Nelson Roque

A New Tool for Assessing Mobile Device Proficiency in Older Adults: The Mobile Device Proficiency Questionnaire.

Mobile device proficiency is increasingly required to participate in society. Unfortunately, there still exists a digital divide between younger and older adults, especially with respect to mobile devices (i.e., tablet computers and smartphones). Training is an important goal to ensure that older adults can reap the benefits of these devices. However, efficient/effective training depends on the ability to gauge current proficiency levels. We developed a new scale to accurately assess the mobile device proficiency of older adults: the Mobile Device Proficiency Questionnaire (MDPQ). We present and validate the MDPQ and a short 16-question version of the MDPQ (MDPQ-16). The MDPQ, its subscales, and the MDPQ-16 were found to be highly reliable and valid measures of mobile device proficiency in a large sample. We conclude that the MDPQ and MDPQ-16 may serve as useful tools for facilitating mobile device training of older adults and measuring mobile device proficiency for research purposes.

Evidence for Narrow Transfer after Short-Term Cognitive Training in Older Adults

The degree to which “brain training” can improve general cognition, resulting in improved performance on tasks dissimilar from the trained tasks (transfer of training), is a controversial topic. Here, we tested the degree to which cognitive training, in the form of gamified training activities that have demonstrated some degree of success in the past, might result in broad transfer. Sixty older adults were randomly assigned to a gamified cognitive training intervention or to an active control condition that involved playing word and number puzzle games. Participants were provided with tablet computers and asked to engage in their assigned training for 30 45-min training sessions over the course of 1 month. Although intervention adherence was acceptable, little evidence for transfer was observed except for the performance of one task that most resembled the gamified cognitive training: There was a trend for greater improvement on a version of the corsi block tapping task for the cognitive training group relative to the control group. This task was very similar to one of the training games. Results suggest that participants were learning specific skills and strategies from game training that influenced their performance on a similar task. However, even this near-transfer effect was weak. Although the results were not positive with respect to broad transfer of training, longer duration studies with larger samples and the addition of a retention period are necessary before the benefit of this specific intervention can be ruled out.

The Gamification of Cognitive Training: Older Adults’ Perceptions of and Attitudes Toward Digital Game-Based Interventions

There has been recent excitement over the potential for commercial and custom digital games to reverse age-related perceptual and cognitive decline. The effectiveness of digital game-based brain training is controversial. However, a separate issue is, should digital game-based interventions prove effective, how best to design these interventions to encourage intervention engagement and adherence by older adults (ages 65 +). This study explored older adults’ perceptions and attitudes toward game-based interventions after they were asked to play digital games (experimental or control games) for a month-long period. Clear differences in attitudes toward game-based interventions were observed, as assessed by post-intervention surveys, with older adults finding games in the control condition (word and number puzzle games) more enjoyable and less frustrating compared to a digital game that consisted of gamified brain training interventions that have demonstrated some degree of success in the literature. Interestingly, older adults perceived the control condition as more likely to boost perceptual and cognitive abilities (e.g., vision, reaction time), as assessed by a post-intervention survey of expectations. Although predicting intervention adherence was challenging, overall motivation to do well in the intervention was significantly related to perceptions of cognitive benefit. Not surprisingly, game enjoyment also predicted motivation. Finally, older adults who perceived the game they were assigned to play as more challenging were more likely to believe the game would boost cognition. These findings identify attitudes and beliefs that could be targeted to motivate older adults to adhere to digital game-based interventions found to boost cognition. To better explore factors related to intervention adherence in the future we propose studies of longer duration (e.g., 6–12 months) and studies that allow more flexibility and choice with respect to amount of gameplay (instead of gameplay being dictated by a fixed schedule determined by the experimenter, leaving less variability to be explained by individual difference factors).

Exploring the relationship between object realism and object-based attention effects.

Visual attention prioritizes processing of locations in space, and evidence also suggests that the benefits of attention can be shaped by the presence of objects (object-based attention). However, the prevalence of object-based attention effects has been called into question recently by evidence from a large-sampled study employing classic attention paradigms (Pilz et al., 2012). We conducted two experiments to explore factors that might determine when and if object-based attention effects are observed, focusing on the degree to which the concreteness and realism of objects might contribute to these effects. We adapted the classic attention paradigm first reported by Egly, Driver, and Rafal (1994) by replacing abstract bar stimuli in some conditions with objects that were more concrete and familiar to participants: items of silverware. Furthermore, we varied the realism of these items of silverware, presenting either cartoon versions or photo-realistic versions. Contrary to predictions, increased realism did not increase the size of object-based effects. In fact, no clear object-based effects were observed in either experiment, consistent with previous failures to replicate these effects in similar paradigms. While object-based attention may exist, and may have important influences on how we parse the visual world, these and other findings suggest that the two-object paradigm typically relied upon to study object-based effects may not be the best paradigm to investigate these issues.

Action Video Games DO NOT Promote Visual Attention

Since the release of the first commercially available video games, scientists, the media, and the public have been fascinated by the idea that game play might have negative or positive effects on the gamer. Much of the scientific research on gaming has focused on whether game play might increase aggression or encourage violence. However, a growing body of research over the past few decades has also explored whether video games are good for us, specifically whether game play might improve a variety of perceptual and cognitive abilities in fundamental and meaningful ways. This literature appears to demonstrate that not all games are created equal and that action video games (e.g., fast-paced first-person shooters) have an uncanny ability to improve vision and attention compared to other types of games or experiences. This chapter critically examines these claims, the logic underlying them, and the evidence used to support them. While early reports of action game benefits were promising, this chapter explores whether these findings hold up to more careful scrutiny. In the face of a variety of methodological concerns, failures to replicate, and over a century of research on how we learn, we urge skepticism regarding claims that action video games promote enhanced vision and attention. We conclude by providing guidelines for how more definitive conclusions regarding the benefits of game training might be reached.

