Effectiveness of Cognitive Training in Older and Younger Adults

BEHAVIORAL

Visual and / or Auditory Cognitive Tasks (1)

Seven sessions (\~45-75 minutes) of cognitive tasks in the lab. Participants asked to view visual stimuli (such as black and white lines, letters, simple shapes like triangles, circles, and squares) presented on a computer or television screen and/or listen to auditory stimuli (such as pure tones) presented via headphone or speakers and asked to make simple judgements.

BEHAVIORAL

Visual and / or Auditory Cognitive Tasks (2)

Two sets of 10 sessions (\~20 minutes) of cognitive tasks either at home or in the lab. Participants asked to view visual stimuli (such as black and white lines, letters, simple shapes like triangles, circles, and squares) presented on a computer or television screen and/or listen to auditory stimuli (such as pure tones) presented via headphone or speakers and asked to make simple judgements.

Change in the difference between the proportion of hits minus false alarms for a given level of the N-back task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

The n-Back Task is a measure of working memory. The participant is sequentially shown a series of letters and is asked to indicate whether the current letter matches the letter presented "n" items before. The n levels range between 1- and 4-back. Each level of n-back has 17-19 letters, with 5 target letters.

Change in the proportion of correctly reported sequences in the Corsi Complex task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

The Corsi Complex Task is a measure of working memory. The participant is sequentially shown a series of positions from 12 possible predefined spots on the screen. Between each position, the participants is also asked to categorize a stimulus between two categories based on color and shape. The participant's task is to report the sequence of positions in order. The length of sequence can vary between 2 and 10.

Change in the proportion of correctly reported number and letter sets in the Letter-Number task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

The Letter-Number Sequence Task is a measure of working memory. In each trial, the participant is presented with a sequence of alternating letters and numbers, from 2 to 10 stimuli. Participants have to report the numbers in ascending order, and the letters in alphabetical order.

Change in the difference of response time and accuracy in switch trials minus non-switch trials in the Task Switching Task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

The Task Switching task is a measure of cognitive flexibility. On each trial, participants view a letter and a digit. A cue tells the participant to either categorize the letter as a consonant or vowel or else categorize the digit as even or odd. Trials can be either "non-switch trials" - in which the participant is asked to perform the same task as on the previous trial - or "switch trials" - in which the participant is asked to perform the opposite task as on the previous trial. The participant will complete 48 trials. A "switch cost" is calculated by subtracting the average response time for switch trials from the average response time for non-switch trials.

Change in the difference of response time in (i) switch trials minus non-switch trials and (ii) congruent minus incongruent trials in the Flanker Task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

In the Flanker task, the participant is asked to indicate whether the centrally presented arrow is pointing either to the left or right by pressing the left or right triangular buttons. This arrow is surrounded by 4 identical arrows, 2 to its left and 2 to its right; these are called non-target arrows. The participant is presented with two different trial types during the task, incongruent and congruent. In the congruent trials, the non-target arrows point in the same direction as the target arrow (e.g. all to the left) and in the incongruent trials they point in the opposite direction (e.g. target to the right, non-targets to the left). Switch trials are trials preceded by a trial of the opposite category (i.e. congruent preceded by incongruent or incongruent preceded by congruent).

Change in the proportion of correctly identified targets in the mixed condition of the Cancellation task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

The Cancellation task is a measure of cognitive flexibility. Participants are presented with rows of 8 stimuli that can be either cats or dogs. Each cat and dog varies along its orientation, color pattern, and/or stance, giving 4 distinct cats and 4 distinct dogs. One cat and one dog are targets, and the rest are distractors. The goal of the participant is to mark as many targets as possible within each row in the allotted time (210 seconds).

Change in the proportion of correct responses on the Useful Field of View (UFOV) Task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

The UFOV is a measure of visual selective attention. Participants are briefly presented with a display consisting of 24 peripheral items (3 on each of the four radial spokes and the four obliques; evenly spaced) and 1 central stimulus (a smiley with either long or short hair). One of the peripheral items is a target, while the remaining items are distractors. The participants' task is to indicate upon which of the 8 spokes the target appeared, and whether the central smiley had short or long hair. The display times vary between 16-500ms.

Change in the proportion of correct responses on the Multiple Object Tracking (MOT) Task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

The MOT is a measure of visual divided attention. On each trial, participants view a series of blue and yellow smiley faces randomly moving in circular area. After a few seconds, the blue faces become yellow, indistinguishable from the distractors, while all the items keep moving on the screen. After another period of a few seconds, the items stop, and the participant is asked whether a randomly selected face was initially blue or yellow at the beginning of the trial.

Change in the response time and percentage of correct responses in the Mental Rotation Task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

The mental rotation task is a measure of spatial cognition. Each trial displays two 2-D images, and the participant is asked whether the image on the right is a rotated version or a mirror-reserved and rotated version of the image on the left. The participant will complete 36 trials.

Change in the percentage of correct responses in the Paper Folding task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

The Paper Folding task is a measure of mental rotation. Participants are shown 2-4 images depicting a piece of paper being folded with a hole being punched after the last fold. The participant is asked to imagine and indicate what the paper would look like unfolded. The participant will complete 10 trials.

Change in the sum of correctly solved items in Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices task is a measure of fluid intelligence. The participant is presented with a grid of elements with one of the elements missing and is asked to identify the missing element that completes the grid pattern. The participant will complete 14 trials.

Change in the sum of correctly solved items in the UC Matrix Reasoning task

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

The UC Matrix Reasoning task is a measure of fluid intelligence. The participant is presented with a grid of elements with one of the elements missing and is asked to identify the missing element that completes the grid pattern. The participant will complete 16 trials.

Change in the percentage of accuracy in the Shipley Institute of Living Scale

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

Participants will complete Part I of the Shipley Institute of Living Scale, which is a measure of vocabulary. Participants are asked to select the appropriate synonym for a target word among several alternatives for 15 words.

Change in the percentage of accuracy in the Mill-Hill Vocabulary Scale

Time frame: Pre-test (baseline), post-test1 up to 30 days, (unmasked) post-test2 up to 60 days

In this vocabulary task, participants are asked to select the appropriate synonym for a target word among several alternatives for 25 words.

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When effective treatment exists, participants typically receive either the standard treatment plus the study intervention, or the standard treatment plus placebo. You would not be denied effective care. Placebos are primarily used when no proven treatment is available, or in addition to standard care. Your trial consent form will clearly explain what treatments you may receive.

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Trial duration varies widely depending on the study design and purpose. Some trials last just a few weeks, while others may continue for months or years. The study coordinator will provide specific timeline information during your screening call.