mechanisms at the cellular level, and which has been shown to facilitate memory, amongst its other effects. This series of experiments demonstrated that a 10mg/kg dose of piracetam facilitated memory consolidation in the day-old chick when injected from immediately until 120min after weak training (i.e. using a 20% v/v concentration of methyl anthranilate) with the passive avoidance learning task. Administration of piracetam immediately after training led to memory facilitation which lasted for up to 24h following training. This dose of the AMPAkine was not shown to facilitate memory reconsolidation. These findings support the contention that application of the AMPAkine piracetam facilitates memory using a weak training task, and extend the range of actions previously noted with NMDA-related agents to those which also facilitate the AMPA receptor.

Characterization of cerebellar ataxia in chronic alcoholics using the International Cooperative Ataxia Rating Scale (ICARS)

BACKGROUND

Alcoholism is the most common cause of cerebellar dysfunction, yet estimates of the incidence of alcoholic cerebellar degeneration (ACD) vary greatly, with differences in methodologies contributing to these disparate findings. This study set out to characterize the frequency and pattern of clinical signs of ACD in an alcoholic group using the International Cooperative Ataxia Rating Scale (ICARS).

METHODS

We compared the performance of 49 alcoholics and 29 control participants. The relative contributions of demographic and alcohol consumption variables to ICARS scores in the alcoholic group were also examined.

RESULTS

The alcoholic group demonstrated significantly poorer performance on all of the ICARS subscales as compared with the control group. Within the alcoholic group, performance was more impaired on the speech scale than on all of the other scales, except the lower limb component of the kinetic scale, and less impaired on the oculomotor scale compared with all other scales. Years of heavy drinking and lifetime alcohol consumption correlated with total ICARS scores; however, maximum daily consumption was actually negatively correlated with ICARS scores. Of the alcohol history variables, years of heavy drinking was the best predictor of total ICARS scores, making a 19% unique contribution, followed by the period of abstinence from alcohol, which uniquely contributed 7% of the variance. There were high correlations between age and male gender and the alcohol consumption variables; however, age and gender were still found to uniquely contribute 5 and 7% respectively to the variance in total ICARS scores.

CONCLUSIONS

ACD may affect up to two-thirds of chronic alcoholics. Assessing the number of years an individual has been drinking beyond a certain threshold can give a good indication of the likelihood of ACD. Age, gender, and the source of the clinical sample may significantly contribute to the prevalence of ACD and require further detailed investigation.

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor facilitates memory consolidation and reconsolidation of a weak training stimulus in the day-old chick

Recent research has pointed to a role for brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in long-term potentiation and memory. The present series of experiments examined the effects of the application of exogenous BDNF on memory consolidation and reconsolidation of a weak training stimulus with the day-old chick, using the passive avoidance learning paradigm. Chicks injected intracranially with 12.5 μg/mL recombinant BDNF immediately after a single-trial training event displayed enhanced retention relative to saline up to 24h post-training. Furthermore, this dose was also shown to enhance retention when administered following initial weak training. Thus, exogenous BDNF was shown to enhance both consolidation and reconsolidation of memory when administered acutely to the day-old chick.

The Effect of Item Type on Performance of the Matrix Reasoning Subtest of the WAIS-III in Traumatically Brain Injured and Non Brain-injured Control Participants

Qualitative analysis of neuropsychological instruments has been a long tradition in neuropsychological assessment. This study extended this type of analysis to the Matrix Reasoning (MR) subtest of the WAIS-III. The study compared the performance of TBI participants on the item types identified within the MR subtest (i.e., pattern completion, classification, analogy and serial reasoning) with a group of normal controls. MR items were classified into categories (as defined respectively by the Psychological Corporation and by our own research definition). Ninety-three non brain-injured control and 72 brain injured control participants were included in the study. One way analysis of variance indicated that the TBI group performed significantly worse than the non brain-injured group the MR performance overall as well as for both the Psychological Corporation classification and on the research defined categories. Within group analysis revealed that both groups performed significantly differently across the item categories with the most difficult categories being analogy and serial reasoning for the research defined categories and the classification and serial reasoning categories for the Psychological Corporation-defined groups. The results of the study indicate that an item type analysis of the MR performance may further contribute to the qualitative aspects of diagnostic formulation.

Traumatic Brain Injury Without Loss of Consciousness: A Case Study

Whilst many investigators concede that traumatic brain injury (TBI) without loss of consciousness (LOC) can occur, the number of times that this phenomena is reported in the literature is small. This case report presents an instance of TBI without LOC as supported by the observation of slowed processing speed, anosmia and a marked post-traumatic dysexecutive syndrome featuring moderately severe disinhibition. The case is discussed with a view to determining the mechanics of the blow necessary to both damage the cerebral substance yet maintain consciousness intact.

A meta-analytic review of the emotional symptoms associated with mild traumatic brain injury

Given the prevalence of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and enduring subjective complaints known as postconcussion symptoms (PCS), it is important to investigate the nature and extent of these difficulties. This study used meta-analytic techniques to integrate the available information on the emotional symptoms associated with mTBI. Small effect sizes were found across all domains (depression, anxiety, coping, and psychosocial disability); however, significance depended upon the weighting method employed. The results indicate that mTBI had a small to negligible effect on emotional symptom reporting. This has implications for the etiology of PCS, the delivery of therapeutic interventions, and medico-legal disputations.

The relationship between naming difficulty and FAS performance following traumatic brain injury

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE

To investigate the relationship between naming difficulty (ND) and FAS performance in traumatic brain injury (TBI).

METHODS AND PROCEDURE

Sixty-three patients with a TBI were divided into two groups based on the presence of a ND and were compared with a control group on FAS performance.

