Spaced-Retrieval with Probable Alzheimer's

Abstract

Four older adults with probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) were trained to recall everyday objects using the spaced-retrieval technique. Two persons who had participated in a previous spaced-retrieval training program were retested here to provide new evidence on the long-term effectiveness of the training. Two others who had not been tested previously served as controls. Spaced-retrieval training consisted of six-hour-long sessions given on alternate days over a two-week period. On each trial, participants selected a designated object from an array of items at increasingly longer retention intervals. All participants showed positive effects of spaced-retrieval training across sessions, as reflected in fewer errors per trial and longer retention duration across sessions. There was little evidence of long-term effects of spaced-retrieval training in that the original and control participants performed comparably. Implications of these results for the long-term maintenance of memory training programs are discussed.

Spaced Retrieval Enhances Memory for a Name-Face-Occupation Association in Older Adults With Probable Alzheimer's Disease

“…To our knowledge, our results are the first to show retention of an association that includes social information about the target person (i.e., name, face, and occupation). Our findings are also compatible with prior research in which spaced retrieval effects were found using common household objects as the training material (Cherry & Simmons-D'Gerolamo, 2004, 2005.…”

<p>Spaced Retrieval and Episodic Memory Training in Alzheimer’s Disease</p>

“…Regarding the latter, providing semantic cues to support encoding as well as retrieval has been found to produce similar memorial benefits for persons with AD and healthy older adults. 54,87,88 Because memory is enhanced when relevant information is presented at both the encoding and retrieval stages, not having the iPad available during the encoding stage in the present study may have had a negative effect on the participants' response outcomes. If instead we had introduced and drew attention to the iPad before and during the event, it may have supported encoding of the iPad as an integral part of the event.…”

“…Adjusting the spaced retrieval training, for example, by extending training intervals or training sessions, may lead to more durable representations of the core details. 54 Different SR training and interval schedules have been applied in previous SR studies. Additional training sessions may provide participants with more opportunities to encode the target core details to the point where their spontaneous recall performance would plateau, reaching a state of little or no change following a steep increase.…”

“…Therefore, in the present study, we increased the number of training sessions (from 2 to 4) and opportunities for rehearsal in order to optimize deeper encoding of event details and spontaneous recall. Some support for the benefits of an increase in training duration comes from Cherry and Simmons-D'Gerolamo, 54 who reported better training outcomes following 6 (than 3) training sessions [cp. 55 ].…”

Once-Weekly Spaced Retrieval Training Is Effective in Supporting Everyday Memory Activities in Community Dwelling Older People with Dementia

“…If subsequent trials are successful, intervals are increased by approximately doubling each inter-trial interval (i.e., 5, 10, 20, 40, 60, 120 seconds, 4, 8, 16 minutes). If a recall attempt is unsuccessful, then the to-be-learned information is presented again, immediate recall solicited and the next inter-trial interval goes back to that of the previous successful attempt (see for example : Brush & Camp, 1998;Camp, 1998;Cherry & Simmons-D'Gerolamo, 2004;. Participants were trained to an achievement criterion of a 20-minute inter-trial interval.…”