Examining the role of working memory resources in following spoken instructions

Yang, Tian‐xiao; Allen, Richard J.; Gathercole, Susan E.

doi:10.1080/20445911.2015.1101118

Cited by 30 publications

(79 citation statements)

References 50 publications

(92 reference statements)

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“…As the FI task involves multiple modalities and recruits working memory resources (Yang et al, 2014, 2016), this general pattern of impairment across conditions may at least partly reflect an impairment in the executive control aspect of working memory that is common in ADHD (Holmes et al, 2014). It may also reflect broader problems in higher-order cognitive control functions (Solanto et al, 2007; Oades and Christiansen, 2008; Rubia et al, 2009; Bledsoe et al, 2010) and related dysfunctions of executive-control and attention-related brain networks (Castellanos and Proal, 2012; Cortese et al, 2012).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Difficulties completing classroom instructions may therefore underpin some of the longer-term educational problems linked with ADHD (Loe and Feldman, 2007). The aim of this study was to provide the first direct assessment of following instruction (FI) skills in children with ADHD, and to explore whether their abilities to successfully implement instructions could be enhanced by action during the presentation and recall of instruction sequences in the same way that it can for typically developing children and adults (Gathercole et al, 2008; Yang et al, 2014, 2015, 2016; Allen and Waterman, 2015; Jaroslawska et al, 2016a). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In adults, the ability to perform instructions is impaired by concurrent tasks designed to disrupt different aspects of working memory (Yang et al, 2014, 2016). In children, the ability to follow spoken instructions is related to performance on working memory tasks (Engle et al, 1991; Gathercole et al, 2008; Jaroslawska et al, 2016b), with pronounced difficulties in FI observed in those with poor working memory (Gathercole et al, 2006; Alloway et al, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Improved recall is observed following the demonstration of instruction sequences as performed in person by the experimenter (Wojcik et al, 2011) or shown as on-screen demonstrations (Yang et al, 2015). Recall accuracy is consistently enhanced when instructions are recalled through physical action relative to spoken repetition (Koriat et al, 1990; Yang et al, 2014, 2016; Allen and Waterman, 2015). The benefits of action-based manipulations at encoding and recall appear to be at least somewhat interactive, with larger facilitatory effects of enactment during presentation emerging when participants verbally recall instructions, compared to when they enact at recall (Allen and Waterman, 2015; Yang et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…How might children in the ADHD group respond to these different encoding and response manipulations? The action-based effects in FI tasks may be relatively automatic and non-strategic in nature (e.g., Wojcik et al, 2011; Charlesworth et al, 2014; Yang et al, 2014, 2016). The possibly automatic and non-strategic boosts that such manipulations might bring, as well as their potential to increase participant engagement in the task (thus reducing the probability of attentional lapses, which children with ADHD normally suffer from), mean that the ADHD group might also demonstrate beneficial effects of action.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Impaired Memory for Instructions in Children with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Is Improved by Action at Presentation and Recall

et al. 2017

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Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often fail to comply with teacher instructions in the classroom. Using action during presentation or recall can enhance typically developing children’s abilities to complete multi-step instruction sequences. In this study, we tested the ability to following instructions in children with ADHD under different conditions to explore whether they show the same beneficial effects of action. A total of 24 children with ADHD and 27 typically developing children either listened to or viewed demonstrations of instructions during encoding, and then either verbally repeated or physically performed the sequences during recall. This resulted in four conditions: spoken-verbal, spoken-enacted, demonstration-verbal, and demonstration-enacted. Children with ADHD were significantly impaired in all conditions of the following instructions task relative to the typically developing group. Both groups showed an enacted-recall advantage, with superior recall by physical performance than oral repetition. Both groups also benefitted from demonstration over spoken presentation, but only when the instructions were recalled verbally. These findings suggest that children with ADHD struggle to complete multi-step instructions, but that they benefit from action-based presentation and recall in the same way as typically developing children. These findings have important implications for educators, suggesting that motor-based methods of instruction-delivery might enhance classroom learning both for children with and without developmental disorders.

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