RESULTS

Whilst the group with a TBI performed more poorly than the control group on the FAS task, there was no difference between those participants who featured a ND and those who did not. The TBIs produced fewer words than the control group in the first time slice of the task, but there was no difference between the group with a ND and the non-ND group on this measure.

CONCLUSION

The results indicate that the effect of word finding deficits is not the principal cause of the diminution of phonemic verbal fluency performance in TBI, which is probably more likely due to compromise in speed of information processing associated with the injury.

The relationship between working memory, processing speed, verbal comprehension and FAS performance following traumatic brain injury

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE

To investigate the relationship of working memory, processing speed and verbal comprehension with FAS performance in individuals who had sustained a traumatic brain injury (TBI).

METHODS AND PROCEDURE

Sixty-three patients with a TBI were grouped according to the presence of impaired verbal fluency performance and then compared on a number of cognitive and demographic variables.

RESULTS

Following a TBI, working memory and processing speed had the greatest influence on verbal fluency performance. For those individuals who have not sustained a TBI, education, verbal intelligence, working memory and speed of information processing were related to FAS performance.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings of the study indicate that FAS performance was related to verbal intelligence, working memory ability, attention and speed of information processing. The results further suggest that different variables are related to FAS performance following a TBI as compared with control group performances.

The effect of state worry and trait anxiety on working memory processes in a normal sample

INTRODUCTION

This study investigated the effects of trait anxiety and state worry on working memory performance in a normal sample. Phase one investigated the effects of trait anxiety and state worry on the capacity of specific working memory components. Phase two investigated the validity of Eysenck and Calvo's (1992) Processing Efficiency Theory of worry.

METHOD

Sixty adult participants (40 females and 20 males with a mean age of 26 years) were assigned to a 2 (trait anxiety: Low vs. high)x2 (state worry: Low vs. high) between-subjects design.

RESULTS

Contrary to prediction, worry did not lead to a decrement in performance on verbal working memory tasks but unexpectedly enhanced performance on visual tasks in participants with low trait anxiety (LTA). The results were also in opposition to expectations for Phase two. Individuals in the conditions of high trait anxiety and/or high state worry (LTA/HW, HTA/LW, and HTA/HW) displayed shorter response latencies than individuals in the LTA and low state worry (LTA/LW) condition on both verbal and spatial working memory (i.e., N-back) tasks.

CONCLUSION

Although non-pathological worry is predominantly a verbal-linguistic activity, it may also be complemented by the processing of visual imagery which facilitates problem-solving and adaptive functions.

Interference effects on commonly used memory tasks

This paper reports two studies which investigated the effect of interference on delayed recall scores of the WMS-III and other commonly used memory measures. In Study 1, participants completed the immediate and delayed components of the WMS-III, with or without the introduction of conceptually similar memory tasks between the recall trials. In Study 2, this order of administration was reversed, with the WMS-III subtests used as the interference items. The results indicated that the introduction of interference items during the delay negatively affected delayed recall performance on almost all sub-tests. In addition, equal effects of proactive and retroactive interference were demonstrated. These findings raise concerns regarding the standardization process for memory tasks and highlight the need to consider interference effects in clinical practice, and stand as a caution in the use of memory-related materials during the delay interval in memory testing.

Inhibition of cyclin-dependent kinase 5 by roscovitine impairs memory consolidation and reconsolidation in the day-old chick

Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (CDK-5) is reported to phosphorylate the NMDA receptor prior to the induction of long-term potentiation (LTP), among its many other effects. Application of CDK-5 inhibitors disrupts LTP and results in impaired task acquisition in behaving animals. In this study, we investigated the effect of exogenously applied roscovitine, a potent CDK-5 inhibitor, on consolidation and reconsolidation processes in day-old male chicks. New Hampshire x White leghorn cockerels were trained using a modified version of the passive avoidance learning task. Intracranial injections of roscovitine (2.5 microM) administered immediately after training induced a memory deficit that evolved from 5-minute post-training and persisted until at least 24 h following training. Injections of roscovitine (2.75 microM) administered immediately after the reminder trial induced a memory deficit observed by 30-minute post-reminder which had resolved by 24 h following the reminder. The comparison between consolidation and reconsolidation demonstrates differences both in the time of the onset of the memory deficit as well as in the permanence of this deficit. The results suggest an important, although different role for CDK-5 in consolidation and reconsolidation processes following passive avoidance learning.

Remembering that things have changed: a review of the cellular mechanisms of memory re-consolidation in the day-old chick

It has been one of the unshakeable orthodoxies of memory research that memory is initially laid down in a labile form for a short period following the experience and that over time the memory is "fixed" or "consolidated" into the physical structure of the brain. Over the last decade a large body of data has gathered which demonstrates that a "consolidated" memory can be returned to a labile state following retrieval of material from the store, which can then be re-consolidated, incorporating the newly acquired information into the representation of the world. The process of re-consolidation thus provides a sensible means for the crucial process of memory updating to occur. The paper focuses on pharmaco-behavioural experiments undertaken in our laboratories as well as in those of other groups which use the day-old chick as subject and the passive avoidance learning (PAL) task to examine the behavioural and metabolic parameters of re-consolidation. The data indicate that the consolidation and the re-consolidation processes are similar but not identical physiological processes. The re-processing of the memory following a re-consolidation involves each of the glutamatergic, adrenergic and dopaminergic neurotransmitter systems as well as re-activation of protein synthesis associated with the respective traces. In the chick model system, the ability to undertake re-consolidation is transient, and is observed only for a maximum of 24-48 h following the initial training event. Controversy persists as to whether the re-consolidated memory represents a new memory or whether it is a modification of the original memory processing.