A model and diagnostic measures for response time series on tests of concentration: historical background, conceptual framework, and some applications

Does the d2 Test of Attention only assess sustained attention? Evidence of working memory processes involved

The d2 Test of Attention (d2) is widely used for assessing sustained attention and we aimed at verifying whether working memory may be a secondary construct measured by d2. 70 university students were assessed using d2 conventional paper-and-pencil and computational version. The experimental group and control group performed the task with or without target key, respectively. Continuous Performance Test (CPT) and N-back (1 and 2-back) tasks were used to measure sustained attention and working memory, respectively. Computational d2 performance was predicted by CPT (p < .05; R2 = .15) in the experimental group, and it was predicted by 2-back (p < .05; R2 = .28) in the control group. Conventional d2 performance was predicted by 2-back for both control group (p = .01; R2 = .20) and experimental group (p = .02, R2 = .17). Results suggest the involvement of working memory in d2, possibly a secondary construct assessed by this instrument.

Individual differences in attention control: A meta-analysis and re-analysis of latent variable studies

A meta-analysis and re-analysis of prior latent variable studies was conducted in order to assess whether there is evidence for individual differences in broad attention control abilities. Data from 90 independent samples and over 23,000 participants suggested that most (84.4%) prior studies find evidence for a coherent attention control factor with average factor loadings of .51. This latent attention control factor was related to other cognitive ability factors including working memory, shifting, fluid intelligence, long-term memory, reading comprehension, and processing speed, as well as to self-reports of task-unrelated thoughts and task specific motivation. Further re-analyses and meta-analyses suggest that the results remained largely unchanged when considering various possible measurement issues. Examining the factor structure of attention control suggested evidence for sub-components of attention control (restraining, constraining and sustaining attention) which could be accounted for a by a higher-order factor. Additional re-analyses suggested that attention control represents a broad ability within models of cognitive abilities. Overall, these results provide evidence for attention control abilities as an important individual differences construct.

Human Attention Restoration, Flow, and Creativity: A Conceptual Integration

In today's fast paced, attention-demanding society, executive functions and attentional resources are often taxed. Individuals need ways to sustain and restore these resources. We first review the concepts of attention and restoration, as instantiated in Attention Restoration Theory (ART). ART emphasizes the role of nature in restoring attention. We then discuss the essentials of experiments on the causal influences of nature. Next, we expand the concept of ART to include modern, designed environments. We outline a wider perspective termed attentional ecology, in which attention behavior is viewed within a larger system involving the human and their interactions with environmental demands over time. When the ecology is optimal, mental functioning can be a positive "flow" that is productive, sustainable for the individual, and sometimes creative.

Effects of goal-setting on sustained attention and attention lapses

In three experiments, we examined the effects of goal-setting on sustained attention and attention lapses. We measured both behavioral task performance and subjective attentional states during a four -choice reaction time task (Experiments 1 and 2 administered online; Experiment 3 conducted in-person). Experiment 1 compared a vague goal versus a specific goal. The specific goal reduced lapses in the form of long response times (RTs) but did not impact task-unrelated thoughts. Experiment 2 expanded on E1 by making the specific goal progressively harder. Behavioral lapses (i.e., long RTs) were reduced in the harder-over-time goal condition compared to the control condition. Additionally, while RTs increased with time-on-task in the control condition, RTs in the harder-over-time goal condition remained stable with time-on-task. Experiment 3 aimed to replicate the results of E2 in-person and adjusted the difficulty of the harder-over-time goals to be slightly harder. The results largely replicated E2. Overall, setting specific and difficult task goals led to a reduction in lapses of attention and increased sustained attention performance.

Development of a mobile application for assessing reaction time in walking and TUG duration: Concurrent validity in female older adults

Introduction

The TUG can be used to distinguish between people who fall and people who don't fall. To evaluate cognitive dual-task performance while walking for fall prediction, TUG-dual was frequently employed. A recent study has created a mobile application that enables simple interaction to provide greater convenience for monitoring the duration of TUG, TUG-subtraction, and reaction time.

Objective

The research aim was to ascertain the concurrent validity of the mobile application that was developed for the clinical assessment of TUG, TUG-subtraction, and reaction time.

