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Schubert AL, Löffler C, Hagemann D, Sadus K. How robust is the relationship between neural processing speed and cognitive abilities? Psychophysiology 2023; 60:e14165. [PMID: 35995756 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Revised: 07/08/2022] [Accepted: 07/31/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Individual differences in processing speed are consistently related to individual differences in cognitive abilities, but the mechanisms through which a higher processing speed facilitates reasoning remain largely unknown. To identify these mechanisms, researchers have been using latencies of the event-related potential (ERP) to study how the speed of cognitive processes associated with specific ERP components is related to cognitive abilities. Although there is some evidence that latencies of ERP components associated with higher-order cognitive processes are related to intelligence, results are overall quite inconsistent. These inconsistencies likely result from variations in analytic procedures and little consideration of the psychometric properties of ERP latencies in relatively small sample studies. Here we used a multiverse approach to evaluate how different analytical choices regarding references, low-pass filter cutoffs, and latency measures affect the psychometric properties of P2, N2, and P3 latencies and their relations with cognitive abilities in a sample of 148 participants. Latent correlations between neural processing speed and cognitive abilities ranged from -.49 to -.78. ERP latency measures contained about equal parts of measurement error variance and systematic variance, and only about half of the systematic variance was related to cognitive abilities, whereas the other half reflected nuisance factors. We recommend addressing these problematic psychometric properties by recording EEG data from multiple tasks and modeling relations between ERP latencies and covariates in latent variable models. All in all, our results indicate that there is a substantial and robust relationship between neural processing speed and cognitive abilities when those issues are addressed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Christoph Löffler
- Department of Psychology, University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany.,Institute of Psychology, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Dirk Hagemann
- Institute of Psychology, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Kathrin Sadus
- Institute of Psychology, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
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Schulz-Zhecheva Y, Voelkle MC, Beauducel A, Biscaldi M, Klein C. Intra-Subject Variability, Intelligence, and ADHD Traits in a Community-Based Sample. J Atten Disord 2023; 27:67-79. [PMID: 36082454 DOI: 10.1177/10870547221118523] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The present study investigates the predictive validity of intra-subject variability (ISV) for ADHD traits in a community-based sample and the stability of the relationship between ISV and fluid intelligence (gf) across the continuum of ADHD traits. METHOD Age-residualized data from 426 participants (8-18 years, 6% ADHD) was used to investigate whether ex-Gaussian and DDM parameters derived from simple choice-reaction-time tasks can predict continuously assessed ADHD traits. Multiple-Group-Analyses and Latent-Moderated-Structural-Equations were used to test whether ADHD traits moderate the relationship between ISV and gf. RESULTS σ and μ of the ex-Gaussian model as well as DDM parameters drift rate (v) and boundary separation (a) significantly predicted general ADHD traits, while τ predicted attention difficulties specifically. Across the ADHD continuum, σ and v were significant predictors of gf. CONCLUSION The results confirm the link between ISV and ADHD. The relationship between ISV and gf appears stable across the ADHD continuum.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Christoph Klein
- University of Freiburg, Germany.,University of Cologne, Germany.,National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Germany
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Frischkorn GT, Hilger K, Kretzschmar A, Schubert AL. Intelligenzdiagnostik der Zukunft. PSYCHOLOGISCHE RUNDSCHAU 2022. [DOI: 10.1026/0033-3042/a000598] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Zusammenfassung. Die menschliche Intelligenz ist eines der am besten erforschten und validierten Konstrukte innerhalb der Psychologie. Dennoch wird die Validität von Intelligenztests im gruppen- und insbesondere kulturvergleichenden Kontext regelmäßig und berechtigterweise kritisch hinterfragt. Obwohl verschiedene Alternativen und Weiterentwicklungen der Intelligenzdiagnostik vorgeschlagen wurden (z. B. kulturfaire Tests), sind fundamentale Probleme in der vergleichenden Intelligenzdiagnostik noch immer ungelöst und die Validitäten entsprechender Verfahren unklar. In dem vorliegenden Positionspapier wird diese Thematik aus