Exploring Older Adults’ Video Game Use in the PRISM Computer System

Abstract Background and Objective As part of the PRISM (Personal Reminder Information & Social Management) randomized field trial, a large group of older adults (N = 150) received a computer system in their home that presented them with the opportunity to play eleven different video games. While researchers have often assessed older adults’ gaming preferences and habits through survey data and focus groups, this trial represented a unique opportunity to study gaming behavior “in the wild” over an entire year. Research Design and Methods We present an exploration of game usage data, individual differences in game preferences and gaming habits, and individual difference predictors of game use. Results Although few individual difference variables consistently predicted game use and preferences, there were clear favorites among the different games, and results demonstrate that given the opportunity and training many older adults may become active and long-term gamers. Discussion and Implications Findings have implications for designing video games that older adults enjoy, supporting enjoyable and meaningful interactions with video games across the life span, and for designing cognitive, social, and health interventions involving games.

Hand proximity effects are fragile: a useful null result

Placing one’s hands near an object has been reported to enhance visual processing in a number of ways. We explored whether hand proximity confers an advantage when applied to complex visual search. In one experiment, participants indicated the presence or absence of a target item in a baggage x-ray image by pressing response boxes located at the edge of a tablet computer screen, requiring them to grip the display between their hands. Alternatively, they responded using a mouse held within their lap. Contrary to expectations, hand position did not influence search performance. In a second experiment, participants used their finger to trace along the x-ray image while searching. In addition to any effect of hand proximity it was predicted that this strategy would encourage a more systematic search strategy. Participants inspected bags longer using this strategy, but this did not translate into improved target detection. A third experiment attempted to replicate the near-hands advantage in a change detection paradigm featuring simple stimuli (Tseng and Bridgeman, Experimental Brain Research 209:257–269, 2011), and the same equipment and hand positions as Experiment 1, but was unable to do so. One possibility is that the grip posture associated with holding a tablet is not conducive to producing a near-hands advantage. A final experiment tested this hypothesis with a direct replication of Tseng and Bridgeman, in which participants responded to stimuli presented on a CRT monitor using keys attached to the side of the monitor. Still, no near-hands advantage was observed. Our results suggest that the near-hands advantage may be sensitive to small differences in procedure, a finding that has important implications for harnessing the near-hands advantage to produce better performance in applied contexts.

Changing similarity: Stable and flexible modulations of psychological dimensions

Successfully categorizing objects requires discriminating between relevant and irrelevant dimensions (e.g., shape, color). Categorization can lead to changes in the visual system that stretch psychological space, making relevant dimensions more distinct and irrelevant dimensions more similar. These changes are known as dimensional modulation (DM) and they can be both stable and flexible in nature. The current study examined the interaction between stable DM and flexible DM, as well as the time course of relative changes in similarity. Using a two-dimensional space of cars, participants learned to categorize the space and then completed a target identification task during EEG recording. We found that attention, operationally defined as the selection negativity, was sensitive to category-relevance and appeared to selectively enhance previously irrelevant differences in the service of a target detection task. In contrast, we found that late decisional stages, operationally defined as the P3 b, were less sensitive to relevance and instead more sensitive to the number of morphsteps that separated targets from non-targets. Thus, it appears that relative similarity between targets and non-targets dynamically changed over the time course of individual decisions. Similarity between exemplars was greater along the irrelevant than the relevant dimension early on in the time course but a compensatory allocation of attention led to similarity being optimized among all dimensions for later stages. This finding is important because it 1) provides a new source of converging evidence for stable DM and 2) links a neural measure of attentional modulation with facilitation of an unpracticed, but task-relevant perceptual dimension.

The Flashing Right Turn Signal with Pedestrian Indication: A Human Factors Study to Assess Driver Comprehension

Given the increased fatality risk of older pedestrians, and the large and growing older adult population in the United States and around the world, many countermeasures to ensure aging pedestrian safety have been explored (e.g., different types of crosswalk markings). The present study sought to investigate the potential of an experimental countermeasure, the flashing pedestrian indicator (FPI). This signal, intended for right-turning drivers, alternates between a yellow arrow and a pedestrian symbol when a pedestrian calls for a walk phase at a signalized intersection. The purpose of this signal is to cue right-turning drivers to the potential presence of a pedestrian, encourage scanning to the right for crossing pedestrians, and promote driver yielding behaviors. We conducted a study to gauge the comprehension of drivers who were naive to the signal to explore if the FPI’s intended message was understood. Participants were presented with scenarios depicting the FPI and other signal states and were asked the meaning of the observed signal (open-ended and multiple choice questions). Comprehension was tested across a range of age groups: younger (21–35 years), middle-aged (50–64), and older adult (65+) drivers. While in general the signal was understood, some participants were confused regarding the meaning of the FPI in certain situations. Potential positive effects of the FPI need to be weighed against potential confusion before any further recommendations can be made regarding the FPI as a potential countermeasure to assist with pedestrian crashes.

Category learning causes a stable advantage for category-relevant shape dimensions during a task requiring attention to all dimensions: ERP evidence

Objects di er along many di erent dimensions: shape, size, color, etc. These dimensions help us categorize objects in the world. Through experience we learn that certain dimensions--say shape--are important for certain categories--say cars--and we develop a stable ability to preferentially discriminate those dimensions. But we also learn to flexibly alter the relative discriminability of dimensions based on the current demands of our environment. In both stable and flexible cases, relevant dimensions become easier to discriminate than irrelevant dimensions. This is a process known as dimensional modulation.