Methods

Twenty-nine older persons participated in this study. The testing protocol involved the TUG, TUG-subtraction, and reaction time assessment. For TUG and TUG-subtraction, the duration to complete the task was recorded by the APDM Mobility Lab system and the mobile application. For the reaction time tests, the reaction times (msec) were recorded by the Multi Choice Reaction timer and the Mobile application. The TUG durations recorded by the APDM Mobility Lab system were correlated with those recorded by the mobile application to verify the concurrent validity using Pearson's product moment correlation coefficient. Also, the reaction time by the Multi Choice Reaction timer was correlated with the mobile application. Bland-Altman plots were used to explore the existence of any systematic differences between the measurements.

Results

Our results showed very strong correlations between the TUG and TUG-subtraction duration derived from the APDM Mobility Lab system and the mobile application (r = 0.96 and 0.96, respectively). For the reaction time, the results showed a moderate correlation between the reaction time derived from the mobile application and the Multi Choice Reaction Timer (r = 0.67).

Conclusion

The mobile application, which allows measurement in TUG and TUG-subtraction, is a highly valid tool for TUG duration assessment. However, this application is capable for assess the reaction time with moderate validity for reaction time assessment.

On doing multi-act arithmetic: A multitrait-multimethod approach of performance dimensions in integrated multitasking

Here we present a systematic plan to the experimental study of test–retest reliability in the multitasking domain, adopting the multitrait-multimethod (MTMM) approach to evaluate the psychometric properties of performance in Düker-type speeded multiple-act mental arithmetic. These form of tasks capacitate the experimental analysis of integrated multi-step processing by combining multiple mental operations in flexible ways in the service of the overarching goal of completing the task. A particular focus was on scoring methodology, particularly measures of response speed variability. To this end, we present data of two experiments with regard to (a) test–retest reliability, (b) between-measures correlational structure, (c) and stability (test–retest practice effects). Finally, we compared participants with high versus low performance variability to assess ability-related differences in measurement precision (typically used as proxy to “simulate” patient populations), which is especially relevant in the applied fields of clinical neuropsychology. The participants performed two classic integrated multi-act arithmetic tasks, combining addition and verification (Exp. 1) and addition and comparison (Exp. 2). The results revealed excellent test–retest reliability for the standard and the variability measures. The analysis of between-measures correlational structure revealed the typical pattern of convergent and discriminant relationships, and also, that absolute response speed variability was highly correlated with average speed (r > 0.85), indicating that these measures mainly deliver redundant information. In contrast, speed-adjusted (relativized) variability revealed discriminant validity being correlated to a much lesser degree with average speed, indicating that this measure delivers additional information not already provided by the speed measure. Furthermore, speed-adjusted variability was virtually unaffected by test–retest practice, which makes this measure interesting in situations with repeated testing.

Listening Over Time: Single-Trial Tonic and Phasic Oscillatory Alpha-and Theta-Band Indicators of Listening-Related Fatigue

Objectives

Listening effort engages cognitive resources to support speech understanding in adverse listening conditions, and leads to fatigue over the longer term for people with hearing loss. Direct, neural measures of listening-related fatigue have not been developed. Here, event-related or phasic changes in alpha and theta oscillatory power during listening were used as measures of listening effort, and longer-term or tonic changes over the course of the listening task were assessed as measures of listening-related fatigue. In addition, influences of self-reported fatigue and degree of hearing loss on tonic changes in oscillatory power were examined.

Design

Participants were middle-aged adults (age 37–65 years; n = 12) with age-appropriate hearing. Sentences were presented in a background of multi-talker babble at a range of signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) varying around the 80 percent threshold of individual listeners. Single-trial oscillatory power during both sentence and baseline intervals was analyzed with linear mixed-effect models that included as predictors trial number, SNR, subjective fatigue, and hearing loss.

Results

Alpha and theta power in both sentence presentation and baseline intervals increased as a function of trial, indicating listening-related fatigue. Further, tonic power increases across trials were affected by hearing loss and/or subjective fatigue, particularly in the alpha-band. Phasic changes in alpha and theta power generally tracked with SNR, with decreased alpha power and increased theta power at less favorable SNRs. However, for the alpha-band, the linear effect of SNR emerged only at later trials.

