Neurophysiological measures of working memory and individual differences in cognitive ability and cognitive style
Neurophysiological measures of working memory and individual differences in cognitive ability and cognitive style
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DOI：
10.1093/cercor/10.9.829
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发表时间：
2000-09-01
期刊：
影响因子：
3.7
通讯作者：
Smith, ME
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Gevins, A;Smith, ME
有意控制注意力以在工作记忆中保持和操纵信息的能力对高级认知功能至关重要。这表明，一般认知能力的主体之间的差异可能与支持工作记忆和注意力控制的大脑系统活动的可观察差异有关。为了验证这一观点，我们记录了80名健康年轻人在空间工作记忆任务中的脑电图。任务相关的神经生理学和行为变量的措施来自于这些数据，并与通常用于评估一般认知能力（WAIS-R）的测试组合的分数进行比较。在心理测试中得分高的受试者在实验任务中的反应也往往更快，而不会损失任何准确性。高能力被试的事件相关电位的晚期正成分的幅度较大，并且在持续操作和高工作记忆负荷条件下，该组EEG信号的额中线θ成分也选择性增强。这些结果表明，在WAIS-R上得分高的受试者能够更好地集中和保持对任务表现的注意力。在脑电α节律的变化，以应对操作的任务实践和负载也进行了检查和比较额叶和顶叶区域之间。结果表明，高能力受试者制定的策略相对更多地利用顶叶区域，而低能力受试者则更多地依赖额叶区域。其他分析表明，阿尔法波段测量的半球不对称性区分了具有相对较高的语言能力和非语言能力的个体。特别是，言语认知风格的受试者往往在任务执行过程中更多地使用左顶叶区域，而非言语风格的受试者往往更多地使用右顶叶区域。这些结果有助于澄清任务相关的大脑活动与认知能力和风格的个体差异之间的关系。
The capacity to deliberately control attention in order to hold and manipulate information in working memory is critical to higher cognitive functions. This suggests that between-subject differences in general cognitive ability might be related to observable differences in the activity of brain systems that support working memory and attention control. To test this notion, electroencephalograms were recorded from 80 healthy young adults during spatial working memory tasks. Measures of task-related neurophysiological and behavioral variables were derived from these data and compared to scores on a test battery commonly used to assess general cognitive ability (the WAIS-R). Subjects who scored high on the psychometric test also tended to respond faster in the experimental tasks without any loss of accuracy. The amplitude of the late positive component of the event-related potential was larger in high-ability subjects, and the frontal midline theta component of the EEG signal was also selectively enhanced in this group under conditions of sustained performance and high working memory load. These results suggest that subjects who scored high on the WAIS-R were better able to focus and sustain attention to task performance. Changes in the EEG alpha rhythm in response to manipulations of task practice and load were also examined and compared between frontal and parietal regions. The results indicated that high-ability subjects developed strategies that made relatively greater use of parietal regions, whereas low-ability subjects relied more exclusively on frontal regions. Other analyses indicated that hemispheric asymmetries in alpha band measures distinguish between individuals with relatively high verbal aptitude and those with relatively high nonverbal aptitude. In particular, subjects with a verbal cognitive style tended to make greater use of the left parietal region during task performance, and subjects with a nonverbal style tended to make greater use of the right parietal region. These results help clarify relationships between task related brain activity and individual differences in cognitive ability and style.