The Effects of Age and Working Memory Ability on Frontal Lobe Oxygenation During Working Memory Tasks
Year: 2010
Type: article
Abstract: Previous research on differences between frontal lobe activation of young and older adults during working memory tasks have yielded conflicting results, which may be due to a failure to control for task difficulty or for the working memory ability of the participants.In the current study, young and older adults were divided into good and bad working memory groups, and near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) was used to measure oxygenation changes in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex during n-back and Stroop tasks.Age did not have a main effect on oxygenation change in either task, but working memory group did.On the n-back, the bad working memory group had a greater increase in oxygenation than the good working memory group.On the Stroop, the bad working memory group had a decrease in oxygenation, while the good working memory group had an increase.These results may be explained through an "inverted-U pattern of activation" hypothesis for the relationship between frontal activation, task difficulty, and working memory capability.
Author: Marie Y. Braasch
Institution: Ohio University
Language: English
Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience
Field: Neuroscience
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2595802976