Working memory, attention control, and the n-back task: A question of construct validity.

Abstract

The N-back task requires participants to decide whether each stimulus in a sequence matches the one that appeared n items ago. Although N-back has become a standard "executive" working memory (WM) measure in cognitive neuroscience, it has been subjected to few behavioral tests of construct validity. A combined experimental- correlational study tested the attention-control demands of verbal 2- and 3-back tasks by presenting n = 1 "lure" foils. Lures elicited more false alarms than control foils in both 2- and 3-back tasks, and lures caused more misses to targets that immediately followed them compared with control targets, but only in 3-back tasks. N-back thus challenges control over familiarity-based responding. Participants also completed a verbal WM span task (operation span task) and a marker test of general fluid intelligence (Gf; Ravens Advanced Progressive Matrices Test; J. C. Raven, J. E. Raven, & J. H. Court, 1998). N-back and WM span correlated weakly, suggesting they do not reflect primarily a single construct; moreover, both accounted for independent variance in Gf. N-back has face validity as a WM task, but it does not demonstrate convergent validity with at least 1 established WM measure.

Interference and facilitation in spatial working memory: Age-associated differences in lure effects in the n-back paradigm.

“…Comparisons of age groups showed stronger interference effects for lure items in the older group, with a clear temporal decay, paired with facilitation for targets. These results are in line with those of earlier studies that demonstrated interference effects on accuracy for lures with relatively short lags (Gray et al, 2003;Kane et al, 2007;Oberauer, 2005;Perlstein et al, 2004). Furthermore, our n-back data also show, for the first time, facilitation for targets relative to nontargets among older adults.…”

Potentiation of Gamma Oscillatory Activity through Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation of the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex

“…Earlier studies that have examined the convergent validity between the N-back task and other WM measures, such as the operation span task (OSPAN), show correlations with lower WM loads (Shelton et al, 2007) and varied results with the 3-back condition (Shelton et al, 2007;Kane et al, 2007). Such studies suggest that at higher WM loads, attentional components and/or short-term memory processes may be measured rather than WM capacity exclusively.…”

Effects of anxiety and cognitive load on instrument scanning behavior in a flight simulation

“…This task consisted of a series of stimuli (spoken consonants) that were sequentially played at an interstimulus interval of two seconds [22]. For each stimulus, the participant was instructed to respond as quickly and accurately as possible if it was a target.…”