Modification of performance on the Span of Apprehension Task in a group of young people with early onset psychosis

Abstract

The aim of the study was to examine the effect of contingent monetary reinforcement and enhanced instructions on Span of Apprehension (SPAN) performance in a group of young people with early onset psychosis. Twenty-five participants (mean age 16.7) received a 3- and 12-letter version of the SPAN task six times: baseline, three x intervention, post-test, and 10-day follow-up. No significant effects of time were found in the 3-letter condition, indicating a ceiling effect for accuracy. In the 12-letter condition detection rates improved significantly reaching a maximum at the third intervention (p < 0.001). Performance showed a temporary decline at post-test, but performance returned to the maximum level at the 10-day follow-up. The study suggests that SPAN performance can be improved in young people with early onset psychosis using relatively simple interventions and that performance gains are relatively durable.

A controlled randomized treatment study: the effects of a cognitive remediation program on adolescents with early onset psychosis

“…The fact that long‐term visual memory improved is interesting, as this was found to be among the more impaired functions in adolescents with schizophrenia in a recent report (22). With regard to the intensive SPAN training the results have been described in a previous report (12), showing that following training with enhanced instructions and monitory reinforcement considerable performance gains were achieved at an immediate post‐test as well at a 10‐day follow‐up. The current results provide further evidence for the durability of these gains.…”

“…The attention module aimed at strengthening sustained attention, selective attention and scanning abilities. Included in this module was a 3‐day intensive training on the Span of Apprehension Task (SPAN) with enhanced instructions and monetary reinforcement (12). The memory module included tasks directed at improving both verbal and visual memory and the social perception module sought to improve the analysis of social information through training in encoding social stimuli.…”

Cognitive remediation for adolescents with early onset psychosis: a 1‐year follow‐up study

“…No other between‐group differences were found. Two tasks were aimed at enhancing early visual information processing, ‘Where is Willy’, a non‐experimental task, and the 5‐day intensive SPAN training using enhanced instructions and monetary reinforcement (14). Instruction and reinforcement have previously been shown to improve performance on both the SPAN task (41) and the WCST (42).…”

“…Little is for instance known about the durability or long‐term effects of training, as most studies have focused on investigating the immediate effects of remediation programmes. To our knowledge, only a few studies have investigated the durability or long‐term effects of cognitive remediation (9, 11, 12, 14).…”

“…The tasks consisted of solving mazes varying in difficulty and the digit symbol task from the WISC‐R (26), where the goal was to reduce time on task through self‐instructions. Also included was a 3‐day intensive training on the Span of Apprehension Task (SPAN) with enhanced instructions and monetary reinforcement (14). And lastly, a non‐experimental task, ‘Where is Willy?’ In this task, the subject received detailed cartoon drawings varying in complexity and was asked to identify given items, persons or situations.…”