Conclusion

Tonic increases in oscillatory power in alpha- and theta-bands over the course of a listening task may be biomarkers for the development of listening-related fatigue. In addition, alpha-band power as an index of listening-related fatigue may be sensitive to individual differences attributable to level of hearing loss and the subjective experience of listening-related fatigue. Finally, phasic effects of SNR on alpha power emerged only after a period of listening, suggesting that this measure of listening effort could depend on the development of listening-related fatigue.

Restoration of Attention by Rest in a Multitasking World: Theory, Methodology, and Empirical Evidence

In this work, we evaluate the status of both theory and empirical evidence in the field of experimental rest-break research based on a framework that combines mental-chronometry and psychometric-measurement theory. To this end, we (1) provide a taxonomy of rest breaks according to which empirical studies can be classified (e.g., by differentiating between long, short, and micro-rest breaks based on context and temporal properties). Then, we (2) evaluate the theorizing in both the basic and applied fields of research and explain how popular concepts (e.g., ego depletion model, opportunity cost theory, attention restoration theory, action readiness, etc.) relate to each other in contemporary theoretical debates. Here, we highlight differences between all these models in the light of two symbolic categories, termed the resource-based and satiation-based model, including aspects related to the dynamics and the control (strategic or non-strategic) mechanisms at work. Based on a critical assessment of existing methodological and theoretical approaches, we finally (3) provide a set of guidelines for both theory building and future empirical approaches to the experimental study of rest breaks. We conclude that a psychometrically advanced and theoretically focused research of rest and recovery has the potential to finally provide a sound scientific basis to eventually mitigate the adverse effects of ever increasing task demands on performance and well-being in a multitasking world at work and leisure.

Pace yourself: Neural activation and connectivity changes over time vary by task type and pacing

Performance deterioration over time, or time-on-task (TOT) effects, can be observed across a variety of tasks, but little attention has been paid to how TOT-related brain activity may differ based on task pacing and cognitive demands. Here, we employ a set of three closely related tasks to investigate the effect of these variables on fMRI activation and connectivity. When participants dictated the pace of their own responses, activation and network connectivity within the dorsal attention network (DAN) increased over short time scales (~2-3 min), a phenomenon that was not observed when participants had no control over their pace of work. Reaction time slowing was also the most pronounced in this self-paced task. In contrast, TOT-related changes in default-mode network (DMN) activity and connectivity, DAN-DMN anti-correlations, and pupil diameter did not differ based on pacing or task instructions. Over a longer (~10 min) time scale, task-positive activation and connectivity decreased in all paradigms, in agreement with older findings. These results highlight dynamic patterns of resource allocation that have not previously been observed in fMRI experiments, and speak to the idea that the brain may strategically allocate resources depending on the task at hand and the time scale of work.

On the Locus of the Practice Effect in Sustained Attention Tests

The present study set out to explore the locus of the poorly understood but frequently reported and comparatively large practice effect in sustained attention tests. Drawing on a recently proposed process model of sustained attention tests, several cognitive tasks were administered twice in order to examine which specific component of test performance benefitted from practice and to which extent. It was shown that the tasks representing the three sub-components of sustained attention tests, namely the perception of an item, the simple mental operation to solve an item, and the motor reaction to indicate a response to an item, benefitted from practice. Importantly, the largest practice gain was observed for the task that required item-solving processes in addition to perceptual and motor processes. Two additional postulated mechanisms in sustained attention tests—the deliberate shifting between items and the preprocessing of upcoming items—did not become more efficient through practice. Altogether, the present study shows that the practice effect in sustained attention tests seems to be primarily due to faster item-solving processes and, to a limited extent, due to a faster perception of the item, as well as a faster motor response. Moreover, besides the sub-components, it is likely that also the coordination of perceptual, item-solving, and motor processes benefitted from practice. Altogether, the present paper may have taken a first step towards a better understanding of the specific processes that cause the large practice gains in sustained attention tests.