der Perspektive der Kognitionspsychologie und der kognitiven Neurowissenschaften beleuchtet und eine prozessorientierte und biologisch inspirierte Form der Intelligenzdiagnostik als potentieller Lösungsansatz vorgeschlagen. Wir zeigen die Bedeutung elementarer kognitiver Prozesse auf (insbesondere Arbeitsgedächtniskapazität, Aufmerksamkeit, Verarbeitungsgeschwindigkeit), die individuellen Leistungsunterschieden zu Grunde liegen, und betonen, dass der Unterscheidung zwischen Inhalten und Prozessen eine zentrale, jedoch oft vernachlässigte Rolle in der Diagnostik allgemeiner kognitiver Leistungsunterschiede zukommt. Während aus kognitions- und neuropsychologischer Sicht davon ausgegangen werden kann, dass sich insbesondere Prozesse für interkulturelle Vergleiche eignen, sollten Inhalte als stärker kulturspezifisch verstanden werden. Darauf aufbauend diskutieren wir drei verschiedene Ansätze zur Verbesserung interkultureller Vergleichbarkeit der Intelligenzdiagnostik sowie deren Grenzen. Wir postulieren, dass sich die Intelligenzforschung im Austausch mit verschiedenen Disziplinen stärker auf die Identifikation von generellen kognitiven Prozessen fokussieren sollte und diskutieren das Potenzial zukünftiger Forschung hin zu einer prozessorientierten und biologisch inspirierten Intelligenzdiagnostik. Schließlich zeigen wir derzeitige Möglichkeiten auf, gehen aber auch auf etwaige Herausforderungen ein und beleuchten Implikationen für die zukünftige Intelligenzdiagnostik und -forschung.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kirsten Hilger
- Institut für Psychologie, Universität Würzburg, Deutschland
| | | | - Anna-Lena Schubert
- Psychologisches Institut, Universität Heidelberg, Deutschland
- Psychologisches Institut, Universität Mainz, Deutschland
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Do Attentional Lapses Account for the Worst Performance Rule? J Intell 2021; 10:jintelligence10010002. [PMID: 35076568 PMCID: PMC8788519 DOI: 10.3390/jintelligence10010002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2021] [Revised: 11/20/2021] [Accepted: 12/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The worst performance rule (WPR) describes the phenomenon that individuals’ slowest responses in a task are often more predictive of their intelligence than their fastest or average responses. To explain this phenomenon, it was previously suggested that occasional lapses of attention during task completion might be associated with particularly slow reaction times. Because less intelligent individuals should experience lapses of attention more frequently, reaction time distribution should be more heavily skewed for them than for more intelligent people. Consequently, the correlation between intelligence and reaction times should increase from the lowest to the highest quantile of the response time distribution. This attentional lapses account has some intuitive appeal, but has not yet been tested empirically. Using a hierarchical modeling approach, we investigated whether the WPR pattern would disappear when including different behavioral, self-report, and neural measurements of attentional lapses as predictors. In a sample of N = 85, we found that attentional lapses accounted for the WPR, but effect sizes of single covariates were mostly small to very small. We replicated these results in a reanalysis of a much larger previously published data set. Our findings render empirical support to the attentional lapses account of the WPR.
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Schubert AL, Frischkorn GT. Neurocognitive Psychometrics of Intelligence: How Measurement Advancements Unveiled the Role of Mental Speed in Intelligence Differences. CURRENT DIRECTIONS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2020. [DOI: 10.1177/0963721419896365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
More intelligent individuals typically show faster reaction times. However, individual differences in reaction times do not represent individual differences in a single cognitive process but in multiple cognitive processes. Thus, it is unclear whether the association between mental speed and intelligence reflects advantages in a specific cognitive process or in general processing speed. In this article, we present a neurocognitive-psychometrics account of mental speed that decomposes the relationship between mental speed and intelligence. We summarize research employing mathematical models of cognition and chronometric analyses of neural processing to identify distinct stages of information processing strongly related to intelligence differences. Evidence from both approaches suggests that the speed of higher-order processing is greater in smarter individuals, which may reflect advantages in the structural and functional organization of brain networks. Adopting a similar neurocognitive-psychometrics approach for other cognitive processes associated with intelligence (e.g., working memory or executive control) may refine our understanding of the basic cognitive processes of intelligence.
