Anna Levén

Prospective Memory, Working Memory, Retrospective Memory and Self-Rated Memory Performance in Persons with Intellectual Disability

The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between prospective memory, working memory, retrospective memory and self-rated memory capacity in adults with and without intellect ...

The relationship between prospective memory, working memory and self-rated memory performance in individuals with intellectual disability

In the present study, prospective memory, working memory and self-rated memory performance were assessed in five individuals with intellectual disability and 10 individuals without intellectual disability. Prospective memory was taxed by means of a video-based procedure and a more naturalistic task, working memory was taxed by means of digit and picture span tasks, and a questionnaire was used to measure self-rated prospective and retrospective memory. The spread of performance was wide on prospective memory and working memory tasks, foremost for individuals with intellectual disability. Self-rated memory did not differ between the two groups, although there were large differences in memory performance on the other memory tasks. The results are interpreted in terms of how limitations in working memory contribute to prospective memory failures among individuals with intellectual disability. To remember ‘when to’ perform a prospective memory task seems to be more difficult to master than remembering ‘what to do’ for individuals with intellectual disability.

Pictures as cues or as support to verbal cues at encoding and execution of prospective memories in individuals with intellectual disability

This study focused on prospective memory in persons with intellectual disability and age-matched controls. Persons with intellectual disability have limited prospective memory function. We investigated prospective memory with words and pictures as cues at encoding and retrieval. Prospective and episodic memory was estimated from Prospective Memory Game performance. Pictures at retrieval were important for prospective memory in particular in the intellectual disability group. Prospective memory performance imposed a cost to Episodic Memory (ongoing task) performance in the intellectual disability group. This group was outperformed by the control group on working memory, time reproduction, time concepts, and Ravens coloured progressive matrices. To conclude, pictures at retrieval improve prospective memory performance compared to words as cues. This can be essential for the intellectual disability group likely due to limited episodic and working memory capacity and the ability to switch attention.