Towards a Process Model of Sustained Attention Tests

Taking up new approaches and calls for experimental test validation, in the present study we propose and validate a process model of sustained attention tests. Four sub-components were postulated: the perception of an item, a simple mental operation to solve the item, a motor reaction, and the shift to the next item. In two studies, several cognitive tasks and modified versions of the d2-R test of sustained attention were applied in order to determine performance in the proposed sub-components. Their contribution for the prediction of performance in sustained attention tests and tests of higher cognitive abilities was assessed. The sub-components of the process model explained a large amount of variance in sustained attention tests, namely 55–74%. More specifically, perceptual and mental operation speed were the strongest predictors, while there was a trend towards a small influence of motor speed on test performance. The measures of item shifting showed low reliabilities and did not predict test scores. In terms of discriminant validity, results of Study 1 indicated that the postulated sub-components were insufficient to explain a large amount of variance in working memory span tasks, in Study 2 the same was demonstrated for reasoning tasks. Altogether, the present study is the first to disentangle sub-components in sustained attention tests and to determine their role for test performance.

Socially alerted cognition evoked by a confederate's mere presence: analysis of reaction-time distributions and delta plots

We examined aspects of social alerting as induced through the presence of an attentive but non-evaluative confederate on mental efficiency. To this end, individuals were administered with a chained mental-arithmetic task (levels: low vs. high demand) in two contextual conditions (levels: alone vs. presence). In addition, we examined self-report measures of subjective state for purposes of control. As a result, the presence (vs. alone) condition improved (not hampered) processing speed (while error rate remained low overall), and this effect was differentially more pronounced for high (vs. low) demand. Reaction-time distributional analyses revealed that improvements in average performance actually originated from a selective speeding-up in the slower percentiles, indicating that social alerting promotes stability of information-processing throughput. These results challenge prevalent theoretical notions of mere-presence effects as individuals became consistently faster and less vulnerable to commit attention failure. Our findings indicate that social presence promotes not only processing speed but volitional steadiness.

Is the d2 Test of Attention Rasch Scalable? Analysis With the Rasch Poisson Counts Model

The d2 test is a cancellation test to measure attention, visual scanning, and processing speed. It is the most frequently used test of attention in Europe. Although it has been validated using factor analytic techniques and correlational analyses, its fit to item response theory models has not been examined. We evaluated the fit of the d2 test to the Rasch Poisson Counts Model (RPCM) by examining the fit of six different scoring techniques. Only two scoring techniques-concentration performance scores and total number of characters canceled-fit the RPCM. The individual items fit the RPCM, with negligible differential item functioning across sex. Graphical model check and likelihood ratio test confirmed the overall fit of the two scoring techniques to RPCM.

Phone Conversation while Processing Information: Chronometric Analysis of Load Effects in Everyday-media Multitasking

This is a pilot study that examined the effect of cell-phone conversation on cognition using a continuous multitasking paradigm. Current theorizing argues that phone conversation affects behavior (e.g., driving) by interfering at a level of cognitive processes (not peripheral activity) and by implying an attentional-failure account. Within the framework of an intermittent spare–utilized capacity threading model, we examined the effect of aspects of (secondary-task) phone conversation on (primary-task) continuous arithmetic performance, asking whether phone use makes components of automatic and controlled information-processing (i.e., easy vs. hard mental arithmetic) run more slowly, or alternatively, makes processing run less reliably albeit with the same processing speed. The results can be summarized as follows: While neither expecting a text message nor expecting an impending phone call had any detrimental effects on performance, active phone conversation was clearly detrimental to primary-task performance. Crucially, the decrement imposed by secondary-task (conversation) was not due to a constant slowdown but is better be characterized by an occasional breakdown of information processing, which differentially affected automatic and controlled components of primary-task processing. In conclusion, these findings support the notion that phone conversation makes individuals not constantly slower but more vulnerable to commit attention failure, and in this way, hampers stability of (primary-task) information processing.

Mobilizing cognition for speeded action: try-harder instructions promote motivated readiness in the constant-foreperiod paradigm

We examined the effect of motivational readiness on cognitive performance. An important but still not sufficiently elaborated question is whether individuals can voluntarily increase cognitive efficiency for an impending target event, given sufficient preparation time. Within the framework of the constant-foreperiod design (comparing reaction time performance in blocks of short and long foreperiod intervals, FPs), we examined the effect of an instruction to try harder (instructional cue: standard vs. effort) in a choice-reaction task on performance speed and variability. Proceeding from previous theoretical considerations, we expected the instruction to speed-up processing irrespective of FP length, while error rate should be increased in the short-FP but decreased in the long-FP condition. Overall, the results confirmed this prediction. Importantly, the distributional (ex-Gaussian and delta plot) analysis revealed that the instruction to try harder decreased distributional skewness (i.e., longer percentiles were more affected), indicating that mobilization ensured temporal performance stability (persistence).

