Dual‐Task Paradigm: A Means To Examine the Central Executive

Sala, Sergio Della; Baddeley, Alan; Papagno, Costanza; Spinnler, Hans

doi:10.1111/j.1749-6632.1995.tb38137.x

Cited by 143 publications

(119 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…All subjects reported that the DUAL conditions were subjectively more demanding than the SINGLE conditions. Some subjects, but not all, showed significant performance decrements on one or both tasks during DUAL conditions relative to SINGLE, consistent with decrements reported in prior studies using dual task paradigms to study CES function in normal subjects (5,6,8).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 71%

Functional neuroanatomy of executive processes involved in dual-task performance

Adcock¹

2000

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

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The subjective experience of allocating one's attentional resources among competing tasks is nearly universal, and most current models of cognition include a mechanism that performs this allocation; examples include the central executive system and the supervisory attentional system. Yet, the exact form that an executive system might take and even its necessity for cognition are controversial. Dual-task paradigms have commonly been used to investigate executive function. The few neuroimaging studies of these paradigms have yielded contradictory findings. Using functional MRI, we imaged brain function during two dual-task paradigms, each with a common auditory component task (NOUN task) but varying with respect to a visual component task (SPACE or FACE tasks). In each of the two dual-task paradigms, the results showed that the activated areas varied with the component tasks, that all of the areas activated during dual task performance were also activated during the component tasks, and that surplus activation within activated areas during DUAL conditions was parsimoniously accounted for by the addition of the second task. These findings suggest that executive processes may be mediated by interactions between anatomically and functionally distinct systems engaged in performance of component tasks, as opposed to an area or areas dedicated to a generic executive system. W orking memory refers to the cognitive capacity for maintenance and manipulation of information. The widely influential model of working memory proposed by Baddeley and Hitch (1) postulated that working memory was subdivided into contentspecific slave systems. The interplay of these slave systems, the visuo-spatial sketchpad and the articulatory loop, was thought to be regulated by a general-purpose, supramodal mechanism for resource allocation, the central executive, based on the supervisory attentional system originally proposed by Shallice (reviewed in ref.2). Other authors have questioned whether such supervisory systems are necessary components of cognitive models (e.g., refs. 3 and 4). Because the central executive system (CES) is thought to be crucial for coordination of concurrent processing, it has commonly been investigated by using dual-task paradigms in which two behavioral tasks, often with disparate sensory and cognitive processing, are performed concurrently (see, for example refs. 5-7). The few brain mapping studies of these paradigms have yielded contradictory findings (8-11).In the present study, we have used functional MRI to investigate brain activation during two dual-task paradigms. To test the hypothesis that the locations of activations during dual-task performance depended on the specific component tasks performed, we studied two dual-task paradigms. The first combined an auditory verbal categorization task (NOUN) and a visual mental rotation task (SPACE). The second combined the same auditory task with a different visual task involving object identification (FACE) rather than mental rotation. A demonstration that the same b...

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 71%

Functional neuroanatomy of executive processes involved in dual-task performance

Adcock¹

2000

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

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“…In the single counting conditions, participants were seated and recorded counting backwards, subtracting either 3s (Serial 3s) or 7s (Serial 7s) from a given number for one minute. The DT conditions were walking along the same 15m walkway, and counting (Serial 3s and 7s) 7 prioritizing either walking or counting. At the start of each DT condition the participants were asked to walk and count backwards in either 3s or 7s, and instructed to either concentrate more on walking than counting (PW) or more on counting than walking (PC).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…One method for investigating allocation of attention during concurrent activity uses the dual task (DT) paradigm [7], which compares performance on two single tasks carried out separately with performance when carrying out the two tasks concurrently. The DT impact is calculated as either a dual-task cost (DTC) or dual-task benefit (DTB) for one or both concurrent tasks, where DTC indicates by how much each task performance declines in the DT condition or improves (DTB).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Observing prioritization effects on cognition and gait: The effect of increased cognitive load on cognitively healthy older adults’ dual-task performance