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Schubert AL, Rey-Mermet A. Does process overlap theory replace the issues of general intelligence with the issues of attentional control? JOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH IN MEMORY AND COGNITION 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jarmac.2019.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Saville CWN, de Morree HM, Dundon NM, Marcora SM, Klein C. Effects of caffeine on reaction time are mediated by attentional rather than motor processes. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2018; 235:749-759. [PMID: 29273820 PMCID: PMC5847000 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-017-4790-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2017] [Accepted: 11/13/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Caffeine has a well-established effect on reaction times (RTs) but the neurocognitive mechanisms underlying this are unclear. METHODS In the present study, 15 female participants performed an oddball task after ingesting caffeine or a placebo, and electroencephalographic data were obtained. Single-trial P3b latencies locked to the stimulus and to the response were extracted and mediation models were fitted to the data to test whether caffeine's effect on RTs was mediated by its effect on either type of P3b latencies. RESULTS Stimulus-locked latencies showed clear evidence of mediation, with approximately a third of the effect of caffeine on RTs running through the processes measured by stimulus-locked latencies. Caffeine did not affect response-locked latencies, so could not mediate the effect. DISCUSSION These findings are consistent with caffeine's effect on RTs being a result of its effect on perceptual-attentional processes, rather than motor processes. The study is the first to apply mediation analysis to single-trial P3b data and this technique holds promise for mental chronometric studies into the effects of psychopharmacological agents. The R code for performing the single trial analysis and mediation analysis are included as supplementary materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher W N Saville
- North Wales Clinical Psychology Programme, School of Psychology, Bangor University, Adeilad Brigantia, Ffordd Penrallt, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales, LL57 2AS, UK.
| | - H M de Morree
- Personal Health Department, Philips Research, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
| | - Neil M Dundon
- North Wales Clinical Psychology Programme, School of Psychology, Bangor University, Adeilad Brigantia, Ffordd Penrallt, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales, LL57 2AS, UK
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, Medical Faculty, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - S M Marcora
- School of Sport and Exercise Science, University of Kent, England, UK
| | - C Klein
- North Wales Clinical Psychology Programme, School of Psychology, Bangor University, Adeilad Brigantia, Ffordd Penrallt, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales, LL57 2AS, UK
- Personal Health Department, Philips Research, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Medical Faculty, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
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Butler EE, Saville CWN, Ward R, Ramsey R. Physical attraction to reliable, low variability nervous systems: Reaction time variability predicts attractiveness. Cognition 2016; 158:81-89. [PMID: 27815988 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2016.10.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2015] [Revised: 10/11/2016] [Accepted: 10/25/2016] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
The human face cues a range of important fitness information, which guides mate selection towards desirable others. Given humans' high investment in the central nervous system (CNS), cues to CNS function should be especially important in social selection. We tested if facial attractiveness preferences are sensitive to the reliability of human nervous system function. Several decades of research suggest an operational measure for CNS reliability is reaction time variability, which is measured by standard deviation of reaction times across trials. Across two experiments, we show that low reaction time variability is associated with facial attractiveness. Moreover, variability in performance made a unique contribution to attractiveness judgements above and beyond both physical health and sex-typicality judgements, which have previously been associated with perceptions of attractiveness. In a third experiment, we empirically estimated the distribution of attractiveness preferences expected by chance and show that the size and direction of our results in Experiments 1 and 2 are statistically unlikely without reference to reaction time variability. We conclude that an operating characteristic of the human nervous system, reliability of information processing, is signalled to others through facial appearance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily E Butler
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK; Wales Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales, UK
| | - Christopher W N Saville
- Wales Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales, UK; University Hospital for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Freiburg, Germany
| | - Robert Ward
- Wales Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales, UK
| | - Richard Ramsey
- Wales Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales, UK.
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Predicting Fluid Intelligence by Components of Reaction Time Distributions from Simple Choice Reaction Time Tasks. J Intell 2016. [DOI: 10.3390/jintelligence4030008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
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