Response Time Modeling Based on the Proportional Hazards Model

Response time data are regularly analyzed in psychology. When several response times are assessed per participant, it is common practice to use latent trait models in order to account for the dependency of the response times from the same participant. One such model is the proportional hazards model with random effects. Despite its popularity in survival analysis, this model is rarely used in psychology because of the difficulty of model estimation when latent variables are present. In this article, a new estimation method is proposed. This method is based on the rank correlation matrix containing Kendall's Tau coefficients and unweighted least squares estimation ( Kendall, 1938 ). Compared with marginal maximum likelihood estimation, the new estimation approach is simple, not computationally intensive, and almost as efficient. Additionally, the approach allows the implementation of a test for model fit. Feasibility of the estimation method and validity of the fit test is demonstrated with a simulation study. An application of the model to a real data set is provided.

Sustaining attention to simple tasks: a meta-analytic review of the neural mechanisms of vigilant attention

Maintaining attention for more than a few seconds is essential for mastering everyday life. Yet, our ability to stay focused on a particular task is limited, resulting in well-known performance decrements with increasing time on task. Intriguingly, such decrements are even more likely if the task is cognitively simple and repetitive. The attentional function that enables our prolonged engagement in intellectually unchallenging, uninteresting activities has been termed vigilant attention. Here we synthesized what we have learned from functional neuroimaging about the mechanisms of this essential mental faculty. To this end, a quantitative meta-analysis of pertinent neuroimaging studies was performed, including supplementary analyses of moderating factors. Furthermore, we reviewed the available evidence on neural time-on-task effects, additionally considering information obtained from patients with focal brain damage. Integrating the results of both meta-analysis and review, we identified a set of mainly right-lateralized brain regions that may form the core network subserving vigilant attention in humans, including dorsomedial, mid- and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, anterior insula, parietal areas (intraparietal sulcus, temporoparietal junction), and subcortical structures (cerebellar vermis, thalamus, putamen, midbrain). We discuss the potential functional roles of different nodes of this network as well as implications of our findings for a theoretical account of vigilant attention. It is conjectured that sustaining attention is a multicomponent, nonunitary mental faculty, involving a mixture of (a) sustained/recurrent processes subserving task-set/arousal maintenance and (b) transient processes subserving the target-driven reorienting of attention. Finally, limitations of previous studies are considered and suggestions for future research are provided.

Error reactivity in self-paced performance: Highly-accurate individuals exhibit largest post-error slowing

Reaction time is typically increased following an erroneous response. This post-error slowing is traditionally explained by a strategic adjustment of response threshold towards more conservative behaviour. A recently proposed orienting account provides an alternative explanation for post-error slowing. According to this account, committing an error evokes an orienting response (OR), which inhibits information processing in the subsequent trial, resulting in slow and inaccurate performance. We tested a straightforward prediction of the orienting account in the context of self-paced performance, adopting an individual-differences approach: Post-error slowing should be larger the less frequent an error is. To this end, participants were classified into three groups differing in overall performance accuracy. Larger post-error slowing and stronger post-error accuracy decrease were observed for the high-accuracy group than for the two other groups. Practice pronounced the post-error accuracy decline, especially for the high-accuracy group. The results are consistent with the orienting account of post-error slowing but are problematic for accounts based on strategic evaluation mechanisms.