et al. 2017

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Observing prioritization effects on cognition and gait: the effect of increased cognitive load on cognitively healthy older adults' dual-task performance. Gait and Posture, 53, pp. 139-144. (doi:10.1016/j.gaitpost.2017.01.018) This is the author's final accepted version.There may be differences between this version and the published version. Previous studies exploring the effects of attention-prioritization on cognitively healthy older adults' gait and cognitive dual task (DT) performance have shown DT cost in gait outcomes but inconsistent effects on cognitive performance, which may reflect task difficulty (the cognitive load). This study aimed to identify whether changing the cognitive load during a walking and counting DT improved the challenge/sensitivity of the cognitive task to observe prioritization effects on concurrent gait and cognitive performance outcomes. Seventy-two cognitively healthy older adults (Mean = 73 years) walked 15m, counted backwards in 3sand 7s as single tasks (ST), and concurrently walked and counted backwards as DTs.Attention-prioritization was examined in Prioritizing Walking (PW) and Prioritizing Counting (PC) DT conditions. Dual-task performance costs (DTC) were calculated for number of correct cognitive responses (CCR) in the counting tasks, and step-time variability and velocity in the gait task. All DT conditions showed a benefit (DTB) for cognitive outcomes with trade-off cost to gait. In the Serial 3s task, the cognitive DTBs increased in PC over the PW condition (p<.05), with a greater cost to walking velocity (p<.05). DT effects were more pronounced in the Serial 7s with a lower cognitive DTB when PC than when PW, (p<.05) with no trade-off increase in cost to gait outcomes (p<.05). The findings suggest that increased cognitive load during a gait and cognitive DT produces more pronounced gait measures of attention-prioritization in cognitively healthy older adults. A cognitive load effect was also observed in the cognitive outcomes, with unexpected results.

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“…The Critical Flicker Fusion (CFF) task (Kupke and Lewis, 1989), the Choice Reaction Time (CRT) task (Hindmarch, 1984), the Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST; Wechsler, 1981), the Divided Attention test (DA; Della Sala et al, 1995), and the Connors Continuous Performance Test (CPT; Conners, 1995) were used as the measures of attention. During the CFF task there were two different types of trials.…”

Section: Attentionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Estrogen Treatment Effects on Anticholinergic-Induced Cognitive Dysfunction in Normal Postmenopausal Women

Dumas

Hancur-Bucci

Naylor

et al. 2006

Neuropsychopharmacol

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Estrogen has been shown to interact with the cholinergic system and influence cognition in animal models. This study investigated the interaction of estrogen and cholinergic system functioning and the effects of this interaction on cognitive task performance in healthy older women. Fifteen post-menopausal women were randomly and blindly placed on 1 mg of 17-b estradiol or placebo for 3 months after which they participated in five anticholinergic challenge sessions, where they were administered one of two doses of the antimuscarinic drug scopolamine (SCOP) or the antinicotinic drug mecamylamine (MECA) or placebo. After the first challenge phase, they were crossed over to the other hormone treatment for another 3 months and repeated the challenges. Performance in multiple domains of cognition was assessed during anticholinergic drug challenge, including attention and verbal and nonverbal learning and memory. Results showed that estrogen pretreatment attenuated the anticholinergic drug-induced impairments on tests of attention and tasks with speed components. This study is the first to demonstrate the interaction of estrogen and the cholinergic system and the effects on cognitive performance in humans. The results suggest that estrogen status may affect cholinergic system tone and may be important for cholinergic system integrity.

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Dual‐Task Paradigm: A Means To Examine the Central Executive

Cited by 143 publications

References 29 publications

Functional neuroanatomy of executive processes involved in dual-task performance

Functional neuroanatomy of executive processes involved in dual-task performance

Observing prioritization effects on cognition and gait: The effect of increased cognitive load on cognitively healthy older adults’ dual-task performance

Estrogen Treatment Effects on Anticholinergic-Induced Cognitive Dysfunction in Normal Postmenopausal Women

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