Research

Current Projects

Aging and Working Memory Training

P.I. Alexandru Iordan

This long-term project investigates changes in the neural mechanisms of working memory after several days of training. Participants undergo a series of fMRI scans, neuropsychological assessments, and ten days of training on a computerized working memory task. We aim to identify functional changes in brain activation and possible changes in measures of neural efficiency associated with working memory training. We also aim to identify age-related differences in these changes by including both younger (18-24) and older (65+) adults in this study.

Additional Readings:

Iordan, ADMoored, KDKatz, B., Cooke, K. A., Buschkuehl, M., Jaeggi, S. M., Polk, T. A., Peltier, S. J., Jonides, J., Reuter-Lorenz, P. A. Age differences in functional network reconfiguration with working memory trainingHuman Brain Mapping2020122https://doi.org/10.1002/hbm.25337

Iordan, A. D., Cooke, K. A., Moored, K. D., Katz, B., Buschkuehl, M., Jaeggi, S. M., Polk, T. A., Peltier, S. J., Jonides, J., & Reuter-Lorenz, P. A. (2020). Neural Correlates of Working Memory Training: Evidence for Plasticity in Older Adults. NeuroImage, 116887. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.116887

Iordan, A. D., Cooke, K. A., Moored, K. D., Katz, B., Buschkuehl, M., Jaeggi, S. M., Jonides, J., Peltier, S. J., Polk, T. A., & Reuter-Lorenz, P. A. (2018). Aging and Network Properties: Stability Over Time and Links with Learning during Working Memory Training. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience9https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2017.00419


Cognitive and Affective Distraction on Working Memory

P.I. Alexandru Iordan

Distractions occur often in our daily lives and can affect our ability to remain focused on goal-oriented tasks. For instance, receiving a distressing text message may interfere with one’s ability to remain focused on studying for an exam. The process known as working memory is critical for the maintenance of goal-oriented information, but the mechanisms of this phenomenon are still being investigated. We aim to understand how distraction impacts working memory performance and furthermore, what are the underlying brain mechanisms responsible for this effect.


Emotion and Working Memory

P.I. Colleen Frank

We seek to understand how working memory functions with emotional feeling states as the memoranda. Our research currently investigates in what way this ability, known as affective working memory, plays a role in higher order affective and cognitive processing.

Additional Readings:

Mikels, J. A., Larkin, G.R., Reuter-Lorenz, P.A., & Carstensen, L. L. (2005). Divergent trajectories in the aging mind: Changes in working memory for affective versus visual information with age. Psychology and Aging. 20(4), 542-553.

Broome, R., Gard, D. E., & Mikels, J. A. (2012). Test–retest reliability of an emotion maintenance task, Cognition and Emotion, 26(4), 737-747.


Effects of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation

P.I. Colleen Frank

We are currently examining the effects of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on working memory training.  We are interested to see if the addition of the non-invasive brain stimulation yields significant improvements in performance above and beyond the training alone.

Additional Readings:

Jantz, T. K., Katz, B., & Reuter-Lorenz, P. A. (2016). Uncertainty and promise: the effects of transcranial direct current stimulation on working memory. Current Behavioral Neuroscience Reports, 3(2), 109-121.


Cognitive Offloading

P.I. Lilian Cabrera

The limitations of many of our cognitive functions have been well documented. For example, we can only hold a limited amount of information active in memory. When the cognitive demands of a task increase, we can either continue relying on our internal memory processes to remember information or, we can “offload” the demands into the external environment, a behavior referred to as cognitive offloading (Risko & Gilbert, 2016). While individuals of any age can engage in cognitive offloading, this strategy can be especially useful for older adults to compensate for age-related declines in cognition so that they can better meet the demands of everyday life. We are currently investigating factors that influence individuals’ decision to offload and the cognitive consequences of this behavior.

Additional Readings:

Risko, E. F., & Gilbert, S. J. (2016). Cognitive Offloading. Trends in Cognitive Science, 20(9), 676-688.


Value Learning

P.I. Lilian Cabrera

Reinforcement learning enables agents to make optimal decisions (maximize gains, minimize losses). We are investigating how learning scenes associated with high or low probability gains or losses to understand how outcome valence and motivational salience influence learning. We are also exploring how the outcome valence and motivational salience, in turn, influence what we explicitly remember about the scenes. The effects of monetary incentives were also examined.

Additional Readings:

O’Brien, J. L., & Raymond, J. E. (2012). Learned predictiveness speeds visual processing. Psychological Science, 23(4), 359-363.

Raymond, J. E., & O’Brien, J. L. (2009). Selective visual attention and motivation: The consequences of value learning in an attentional blink task. Psychological Science, 20(8), 981-988.


Binding

P.I. Kathy Xie

Associative binding (also referred to as associative or relational memory) is memory for the relationship between single units of information. Binding is important for everyday tasks like remembering where your keys are (object-location binding) or remembering someone’s name (face-name binding). Older adults have more trouble remembering the relationship between items than the items themselves (Old & Naveh-Benjamin, 2008), causing researchers to theorize that a binding impairment is why older adults often fail to remember events in episodic memory (Bartsch et al., 2019). We are currently investigating the effects of binding during working memory on episodic memory.

Past Projects