Differential effects of prolonged work on performance measures in self-paced speed tests

Time-related changes in the speeded performance of complex cognitive tasks are considered to arise from the combined effects of practice and mental fatigue. Here we explored the differential contributions of practice and fatigue to performance changes in a self-paced speeded mental addition and comparison task of about 50 min duration, administered twice within one week’s time. Performance measures included average response speed, accuracy, and response speed variability. The results revealed differential effects of prolonged work on different performance indices: Practice effects, being more pronounced in the first session, were reflected in an improvement of average response speed, whereas mental fatigue, occurring in both sessions, was reflected in an increase of response speed variability. This demonstrates that effects of mental fatigue on average speed of performance may be masked by practice effects but still be detectable in the variability of performance. Therefore, besides experimental factors such as the length and complexity of tasks, indices of response speed variability should be taken into consideration when interpreting different aspects of performance in self-paced speed tests.

The effect of blinks and saccadic eye movements on visual reaction times

Vision is suppressed during blinks and saccadic eye movements. We hypothesized that visual reaction times (RTs) in a vigilance test would be significantly increased when a blink or a saccade happened to coincide with the stimulus onset. Thirty healthy volunteers each performed a visual RT test for 15 min while their eye and eyelid movements were monitored by a system of infrared reflectance oculography. RTs increased significantly, many by more than 200 msec, when a blink occurred between 75 msec before and up to 150 msec after the stimulus onset. A similar result was observed with saccades that started 75 to 150 msec after the stimulus. Vision or attention was evidently inhibited before each blink and for longer than the saccades lasted. We suggest that visual suppression is involved in this process, which could explain some of the normal variability in RTs over periods of seconds that has not been adequately explained before.

Optimal time-of-day and consolidation of learning in younger and older adults

The current study investigated the relationship between intraindividual variability and associative learning in younger and older adults. The authors hypothesized that higher levels of intraindividual variability would be associated with a reduction in the benefits of practice during learning, and that nonoptimal testing times would magnify these effects. Results indicated that older adults showed an increase in reaction time (RT) standard deviation (SD) relative to mean RT in the evening. Although time-of-day did not have a significant effect on rate of learning or total learning, intraindividual variability did predict learning rate of younger adults at nonoptimal testing times. Results are discussed in light of theoretical models of aging and learning.

Electrophysiological and information processing variability predicts memory decrements associated with normal age-related cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease (AD)

Recent theoretical models of cognitive aging have implicated increased intra-individual variability as a critical marker of decline. The current study examined electrophysiological and information processing variability and memory performance in normal younger and older controls, and older adults with Alzheimer's disease (AD). It was hypothesized that higher levels of variability would be indicative of age-related and disease-related memory deficits. Results indicated both implicit and explicit memory deficits associated with AD. Consistent with previous research, behavioral speed and variability emerged as sensitive to age- and disease-related change. Amplitude variability of P3 event-related potentials was a unique component of electrophysiological activity and accounted for significant variance in reaction time (RT) mean and RT standard deviation, which in turn accounted for significant variance in memory function. Results are discussed in light of theoretical and applied issues in the field of cognitive aging.

Differential effects of two motor tasks on ERPs in an auditory classification task: evidence of shared cognitive resources

The aim of the study was to assess cognitive demands and fatigue during the execution of two different motor tasks. Event-related brain potentials (ERPs) were recorded from 15 healthy subjects while they concurrently performed, (1) one of two motor tasks, and (2) a three stimulus (70% standard tones, 15% target tones, 15% novel stimuli) auditory classification task. Both motor tasks required the externally paced adduction of the right thumb with the force task requiring a precise movement (feedback given) with about 50% of maximum force output (6 s on task, 4 s rest) while the displacement task required the same precise movement with only minimal force requirements. In separate sessions, both tasks were performed for about an hour with the subjects concurrently paying attention to the auditory task with button presses required for the target stimuli. This provided a dual task situation with trade-offs in P3b amplitude as a function of difficulty of the primary (motor) task. The P3b to the auditory target stimuli was reduced during the force session compared to the displacement session, indicating that the force-task placed a higher demand on cognitive resources. No differential effect of fatigue (time on task) could be ascertained over six consecutive parts of the session. The P3a component, a putative correlate of orienting of attention, showed a rapid attenuation over time but, attesting to its automatic nature, no effect of concurrent motor task. ERP components recorded timelocked to the movements showed a marked difference between the two tasks with the displacement task giving rise to higher amplitudes. Moreover, only for the force task an influence of time on task (fatigue) on the MP was found. The dual task methodology is a potentially useful tool to disentangle cognitive and motor components of central fatigue.